May
26
The hippy Jesus
May 26, 2010 | 6 Comments
Last week Mathew Archbold reprinted a humorous cartoon from the Catholic Cartoon blog titles “Footprints of Vatican II.”
I was struck by one of the comments on CMR fretting over the humor of the cartoon.
I don’t like the idea of Jesus throwing anyone, even Hans Kung in the ocean. I know Jesus still loves HK and is still sending him graces to lead him to greater humility and to save him at the last.
Sorry, but this one didn’t strike me right.
A couple of immediate responses mentioned the passage about Jesus throwing out the moneychangers, and I certainly think that’s a salient rebuttal. But this is what makes me wonder about those who shudder at the mere thought of Jesus doing anything but handing out flowers to people. Catholics, and most other Christians for that matter, believe that there is a place called hell. We don’t know for sure what hell is like – whether it’s a lake of fire where demons will peck at your eyeballs for all eternity, an annoying suburban location like in The Great Divorce, or simply an eternity of having to commute in Atlanta. One way or the other, it’s not a very nice place, and it entails spending the rest of existence deprived of being in God’s presence.
Now, we believe that the Lord will judge the living and the dead. We say so every week. Since there is a hell, that means that God may judge that certain people should be sent to hell.
So God can send people to hell, but Jesus throwing someone in the ocean is a bridge too far?
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6 Comments so far
Not only WOULD Jesus throw someone into the sea, but he actually SAYS that it would be a preferable fate than what awaits those who might scandalize the faithful into sin.
See Matthew 18:6.
Hans Kung, arguably, qualifies.
[...] From the brilliant Paul Nichols at Catholic Cartoon Blog. Hattip to my friend Paul Zummo, the Cranky Conservative. [...]
I personlly believe it is an eternity of commuting in Atlanta.
I guess this sort of cartoon is exactly what one would expect to find at a self-described “conservative catholic” blog. It seems to go in line with conservative (first) catholic (second) selective obedience and conservatives’ notion of God’s love also being selective.
Shall we wait 400 years to apologize to the likes of Hans Kueng for misjudging him the way we did with Galileo? Shall we learn to avoid reacting so defensively or heavy-handedly to ideas that differ from our own? Let’s hope the Lord doesn’t throw us into the ocean, as you find so amusing, for our pride and lack of compassion.
No, no k. Galileo speculated that the Earth revolves around the sun. Kung is certain that God revolves around him and the dime story heresies he has been spouting for decades. I am unsurprised by your inability to distinguish between a scientist and a daft theologian, as such sloppy thinking has been a hallmark of the herd of independent minds on the port side of our society for decades.
“[P]ort side of our society” is my new favorite description.