Matthew Speaks

Last night I experienced again the Kingdom of God in a flurorescent lit room around a deal table sharing pizza from paper plates with beloved brothers and sisters--havuroth of the adult education group. We watched the first fourteen chapters of Matthew on a DVD and wow!

Here came Jesus, flashing eye and smile, with a voice like Kevin Kostner's--getting baptized by a truly scary John and then setting out to preach, teach, and heal. Every now and then we'd cut out to the "old" Matthew dictating the Gospel to his scribes. All in all, quite vivid.

The sensational parts:

-- Jesus so affectonate and gleeful. Hugging, patting, laughing, kissing the people. When he healed the leper the two started rolling around on the ground together shouting for joy.

--His jokiness, pulling a big stick in front of his eye to illustrate the "log," dumping a bucket of water over someone's head during the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus had a broad humor, according to this CD according to Matthew.

--After every miracle of healing people laughed, cried, and danced; for the Messiah had manifested the Kingdom.

--The utter strangeness of the message smacked one in the face. Usually I think I understand pretty well, but hearing it like this, there was no getting it: "The fish will be sorted at the end of the age." "An enemy planted these weeds."

At times like these you just open up to the message and try not to analyze too much. Give thanks for the ongoing life with the brothers and sisters and sacramental pizza in the Kingdom of God.