Special Episode: John and Christian #divine #sacredscriptures #gospelofjohn #creeds #trinity #jesus

What is God like, and who is Jesus? What might John say about development within Christianity? the Trinity? Jesus in the creeds? This is a special Episode that looks at three primary Christian texts through the lens of John 1. Some Background for New Listeners... The Sacred Wisdom, Sacred Texts podcast is my way of presenting my own, very personal and individual approach to conversations with what I call my sacred friends: Jesus, Buddha, the Gita, Lao Tzu, Moses, Muhammad. I began with Episodes focused on John’s Gospel as a way of bringing Jesus into the conversations. My reasons for starting there are all explained in the first Episodes. The approach I take with these friends is something I refer to as “mutualism,” which is the posture which assumes that every heritage has something to offer, and something to learn, something to give, and something to receive. I also believe that sometimes other heritages can provide ways of seeing things that can help provide answers to what seem like insurmountable questions in our own heritages. And vice versa. Why this Episode? I began with John, and as I worked through what became 10 Episodes, I was aware that Christians had unique questions that most non Christian listeners would not have. Questions about how John, and my interpretations of John, relate to Chrsitian theology, especially in Christian Creeds. So, it seemed good to dedicate some space to answer those questions, but to do it in a way that did not disrupt the flow and continuity of my main purposes with Sacred Wisdom, Sacred Texts. Hence this Special Edition. In a way it is a stand alone, and so is not numbered. In a way it is still related to the whole project, so I am making it accessible to anyone as part of the podcast playlist, rather than sending it only to interested Christian listeners. For those who may want to know more about me, and some of what has “qualified” me so to speak for this journey, here is a bit of my background. I do not see myself as qualified in terms of being an expert, by the way…but I am a learner, and felt a sense of invitation to get this out there for the few interested fellow travelers I have been honored to meet along the way. I have written poetry since the mid 1970’s and then studied literature and poetry and creative writing for my Bachelor’s degree. I began writing music in 1980. I have published poems and released albums of music. I read poetry live, and perform music live. So, I am very interested in the implications of sacred texts for human creativity and art and artists. I studied Christian theology at the Master’s level, where I learned Greek, and to a lesser extent, Hebrew (and dabbled in Syriac). I became especially interested in New Testament studies, and pursued additional directed studies in John, and in Paul’s writings. This fostered a decades long interest in John and the Gospels and Christian origins in relationship to later developments such as the creeds. However, living in South Asia brought me into connection with Muslims and Islam and led to the study of the Quran (in Urdu and English, and with a great deal of reliance on language helps, Arabic). I developed a love for the Quran, and a deep interest in the inter-textual study of the Quran and New Testament. This shaped how I view theology, and piqued my curiosity about what sacred texts might say to each other. And finally… I now describe myself as an inter-spiritual pre-Christian Jesus follower. That would take more space to unpack here than I want to give though I plan to do so at some point during future Episodes of the podcast. In brief, I have always been drawn to the contemplative streams of the Christian tradition, and then later discovered the Sufi’s and the Bhagavad Gita and the Buddha and Lao Tzu. All of which, all of whom, have left profound marks upon my approach to spirituality in my daily practices. What does each have to say to me, and to each other, about spirituality? I expect that throughout the podcast, as I converse with each sacred friend along the way, I will be having them speak to each other, and also I will be discovering ways in which they each continue to shape me relative to how I see and practice art, theology, and spirituality.