“Even so, each of us has a personal idea of the Lord more or less well founded, more or less unconscious, forming part of a Christology that influences our very being and all our auctions as Christians.
“Even though we do not notice it, into this image that we make of the personality of Jesus goes our own manner of being, our own psychology, and the various forms of our egoism. We are always in danger of deforming, according to our own conditioning, the real personality of the Lord. We tend to shape Jesus in our own image and likeness, according to our measure, justifying our mediocrity and infidelity to adapt the message of the person of Christ to us and not us to him. The only way to avoid this constant temptation will be the permanent return to the contemplation of the Christ of the Gospels. Otherwise, we shall transform Christology into a projection of ourselves and Christian praxis into an ideology in which we accept the aspects of the Gospel that fit into an already personal position or ideology.
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(Following Jesus by Segundo Galilea pp. 15-16)
MY REFLECTION:
Galilea identifies this problem of creating Jesus in our own image and according to our own interests. This is a universal stumbling block. It started with the twelve Apostles. We all want to make Jesus in our own image. We want to water him down to take away the sting. We definitely want to make him a more comfortable fit. The end result is that we have a cultural Jesus, or a prosperity and security Jesus, or a legalistic Jesus, or a mild and meaningless Jesus.
Mark addressed this issue in his Gospel. In fact, it is a major part of his message. The Apostles are portrayed as hard-headed and ambitious followers who just do not get it when it comes to Jesus’ teachings.
There is a section in Mark, 8:22 to 10:52 that is especially powerful in showing the resistance and ignorance of the original twelve. Mark shows Jesus after the resurrection inviting the Apostles to return to Galilee. There he will meet them. This strange message is understood today that Jesus is giving the Apostles a second chance to recognize his teachings in light of his death and resurrection.
We too, need to hear the message again and again. Self-deception is a major obstacle to accepting Jesus on his terms. Two items are most valuable in helping us encounter the true Jesus of the Gospels. First, our prayerful reading of the Gospels must be continuous. This frequent encounter with the Jesus in the Gospels must be as honest as possible. It must constantly measure our life against the searing light of the Gospel truth. Our task must be in searching. We need to avoid any sense of having the answer. The second issue is love of our neighbor. We must live the message. Our life must be one of service in love. We need an expanding group of recipients of our humble service.
Pope Francis put it this way in the Joy of the Gospel:
“Before all else, the Gospel invites us to respond to the God of love who saves us, to see God in others and to go forth from ourselves to seek the good of others.”
MY REFLECTION:
Galilea identifies this problem of creating Jesus in our own image and according to our own interests. This is a universal stumbling block. It started with the twelve Apostles. We all want to make Jesus in our own image. We want to water him down to take away the sting. We definitely want to make him a more comfortable fit. The end result is that we have a cultural Jesus, or a prosperity and security Jesus, or a legalistic Jesus, or a mild and meaningless Jesus.
Mark addressed this issue in his Gospel. In fact, it is a major part of his message. The Apostles are portrayed as hard-headed and ambitious followers who just do not get it when it comes to Jesus’ teachings.
There is a section in Mark, 8:22 to 10:52 that is especially powerful in showing the resistance and ignorance of the original twelve. Mark shows Jesus after the resurrection inviting the Apostles to return to Galilee. There he will meet them. This strange message is understood today that Jesus is giving the Apostles a second chance to recognize his teachings in light of his death and resurrection.
We too, need to hear the message again and again. Self-deception is a major obstacle to accepting Jesus on his terms. Two items are most valuable in helping us encounter the true Jesus of the Gospels. First, our prayerful reading of the Gospels must be continuous. This frequent encounter with the Jesus in the Gospels must be as honest as possible. It must constantly measure our life against the searing light of the Gospel truth. Our task must be in searching. We need to avoid any sense of having the answer. The second issue is love of our neighbor. We must live the message. Our life must be one of service in love. We need an expanding group of recipients of our humble service.
Pope Francis put it this way in the Joy of the Gospel:
“Before all else, the Gospel invites us to respond to the God of love who saves us, to see God in others and to go forth from ourselves to seek the good of others.”
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