1 Cor. 12:27-13:13
It's all about love
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
It's all about love
Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. 28And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. 29Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? 30Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? 31But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way.
13
If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant 5or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. 7It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. 9For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; 10but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. 11When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. 12For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. 13And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.
I noted a few days ago in a Blog a book I recently read called God vs. Gay by Jay Michaelson. He used a criteria to judge any given situation. Love. This applied especially to sections of scripture that had conflicting translations, could be read several different ways or were used as a tool to alienate or denigrate groups of people. First of all, if scripture is the word of God, I don't think any translation could ever really be legitimately be used to alienate or denigrate any person or people. Yet the Bible has been used as a weapon for as long as it has been put down on paper. Perhaps even before that. It is a true abomination what actions have been taken, and still are done in the name of God. I can only imagine God weeping in heaven at what we have done. It is a testament to God's love that he has not simply wiped us all away and decided to start all over. It is also a testament to his love, patience and hope in his creations. Finally, his love is a testament to the intrinsic value we hold as his creations, individually and in total.
This passage, often read at weddings is a filter for living, similar to that offered by Mr. Michaelson. Any person or any church, any straight, gay, black, brown, yellow, red, white, Catholic, Muslim, Shinto, Buddhist or Baptist all must use this filter for whatever their 'bible' is. If you do not have love, it's a fail of epic proportions.
In this one passage you can see the illuminated heights of true love and the depths to which organized religions fall. For all the wisdom, authenticity, rubrics and regalia, if there is not love, there is failure.
This coming tuesday several states will have ballot questions on marriage equality. Despite the fact that equality inherent by God should not be a thing to be voted on, they will go forward. Despite historical data to the contrary and despite no definitive Biblical prohibitions, this question of marriage equality comes down to the question of love. Will the state honor a commitment of love between two consenting adults? Can this be a legal contract to be honored? If we use the criteria of love as in this passage and what a relationship is to consist of, the measures should pass. These initiatives should not be about fear mongering or other issues. These initiatives are based on loving committed relationships and based on this passage of scripture alone they pass muster. Using the criteria of Jay Michaelson, they would pass muster not only legally but religiously as well. I stand with him.
The Roman Catholic church has a varied history of inserting itself into civil issues, marriage is one of them. I, religiously, happen to be a person that does believe marriage is a Sacrament. But many other Christian denominations have eclipsed the Roman Catholic church in terms of marriage. While admitting to the sacredness of such bonds, those other Churches use the test of love to maintain the validity of such marriages. Thus a sacramental marriage that fails, does not diminish or negate a lived Sacrament. The Roman Catholic church on the other hand while not allowing for 'divorce', uses some convoluted logic to in essence judge that a given marriage never really was Sacramental. If they were to hold up a committed relationship to the lens of love they would be able to see a marriage does in fact exist but that it can also end. Sadly, they have dug themselves into such a deep hole on this and so many other issues and justified themselves with everything but true and genuine love that they have negated their own moral authority. This is plain for anyone to see. This is why the Catholic church is so split on this and so many issues.
Why? Because in everything, it's all about love.
I noted a few days ago in a Blog a book I recently read called God vs. Gay by Jay Michaelson. He used a criteria to judge any given situation. Love. This applied especially to sections of scripture that had conflicting translations, could be read several different ways or were used as a tool to alienate or denigrate groups of people. First of all, if scripture is the word of God, I don't think any translation could ever really be legitimately be used to alienate or denigrate any person or people. Yet the Bible has been used as a weapon for as long as it has been put down on paper. Perhaps even before that. It is a true abomination what actions have been taken, and still are done in the name of God. I can only imagine God weeping in heaven at what we have done. It is a testament to God's love that he has not simply wiped us all away and decided to start all over. It is also a testament to his love, patience and hope in his creations. Finally, his love is a testament to the intrinsic value we hold as his creations, individually and in total.
This passage, often read at weddings is a filter for living, similar to that offered by Mr. Michaelson. Any person or any church, any straight, gay, black, brown, yellow, red, white, Catholic, Muslim, Shinto, Buddhist or Baptist all must use this filter for whatever their 'bible' is. If you do not have love, it's a fail of epic proportions.
In this one passage you can see the illuminated heights of true love and the depths to which organized religions fall. For all the wisdom, authenticity, rubrics and regalia, if there is not love, there is failure.
This coming tuesday several states will have ballot questions on marriage equality. Despite the fact that equality inherent by God should not be a thing to be voted on, they will go forward. Despite historical data to the contrary and despite no definitive Biblical prohibitions, this question of marriage equality comes down to the question of love. Will the state honor a commitment of love between two consenting adults? Can this be a legal contract to be honored? If we use the criteria of love as in this passage and what a relationship is to consist of, the measures should pass. These initiatives should not be about fear mongering or other issues. These initiatives are based on loving committed relationships and based on this passage of scripture alone they pass muster. Using the criteria of Jay Michaelson, they would pass muster not only legally but religiously as well. I stand with him.
The Roman Catholic church has a varied history of inserting itself into civil issues, marriage is one of them. I, religiously, happen to be a person that does believe marriage is a Sacrament. But many other Christian denominations have eclipsed the Roman Catholic church in terms of marriage. While admitting to the sacredness of such bonds, those other Churches use the test of love to maintain the validity of such marriages. Thus a sacramental marriage that fails, does not diminish or negate a lived Sacrament. The Roman Catholic church on the other hand while not allowing for 'divorce', uses some convoluted logic to in essence judge that a given marriage never really was Sacramental. If they were to hold up a committed relationship to the lens of love they would be able to see a marriage does in fact exist but that it can also end. Sadly, they have dug themselves into such a deep hole on this and so many other issues and justified themselves with everything but true and genuine love that they have negated their own moral authority. This is plain for anyone to see. This is why the Catholic church is so split on this and so many issues.
Why? Because in everything, it's all about love.
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