Few days ago I went to do a presentation on contemporary / creative writing in one of the Catholic schools in Abuja. It was great and quite revealing for me and the students. There is none who doesn’t know how to write except one is such a stark illiterate. Writing of course is a daily exercise, but writing creatively is one thing not too many people are into.
I have read books , of all the books I have read the bible comes across to me as one book that was deliberately written with an amazing slant of creativity, laced with the finest usage of literary devices( Metaphor, alliteration, imagery, onomatopoeia, idoms, etc)
One may argue that Jesus never wrote anything, the only place he wrote something was in the gospel of John 8:8 when the woman caught in adultery was brought to him. Apart from that I stand to be corrected if he ever wrote anything. However, from his teachings one could see a great writer with a deep flair for creativity. He spoke in parables, he communicated in metaphors and used imagery to hit his point home. Though not every one that speaks well writes with such equal measure but in the case of Jesus, coming from above and being above all, writing with creativity wouldn’t be a challenge, my assumption anyway.
When Jesus was using metaphors to express thoughts and feelings as stated below, if one is not careful and filled with the Holy Spirit , one could possibly fall into misgivings, confusion and misunderstanding .
John 6:35: “I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry.”
John 8:12: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
John 10:11: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
John 15:5 “I am the true vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit.”
There are much more of such if one searches the bible with diligence and reads with wisdom, the very many dimensions of such passages will blow and puzzle ones mind.
As today is Holy Thursday, as church history tells us was the day Christ instituted the Sacrament of the Eucharist.
Matthew 26:26-29
While they were eating, Jesus took a piece of bread, gave a prayer of thanks, broke it, and gave it to his disciples. “Take and eat it,” he said; “this is my body.”
Then he took a cup, gave thanks to God, and gave it to them. “Drink it, all of you,” he said;
“this is my blood, which seals God’s covenant, my blood poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.
I tell you, I will never again drink this wine until the day I drink the new wine with you in my Father’s Kingdom.”
The above is a great literary piece laced with metaphors and idiomatic expressions. Only a mind that is creatively structured and filled with the power of the Holy Spirit would read in-between lines and see the deeper meaning from the pedestrian angle.
As we celebrate this day , the gifts of priesthood and the Eucharist, I call for a sober reflection on the above Scripture. Was Jesus actually trying to communicate something beyond our pedestrian and common understanding of it ?
Was he speaking in metaphors, using it to point at something more deeper?
Do the bread and wine we eat and drink as body and blood of Jesus a life giver in themselves or a representation of the LIFE that gives Life ?
What really does this verse. John 6:63
“What gives life is God’s Spirit; human power is of no use at all. The words I have spoken to you bring God’s life-giving Spirit” mean in the light of Matthew 26. 26 -29 ?
As the world is gone digital, evolving daily, so is the word of God new every morning, evolving with deeper revelation that makes traditional and dogmatic thinkers missing in this realm of new dimensional revealed word of God.
People ever than before are beginning to question some seeming visible lacuna in the bible and in some cases a new inspiration and understanding are dawning, making more sense to the verse that was intially unintelligible.
There are more about the bible that are hidden in its creativity and huge usage of literary devices, only a mind intune with the mind of God will always get it right.
What are you eating and drinking? The bread and wine? The body and blood of Jesus? The Spirit that gives Life?
Happy Holy Thursday. To our priests, happy anniversary.
Jarlath Uche Opara Jarlathuche@gmail.com