Jesus was not the only one to die for our sins!

Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels surrounding the throne and the living creatures and the elders; they numbered myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, singing with full voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!” (Revelation 5:11-12)

Jesus was not the only person to die for our sins (literally speaking)!

That struck home to me for the first time this week. I’d been reading the latest book from Chris Hedges about the war on Gaza, and he made the point that Aaron Bushnell, in a very real sense, also died for our sins. If you don’t recognise the name, Bushnell was the US Airman who set himself on fire in front of the Israeli embassy in Washington. It was an extreme act of protest against the Gaza genocide. He did, quite literally, suffer and die for our sins!

Of course, the suffering and death of Jesus, the Christ, was unique. I’m not trying to equate the two. Jesus’ suffering and death was exceptional because of who Jesus was, but, understood as a model of self-immolation – of publicly destroying yourself for the sake of others – Jesus’ death has been emulated by a disturbingly large number of people in recent years. For example:

Thích Quảng Đức – a Vietnamese monk who destroyed himself by fire in 1963, protesting the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government.
Jan Palach – a Czech student who similarly set himself on fire in 1969 as a protest against the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia.
Mohamed Bouazizi – the Tunisian street vendor, whose self-immolation in 2010 is credited with sparking the Arab Spring uprisings across the Middle East.
Malachi Ritscher – the American musician who set himself on fire in 2006 to protest the Iraq War.

I don’t believe that public suicide should ever be considered an acceptable form of protest. Even so, the worthiness of the lamb, which is the focus of our Scripture passage, is indeed tied to Jesus’ perceived act of self-sacrifice.

Revelation, chapter 5, opens with a search going on in the Heavenly throne room, looking for someone who has earned the right to ‘open the scroll’ that unlocks the future. Eventually, we’re told that “the lion if Judah” has triumphed (Revelation 5:5) and will open the scroll, yet the candidate who then appears is not a lion but “a lamb, looking as if it had been slain!” (Revelation 5:6)

So much of the imagery in Revelation is obscure, but this seems particularly bizarre. It’s not clear what makes the lamb look as if it had been slain. Was it bleeding? Was it disfigured in some way? However, the connection between the lambs suffering and the lamb’s worthiness is unambiguous, and is chorused by the Heavenly choir:

“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
because you were slain,” (Revelation 5:9)

Frankly, this all seems very dark to me, and I recoil at the thought that blood and suffering are necessary if we are all to live together in peace. Having said that, I recognise that even Aaron Bushnell’s terrible death did itself achieve something in the way of reconciliation.

From what I have read, Arab and Muslim people around the world see in Bushnell a sobering reminder that it’s not the American people who are their enemies. Indeed, it’s not even the US military that are to blame, as Bushnell himself was a part of that military! Bushnell has helped to redirect the focus of those who decry the violence from the American people to specific members of the political leadership.

I’m going to stop here because I find this whole line of thought really disturbing, and yet I think it is something we do need to discuss and think through. The Christian Scriptures themselves repeatedly link suffering and redemption in ways I find very unsettling, and yet there is no denying that, scripturally speaking, the ‘via dolorosa’ (the ‘way of sorrows’) is also the path to life.

There is a mystery in suffering. We have no idea why so much suffering goes on, and we find it very difficult to understand why God allows it all to happen. Even so, today’s Scripture from the book of Revelation is a reminder that God’s response to suffering is not simply to try and stop it, but also to generate life and health and peace through it (Colossians 1:24)! No cry of anguish goes unheard. No tear falls to the ground that cannot ultimately become a part of the river of life!

Our Sunday Eucharist

We celebrated another wonderful Sunday Eucharist last weekend, and it was a privilege to have Andrew Logan and Jakob Pyeatt with me on the panel.

I was actually a bit shocked when I first saw Jakob’s face last Sunday. I’d expected his dad (Doug), but it turned out that Doug had emailed me, saying that he needed to attend an event with his daughter. Did I mind if Jakob filled in. We didn’t mind! 😊

I’ve pasted two of the best shorts from last Sunday below, including one that highlighted the odd coincidence that all three of us on the panel had connections with the military. Perhaps that should not surprise us.

You can see the other shorts from last Sunday on our Sunday Eucharist Instagram page, and you can watch the entire replay via our YouTube channel.

This Sunday we have a new guest joining us. It’s Costandi Bastoli – Community Director of Palestinian Christians in Australia, and a founding member of the Disciples of Jesus Covenant Community. It will be a great privilege to have Costandi join Tom Toby and myself on the panel, and I’m expecting to learn a lot from him.

Please invite your friends to join us for this broadcast. Refer them to the Facebook Event Page or encourage them to sign up directly through Streamyard. We do still need to grow a little if we are to remain viable, and the best way for us to grow is through you recommending the broadcast to your friends.

I’ll see you at noon on Sunday (Sydney time) @ TheSundayEucharist.com, Facebook , YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Faithia or Streamyard.

I look forward to sharing this Eucharist with you, and I hope to catch you for a cuppa afterwards in the Faithia chat room. This is something new that we’re trying as Microsoft is retiring Skype (or old chat platform). Please download the Faithia app.

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What’s On?

Sunday, May 4th – Our Eucharist from noon via thesundayeucharist.com, Facebook , YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Faithia or Streamyard
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It’s been a crazy week, beginning with the Pope’s funeral and ending with the Australian Federal election. Of course, if you’re not Australian and you didn’t think much of the Pope, you may have had a quiet time of it. Personally, I’m ending the week deeply concerned for state of both the country and the church.

I was a guest on the ‘Deep Dive Perspective’ earlier this week, talking about the late Pope and his connection with Gaza. While Pope Francis did not openly condemn Israel for the violence, he consistently called for a ceasefire and continued to make nightly calls to the Church of the Holy Family in Gaza, right up to the day of his death. The Israeli government did not offer any condolences at the Pope’s passing.

I’ll include a couple of shorts from the broadcast below. You can watch the full episode of the Deep Dive Perspective here.

Before leaving the subject of Palestine, I must mention that my friend, Mairead Maguire – winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976 – has been on a 40-day hunger strike for the children of Gaza. She is another great soul who lays down her life for others, and whose suffering, we trust, will prove to be a source of life for many.

I haven’t seen Mairead in person for ten years now. She’s now 81 years old. While others use their bodies weapons of war, Mairead has always offered up her body an instrument of peace. Please give her your support. Click the pick to sign the petition.

Finally, I can’t sign off today without mentioning that last Sunday was dear Joy’s last day as the Minister of Haberfield Uniting Church. You’ll see multiple pics of her farewell below. She is moving on to a very different role in the church – something that, to my mind, makes her something like a bishop, though she keeps reminding me that her church has no bishops. Hopefully, she’ll join us for the closing discussion on Sunday and can explain it to you herself 😊