Day 1088: Thursday, March 9, 2023

The warrior's bow shall be banished, and he shall proclaim peace to the nations!

Quote for the Day:

"Rejoice heartily, O daughter Zion! Shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem! See, your king shall come to you; a just savior is he, meek, and riding on a colt. He shall banish the war chariot from Ephraim, and the war horse from Jerusalem. The warrior's bow shall be banished, and he shall proclaim peace to the nations. His dominion shall be from sea to sea, and from the river to the ends of the earth." Zechariah 9:9-10

Dear friends, Blessings of Christ’s peace to you!

I consider Lent a time to repent of our participation in the culture of violence and war, and to turn back to the total nonviolence of Jesus. In that spirit, I will offer a zoom session on Saturday, April 1st on “Jesus’ Holy Week Nonviolence.” Together, we will walk through the Holy Week story of his approach to Jerusalem, his civil disobedience, last supper, arrest, execution, and resurrection—from the perspective of nonviolence.

So, for example, in the famous story of Palm Sunday, when Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey—when it’s unpacked from the perspective of nonviolence—it’s amazing. Jesus uses classic political street theater to fulfill the spectacular oracle quoted above from Zechariah.

Remember, it’s Passover week, and a hundred thousand people are pouring into Jerusalem. So Pontius Pilate rides into the city on his warhorse leading a triumphal military parade with the whole cohort of 600 Roman soldiers, making a full show of imperial force, power, and military might.

Jesus does the exact opposite. On the other side of town, he rides in on a donkey—meek, humble, gentle, and nonviolent. He is a symbol of nonviolence, a new kind of leader, a king of nonviolence. He fulfills the oracle from Zechariah about the coming of a new “king of nonviolence who will abolish war and bring peace to the whole world! I think this then becomes one of the greatest scenes in the Gospels—but the question is, do we want a king of nonviolence, a new world of nonviolence? Join me as we reflect on Jesus’ holy week nonviolence!

A Zoom Session with John Dear on April 1st

To register, visit www.beatitudescenter.org

The program begins at 11am Pacific/ 12pm Mountain/ 1pm Central/ 2pm Eastern time. You will receive the zoom link a few days beforehand, so be on the lookout!, and a recording link afterwards. If you have questions, email Kassandra at beatitudescentermb@gmail.com. See you then. God bless you! -- Fr. John Dear

And a reminder to RSVP for Beth Jordan's Celebration of Life

Saturday, March 18, 2023