The Newness of the already Known
I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. (Rev. 2:4).
And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. (1 Cor. 13:13).
"With the drawing of this Love and the voice of this Calling
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."
(T.S. Elliot – “The Four Quartets”)
I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. (Rev. 2:4).
And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love. (1 Cor. 13:13).
"With the drawing of this Love and the voice of this Calling
We shall not cease from exploration
And the end of all our exploring
Will be to arrive where we started
And know the place for the first time."
(T.S. Elliot – “The Four Quartets”)
How could we have a life that we would constantly be discovering new things? How could we have new wine tasting as good as the old one? How could we maintain the first love as first love, never allowing it to become the second best? How could the word of God be a source of newness?
We are wired with a sense of returning, which is essential for life. We enjoy a vacation trip, but after a while we need to go back home. In all eras, we hear the voice of prophets, sages, and reformers calling for a return to the origins (ad fontes); a renew of the ways of seeing things. We name these callings rebirth, renaissance, reformation, and so forth. Why the need for such a movement towards the starting point in order to find the new, which has already been seen and is known?
I believe it is because we have a tendency of not paying attention; not valuing the things that we think are already common and normal. Then, we lose the newness that can be found in our everyday life. For this reason, when I listen to a symphony of Mozart and do not feel touched by it, I get very uneasy wiht myself. Although I know the notes, they cannot sound only as notes, but as music touching my inner being. When Jesus spoke about the reign of God (which is not a distant realm of a fairytale. Not either a place we go when we die. But the nearness of God's presence), he tried to teach us that the reign of God can be seen not on the extraordinary but on the ordinary. Hence, Jesus spoke of the kingdom as the farmer planting his seeds, the woman baking her bread, the fisher throwing his net, and the like. What for some people might sound too natural, it is actually the nearness and accessibility of the transcendent in the immanent. Thus speak the Word:
11 Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, “Who will go up to heaven for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” 14 No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe. (Deut. 30.11–14).
We explore and research in order to find the Word of God. However, at the end of our exploring and research, we discover that God’s word was not far, but very near, in our hearts: our starting point. This is not a word of discouragement for exploring, but to dig even deeper into ourselves, which is not other but the kernel of God's illumination. Actually, it is a word of encouragement as T.S. Elliot said, “We shall not cease exploring.”
Can we approach Scripture allowing God to speak with us through it? It seems a ridiculous question, for we proudly proclaim that Scripture is the Word of God. However, if we are not cautious, we can transform our interpretation of Scripture into the Word of God. Then, after finding the interpretation that is adapted to our views, we tend to write it on the stones of our traditions. For this reason, I ask: Can we hear a very well known text as when we heard it for the first time?
We are wired with a sense of returning, which is essential for life. We enjoy a vacation trip, but after a while we need to go back home. In all eras, we hear the voice of prophets, sages, and reformers calling for a return to the origins (ad fontes); a renew of the ways of seeing things. We name these callings rebirth, renaissance, reformation, and so forth. Why the need for such a movement towards the starting point in order to find the new, which has already been seen and is known?
I believe it is because we have a tendency of not paying attention; not valuing the things that we think are already common and normal. Then, we lose the newness that can be found in our everyday life. For this reason, when I listen to a symphony of Mozart and do not feel touched by it, I get very uneasy wiht myself. Although I know the notes, they cannot sound only as notes, but as music touching my inner being. When Jesus spoke about the reign of God (which is not a distant realm of a fairytale. Not either a place we go when we die. But the nearness of God's presence), he tried to teach us that the reign of God can be seen not on the extraordinary but on the ordinary. Hence, Jesus spoke of the kingdom as the farmer planting his seeds, the woman baking her bread, the fisher throwing his net, and the like. What for some people might sound too natural, it is actually the nearness and accessibility of the transcendent in the immanent. Thus speak the Word:
11 Surely, this commandment that I am commanding you today is not too hard for you, nor is it too far away. 12 It is not in heaven, that you should say, “Who will go up to heaven for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” 13 Neither is it beyond the sea, that you should say, “Who will cross to the other side of the sea for us, and get it for us so that we may hear it and observe it?” 14 No, the word is very near to you; it is in your mouth and in your heart for you to observe. (Deut. 30.11–14).
We explore and research in order to find the Word of God. However, at the end of our exploring and research, we discover that God’s word was not far, but very near, in our hearts: our starting point. This is not a word of discouragement for exploring, but to dig even deeper into ourselves, which is not other but the kernel of God's illumination. Actually, it is a word of encouragement as T.S. Elliot said, “We shall not cease exploring.”
Can we approach Scripture allowing God to speak with us through it? It seems a ridiculous question, for we proudly proclaim that Scripture is the Word of God. However, if we are not cautious, we can transform our interpretation of Scripture into the Word of God. Then, after finding the interpretation that is adapted to our views, we tend to write it on the stones of our traditions. For this reason, I ask: Can we hear a very well known text as when we heard it for the first time?
Let us see the example of the Ephesian church in the book of Revelation (2.2–4). It was a focused church in the service of God (I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance). It did not allow evil spreading among them (I know that you cannot tolerate evildoers). It did not accept false leaders teaching false messages; for they knew God’s Word (you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them to be false). It was a tireless vigorous witnessing church (I also know that you are enduring patiently and bearing up for the sake of my name and that you have not grown weary). Would we not love to pastor such a church? Probably we would, but not John the prophet. For, even if we have all that we think is necessary, if love is not underpinning our efforts, our “all” becomes irrelevant. To solve this problem there is only one solution, let us dare to leave our comfort zone and “not cease from exploration and the end of all our exploring, will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time,” which is at the presence of the living Christ.
