I started this blog because, as my faith continued to grow, I began to feel more and more compelled to share certain things with the world. Much of this is centered around how to reunite us, loving brothers and sisters, together as one family, all equal in each other’s eyes and in the eyes of God. We are all created in the image of God, no matter our gender, race, ethnicity, physical ability, etc., but sometimes our biblical interpretations get in the way of the message of love God has for us.
A bit about me: After trying to find fulfillment working in the non-profit sector, I experienced a call in my mid-thirties and went to seminary to become a pastor. Ever a curious and voracious reader, I’ve spent many years exploring faith in its different forms. My main influence is the mainstream Protestant faith but I’ve learned from people of Catholic, Charismatic, and other faiths.
I’m truly a Bible geek and history buff. Some years ago I started a daily practice of reading scripture in its original Hebrew and Greek. At first I discovered how much more meaningful and beautiful scripture is in its original language. But after a while I became deeply dissatisfied with our current bible translations. It seemed almost daily I would stumble upon a new passage of importance that has been either mistranslated or ignored by the church as a whole.
Over time, as I would attend to people in deep spiritual distress, I began to see the deep damage done to those who believed themselves to be rejected by God, in part because wrongly-translated biblical passages have been used to justify their mistreatment by others.
I am currently a semi-retired part-time minister and chaplain within a large mainstream denomination. However, I am not a spokesperson for or reflect the beliefs of any particular religious group.
It’s been my privilege to get to know clergy from many denominations who risk their lives in places where the concerns of the people and the environment are dire. It breaks my heart that in this beautiful world of plenty, a world that God created to support and nourish us, there are millions who struggle to find food to eat, clean water to drink, and suffer from the lack of medical care. Millions struggle to survive cruel political regimes who slaughter the innocent in droves. Those brave clergy who put their lives at risk to help others have helped me to realize the true mission Christ wants us to live. We live in a world that tolerates greedy oppressors who treat creation, people, even children, as nothing more than resources, objects whose only purpose is to extract wealth from. Listen up people! One thing I have learned from reading scripture in its original form is that everyone is God’s beloved child!
I hope you will profit from what you read here, and that this blog can become a place for people to learn the true blessings God has for them and all of us.
In Peace,
Jona