May 16, 2008 The Message

Dear E-pistle subscriber,

Do you have a Bible that you are reading on a regular basis?

If the answer to that question is no, then may I recommend, once again, that wonderful paraphrase of the Bible that I’ve ever seen?

It is Eugene Peterson’s The Message.

For several years now, I’ve been urging anyone who will listen to buy a copy of The Message. The main reason is that The Message is readable.

It is a reading Bible, a Bible you will want to pick up and read.

Eugene Peterson worked as a pastor for forty years. Prior to that, he worked as a teacher of the biblical languages of Hebrew and Greek.

The Message is a responsible paraphrase, but because it is not a translation, it is not intended to replace any of the excellent study Bibles that are available.

You can buy copies of The Message that divide the Bible up into daily passages. There are versions that have suggested questions for further reflection.

So, again: Do you have a Bible that you are reading on a regular basis?

If not, then treat yourself to The Message.

See you Sunday,

Fr. John

P.S. In case you’re interested, here is an excerpt from a Christianity Today interview with Eugene Peterson:

CT: What is the most misunderstood aspect of spirituality?

EP: That it's a kind of specialized form of being a Christian, that you have to have some kind of in. It's elitist. Many people are attracted to it for the wrong reasons. Others are put off by it: I'm not spiritual. I like to go to football games or parties or pursue my career. In fact, I try to avoid the word.

CT: Many people assume that spirituality is about becoming emotionally intimate with God.

EP: That's a naïve view of spirituality. What we're talking about is the Christian life. It's following Jesus. Spirituality is no different from what we've been doing for two thousand years just by going to church and receiving the sacraments, being baptized, learning to pray, and reading Scriptures rightly. It's just ordinary stuff.

This promise of intimacy is both right and wrong. There is an intimacy with God, but it's like any other intimacy; it's part of the fabric of your life. In marriage you don't feel intimate most of the time. Nor with a friend. Intimacy isn't primarily a mystical emotion. It's a way of life, a life of openness, honesty, a certain transparency.

CT: Doesn't the mystical tradition suggest otherwise?

EP: One of my favorite stories is of Teresa of Avila. She's sitting in the kitchen with a roasted chicken. And she's got it with both hands, and she's gnawing on it, just devouring this chicken. One of the nuns comes in shocked that she's doing this, behaving this way. She said, "When I eat chicken, I eat chicken; when I pray, I pray."

If you read the saints, they're pretty ordinary people. There are moments of rapture and ecstasy, but once every 10 years. And even then it's a surprise to them.

Spirituality for All the Wrong Reasons

Eugene Peterson talks about lies and illusions that destroy the church.

Interview by Mark Galli | posted 5/16/2008 http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2005/march/26.42.html?start=1