11/2 and 11/4: Kraybill parts 2 and 3

Tuesday: Kraybill chapters 5-7:

These chapters all have a lot to with MONEY/MAMMON.

We noted that on the final, one section will ask you to argue with Kraybill: find a section you disagree with, or want to challenge him on (Or even assume the role of someone disagreeing).  We thought some of the sections on money would be good candidates here (living out Jubilee; the seven dangers of wealth, graduated tithing, etc.)


 -------------------------------------------------
We picked up the temptation theme from last class,

^actual photo of two rats found in Sattler 101 today^

starting with "the devil is God's devil"  list of Scriptures,
and continued into what Charles Kraft calls the
"garbage and rats" Scriptures:

We left a pile of garbage in the room, and asked what would happen if it were left there overnight:

it would invite rats.

Certain attitudes/behaviors/ethical responses seem to be the equivalent of  "garbage," with invites/incites demonic entities to piggyback on them.  Here are some we looked at.

          GARBAGE:                    RATS:         CLICK EACH SCRIPTURE:

• unresolved anger          devil given a foothold           (Ephesians 4:26-27)
• no marital relations        Satan tempts                            (1 Corinthians 7: 4-5)
• unforgiveness                Satan comes in                         (2 Corinthians 2:10)
• human thinking              "Get behind me, Satan!"          (Matthew  16:23-24)
• human thinking                becomes demonic and evil     (James 3:16-17)
• love of money                   a root of many kinds of evil    (1 Tim 6:10)

We called special attention to these last three, and notice how
1) human reasoning, which often seems so ...well, reasonable"....is often the opposite of Upside Down Kingdom thinking.
2)Money matters show up again...


How might virtually all temptations (the three Jesus faced, or others you could name) be fundamentally economic?  Kraybill, you'll remember, calls the bread temptation "economic," but how might any/all others temptations trace to this root/'garbage"?
HINT: We noted that he term economics comes from the Ancient Greek οἰκονομία (oikonomia, "management of a household, administration") from οἶκος (oikos, "house") + νόμος (nomos, "custom" or "law"), hence "rules of the house(hold)".^{[1]  
Hmm, maybe when we are tempted to act in "garbage"- like ways within the community/household of faith, we are  facing a core demonic temptation!  How might Jesus, and how might his followers, be tempted economically to not act out the radical ethic of the Upside Down Kingdom?
See below...}

Was Jesus ever angry?  Was he ever so angry that he was tempted toward sin?  What might have been those times?  We sure noticed how often he was serious about money/economic issues (temple tantrum,   "you cannot serve God and Money, etc).  If Jesus was the New Moses, maybe he was tempted in a similar way with anger...we watched  the Ray VanDer Laan video  (Volume 10, episode 4: "By Every Word- Striking The Rock."  Study notes here below (click, and then click again to enlarge)

 

Do you think Jesus was ever tempted to call his flock "Marah!," and "deliberately defiant" as Moses was?    Why was this such a  huge issue that he was prevented entrance into the Promised Land?  How was his striking the rock an economic temptation?

Walter Brueggemann: ""The key issues of worship  in the community are fundamentally economic" fundamentally economic."  (source).

In preparation for the final, continue thinking of ways Jesus (and Moses) faced temptations (especially re: use of power) throughout their lives.
-----------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday: Kraybill chapters 8-12:

What a great wiki-day!  We split the class into five teams (Kraybill discussion groups).   Part of the fun (and the test) was I gave no instructions about  how to choose your team, how each team would choose a leader, etc.
The most fun was that teams needed to "recruit" members (students who came in late)..

Then for half an hour the teams each read their particular section of Kraybill, discussed it, and argued with it.  The next half hour, we heard each team's five minute report.  Great job!


Team                                             Kraybill section

1. PHARISEES:     "Sacred Cows" -pages 163-164
2. SADDUCEES      "Myth of Redemptive Violence" -pages 190-191
3. ZEALOTS          "Stop Climbing"  -page 226
4. ESSENES          "From There to Here" -pages 237-239
5. MENNONITES    "Triple Symbols" -pages 241-242

The team names were just for fun today, but we also noted that for the final, each student will:
a)write a paragraph summarazing the assigned section, noting any places you (or your group) agreed or disagree
b)write a paragraph suggesting how, if you really were a member of  your assigned group (Pharisees, etc.), you would respond to the assigned section.  Where would you agree and disagree?  (This will call for a working knowledge of the four groups...see Hauer and Young index and glossary, Kraybill book, and class notes).

If you had to miss class today, you will have to wait till the next class to see which "team" you are on.
You'll find that each team will aggressively try to "recruit" you as you come in...

>>Finally, we reviewed the two alternatiives for the 11.17 assignment,
and the altermative to the final.

--------

NEWS:

1)Oh, and  as we mentioned there is a class field trip (surprise location) Tuesday

(If you show up more than five minutes late, you may have to call me

(974-2508) or a class member to find exactly where we are, so you can join us.  (:

2) New news: I just found out I will be gone next

Thurs, Nov. 11,  Veterans Day, so no class then.  AND since that is when your assignment (Kraybill paper OR chiasm

paper) was supposed to be due, you can now  have till the next class session after that  (Tues Nov, 16) to turn it in(by handing it in in class or emailing by beginning of class).

Of course, you are welcome to turn it in earlier (:

Keep up the good work