Does the name of Jesus still matter?

Published in The Parishioner (bi-weekly newsletter at All Saints')

We live in what many call a post-modern society.  I know that these are big fancy words that can take on several meanings in different contexts.  For the purposes of this article I will start by defining post-modern as 'a time when society as a whole claims no absolute truth’.  This is not to say that claims about the truth aren’t being made - in fact the reality is quite the opposite.  One implication of post-modernism is that although there are many voices of authority that make truth claims, there is no one single voice that stands out, at least from the viewpoint of society as a whole.

            The reality of our global society has exposed us to many truth claims (both religious and non-religious).  I am interested in how these competing claims have affected Christianity.  In particular, I am interested in the response that has limited and diminished the name of Jesus.  The kind of response that says it is okay to talk about God, and it is even okay to talk about Jesus’ teachings, but it’s not okay to talk about Jesus.  Even in the church we sometimes avoid talking about Jesus because someone might take offense.  

            I understand that the name of Jesus carries some baggage.  I also understand that people who are faithful Christians have a hard time naming Jesus in public because of this baggage.  This baggage comes from general misuse of Jesus’ name.  I get it, but on some level I am afraid of what will happen if the name of Jesus Christ is diminished or limited any further. 

            God gave us Jesus so all may know the power of what it is like to live in unity with God and with each other.  This truth about Jesus is made clear in scripture and in the call to baptize all people from every place and nation. Where is the disconnect?  Jesus came to bring people together, not tear people apart. 

            Several years ago a friend of mine posed a question I still think about.  “Why can’t we just drop names like Jesus and God and say Love?” she asked. “People can agree on love.”   

            I’ve thought about this question a lot over the years. If I could respond to my friend today, I would say, “That’s a nice thought but I can’t go there with you.”

            Her original question challenges me to deeper thinking: “What is love?” “How do we know what love is?”  “How is love made known to us?”  “Who really knows what love is?”

            Another notion of this post-modern world is to invite a subjective response to the questions named above.  In other words, it is more accepted now than ever to define words such as love based on one’s own feelings and one’s own perception of reality.   

            That is really scary.  How can I possibly articulate the truth about reality through my own limited lens of the world? Am I really so powerful that I could define love?  Sure, I can express how I feel and name those feelings as love or anger or sadness.  But there is a bigger picture out there that I don’t and can’t understand.  There is a love in this world that is bigger than my feelings and my thoughts. There is a mystery in the power of love that you and I can’t explain with words.

            The love that I have witnessed in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is where I have seen the mystery of love defined most clearly.  To put it bluntly—Jesus is the revelation of God in the flesh.  “How can there be a better way to define love than a definition from our creator?”  Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”  But seriously, is there a better way than the way of Jesus?  What greater truth is there than the truth found when one who lays down His life for all, for the greater good?  What greater life is there than life that exists in God’s everlasting love?  Moreover, what greater love is there than the kind that matches word with deed in the flesh of Jesus Christ?  Jesus walked the talk.  While I might try to match word with deed, I undoubtedly fall short and need help.

            I am saying that the definition of love is Jesus.

            Now more than ever does this truth about Jesus matter.  In a world where love is largely limited to a conditional response (when it is convenient), we have a God who loves unconditionally even when showing love is messy and difficult.  Jesus' love is compassionate and recognizes that we all mess up and hopes that we are transformed by grace, by an unexpected gift of love.  The love of Jesus has the power to notice us when nobody else will and has the power to lift us up in our weakness.   

            Call me arrogant, but I have to believe that the truth about love is perfected in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.  You might ask, how do I get to know this Jesus?  Start with the Gospel of Mark and pray that the Holy Spirit leads you into the truth that is revealed in Christ.  As the prayer book says; read, mark, and inwardly digest the Word of God.  Spend some time challenging the assumptions of the world with scripture and the words of Christ.  Go to church, pray.  Talk to one of your priests about Jesus, about the things you like or don’t like—think!  Discover the richness and beauty of God.  Rejoice and give thanks, for God is leading us into the way of all truth in the name of Christ.

            After all these years, Jesus is still the way, the truth, and the life.  Thanks be to God.    

            -The Rev. Jack Alvey

P.S.  This is why I love Jesus…

I love Jesus because he keeps promises.  He kept this promise to be with us always when he willingly suffered and died for us, like one of us.  I love Jesus because he represents hope and light in a hopeless and dark world.  His empty tomb reveals the possibilities for a new story, a story that ends in life not death.  I love Jesus because he is good and merciful.  He makes his living off of grace and forgiveness.  I love Jesus because of his unending and unfailing love for all people.  He has prepared a place of perfect rest and joy for all who come to him in faith.