Re: The Desire of King Solomon’s Woman

Hey Bass...

No apology necessary. You didn’t hijack the post - you’ve added insight, a most welcome addition.

You wrote, “...perfectly fine to use fiction to tell a greater truth.” Spot on. This was the purpose of Yeshua’s usage of parables, IMO. That, and just as importantly, placing the onus of their message upon His listeners, or followers. He also, very often, returned a question WITH a question. I find that fascinating. It’s an ingenious way of discovering what really lies at the heart of the questioner & what he truly seeks to learn. Discover that, and almost any conversation will inevitably lead to truth through clarity.

So glad to know you share a passion for NT history. Everything from Genesis to Revelation fascinates me; has since I was a young teenager. Back when dinosaurs roamed the neighborhood lol.

HG

Hi HG,

Your descroption of Christ's teaching methodology reminds me of that of Socrates. He was also famous for following up questions with more questions. The Socratic method is used in education to this day.

And, as you mentioned, their method oftened revealed much about the answers' state of mind. One of the many things I've learned in my ride on this spinning rock is that many people tend to focus the light of right and wrong through the lens of self-interest.

BTW, you look much younger than your age. Definitely not old enough to have coexisted with dinosaurs.

‘Morning, Bass...

Hope your Saturday’s going well. We’re just a few days out from Christmas so most of mine will be spent gift wrapping - something I’ve had to put off til much later than I’m used to.

You mentioned above both the Socratic method of uncovering intent with a volleyed question, & the unfortunate fact that many people divine right from wrong through the lens of self interest. This brought to mind the exchange between Pilate and Christ, regarding truth. Paraphrasing, Christ told Pilate that His purpose in coming to this “spinning rock” was to make truth known. Pilate then asked, “What is truth?” My take is that Pilate asked this in a spirit of sarcasm or just out of plain old exhaustion, but regardless of intent, he didn’t care to hang around long enough to listen to Christ’s answer. Pilate’s immediate exit paints a perfect picture, IMO, of your assertion: too many times we allow self interest to override listening to a truth we do not want to hear, much less accept. Too much work, too much time, too much pain involved.

We’ve all been there and done that, myself included.

And now my Christmas wrapping calls. Barbie dolls, Batmobiles, and dune buggies await lol.

Enjoy your Saturday, Bass...
HG

(Ps... Thanks for the nice word.)

Good afternoon HG,

Your reference to gift-wrapping brought to mind pleasant childhood memories of waking up and finding wrapped presents under the Xmas tree. Of course, the adults never bothered to explain how a fat, hairy old white man in bright red getup got into our house in the middle of the night without a chimney (or key), and actually left stuff, lol.

And as I got older, many late-night sessions (admittedly, some alcohol-fuelled) with older siblings, putting together toys for my nieces and nephews, and acting as self-appointed Quality Control for race car and train sets. Wish I had a dollar for every time I heard something along the lines of, "Wait a minute - this video game is open!".

Unlike the 3 synoptic gospels, John's certainly had more of a philosophical perspective, even going so far as to recreate Christ's interrogations by Herod and Pilate. The one with Pilate makes me think that the author was acquainted with the teachings of Socrates via Plato's writings.

It is unfortunate how so many people are willing to ignore truth in favor of their own self-interest, and summarily disregard the opinions and warnings of others. At its worst, it can lead to attrocities such as slavery, the Holocaust and world wars.

Or denying the seriousness of a global pandemic.

Sorry for the downer note there. Hope you have a great Christmas and a joyous New Year's!