Here’s Cedric’s sermon for the City of Glasgow from this morning’s worship.
5 responses to “St Strumpet?”
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How about the wife of Jesus, airbrushed out of the story by later misogynist Christians? See Starbird, M “The Woman with the Alabaster Jar” and other books by her. She is an ex-Catholic who set out to refute the Holy Blood, Holy Grail story and ended by being convinced that Jesus and Mary were a married pair (and an archetype of the male/female balance principle). There’s a wonderful window in Kilmore Church, Mull. Check it out – whoever created it intended it to represent J and M as husband and wife, and M is clearly pregnant. Of course, there is no unchallengeable evidence that Jesus was married, but what I would like to ask the sceptics is why, given that He was the word made flesh and dwelt among us, is it unacceptable for Him to have been a sexual being? Why have later Christians considered sexuality, even in a loving relationship, to be something disgusting? Because they have, we are now stuck with the nasty views of the NotW brigade that sex is either an acceptable leisure activity or something gross. As Margaret Starbird points out, if we restored Mary as Jesus’ beloved consort we would be creating a much more wholesome myth!
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It is a little like the arguments that might be made of the relationship between Jesus and the beloved disciple though, isn’t it? All very attractive and neat if you come from a particular point of view but not really backed up with enough evidence apart from modern presumption, presupposition and desire.
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I think the arguments on Jesus being married are very far from being liberationary. Rather, they’re the natural end-point of the Evangelical mindset that homophobically (and unbiblically) divides the world into Normal Heterosexual Married types and the demonised Other. “It is better to marry than burn” might have some mysognistic readings conducive to the fundamentalist world-view, but it hardly most naturally supports the idolatarisation of particular heterosexual relationships.
If I had a pound for every time a nominal Sola Scriptura type had told me that St.Paul had to have been married (presumably because Our Lord’s asceticism and disinterest in heterosexual marriage is bad enough) then I would be a very rich man indeed 😉
Interesting post Kelvin! Had no idea that St.Mary M even had red hair Perhaps she could be reclaimed as the Patron Saint of Gingers and Other Persecuted Minorities? 🙂
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Oh, her hair was red, Ryan. Flaming Red I believe.
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How reginal! 😉
Previous Posts
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Exceptions
A long time ago, and in a land far away, I remember The Rev Rosemary Nixon saying something significant to me which I still think true today. (Just once, mind). She said, in the course of a conversation about my progress through the Scottish Episcopal Church’s exemplary education system, “The trouble is, Kelvin, everyone in…
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Tales of the City
A knock at the door. I answer it to find a young man wearing black T-shirt, black shorts (were they boxer shorts?) and no shoes or socks. Me: Hello Him: Er hello. Me: Can I help. Him: Er, I was just wondering if you had any white wine vinegar. Me: Oh, hang on a minute.…
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Sermon – 17 June 2007 – The woman with the perfume
When I was first in full time ministry, as a lay person, some fifteen years ago, I worked as a member of the chaplaincy team, in the University of London. The team that I worked in was a team of five people, four ordained, and me, a lay person. Four were men, and one a…
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Ahh, arrhh, arrrrhhhhh chooo!
I’m off work for a couple of days. I’ve picked up a sneezing lurgy. If I had company, I’m sure it would be a man-cold. However, as it is, I’m on my own, so it is merely an indisposition. Normal service will be resumed shortly.
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