Deliberate obfuscation by Jesus?
Thore Bjerklund Karlsen no.online@online.no
Wed, 17 Dec 1997 20:18:43 GMT (00882411523, 349b3272.285634333@mail.online.no)
On Wed, 17 Dec 1997 13:21:14 -0600, you wrote:
>> Thore Bjerklund Karlsen
>>
>> "And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery
>> of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these
>> things are done in parables: That seeing they may see, and not
>> perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any
>> time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them."
>>
>> So we see that Jesus is vague on purpose so that we shouldn't convert and be
>> forgiven. How nice.
>> PATRICK
>> Apparently it was a tradition. This phrase is found in Isaiah 6:9-10 as
>> well, where it's dark meaning is more clear:
>>
>> "Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye
>> indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their
>> ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear
>> with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be
>> healed. Then said I, Lord, how long? And he answered, Until the cities be
>> wasted without inhabitant, and the houses without man, and the land be
>> utterly desolate"
>>
>> J. C. Meagher comments that, according to the context of this passage, Jesus
>> speaks in "parables so that those who are outside may be left in the dark
>> and excluded from repentance and forgiveness... Jesus is speaking in
>> parables as a strategy of deliberate obfuscation in order to prevent the
>> outsiders from seeing, repenting and being forgiven" (qtd. in Wells, "The
>> Jesus Legend," p.125).
>>
>> What a paradox! Why would would Jesus take the time to evangelize at all if
>> one's going to speak in unintelligible parables? Sheesh!
>CLAIRE
>I am not familiar with "The Jesus Legend" or any other books by Wells.
>But how do you know that his interpretation is more valid? Because it
>agrees with your pre-conceived notions?
How about: "Because that is the meaning of Jesus' words if you were to
interpret the sentence like any other in the English language."
How do you know your interpretation is more valid, whatever it may be?
--
## Thore Bjerklund Karlsen ## I am just an atom in an ectoplasmic ##
## -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ## sea, without direction or a reason to ##
## no.online@online.no ## exist; The anechoic nebula rotating in ##
## home.sol.no/~tbk/ ## my brain is persuading me, contritely, ##
## -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ## to persist. ##