We need to face the truth of the limits of our perceptions and look again at who Jesus is revealing Himself to be. Jesus' words are an invitation to contemplation, a call to awareness. His admonition is the gentle but powerful reminder that a great deal of the work we do as we follow Him along the Way is to keep opening our eyes and ears to the truth of who He is. He can never be exhaustively described by us. There is always more about Him to discover. The ingredients of mystery and humility are part of what fuels our journey with Him.
David Rohrer, The Sacred Wilderness of Pastoral Ministry
Premodernism asserted that there was an objective truth that could be known by those who had the skill to see it. Modernism objected that truth was relative, that different people saw truth differently according to their own situations. Postmodernism insists that there is no truth at all, that whatever truth there might be must be created by each person, for any larger claims to truth are in reality disguised bids for power. The meta-narrative of the Christian community compassionately demonstrates that Jesus is the Truth, an objective Truth who can be known. We know Him only partially, but because we know Him we do not have to try to create truth for ourselves. Furthermore, His truth is not oppressive, for as Mark Schwehn emphasizes,
For Christianity, the quest for truth is bound up inextricably with discipleship, and therefore the
shape of power is for them always cruciform...So long as Christians remember that, for disciples,
power is not dominion but obedience, faithfulness, and suffering servanthood, they can rightly
claim an integral connection between truth and power.
The Christian story we offer to our neighbors introduces them to Jesus, the Truth, who brings healing to postmodernists' fractured souls.
Order of Worship, April 28 2013
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