Thinking about the Bailout

Capital Commentary did a good job this week with some thoughtful reflection on the beginning of the Obama presidency.  Here a bit of what was written.  You can catch the rest via the link.

"In his inaugural address, President Barack Obama promised to harness old and true values to new instruments in order to face new challenges and remake America. He urged struggle, sacrifice and risk-taking. The speech was short on inspiration and free of acrimony. The president chastised individual villains for their greed but also urged his audience to assume a collective guilt for failing to make “hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age.”

The faces of the audience registered exuberance and ambivalence. Eager to celebrate, the speech offered them few invitations to do so. There was much to celebrate as an African-American took the oath, bringing to a climax the long trajectory from slavery to emancipation, through segregation to Brown v Board of Education, and from the dream of Martin Luther King Jr. to the hope symbolized in Barack Obama. But the president let the spectacle speak for itself. He stood at the podium symbolizing the distance his country has traveled but he offered the assembled multitudes only blood, sweat and tears. Surely some racist barriers crumbled, surely the moment redeemed some past agonies, and surely future generations will affirm January 20, 2009 as a seminal moment in America’s remaking. But how does that redemption speak to, let alone face down, the “tyranny of the urgent” presented by the economic crisis?"

The Obama Economic Plan

As we look at the stimulus package a good place to go to ask questions about the best path to take is an organization called Cardus.  Cardus is a thinktank that seeks to ReThink, ReSearch, and ReBuild.  The budget analysis they do reflects the Canadian budget, but the themes of both the U.S. and Canadian budgets overlap.  So take a look and use the Cardus document for reflection and conversation.

A New City

In his book Cities of God Rodney Stark gives us a picture into the cities of the Apostle Paul's day. The picture is grim.  People die at such an alarming rate that new people from the countryside have to come into the city if cities are going to survive.  The cities are dirty places filled with disease and just a general nastiness.  Cities are unsafe. No one goes out at night without an armed guard.  People in the cities are so often maimed that you described people who had the same name by their deformities so you knew who you were talking about.

Given how horrific cities are (Think the movie Bladerunner) I would assume that like Bladerunner (I know, I'm talking about the "original" ending to the movie) that hope would come in escaping city and finding the pristine wonder of the country and nature.  However, the Bible goes in a very unexpected direction.  Instead of having people escape the city when the end of time comes, the Bible speaks of a new and renewed city.  A place where there are none of the horrors of the present city, but instead a place free from death or crying or mourning or pain.  

I can't help but wonder what people who lived in the horrors of the cities thought when those words of Revelation reached them.  

I also wonder why God chooses not to return us to the garden of eden (given the nastiness of cities, why not run back to nature as so many want to do in our day).  As the old song puts it, "we've got to get back to the garden."  Instead of a garden we get a city.  Could it be that God loves cities?  Could it be that God's word to us is if he can take a place as horrible and nasty as the cities of Paul's day and make them new, then he can do it with anything?  Even us.

Simple but profound

3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. 4 Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 5 but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: 6 whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked. 1 John 2

These words have struck me over and over again. If we are going to say that we belong to Christ we need to walk in the way he walked i.e. to live as he lived. God's love is perfected or made whole in us as we live this kind of life. Simple, but profound.

An unintended funny

I was doing some study in Ephesians 5 which talks about Jesus making the church without spot. I thought a bit of Greek would be a good thing to figure out just what spot might mean in background, classical usage and so on. When I checked out the word in the Greek I got a bit of a smile. In the accusative case the word from spot in Greek is spilon :)

Lost Luggage

I thought this was a fun insight from an article in Harpers:

Air travel is like death: everything is taken from you.

Here's the context:

On the day of my flight to Moscow, I was late to the airport. Check-in was already closed. Although I was eventually let onto the plane, my suitcase was not, and it subsequently vanished altogether from the Aeroflot informational system. Air travel is like death: everything is taken from you.

What did you do at the office today?

For those who follow the world of politics, here's what President Obama did on his first full day in office (apparently he didn't sleep in after all those Inaugural Balls).

1. Halting the military tribunal process at Guantánamo Bay.

2. Phoning Arab leaders to discuss the Mideast situation.

3. Freezing salaries for senior White House staffers and implementing semi-strict guidelines to stop the K Street revolving door.

4. Embracing openness and an end to “secrecy.”

5. Meeting with top military advisers to plan the Iraq drawdown and the reboot of the Afghanistan war.

6. Convening his economic advisers to discuss the stimulus.

Little Children in 1 John

2.1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but a also for the sins of the whole world.

John’s address to this congregation at Ephesus “My little children”… How many of us would find it OK, to be addressed this way? Esv study says, "1 John 2:1 My little children. John's way of addressing his readers (cf. vv. 12, 28; 3:7, 18; 4:4; 5:21) exemplifies the love to which he summons readers." By the way, this way of speaking is used only by John (seven times) and by Jesus (once) in John 13. 33 Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’
It's kind of cool to see John take up a term used by Jesus and use it himself to address his "disciples". Could John's use of a Jesus term show us that he has become like his master and that he has disciples who are loved enough and also who follow Jesus closely enough that they get to be called "little children"?

But there is also something else. Using the endearing term of little children leads us to see the heart of John. He loves the church of Ephesus and so he wants to keep them from sin. While this is a demand, it is a demand that is awash in love.

“May not sin” when we know the truth, then we can live the truth and move away from sin. The Psalmist says, “Teach me your word that I may not sin against you”; the Word of God is a powerful tool to keep us from sin. A good reason to have it infused into our lives. But the reminder of Jesus is important here: the person who hears and doesn’t do is a builder on the sand… (Matthew 7). And Paul tells us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling (Philippians 2). We can have the word, but not act on the word. When we act, God empowers us to fulfill his word. This is true in so much of our lives. We have things but we do not use them. I have tools that I don’t use so nothing gets built. I have a bike with snow tires but I haven’t ridden it in a month. It’s one thing to have something, it is a totally different deal to do something with it.

A Certain Class of People

More from the world of 1 John

1.7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
In thinking on these words it came to me that people of the light are a certain class of people. I love the idea that people of the light are a certain class of people, a certain kind of people. They are of the class that live according to God’s creational norms and work to master the world in God’s ways. This class, from a scriptural point of view, outweighs all other differences and class distinctions. Paul in 2 Corinthians 5 says, 16So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come! The world looks at all kinds of different class distinctions from race to color to ethnicity. But those who belong to God’s new class of people, those who are in the light, look at only one thing: is this person seeking to live according to God’s creational norms? A life that flows from being a new person in Christ. This is a radically different way of looking at the world.

John makes it clear that while people of the light are of this new class of people, that they are not a perfect people. (Or saying it another way, John recognizes that people of the light are of a certain class of people, not perfect people.) Like a biker might be of the class of people known as bikers and yet make mistakes while riding, so people of the light are people of a class of people, viz. those who are living by God’s creational norms (OT wisdom NT being like Christ who is wisdom), but make mistakes while seeking to live out and understand this way of life. But even here we find that this certain class of people (people of the light) have something different from all others—forgiveness that comes from the blood of Christ.

This forgiveness makes it possible as Luther said, to sin boldly. We can take risks as we seek to live out being people of the light, take some giant leaps not knowing if they will finally reflect being people of the light or they will show how much sin is still in us (think of the way that Christians have tried to evangelize certain populations by destroying their culture and making them western). But even when we try and fail, we find that as people of the light we have one who cleanses us by his blood.

Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address

Fondly do we hope,
Fervently do we pray,
That this mighty scourge of war
May speedily pass away.

From A. Lincoln's second inaugural address. It is considered to be the best inaugural address in history. For more on inaugural history--with some excellent moments of laughter--read Ted Widmer's article in The American Scholar

A Fondness for ignorance

"What we need to talk about, what someone needs to talk about, particularly now, is our ever-deepening ignorance (of politics, of foreign languages, of history, of science, of current affairs, of pretty much everything) and not just our ignorance but our complacency in the face of it, our growing fondness for it. A generation ago the proof of our foolishness, held up to our faces, might still have elicited some redeeming twinge of shame—no longer. Today, across vast swaths of the republic, it amuses and comforts us. We’re deeply loyal to it. Ignorance gives us a sense of community; it confers citizenship; our representatives either share it or bow down to it or risk our wrath." Mark Slouka in Harpers

Reflections

Richard Pearle has some interesting reflections on the Bush Presidency. If you are up for a good and rather long read, this is the place to go.

A Rare Opportunity

In one of the opening episodes of this season's 24 the protagonist, Jack Bauer, sits in senate committee hearings to determine if his actions of torture should bring him prison time. Later in the episode when someone laments how he is being treated his response is that the American People have to decide what they want to have done to keep them safe. It is a telling moment, but not only for 24 and its on-going penchant for torture to get information, but for us. Many questions are being raised about war crimes as they relate to prisoner interrogation during the Bush administration. Wherever one stands on this issue it seems that this may be a rare opportunity for us (U.S. Citizens) to do some deep thinking and moral reflection on just what we are willing to do in times of fear and worry. What lines are we willing to cross, believing that in crossing them we will keep ourselves safe?
Scott Horton in Harpers raises the question about a judge who approved the "torture" techniques used in the past few years. He writes, "Jay Bybee is a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, which sits in San Francisco. He is also a suspected war criminal and the author, together with John Yoo, of the most infamous legal memorandum in U.S. history, the torture memo of August 1, 2002. How can a man who might be a war criminal sit on one of the nation’s most important courts?"
Such questions and moments as these really do give us a rare opportunity for public discourse on important moral issues. The question is, "Will we take the opporunity or will we just switch on 24, suspend our judgment and watch Jack do his thing?"
Two last questions--where is the place where civil and informed dialogue on such matters can take place? Can the church be such a place? If so, how? And, are we willing to study, reflect, and think enough to actually take part in such a dialogue--not simply spewing what we already think we know or grabbing only what we think from our present political side of the street?

Good Ideas, but will they work?

In reading all kinds of different magazines, op-eds and so on I am regularly struck by how knowledgeable folks can sound and how reasonable their proposals (say for peace in the Middle East) can seem. But if it were all so easy and we were all so wise, then all would be well. It seems there is never an accounting for the lack of reasoned reaction of people involved in such conflicts (Just as there is a lack of reasoned reaction in many of our personal conflicts, although we are convinced that we are being reasonable.). In looking toward the Obama administration many are pinning their hopes on Dennis Ross "his middle east guru" . But not all are so hopeful as the article from Harpers points out. It will be interesting and no doubt painful to see where Ross' wisdom runs into the real world of sin, evil, and just plain cantankerousness of those he is dealing with.

Light

1.5 This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

What is first of all unexpected is that “this is the message”, I would not have expected this, namely that God is the light, to be “the message”. Rather I'd think of the message as "Jesus died for our sins" or "God loves us", God being light doesn't seem to have the punch of something called "the message". Not only so, but I can't remember the last time that someone said to me that "the message" is that God is light. This just isn't part of the evangelical lexicon.
But when I started looking I found not only is this "the message", it is in fact a comprehensive and wonderful message that gives a broad view to what Christ is all about in the world.
First, the message flows back to the beginning of John’s gospel, John 1:4 in him was life,* and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. John 1:7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light. John 1:9 The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
The whole light deal is not at all odd to John. But what is really telling in all of this is what light is all about. "[Light] enables us to grasp and master the world; to see it is life. Light brings freedom, deliverance, and hope. It is thus an object of praise. It denotes what is publicly known. It accompanies divine manifestations. The light of knowledge brings illumination." Light, then, is the fullness of salvation--freedom, deliverance, an ability to see what is real and master the ways of living in God's good but fallen creation. One last thing on light. Light is what will comes when God returns. God is all about bringing the fullness of light when he brings his new creation in its fullness.
So the message really is that God is light. It's a good thing to hang onto in dark days.

The Journey with John Continues

John is proving to be a great read and a very thought provoking book. Here are the first 4 verses:

1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life— 2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us— 3 that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. 4 And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.

Just a couple of notes out of verse 3

seen (Greek: oraw) may carry the meaning of not merely seeing, but to perceive with the mind, to understand

heard (Greek: akouw) "What we have heard" is parallel to the OT Shema, true hearing leads to faith and obedience, so John is telling those he is writing to that he is a person who has heard the message of Christ and is obedient to it.

What John has understood and what he has obeyed (this conveys a richness in connection with Jesus being the eternal life/best life possible guy) he is not passing on to his readers. He does this so that they can have fellowship “us”. This is a very important point: true fellowship (koinonia) is rooted in understanding who Christ is and living in obedience to his words, this goes beyond enjoying each others company and redefines our idea of “deep community” Deep community or true Kononia is not first about really getting to know another person, rather it is about both being people who understand who Jesus is and live obedient lives in the light of his words. We already have fellowship with any person who fits this way of life. It is a reminder that the gospel message binds together those who receive it. This idea reminds me of the words that Jesus spoke about marriage: “what God has joined together, let no one separate.” By nature of our being people who understand and obey the words of Christ, we are bound together into community; that is the reality, what we have to work at is tearing that community apart; something we seem to do rather well, most often by ignoring our unity in Christ and focusing on the disunity that comes from any number of things from personality differences to pride to …. In this we lessen the prayer of Jesus, "Make them one Father as we are one."

Israel, Gaza and Hannah Arendt

An interesting article about the importance of politics and having a state to call home if one is to be protected from violence in The New Yorker. Agree or disagree it does at least give us another point at which we can discuss how to end the ongoing violence in Israel and Gaza--and other places as well.

An excerpt:

This rejection of inwardness, so constant in Arendt’s work, from “Rahel Varnhagen” on, is the key to what is most valuable in her legacy, and also what is most questionable. No one has argued more forcefully than Arendt that to deprive human beings of their public, political identity is to deprive them of their humanity—and not just metaphorically. In “The Origins of Totalitarianism,” she points out that the first step in the Nazis’ destruction of the Jews was to make them stateless, in the knowledge that people with no stake in a political community have no claim on the protection of its laws.

This is the insight that makes Arendt a thinker for our time, when failed states have again and again become the settings for mass murder. She reveals with remorseless logic why emotional appeals to “human rights” or “the international community” so often prove impotent in the face of a humanitarian crisis. “The Rights of Man, after all, had been defined as ‘inalienable’ because they were supposed to be independent of all governments,” she writes in “Origins,” “but it turned out that the moment human beings lacked their own government and had to fall back upon their minimum rights, no authority was left to protect them and no institution was willing to guarantee them.” This is exactly what happened in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, and what is happening now in Darfur. Genocide is a political problem, Arendt insists, and it can be solved only politically.

More from 1 John

John's letter is loaded with great words and images, some of them may be unexpected. One of the things that I had not noticed before is that John speaks of Jesus not only giving eternal life, but also as being the eternal life.

So here's some more from 1. John 1
2 the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us—

John gives an official report (the word "proclaim" in Greek refers to an official report. This is more than a letter between friends, it is an official document of the Kingdom of God) to his readers about the eternal life (Jesus Christ).

This is a very cool thing. Normally we think of Jesus as giving us eternal life, but here Jesus is called the eternal life. When you check out what eternal life means it basically comes down to living the best life possible. So when Jesus is called THE eternal life we know that he lives the best life possible. John in his gospel spells out that this best life possible (which will make this kind of life possible for all) is doing the will of him who sent me. So if we are looking for the best life possible and also want to be like Jesus, what we need to do is to do the will of God, the monarch of the Kingdom. What makes this particularly great is that we can live this life no matter what is going on in our lives. Jesus lives the best life possible when he teaches, when he goes to weddings, when he does signs (John is all about signs in his gospel, not about miracles), and even on the cross. It is worth mentioning that when Jesus does the will of God the end game for him is the Father and Son receiving glory. We read in John 17

17:1 When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, “Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, 2 since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. 3 And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. 4 I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. 5 And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.

One thing we need to be careful of in seeing Jesus living this best life possible: We need to be careful not to think of this eternal life in terms only of his time on earth, we see the fullness of his life in Jesus being prophet, priest and king. A life that is revealed most fully when we see both the gospels and the book of Revelation. This life of prophet, priest, and king also reflects the fullness of our life with God. The 16th century confession of faith, the Heidelberg Catechism says,

Q & A 32

Q. But why are you called a Christian?

A. Because by faith I am a member of Christ^1
and so I share in his anointing.^2
I am anointed
to confess his name,^3
to present myself to him as a living sacrifice of thanks,^4
to strive with a good conscience against sin and the devil
in this life,^5
and afterward to reign with Christ
over all creation
for all eternity.^6

^1 1 Cor. 12:12-27
^2 Acts 2:17 (Joel 2:28); 1 John 2:27
^3 Matt. 10:32; Rom. 10:9-10; Heb. 13:15
^4 Rom. 12:1; 1 Pet. 2:5, 9
^5 Gal. 5:16-17; Eph. 6:11; 1 Tim. 1:18-19
^6 Matt. 25:34; 2 Tim. 2:12

Since John tells us that he proclaims to us the eternal life (gives that official report) it is worth seeing the fullness of that report in the gospel of John and Revelation, plus what he will tell us in this epistle

One last thing on "the eternal life", the eternal life was with the Father and was made manifest: “manifest” is used twice, again stressing that which was once a secret/mystery is now being shown. Jesus who was once a secret/mystery (the kind of Messiah he would be?) has now been shown and made known. And as we see him, we find out how to live the eternal life meant for us.

Leadership Lessons from Darth Vader

Grabbed these leadership lessons from a friend's blog. The original article can be found here

Operating a truly effective organization can be daunting. It requires skill, dedication, a willingness and ability to rebound from failure, bloodlust, and a notable absence of mercy. Mastery of the Dark Side of the Force is also useful. You’re probably asking “how did the empire become The Galactic Empire?”

This article gives you a few of my favorite management secrets, some of which I have passed on to my brother, Chad, who manages the Day Shift at Empire Market. In the spirit of Stephen Covey’s Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, here are what we might call “Nine Habits of Highly Sith-cessful People.”

1. Use Fear. Yoda once said that “fear is the path to the Dark Side.” He couldn’t have been more right; however, his conclusions were wildly off base. Fear can be a great motivator, both for you and for those around you. Fear can help you overcome moral ambiguities by clouding them with the need for action, now. Also, fear is the way to motivate people. You may find their lack of faith disturbing, so you may need to demonstrate your superiority. If someone disagrees with you, Force-choke them until they see things your way.
2. Don’t Tolerate Dissent. Destroy it. Make sure everyone knows that your word is the last word. Demand unwavering faith in your abilities from your inferiors, and if they display a disturbing lack of faith, choke them.
3. Punish Incompetence. Many of your subordinates will be as clumsy as they are stupid. If someone has failed you for the last time, Force-choke them to death and promote someone who knows what they are doing. Keep Force-choking people until someone finally learns his or her lesson.
4. Deal Exclusively On Your Terms. Periodically, you will have to make deals. Alter them at your discretion, and don’t worry about any consequences. I recently had to do this with a mining entrepreneur in the Cloud City of Bespin, who expected to be treated with equanimity. Needless to say, I got what I wanted.
5. Use Loyalty Judiciously. Only submit to a stronger hand, and then try to destroy it once you are powerful enough. Stop at nothing to get to the top.
6. Always Look for Talent. Periodically, you will come across a real gem like my wayward son, Luke. Realize that they can be your key to double-crossing your superiors. If they don’t play along, kill them.

7. Know that Power is what matters. Your ability to assert yourself in a difficult situation depends on your power. If you have power, you can have anything you want. Stop at nothing to get it.

8. Get Out There and Lead. While Grand Moff Tarkin was prematurely celebrating victory over the Rebel Alliance, I was out there shooting at X-wings. Which one of us survived the Death Star attack? That’s right, me.
9. Finally, always remember that an elaborate, far-reaching plan, which relies on people reacting exactly how you plan for them to react, is always better than a simple plan. Nothing illustrates your genius quite like a meticulous, detailed, super-plan which will go horribly awry if people don’t react exactly the way you think they will. Just know who to blame when things don’t go the way you expect them to.

Those are a few brief pointers that I have used to make my climb, from defeated Jedi pulling his mangled corpse out of a volcano to Dark Lord of the Sith overseeing the construction of the ultimate power in the universe. With the right effort, you can, too.

Darth Vader is a Dark Lord of the Sith and second-in-command in the Galactic Empire, where he is the pupil of Emperor Palpatine. He studied the Jedi arts under Obi-Wan Kenobi and serves a Sith apprenticeship with Darth Sidious. Darth’s brother, Chad, is the Day-Shift Manager at Empire Market. This article was co-authored with Mike Hammock.

Good Movies

A few days of vacation always calls me to take some time not only to read but to check out a couple of films. Here is a quick summary of some films worth seeing

Breakfast at Tiffany's: The early 1960's classic starring Audrey Hepburn continues to give some keen insights into the longings of the human heart. The other plus is that some of the lines have become part of our cultural dialogue-so its worth knowing their origin.

Traitor: An excellent thriller with Don Cheadle. There are wonderful twists and turns in the plot, but more importantly there are moral dilemmas that are not easily dealt with that cause us to think in our day as we face terrorism. I believe the film has a 2008 release date.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button: Thoughtful and thought-provoking. The story is of a child who is born old and becomes young. A fairly long film at 166 minutes, it has little action, but is worth the time for its take on life. Afterward it is worth conversation.

Coming to a Theater: Revolutionary Road I saw the trailer for this film. It looks like a film about those who are trapped in the suburban maze when they long for so much more. It will be interesting to see what it is actually all about. In watching just the trailer I was struck by how not having a God directed life so that you can find meaning and serve wherever you are, can quickly lead to despair when you end up where you don't want to be.

Rick Warren and all the Anger

A worthwhile read on Rick Warren's offering the prayer at President-elect Obama's inaugural can be found here. I appreciate the tone of reasoned debate and conversation that the article holds out. One of the ongoing struggles on both far right and far left is an unwillingness to engage in civil dialogue where issues can be argued about freely and pointedly, but without a lack of civility.
One wonders if part of our inability to deal with issues with civility comes from the way the parties carry out scorched earth policies during campaigns. Perhaps if there were in the campaigns that happen every two years civil dialogue and in depth debate we could find another way (think the Lincoln-Douglas debates).
On the other hand, given our unwillingness as a people to think deeply and critically--preferring TV programs like American Idol over Frontline or similar indepth reporting, or for that matter reading (80% of households in America neither purchased nor read a book last year)--perhaps we can blame no one but ourselves that we long for sound bites and battlefield attacks, rather than reasoned and civil debate.

Beginning with John

Reading through 1 John a few weeks ago I was taken with the book and the depth of thought that is in it. I decided at that time to return to 1 John and move beyond reading to a closer study. As I make my way through the book I'll post some of what I've discovered. Here's the start:

1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—

From the beginning: The origin, the first
John is hugely concerned with the historical reality of the message: heard, seen (become acquainted with by experience), looked upon (to learn by looking), touched (felt with hands, groped). My sense is that this physical introduction has to do with those who denied that Jesus Christ is human (John will talk about this later in the book). Here we find the beginnings of a battle against a proto-gnostic idea. But his beginning this way and his concern about those who would deny the true humanity of Christ leads me to wonder why he will choose to teach what follows. This will be truly interesting--John's concern for Jesus being rooted in history and his being truly human leading to teaching certain things. Also, in a gospel that is lifted up for its emphasis on love this seems to be an interesting way to begin -- rooted in history, not in feelings.

A Strange Honor

Thomas Cahill's book on why the Greeks Matter, Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea, points out that for the Greeks and the Greek gods preserving one's honor was paramount. Such honor, however, is not necessarily the kind of honor we think of. Rather, it is a desire to show yourself better than others. The most horrible thing is to be dissed. Someone or some god who is dissed responds in anger, in getting even, in doing whatever it takes to restore their "honor" or their high place.
I thought about what a startling contrast this is with the God of the Bible. He deserves to be honored as well. But his honor is based in covenant dealings with his people, with a willingness to empty himself and become a servant, with a greatness that no one can assail and so honor flows naturally to him. There is no need to demand honor, pursue honor etc., for it is naturally his.
Belonging to such a God also changes and shapes the way his followers think of honor. In particular the words of Paul come to mind, "Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor." Romans 12.10