I love this —> “Jesus participated in the structure of Judaism while criticizing it and stretching beyond its limits. Was he “in” or was he “out” of his religion? The answer is yes. That’s what wild religion looks like.”
I love this concept. In defense of the organizational perspective, however, it's worth pointing out that if there is too much chaos, the charisma cannot be routinized, i. e. the continuity of church breaks down completely and the message is not transmitted from one generation to the next, and possibly lost forever, until new prophets emerge to deal with similar problems, often ones who are completely ignorant of the prior efforts of other prophets, an understanding of which could be of significant benefit to them.
Yes, totally — hence the "religion" side of "wild religion" or the "structured" side of "nature, structured." Without those components it's just wilderness, and the wilderness is lonely.
Beautiful. I feel like there is an emerging meta theme in culture right now--at least in my particular universe--where chaos and order pull and tug with each other. I think I spent so much time seeking order amongst chaos--my so called young adult life-- that I forgot about chaos and the benefits it can provide. Your essay speaks to me this way
Interesting about Mickey Mouse! I love your metaphor of a garden… with the wildness of nature that cannot be tamed. Growing up Mormon, while the church believes in Christ, there is a heavy heavy emphasis on perfection. Being able to embrace this wildness inside myself, even if it doesn’t fit into the box that the church has prescribed, has brought me closer to Jesus than ever before and away from the legalistic views that I was raised with.
"The institutionalized Jesus, by contrast, is too often safe, clean, and without flaw — sitting on a throne, pronouncing lists of commandments.
At some level, this transformation makes sense. Institutions tend to celebrate whatever is lawful and dislike whatever is chaotic. That’s part of the appeal. People want something safe and predictable from their institutions so they can feel a sense of belonging, and tamed figureheads are safe and predictable."
Great analysis. But I don't think that the conclusion is true. It is not that those institutions aren't living. I would say it's the existence of institutions that is the problem.
Wild Jesus never wanted to build a church. On the contrary, he wanted to call people out of them at least in part into life and a relationship.
I love this —> “Jesus participated in the structure of Judaism while criticizing it and stretching beyond its limits. Was he “in” or was he “out” of his religion? The answer is yes. That’s what wild religion looks like.”
I love this concept. In defense of the organizational perspective, however, it's worth pointing out that if there is too much chaos, the charisma cannot be routinized, i. e. the continuity of church breaks down completely and the message is not transmitted from one generation to the next, and possibly lost forever, until new prophets emerge to deal with similar problems, often ones who are completely ignorant of the prior efforts of other prophets, an understanding of which could be of significant benefit to them.
Yes, totally — hence the "religion" side of "wild religion" or the "structured" side of "nature, structured." Without those components it's just wilderness, and the wilderness is lonely.
Beautiful. I feel like there is an emerging meta theme in culture right now--at least in my particular universe--where chaos and order pull and tug with each other. I think I spent so much time seeking order amongst chaos--my so called young adult life-- that I forgot about chaos and the benefits it can provide. Your essay speaks to me this way
Interesting about Mickey Mouse! I love your metaphor of a garden… with the wildness of nature that cannot be tamed. Growing up Mormon, while the church believes in Christ, there is a heavy heavy emphasis on perfection. Being able to embrace this wildness inside myself, even if it doesn’t fit into the box that the church has prescribed, has brought me closer to Jesus than ever before and away from the legalistic views that I was raised with.
Thank you for your important message. ❤️
"The institutionalized Jesus, by contrast, is too often safe, clean, and without flaw — sitting on a throne, pronouncing lists of commandments.
At some level, this transformation makes sense. Institutions tend to celebrate whatever is lawful and dislike whatever is chaotic. That’s part of the appeal. People want something safe and predictable from their institutions so they can feel a sense of belonging, and tamed figureheads are safe and predictable."
Great analysis. But I don't think that the conclusion is true. It is not that those institutions aren't living. I would say it's the existence of institutions that is the problem.
Wild Jesus never wanted to build a church. On the contrary, he wanted to call people out of them at least in part into life and a relationship.