A purely Johannine Christianity?

I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book,

If any man shall add unto them,

God shall add unto him the plagues which are written in this book:

and if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy,

God shall take away his part from the tree of life,

and out of the holy city,

which are written in this book.

Revelation 22:18-19 RV

I have often thought about what the faith would be like if all that survived was John's Gospel. What would be missing?

Many things. The Infancy narratives being the most obvious. Our understanding of the Last Supper would be very different, if we were to have it all. The Transfiguration, The Ascension, The Sermon on the Mount, The Prodigal Son. The list is obviously huge.

What would we be left with?

Just imagine if Paul's letters had not survived, and John's received a greater prominence? And (if one assumes that Revelation is genuinely Johannine) how would our view of God be altered if Revelation assumed a larger percentage of the New Testament?

I would love to study this idea in greater detail.

A Gentle Collision

They are not of the world,

even as I am not of the world.

John 17:16 RV

And be not fashioned according to this world:

but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind,

Romans 12:2 RV

I have been made increasingly aware of the tension of Christian and secular living. While I have been aware of this since becoming a Christian, it seems to me that the two worlds I live within are not that compatible.

The first inkling was due to social networking like Facebook and Twitter. I have two sets of friends on both: Christians and (essentially) athiests. Some of my secular friends post some pretty freaky stuff: drugs, sex, anti Christian stuff and so forth. This is not a problem for me; I accept everyone for who they are. Conversely, some of my Christian friends post some freaky stuff as well: constant "Jesus is Lord" updates hourly; Bible verses, weird Christo-politico stuff and so forth.

It dawned on me that I am unable to hide the secular replies to my posts from my Christian friends. I am also unable to hide my replies to Christian posts from my secular friends.

It is not that I want to hide anything from anyone. I certainly don't hide my faith from my secular friends; in fact, many of my status updates and posts are Christian and /or Jesus Music related.

There is another side to all this. My love for the late sixties and seventies Jesus music has been a sort of evangelizing to other music buffs. It has also been an element of secularization sneaking into my listening (That is simplistic really. I have always listened to secular music, it is only recently that Jesus music has come along). It is more to do with my ecclessiology. Previously nothing other than an organ (or harmonium) and a choir would have been acceptable to me as Church music. I suppose after a year of some pretty average music at church, the idea of a Folk Mass, or even a Psychedelic Mass seems far more appealing.

The idea of transversing these two worlds doesn't concern me. I actually like it. I guess it is more the idea that they exist that is the issue. A recent visit back to NZ made me very aware of how far I have grown/gone on my Christian journey. Doing air guitar to a Rock Mass makes me realise that I am still the same person.

Love Action

Hereby know we love,
because he laid down his life for us:

and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

But whoso hath the world’s goods,
and beholdeth his brother in need,

and shutteth up his compassion from him,

how doth the love of God abide in him?

My little children,

let us not love in word,

neither with the tongue;

but in deed and truth.

1Jn 3:16-18 RV

On Friday, Ivy read the above out at her school Mass. Fewer things have made me prouder as a father than that. I love Ivy being involved in her school church services, but to reading from 1 John is a whole new level. When she was reading it to me to practice, I was struck by a few things, not least how advanced the thought is for a 6 year old. I know when I was that age, I wasn't thinking in these terms.

The other aspect that got me was how far into James territory this section of the letter is. I have always emphasized the "mystical" elements of this text, but here, pure and simple is a very socialist, James-like statement:

But whoso hath the world’s goods,
and beholdeth his brother in need,

and shutteth up his compassion from him,

how doth the love of God abide in him?

This is of course a very true statement. If God is Love, and if God does abide in us, how is it at all possible for us not be this love for everyone?

I honestly struggle with this. Some are more difficult to love than others. Sometimes I find it easy to love everyone and all creation. Then the next moment, I can only wonder why some people exist. Ouch. At those times, I can feel an awful distance come into my life, a separation of my being with that of God.

Anyway, these are the constant struggles which make up a part of the Christian journey. No one said it was going to be easy, not least Jesus Himself.

Here is a song I really dig, and dug when it came out.

The Human League: Love Action (1981)

Still around

I have just noticed that I have not blooged for nearly 3 months. It is not that I have been overly busy, rather just doing other stuff. Like learning ancient Greek. Like the philosophy of psychology. Like hunting out some great Christian hippy music. Like sleeping.

Spirit, Light, Love.

God is a Spirit:
and they that worship him

must worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:24 RV

God is light,

and in him is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5 RV

God is love;

and he that abideth in love

abideth in God,

and God abideth in him.
1 John 4:16 RV

Todays Morning Prayer reading was from the Gospel of John again, this time from the Samaritan woman at the well.

The part that leapt out at me was

God is a Spirit:
and they that worship him

must worship in spirit and truth.
John 4:24 RV

It carries on from what I was saying in my previous post. It is not enough to profess the faith, it must be felt, otherwise it is hollow and meaningless.

A friend recently asked me what I thought God was: a he, and it, or whatever?I thought about these "God is....." sayings.

Spirit. Light. Love.

I agree with all these, but the one I have experienced is Love. The one I relate to, and think about the most is Light. For some reason this really appeals to me

God is light,

and in him is no darkness at all.
1 John 1:5 RV

No darkness! Pure 100% light. I instantly think of The Transfiguration.

Jesus became pure light in front of the three, and they understood it.

Imagine feeling love that was light.

And people say Jesus wasn't a hippy.

Sons unto Glory: The Harvest is Ripe

The Harvest is Ripe

Sons unto Glory

1976

For it became him,

for whom are all things,

and through whom are all things,

in bringing many sons unto glory,

to make the author of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

Hebrews 2:10 RV

Another recently discovered Jesus music gem has been the above album. It is not the most promising cover, I will admit, but it is a corker.

The opening second is a whispered "Praise Jesus". It is honest and really hippyish. It is a humble beginning for a great rural prog Jesus freak half an hour. Loads of organ, burning leads, funky bass work. The lead vocals are straight mid Seventies USA

The title track is a stunner. a 6 minute mainly instrumental with loads of clavinet and electric piano; very close to Todd Rundgren's Utopia (1974) album in sound. The song climaxes when the vocals kick in: "Come to Jesus; Lay your burdens down." It sounds like the most wonderful thing: relaxing, euphoric, hazy. Absolutely fantastic stuff.

The track that got me writing was "You must be born again". Not the best track, but it starts with a funky groove, with the singer talking over the top, about Jesus freaks, man, it's good news brother, and assorted hippy bits and bobs. When he says "it's good news" he is so happy, you vcan hear a hint of a laugh.

Todays 2nd reading at Morning Prayer was the section that deals with the idea of being born again:

Jesus answered,

Verily, verily,

I say unto thee,

Except a man be born of water and the Spirit,

he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh;

and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Marvel not that I said unto thee,

Ye must be born anew.

The wind bloweth where it listeth,

and thou hearest the voice thereof,

but knowest not whence it cometh,

and whither it goeth:

so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

John 3:5-8 RV

I don't regard myself as "born again". There are way to many bad connotations that go with such a phrase. I did go through a huge, instantaneous conversion. This changed my life immessurably. I don't think of it as being born again, more like layers of gunk being washed away. It wasn't so much becoming new, as revealing what was there all along.

What Jesus is saying to Nicodemus is that one needs to experience such a reawakening within oneself. It is not enough to start going to church and professing the faith. One needs to filled with the Spirit; one needs to allow this to happen. This is the way to the Kingdom of Heaven; and it starts as soon as you listen to the whisper of the Spirit.

The last song on The Harvest is Ripe is all about the whisper of the Spirit. A delicate song of acoustic guitar, with gorgeous string synth washes. A gentle ending to a great album.

You can download it here: The Ancient Star Song

First Revelation

Along my journey of Jesus music, I have found many gems, and also a fair share of turkeys.

First Revelation are an example of a gem: odd, eclectic and shiny.

The band consisted of Danny Kimer who played all sorts of guitars, banjos, and probably many types of other stringed instruments. His wife, Lynda, sung and played organ and synthesizer. She had a voice like Grace Slick, and Danny played guitar like Jeff Beck and Chet Atkins.

First Revelation recorded three albums. The first was under the name Danny and Lynda, and was called "Gospel".

I have not been able to find this anywhere on the net, so I have no idea what it sounds like, but it is so on my hunt list.

The next album was recorded twice. I have heard the second version of this:

This is a fine album; it has some great stuff on it. The keyboard work is wonderful; a mix of monophonic moog lines and fairgroundlike organ. Lynda's voice is resonant and understated, yet emotional. Danny's guitars are all over the place: fuzz leads, banjo, and some serious smoking lead work. I instantly liked this album. There is something so odd about it. Lynda's keyboards are a bit sloppy, and loose, but so wwonderful and charming. They are in fact the main drawcard for me. Her organ sound is a bit cheesy and loopy, but it just adds to the overall coolness.

A couple of weeks after getting the This Side of Eternity, I went in search of the follow up, with not much luck. Eventually it turned up, and it has been a constant listen since. In many ways it is a better album than the other, a bit more together, more acoustic guitars. Lynda's keyboards are tighter, with a bit more moog work; her voice is richer. Yet, the production is a bit more homey, lo fi. That is not a problem in itself, but just surprising.

The lyrics to both albums are very Christian, no mucking about. The songs are about evangelising more than anything else. This is all fine, and in fact gives the whole vibe an even odder feel. I particularly like their take on "New Jerusalem".

You can find these albums at The Ancient Star Song.

There is much more info about the Kimers here.

When I heard these albums, I had no idea what the Kimers looked like.

When I went to the site that explained their story, I found the above pictures. I was pleasantly surprised to see that my wife looks like Lynda! Yet another reason to love this band.