John Sanford in his Mystical Christianity had a beautiful analysis of chapter 15. He began with a description of the sources: Jeremiah 2:21,Isaiah 5:1ff and Song of Solomon chapter 8, a beautiful love song that perhaps most closely resembles John's use of the figure. Then he showed the obvious parallels in the synoptics and in Romans 11:16ff where Paul referred to the church as a "wild olive tree grafted on" to the original stock, namely Judaism.
The substance of all of these passages is as a symbol of God's relationship with us, and in the N.T. of course through Christ. For me this is of the best of John, where he doesn't report Christ's arguments with the 'Jews' or excoriation of the Jewish hypocrits, but simply shows us the beauty of Christ and the wonder of our relationship to him-- the mysterium (the mystery of our faith).
John S also pointed out the relationship of John's vine and the Dionysian mystery religion. Both focused to a large degree on 'ecstasy'. Ecstasy means to 'stand apart from oneself'. This, in its highest form, is 'union with God'. Baser forms include comfort food (leading to obesity or anorexia), drunkenness, drugs, obsessive sex-- all of these are abortive attempts to achieve what Christ gives us freely if we but ask.
John S finished his discussion of the vine with a large passage from Origen's Commentary on the vine. In it Origen compared the bread of life "which nourishes and makes strong and strengthens the heart of man" with wine, which pleases and rejoices and melts him".
So we have the "sincere milk of the word" for us beginners, the bread of life, nurturing us into maturity, and the new wine, conducting us into the kingdom of God, where all is love. And as the branches of Christ that is what we do for everyone we can.
5 comments:
Hi Larry. You said ...
John S also pointed out the relationship of John's vine and the Dionysian mystery religion. Both focused to a large degree on 'ecstasy'.
That's really interesting! I'm a fan of Greek mythology and Dionysos is a favorite ... as you know, his followers sometimes tore animals and people to shreds while in their ecstacy (like Orpheus) :-). I guess early christianity embraced many themes of mystery cults.
Thanks for the interesting post.
I like Greek mythology too -- though i'm more boring. I preferred Hephaestos to Dionysos.
Hephestos was married to Aphrodite, wasn't he? :-)
On our trips we usually stop at one of these off brand bookstores. Last month I picked up Sailing in the Wine-Dark Sea; the subtitle is Why the Greeks Matter, by Thomas Cahill (who also "saved civilization by the Irish").
It looked good, but I didn't get to read but a few pages when we got to D.C. It couldn't compete with the charms of Ryan, 1 year old grandson who constantly smiles (How I love that boy!).
Anyway it was Rob's birthday and Ellie (and I) gave it to him.
Now she's gotten it from the library, and maybe I'll look a bit more closely (when I get through with The World is Flat).
You know I have all the time in the world to read; our Beulah is a suburb of Heaven.
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