“Jesus Unmasked” is now a FB live as well as a podcast! We warmly invite you to join the conversation every Wednesday afternoon at 5 CT / 3 PT on the Raven Foundation Facebook page! Adam and Lindsey unmask Jesus from exclusive theology and violent cultural lenses. But, during COVID times, Jesus would wear a mask! Loving others as Jesus loves us requires us to wear a mask too! Some interpretations of the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25: 31-46) are downright terrifying. It seems to condemn the “goats” – “accursed” nations – to eternal damnation. Terrible fear-based religious violence and persecution has come from the idea of eternal hell. So where’s the “good news?” Translations and context make all the difference. The judgment in this parable is for the nations, not individuals, although individuals do shape the character of the nations in which they live. And the word translated as “eternal” is better translated as a “time” or “age.” “Jesus Unmasked” seeks to remove the masks of exclusive theology and violent cultural lenses that obscure the truth of Jesus’s unconditional love. Scripture passages are read from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible. “Jesus Unmasked” is a Raven Foundation production.
Some interpretations of the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats (Matthew 25: 31-46) are downright terrifying. It seems to condemn the “goats” – “accursed” nations – to eternal damnation. Terrible fear-based religious violence and persecution has come from the idea of eternal hell. So where’s the “good news?”
Translations and context make all the difference. The judgment in this parable is for the nations, not individuals, although individuals do shape the character of the nations in which they live. And the word translated as “eternal” is better translated as a “time” or “age.”
You can reconcile faith in universal reconciliation with this parable, while still holding onto the infinite urgency and dire warning within it. Ultimately, the way we collectively and individually treat the most vulnerable will have lasting consequences. Adam and Lindsey explore further.