“You really have a plastic Jesus? Isn’t that like . . . wrong?”
Those were the words uttered by someone visiting my office. Around my bookcases and on my desk are things/pictures given to me by friends and family. Granted, they aren’t the stereotypical things you’d see in a pastor’s office. Sure – I have the biblical commentaries, books, etc. but because I am whimsical in nature, there are also stuffed animals, a wine bottle “7 Deadly Sins,” action figures . . . and there – proudly sitting on my desk is “Plastic Jesus.” That is his name.
If I am having a particularly challenging meeting where I need a little extra inner peace/guidance, Plastic Jesus gets placed in my work bag and off I go. If it is a moment of great joy that we are going to experience as a faith community, he accompanies those as well.
So, in the middle of this particular meeting in my office, I guess he caught the person’s eye . . . so before he could think through how it came across, with great skepticism he asked, “You really have a plastic Jesus? Isn’t that wrong?”
I certainly don’t have it to “mock” Jesus . . . in fact, because of the way his arms are placed, when I glance at him I remember.
Richard Rohr describes for us what Christianity is growing to look like today.
It is debunking the “old” way of thinking and religion and spirituality is experiencing a MUCH needed rebirth. It brings us a new way of seeing and living into our faith and life.
His first idea is, “Jesus is a model for living more than an object of worship.”
For a good while we’ve made Jesus something to “worship” instead of a model for life. We’ve believed that sitting and dolling out some adoration was/is enough.
Not so much. And that’s why I love my “Plastic Jesus.” Every time I see him on my desk I am prompted to think about the way he lived. Then, I am called to remember.
To remember that we are called to go through life with our arms outstretched, opening ourselves to the world and the many opportunities it brings – both good and bad. For it is in the good that we celebrate and in the bad that we have a chance to grow and learn.
To remember that we are to outstretch our arms to one another. Offering acceptance, grace, forgiveness, and love.
To remember that it is about so much more than “us.” It is about living in perfect union with love. Love of God and love of our fellow man. Recognizing that love is a decision we make instead of something we feel. We choose to love – to make those sacrifices and that investment.
Jesus is a model of living . . . not just “something” we worship.
What can you remember today about the way of Christ?
How might you live differently, even if it is incrementally?
Yes, it’s ok to have Plastic Jesus.
Grace and Peace,
Andrea
“You really have a plastic Jesus? Isn’t that like . . . wrong?”
Those were the words uttered by someone visiting my office. Around my bookcases and on my desk are things/pictures given to me by friends and family. Granted, they aren’t the stereotypical things you’d see in a pastor’s office. Sure – I have the biblical commentaries, books, etc. but because I am whimsical in nature, there are also stuffed animals, a wine bottle “7 Deadly Sins,” action figures . . . and there – proudly sitting on my desk is “Plastic Jesus.” That is his name.
If I am having a particularly challenging meeting where I need a little extra inner peace/guidance, Plastic Jesus gets placed in my work bag and off I go. If it is a moment of great joy that we are going to experience as a faith community, he accompanies those as well.
So, in the middle of this particular meeting in my office, I guess he caught the person’s eye . . . so before he could think through how it came across, with great skepticism he asked, “You really have a plastic Jesus? Isn’t that wrong?”
I certainly don’t have it to “mock” Jesus . . . in fact, because of the way his arms are placed, when I glance at him I remember.
Richard Rohr describes for us what Christianity is growing to look like today.
It is debunking the “old” way of thinking and religion and spirituality is experiencing a MUCH needed rebirth. It brings us a new way of seeing and living into our faith and life.
His first idea is, “Jesus is a model for living more than an object of worship.”
For a good while we’ve made Jesus something to “worship” instead of a model for life. We’ve believed that sitting and dolling out some adoration was/is enough.
Not so much. And that’s why I love my “Plastic Jesus.” Every time I see him on my desk I am prompted to think about the way he lived. Then, I am called to remember.
To remember that we are called to go through life with our arms outstretched, opening ourselves to the world and the many opportunities it brings – both good and bad. For it is in the good that we celebrate and in the bad that we have a chance to grow and learn.
To remember that we are to outstretch our arms to one another. Offering acceptance, grace, forgiveness, and love.
To remember that it is about so much more than “us.” It is about living in perfect union with love. Love of God and love of our fellow man. Recognizing that love is a decision we make instead of something we feel. We choose to love – to make those sacrifices and that investment.
Jesus is a model of living . . . not just “something” we worship.
What can you remember today about the way of Christ?
How might you live differently, even if it is incrementally?
Yes, it’s ok to have Plastic Jesus.
Grace and Peace,
Andrea