I originally framed my reasons for undertaking this series on tradition in primarily external terms: tradition is an inescapable force in culture and yet the only people who seem to be talking about it are either reactionaries, who insist we need to return to the past (or at least their imagined version of it), or … Continue reading Tradition(ed): The Lament of the Dead
Jesus is rarely who we want him to be. We want him to be comfortable, reassuring, and safe, but he is none of these things. Jesus’ teaching is hard. If we really hear it, no matter where we are situated in terms of economics, society, or politics, it will make us uncomfortable, unsettled, and feel … Continue reading Jesus the Radical: A Reflection on Luke 6.27-38
So far in these meandering reflections on the nature of tradition, we’ve seen that tradition, while unavoidable and necessary for culture, is also always received through interpretation and a gleaning. Tradition is thus a changing artifact of an ever-changing people in ever-changing circumstances. We need humility about how we talk about even the most sacred … Continue reading Tradition(ed): ‘Holy’ Tradition
In its worst caricatures, tradition is presented as vain repetition, nothing more than doing and saying what people did and said in the past. But, as we’ve seen, this perspective doesn’t hit the mark on how tradition actually works. Tradition is an active process: we receive from the past but inevitably apply it to the … Continue reading Tradition(Ed): Creativity and Tradition
The other week, I wrote that if I could only have two pieces of Scripture to form my Bible, I’d choose Jesus’ appropriation of Isaiah 61 as his personal mission (Luke 4) and the first half of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5). As it happens, today’s Gospel reading is Luke’s parallel telling of … Continue reading Blessed Are You Poor (in Spirit?): A Reflection on Luke 6.17-26
Matthew Root 