What would Jesus do if he were here right now?

Last updated on: December 23, 2011 at 4:59 pm by Brian McLaren

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What would Jesus do if he were here right now? 2011-12-23T16:59:44+00:00 Brian McLaren

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I can’t think of a better question to ask at this holiday season. So much could be written on this subject, but here are a few random thoughts just to get the ball rolling … maybe folks will follow-up on their own blogs or on my Facebook page. This might also be a good topic of conversation around an upcoming holiday meal.

1. Jesus might be born into today’s world as a refugee, or in an occupied nation, or in a slum, or in a war zone. Christian faith would have to take more seriously God’s solidarity with the poor and oppressed and war-torn.

2. Jesus might not be born Jewish or Christian. He might be born Congolese or Sudanese or Palestinian or Native American. He might not be raised in a two-parent traditional family. As a result, Christian faith would have to take more seriously God’s love for all people everywhere.

3. Jesus might find ways to “turn over the tables” of the military-industrial complex, of Wall Street, of religious broadcasting, or of the dirty energy industry. Christians would have to take more seriously God’s call to care for peace and the planet.

4. Jesus might frequently withdraw – not into the desert, but into a national park or wildlife protection area. Christians would have to take more seriously God’s concern for endangered species and threatened ecosystems.

5. Jesus might deliver the sermon on the mount at a landfill, in the Canadian tar sands, or near an oil refinery. Christians would have to confront the costs – human and ecological – of consumerism, arguably the West’s leading religion.

6. Jesus might go, as a twelve year old boy, to a leading university to talk with scientists and atheists. The Christian faith would need to remember that God is involved in all areas of human life – not simply religion.

7. Jesus might be tortured, imprisoned, tried for heresy, and executed by all of the world’s leading religions … reminding us that the kingdom of God is not a religion, but a life.

What do others think? Why might an imaginative exercise like this be important?

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