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I started going into the main text of Garry Wills’s “What Jesus Meant”, in which he discusses the Annunciation, that is, the announcement made to the virgin Mary by the angel Gabriel that she had been chosen by God to become the mother of Jesus, the Son of God. As I was reading this, I remembered Russell Shorto’s “Gospel Truth”, about how the gospel story of the virgin birth was most likely a device to persuade the Hellenistic gentiles of the divinity of Jesus, since that culture was used to myths in which a god is born of a virgin and would accept nothing less of a god. And I just lost the heart to go on with this line of book-blogging.
I think I will pick history back up and put it in this blogging slot. These moods come and go, and I am now feeling my realist side more strongly, at the expense of my other-worldly and dreamily romantic side.
Before leaving the subject, I will get down one thing that I liked as I was looking over the material: Mary’s song of praise.
_ _ _
Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me.
He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him.
His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands.
He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful.
For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.”
-- Luke 1:46-55
_ _ _
You can see that celebration of the socially low over the rich and powerful. It is this rather Marxist aspect that keeps me interested in Christianity.
I think I will pick history back up and put it in this blogging slot. These moods come and go, and I am now feeling my realist side more strongly, at the expense of my other-worldly and dreamily romantic side.
Before leaving the subject, I will get down one thing that I liked as I was looking over the material: Mary’s song of praise.
_ _ _
Mary responded,
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
For the Mighty One is holy,
and he has done great things for me.
He shows mercy from generation to generation
to all who fear him.
His mighty arm has done tremendous things!
He has scattered the proud and haughty ones.
He has brought down princes from their thrones
and exalted the humble.
He has filled the hungry with good things
and sent the rich away with empty hands.
He has helped his servant Israel
and remembered to be merciful.
For he made this promise to our ancestors,
to Abraham and his children forever.”
-- Luke 1:46-55
_ _ _
You can see that celebration of the socially low over the rich and powerful. It is this rather Marxist aspect that keeps me interested in Christianity.
