This week we hear the story of Jesus' baptism. According to the text, some curious things happened which deserve our attention.
1 - The heavens opened up (Mark 1:10)
2 - The Spirit descended on Jesus in a form that looked like a dove (Mark 1:10)
3 - A voice from Heaven said to Jesus, "You are my Son, with you I am well pleased (Mark 1:11)"
What we see in this story is the coming together of Heaven and Earth - the Spiritual and the Material fuse as one. Classical Christianity has always, since the time of the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., stated that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. In Him we see this perfect fusion of Spirit and Matter. Sometimes it may seem like that's easy for Him, since He is God incarnate, but what if that was the goal of spirituality for everyone - joining and integrating the spiritual and the material. Or even more challenging, what if the purpose of human beings is to be like Christ in this regard, integrating the material and spiritual.
In the Old Testament lesson for Sunday, we hear the first few verses from the Bible - the creation of the heavens and the earth. Ancient commentaries on these stories highlight the uniqueness of human beings when they are created. In the Sefer Ha-Aggadah, Legends from the Midrash and Talmud, Rabbi Simeon ben Halafta describes how up until the creation of humans, God had the heavens and the earth in perfect balance. On the first day Genesis mentions that God created the heavens and the earth - one and one. From that point on, God alternated between one and the other, right up until day six. On day 2, He created the sky. Day 3 brought fourth the dry land. On day 4 God created lights in the sky. And on day 5 all kinds of living things came about on the earth. So on day 6 God couldn't create one or the other without upsetting the balance - especially since the sabbath rest was coming on day 7. So in creating human beings, God created us out of both heaven and earth. In the story of the Garden of Eden, it states that God created the first human out of the dust (earth, the material world), and breathed into him the breath of life (heaven, the spiritual world) (Genesis 2:7) (Sefer Ha-Aggadah, pg 15, section 65).
In the same work, other rabbis commented that humans were created both like angels and animals (page 16, section 66). Angels are made in the image and likeness of God, but do not reproduce, while animals reproduce, but are not in the image and likeness of God. Humans are unique in that we have both qualities. We are in the image and likeness of God and we can reproduce.
Another rabbi remarked that if humans were created solely out of the upper, spiritual worlds, we would live and never die, but if we were created solely out of the lower, material worlds, we would die but never really live. Therefore humans were made out of both elements, such that we die because of sin, but also have life in the world to come.
Coming back to Jesus' baptism - when the voice from Heaven said to him, "You are my Son, with you I am well pleased," He was referring to the fact that in Jesus, the Spiritual and the Material were perfectly integrated, just as human beings were originally intended. The problem with Adam's original sin was that it dis-integrated the spiritual and material. As you can see in Genesis Chapter 3, Adam and Eve both perceived that they were naked, so they hid from God (Genesis 3:8), decreasing the spiritual, and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves (3:7), increasing the material. How often do we do the same thing in our lives? When we have a problem we're faced with, how easy is it to go straight for a material solution, when in many cases the root of the problem is spiritual. Some problems call us to reevaluate priorities, some call us to love others more, while others call us to improve our sense of justice and do something about it. In Jesus we see the Spiritual and the Material integrated and aligned, and there is light. Without this alignment, there is only darkness, and the world is wild and waste - confusing and chaotic (Genesis 1:2). However in both cases the Spirit of God is present - sometimes over the darkness of the chaotic waters, and sometimes floating in the form of a dove over the baptismal waters. By reflecting on the nature of God revealed through Jesus Christ you can get a better idea of how to integrate the spiritual and the material in your own life. Strive for both, for such is what you were created for. Do so and listen for God's voice saying that you are his beloved child, and in you He is well pleased.
1 - The heavens opened up (Mark 1:10)
2 - The Spirit descended on Jesus in a form that looked like a dove (Mark 1:10)
3 - A voice from Heaven said to Jesus, "You are my Son, with you I am well pleased (Mark 1:11)"
What we see in this story is the coming together of Heaven and Earth - the Spiritual and the Material fuse as one. Classical Christianity has always, since the time of the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D., stated that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. In Him we see this perfect fusion of Spirit and Matter. Sometimes it may seem like that's easy for Him, since He is God incarnate, but what if that was the goal of spirituality for everyone - joining and integrating the spiritual and the material. Or even more challenging, what if the purpose of human beings is to be like Christ in this regard, integrating the material and spiritual.
In the Old Testament lesson for Sunday, we hear the first few verses from the Bible - the creation of the heavens and the earth. Ancient commentaries on these stories highlight the uniqueness of human beings when they are created. In the Sefer Ha-Aggadah, Legends from the Midrash and Talmud, Rabbi Simeon ben Halafta describes how up until the creation of humans, God had the heavens and the earth in perfect balance. On the first day Genesis mentions that God created the heavens and the earth - one and one. From that point on, God alternated between one and the other, right up until day six. On day 2, He created the sky. Day 3 brought fourth the dry land. On day 4 God created lights in the sky. And on day 5 all kinds of living things came about on the earth. So on day 6 God couldn't create one or the other without upsetting the balance - especially since the sabbath rest was coming on day 7. So in creating human beings, God created us out of both heaven and earth. In the story of the Garden of Eden, it states that God created the first human out of the dust (earth, the material world), and breathed into him the breath of life (heaven, the spiritual world) (Genesis 2:7) (Sefer Ha-Aggadah, pg 15, section 65).
In the same work, other rabbis commented that humans were created both like angels and animals (page 16, section 66). Angels are made in the image and likeness of God, but do not reproduce, while animals reproduce, but are not in the image and likeness of God. Humans are unique in that we have both qualities. We are in the image and likeness of God and we can reproduce.
Another rabbi remarked that if humans were created solely out of the upper, spiritual worlds, we would live and never die, but if we were created solely out of the lower, material worlds, we would die but never really live. Therefore humans were made out of both elements, such that we die because of sin, but also have life in the world to come.
Coming back to Jesus' baptism - when the voice from Heaven said to him, "You are my Son, with you I am well pleased," He was referring to the fact that in Jesus, the Spiritual and the Material were perfectly integrated, just as human beings were originally intended. The problem with Adam's original sin was that it dis-integrated the spiritual and material. As you can see in Genesis Chapter 3, Adam and Eve both perceived that they were naked, so they hid from God (Genesis 3:8), decreasing the spiritual, and tried to cover themselves with fig leaves (3:7), increasing the material. How often do we do the same thing in our lives? When we have a problem we're faced with, how easy is it to go straight for a material solution, when in many cases the root of the problem is spiritual. Some problems call us to reevaluate priorities, some call us to love others more, while others call us to improve our sense of justice and do something about it. In Jesus we see the Spiritual and the Material integrated and aligned, and there is light. Without this alignment, there is only darkness, and the world is wild and waste - confusing and chaotic (Genesis 1:2). However in both cases the Spirit of God is present - sometimes over the darkness of the chaotic waters, and sometimes floating in the form of a dove over the baptismal waters. By reflecting on the nature of God revealed through Jesus Christ you can get a better idea of how to integrate the spiritual and the material in your own life. Strive for both, for such is what you were created for. Do so and listen for God's voice saying that you are his beloved child, and in you He is well pleased.
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