As we near Easter, Bishop David Bard asks us to proclaim the message of a loving and redeeming God who remains ever near, the same message that has been carried by so many before us.
BISHOP DAVID ALAN BARD
Michigan Conference
In the last six months, it has been my joy and privilege to travel with groups from both the Michigan Conference and the Illinois Great Rivers Conference (IGRC). I just returned from a trip to Greece and Rome with IGRC ordinands and others from the conference, following Paul’s travels and seeing some of the seminal sites in the history of Western civilization.
Seeing these magnificent sites and structures, I pondered, “What did Paul have to offer in his preaching?” When one thinks of Rome, Peter must also be included. So, what about the preaching of Peter and Paul attracted persons to follow this Jesus, a Jesus crucified at the hands of the Roman Empire but then proclaimed as risen?
Monotheism may have been attractive to some. Throughout Greece and Rome, temples were built to various gods. Perhaps the simplicity of worshiping one God appealed to some, though there were certainly monotheistic trends in other religions of the time, including those in Egypt.
More important, though, was the character and nature of this single God proclaimed by Paul and Peter. This God was genuinely caring. This God was concerned for the well-being of all persons. While traveling to Greece, Rome, and Egypt, I could not avoid the impression that the religious systems of all three were hierarchically structured and that those higher up in the social system were also closer to the gods. The God of Jesus Christ did not distinguish between rich and poor, ruler and ruled, in caring and concern. “There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Galatians 3:28, NRSVUE). In the Egyptian, Greek, and Roman religions, the emperors were given titles such as “son of God” and “savior.” In the Christian faith, all can be considered children of God, and our savior is a Jew from a backwater province who was crucified by the empire.
The notion of a caring and concerned God is rooted in the faith of the Hebrews and is now extended in Jesus to all persons. And this caring and concerned God is always near in the resurrected Christ. People responded to this message.
And while the message of the Christian faith is about an accessible God, there is also a sense that some places can be places of special encounter with this God of Jesus Christ. Some have labeled them as “thin spaces,” places where the presence of God in the risen Christ seems remarkably powerful. One cannot travel to Greece and Rome without being taken by the remarkable church structures that have been thin places for many people: St. Peter’s Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, and monasteries built on the Greek mountains in Meteora. Icons, in their unique artistry, provide a powerful reminder of the presence of God.
The message of a caring, concerned, and accessible God often threatened the empire. To worship the usual gods supported the imperial structures and systems. To worship the God of Jesus Christ might lead people to question those systems and structures. The relationship between the Christian faith and the philosophical and religious ideas of the Greeks and Romans remains interesting. Some early Christians, such as Justin Martyr (AD 100-165), taught that as all truth comes from God, the truth that may be found in Greek and Roman philosophy should be welcomed by Christians. Unfortunately, his Christian faith still cost him. Justin was beheaded for refusing to renounce his faith, likely and ironically, during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius, an emperor keen on philosophy.
When the empire fell, there was a time when the Christians showed little concern for its grand structures. Marble from the Colosseum in Rome was taken and used for building homes. Later, popes and other authorities began to appreciate the importance of these ancient structures. Archaeologists have uncovered wonderful places that tell us about our history and help it come alive. Walking the ancient streets of Corinth, where Paul walked, is an amazing experience I have had twice these past six months.
I will be processing these trips for some time. I come away with a desire to dig deeply into the rich wells of our Christian tradition. I encourage you to do so as well. People have been following Jesus for nearly two thousand years, and we have much to learn from them. They have worshiped in caves, catacombs, and church buildings, ranging from the simple to the grand and ornate. We wonder how the wisdom of others might relate to the wisdom of our faith, and I admit that as a philosophy major, I was moved by being in the Athens of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle.
In plumbing the depths of our history, we must also acknowledge where we have gotten things wrong in following Jesus. The church has sometimes uncritically embraced hierarchies of value inconsistent with our faith. The church has often found itself enamored with the power of Caesars. In our history, we have justified slavery and racism. In the 1920s, Congress passed an immigration act that set strict quotas on immigrants from Eastern and Southern Europe. Our founders often referred to the thought of the Greeks and Romans, but ironically, in 1924, we decided we did not want to allow many Greeks or Italians into the country.
The heart of our faith, though, is always an appreciation of each person as a unique creation of God, created in the image of God — a God who cares and seeks the well-being of God’s creation and its redemption and salvation. This God came near in Jesus and remains near in the risen Christ. On Easter morning, when we sing out, “Christ the Lord is risen today,” it is not a statement about the past but about the present. Today! The message of a loving and redeeming God who remains ever near, the message carried by Paul and Peter and so many others through the centuries, remains our message to share. Celebrate this. Plumb the depths of our rich history. Share the story.
Last Updated on April 2, 2025