Jesus as a Fundamentalist
Nov 9th, 2008 by John
Jesus had to go through Samaria. At the sixth hour, tired and thirsty from his travels, Jesus sat down at Jacob’s Well near Sychar.
A Samaritan woman came to draw water and seeing Jesus asked, “Sir, will you give me a drink?”
Startled, Jesus said, “How is it that you, a Samaritan, ask me, a Jew, for a drink?”
“Sir,” the woman said, “I am thirsty. I am weary in this hot sun. I am weary of bearing shame from those in my village.”
Jesus replied, “You are a woman. Do not speak to me in public.”
“But, sir,…”
“Silence! Do not speak. You and your water pot and all you touch are unclean!”
Weeping, the woman cried, “Yes, I know, I know…”
“You are immoral, too, living with a man who is not your husband after you have had five husbands!”
“I was…was so lonely…and afraid,” she cried softly.
“You are a heretic. You unorthodox Samaritan. Tampering with Torah to justify your rebellious worship. Jerusalem is God’s chosen city. Salvation is of the Jews. Don’t you get it, Woman?”
“Sir, when Messiah comes he will make known all things.”
“Silence!”
The disciples returned and seeing Jesus and the woman asked among themselves, “Is that woman really talking to Jesus? Certainly not to ‘our’ Jesus.”
Popularity: 2% [?]
How very sad.
Thanks, John.
so… are you writing this story in any other voice besides a fundie? how about a post modern voice? a ghandi? a wangerin? a clives staples lewis? how about a different genre? People Magazine?
What a sad reality of our day. Great thought!
Good job.
John,
Correct me if I’m wrong, but that sounds more like yesterday’s fundamentalist than today. I understand you write in hyperbole, but it also seems like you are taking some pot shots at certain Christians that would in no way respond that way. For example, even when I shake my head at the quirkiness of how my fellow GARBCers respond to culture, its never out of a harsh hate, but rather out of paranoid fear. Help me out here if I have misinterpreted you!!!!
Joel (#5),
Viewing fundamentalism not just as a belief system but as an attitude toward those “outside,” yes, fundamentalists are still alive and well. Sad.
John
John,
I just read my post, which didn’t make much sense. I meant that my fellow GARBCers react out of paranoid fear rather than a harsh hate. Yeah, I guess I can see some aspects of what you are talking about. Today I happened on a blogsite of a former Christian Contemporary Music artist who swings his Calvinism like a club, aiming it at Christians, non-Christians, and even his fellow Calvinists (such as Mark Driscoll and John Piper). And he usually gets between 50-100 comments agreeing with his assessments.
Joel (#7),
What you discovered is what I’m pointing toward. I believe this kind of stuff dilutes the missional energies of the church.
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