Paul the Ap began each day,
apparently ,
thinking that today would be
THE day that He
would return to have his say.
…
So, he said unless you burn
(that’s sexually),
you should live like him and be
(yes, singly) :
you should live your life alone.
…
Paul thought when the Trump would sound
triumphally,
there were places we should be
selectively,
than in bed messing around.
…
Many generations later
Christians thank Paul for his letter,
but think it better far to wait
and live in Heaven like a Saint!
- Steve Shoemaker, Urbana, IL August 2, 2012
“Oh, my!” say I. (Gordon)
I think Paul has given many people problems because he propounded behavioral minutiae, which tend to change with time, but he also gave us some of the most wonderful and compelling prose — really approaching poetry (at least in the King James’ translation) in the Bible. Only consider Romans 8:28-39, or, of course 1st Corinthians 13. It is quite a disjunction between that and some of his rules on behavior, some of which seem either very old-fashioned or totally impossible to obey.
Hi, Carolyn, Once again…we must have grown up in the same congregation
. Thanks for taking time to read these posts and sharing your reflection on this. I can hear an echo of your father’s an d mother’s voice in your comment, and see a bit of the Kidder twinkle and hear a slight chuckle..
But if two of you are in bed together, and only one of you is going to get to go, what do you do in the meantime?
David, I really should defer to Steve for a reply, but…in the meantime…neither of the two knows who’s going where, if anywhere, so… it’s time to live in the present as though one were already in heaven. As a famous preacher once said from the pulpit. preaching on the Song of Solomon, “you can’t get to heaven here, but you can get pretty darn close.” There were smiles and chuckles all across the congregation.
Reminds me of a response to something i recently read grousing about Paul’s attitude, obviously totally unaware that the church in that era believed in the immanent return of Christ, and also the general precariousness of their status in a Roman controlled part of the world.
Karin, Exactly. Right on target.