MATL- He said Love!

Prompt: Today's prompt is to examine the Sermon on the Mount and consider the characterization of Jesus presented in Matthew's Gospel using this example.

Kugler and Hartin write that “(t)he Sermon on the Mount has been described as ‘a design for life in the kingdom’” (Kugler/Hartin, 382.)  The Sermon offers multiple perspectives from Jesus describing ways to enter the Kingdom of God. Jesus is presented as an authority figure (Matt 7:29) and is depicted as a sort of contemporary Moses (Kugler/Hartin, 382.) Even his posture (sitting) on a mountain (symbolic of Mt Sinai) interpreting and providing laws evokes the images of Moses, as does the subsequent organization and content of the Gospel (Cousland, 1752.)  In characterizing Jesus as an authority figure equal or greater to the greatest prophets and teachers of Israel’s traditions, Matthew is giving Jesus a sense of legitimacy for skeptical readers looking to reconcile their belief in Jewish traditions with Jesus. In some ways, Matthew is saying: Of course you can accept Jesus as the Messiah- who else could have such authority over God’s scriptures?

For a reader who already accepts Jesus as the Messiah, and is seeking guidance to follow Jesus, the characterization is a little different.  Jesus is still an authoritative teaching figure, but he also exists as a figure who can adapt his message to any audience. Ultimately, the Sermon on the Mount teaches the reader one thing: Love, expressed in Faith in God, is the path to salvation.  Jesus offers this lesson in many different frameworks: as the beatitudes, as metaphors (salt and light), as admonishments not to place trust in worldly things, in a call to live beyond the mere letter of the law. Each of these speaks to a different learning style and a different audience. Even a reader who does not directly relate to at least one of these examples (as hard to imagine as that might be) still sees in Jesus a teacher who calls to everyone.

Contemporary readers take clues on how to read and interpret the Gospel from these characterizations. As noted in the gospel introduction and the textbook, the criticisms against the Pharisees and Priests was interpreted by some groups as a tacit endorsement for anti-Semitic activities – the horrific repercussions of which are still felt today (Cousland, 1747 and Kugler/Hartin, 389.)  This resulted from readers failing to appropriately contextualize the characterizations and messages of the text as they were intended.  It would be tempting for a non-believer or critic to argue that since all of the social conditions surrounding the development of the Gospel of Matthew have passed, the Gospel is no longer relevant to today’s theological interpretation. This is also misguided, as Matthew carefully and deliberately crafted the picture of Jesus the Teacher to transcend both cultural (Roman, Jewish, Syrian, etc.) and religious differences (in his attempts to reconcile the Jewish debate about accepting Jesus as the Messiah.)  Although the tensions between the emerging Rabbinic Jewish and early Christian faiths has passed, people are still seeking to better understand discipleship. Until people cease to seek answers to this question, the Gospel remains relevant in at least one perspective.