The Power to Act Righteously

It can feel overwhelming to try and understand Jesus' life and all of the implications it has in our lives. This week Joel looks at one powerful element that can help us see one kind of daily impact. -Editor

We are told many times in the Writings that the Lord’s life on earth is essential to our salvation. That somehow, what He accomplished thousands of years ago on this earth still has ramifications on our own lives today. Certainly, as a historical event, it is important that the Lord conquered the hells. He conquered them then, and so they remain conquerable in our time.

But we might start to wonder why we are told so many things about the Lord’s process. Surely the Lord does not simply want us to know about His life as a history lesson. Knowledge of what He did contains an infinite amount of truth about who our God is, the same God who is with us even now.

We could not possibly cover all of the Lord’s life in so short an article; but if we explore even just one aspect of His life, we can learn much about how He works with us today. Take for instance the teaching that the Lord, in His lifetime, became righteousness itself. This is a powerful teaching, yet it can be hard to see what it means for us. So let’s take a closer look.

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Father and Son

Joel takes a quote from Apocalypse Revealed and uses it to bring together the image of the Old Testament God with that of Jesus. He writes of how easily the two have been pigeon holed into separate roles, while in truth they embody each other seamlessly.-Editor

Growing up, I would occasionally encounter some variation of the phrase “the angry God of the Old Testament.” This was often contrasted with the loving image of the Lord found in the New Testament. Sometimes it would come up when someone compared the New Church to other Christians, in that they often portray God as the angry God of the Old Testament alongside Jesus, while the New Church claims that Jesus is God Himself. It would be easy, I think, to start seeing the distinction between angry Father and loving Son as the same distinction between truth and goodness. Truth by itself is harsh, so that would be the Father. Goodness is loving and merciful, and so the Son.

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Women in the Ministry

Joel presents an argument for why women should not be ordained in the General Church. He draws passages from the Writings that support his opinion, while admitting that the writings are absent of a clear position on this issue. This is the third entry in the series: Women as Ordained Priests (or Not). -Editor.

This article addresses the question of whether women should be ordained into the Ministry of the General Church of the New Jerusalem. This can be a very complex and frustrating debate. My own position, that I have come to after much uncertainty, is that it is better to have an all male priesthood. This is based on my understanding of how men and women operate and on the role that the priesthood is to play in the church. My hope is that in this article, I can share with you a little of how I believe that this position is consistent with the truths we are taught in the Word and in the Doctrines.

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Doubt

Joel describes the process he uses when flooded with doubt. He draws a distinction between the experience of doubt, and the choice to see beyond it, by taking loving actions in spite of his emotions and thoughts. This essay was first published in Beacon, the Bryn Athyn College newspaper. Joel's contribution wraps up our themed series on doubt. You can find the lead essay in the series [here]. -Editor.

Doubt is a topic that has always been important to me. I think this is because I have a very skeptical personality. I like to disbelieve things until they have been absolutely proven to me. This is a problem, as I also strive to have a strong faith in the Lord. This conflict has led me to try to understand what faith really is, and what place doubt has in the context of faith. Often, I am confronted by the question, “How can I have faith when I am experiencing such strong doubt?”

First of all, it is important to have an idea of what faith is. On one level, it is all those things that I think are correct.

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