Curiosity

As we journey toward that which is new, and as we learn to let go of the old, that which keeps us from the newness, it’s important we embrace curiosity. That we would be found as open and asking a lot of questions, which has us working from a place of humility. All of which is really important as we approach the Biblical library.

I enjoy following the church Lectionary for daily reading, and I also enjoy immersing myself in the Grand Narrative at random. I fluctuate between sticking to the script and flipping pages.

This past Sunday’s Lectionary reading was the story of Jesus’s Transfiguration, which is found in the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke, while also being referenced in 2 Peter. I first read the story in Luke’s gospel, then I shifted to Matthew and Mark, which led me to kneading some doughy questions to prepare to be put in the oven of the soul to bake.

Each of the stories come out of Jesus saying, “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.” Then Luke begins the transfiguration story with, “About eight days after Jesus said this, he took Peter, John and James with him and went up on a mountain to pray.” But Mark and Matthew both say, “After six days Jesus took Peter, James and John with him…”

So which is it, six days or eight days? And what’s the deal with Moses and Elijah showing up, doesn’t that seem pretty far fetched?

A strictly literal reading of the Scriptures will often lead someone to getting stuck. I say that because it would be easy to ask why they don’t match up in their storytelling, is there a contradiction in here, and if so does that monkey up the reliability of it all? I looked into how others approached the different details, and there were quite a few who were really swinging wildly on the theological monkey bars trying line it all up… literally.

But when we approach the text through context, and understand how the first century near eastern context is rooted in rich imagery, we can relax a bit. Because numbers are most often used as symbols and signs pointing to something more, or something deeper, rather than mathematical equations and timelines.

If the story begins six days later, then it invites us to ask whether the number seven has a particular value or meaning for the Hebrew people. Seven is a number of completion, of wholeness. Might it have to do with Jesus fulfilling something that had begun then? When Moses and Elijah show up for an apparent conversation with Jesus, it’s important we know that those two characters represent the Law and the Prophets for the Hebrew people. And Jesus says in Matthew 5:17, “Do not think I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.” Interesting, so maybe that’s what is being signaled here? It’s as if Jesus is saying to Moses and Elijah, “Thanks for your work, I’ll take it from here and finish what you started.”

But Luke uses the number eight, so what value does that number hold for the Hebrew people? Well, circumcision takes place eight days after the birth of a newborn male, so maybe this is some sort of symbolic circumcision? Maybe a circumcision of hearts as a way of preparing for the new thing that is coming? Eight also represents the first day of a new week, or the first day of a new creation. Maybe this is a signal that the first creation, the one organized and led by the Law and the Prophets, is coming to an end and Jesus is inaugurating a New Creation?

I don’t have THE answer, and I don’t know if there is one simple answer. These are just questions that began rattling around in my head and heart as I read yesterday. I consider it the gift of curiosity and one of the many gifts of not trying to nail the text to the wall with a stilted literalism.

My heart is swimming in awe and wonder, which helps create a hunger in me for the more of the Divine.

My hope and prayer is it does the same for you. May you find a way of opening up, of creating space for curiosity, because the Divine playground is a mix of endless fun and fulfillment.