Every relationship must be nurtured with God's love

In the Letter to the Hebrews, God assured generations upon generations that all "are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses." The clergy and the people in their congregations have been called to be the purveyors of hope and love to both their faith communities and in their larger communities -- be it a small village, a city or a metropolis. During times of great tribulation and in times of jubilant joy, God has always provided men and women of passionate courage as our guides.

Two such men are the Reverends Charles Page and Kenneth Wyatt. Both men were ordained as Methodist ministers and served congregations, but God had need of them to be witnesses in other ways. Charles Page's second career is as a world-renowned Biblical archaeologist. Kenneth Wyatt's second career is an accomplished artist.

The two joined together in a project that took two years. They wondered the ever-present question that is as old as the New Testament: What did Jesus look like?

They wrote in the preface of their book, "Behold the Man," "We present in art and narrative Jesus, in His historical context. Our goal is simple. We hope that you will see Jesus in the context of first century Palestinian Jewry in art and in word. In doing so, our prayer is that your relationship with the Prince of Peace will be strengthened and enhanced. May this work of love be a memorial of our commitment and dedication to Jesus and his Kingdom. May the spirit of the Risen Christ set you free to 'Behold the Man.'"

There followed prints of 20 canvases and commentary based on the Gospels including the stunning "Jesus Walking on Water," and "Jesus and Woman at the Well."

Both men worried that while people are still buying Bibles and may even read a book or two, they never study the Bible or read it with any context except their world view. Often people encounter something Jesus said and don't try and wonder prayerfully what He was saying to those people that first heard Him. At the same time, how do we connect with them as great clouds of witness? How do we faithfully join all those generations of children of God?

For example, Jesus asked those gathered around him in Luke 12, "Do you think I have come to bring peace?" He then spoke about how even the basic stabilizing social unit of his day -- the family -- would be divided one or two against another. Nothing should be taken for granted, including family members biological allegiances. Each relationship has to be nurtured, fed and lived with God's help.

We are all called to spread that divinely inspired hope and love for one another through all the things we say and do. We all need to be in this place during this time as a great cloud of witnesses.

We, too, must behold the Man.

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Ken Parks is the former rector of St. Theodore's Episcopal Church in Bella Vista. He can be reached by email to [email protected]. The opinions expressed are those of the author.

Religion on 08/17/2016