O all ye men of tender heart, bless ye the Lord

I am listening to Mary Jill Levine. Much of what she says I heartily agree with - and much I heartily disagree with. Thanks to Tim for giving me the opportunity and patience to listen. (Besides, she is engaging.) The last question and her answer are worth the whole 45 minutes.

The critical item she states that I disagree with is that men do not identify with the unnamed women in the Gospels. I then am not a man. For I do identify with women and with the feminine in the Spirit. There is so much that is incomplete in the statement: men do not identify with women (named or unnamed). I am not sure how I will respond. I may write some meditations on my identification with the unnamed and named women - why should I not identify with them? I am after all a member of his body and his bride.

She might explain the question away - but what does she do with Romans 7? I am among those who have died to the law through the body of Christ that I with them (we, you plural) might be married to another, even the one who has been raised from the dead.

Yesterday I was experimenting with Google docs - and I published something to this blog that never turned up - lucky for me - it was too long and almost too much of a groan. I will dump it with my earlier writings. It is a book review of Kurt Vonnegut's last book - addressed to Kurt after his death. Skip it if you don't like rambling book reviews. It has structure but like a dialogue.

I went off to the market for supper - what a strange arrangement, beggars on the sidewalk begging directly from restaurant patrons - I had nothing to drink and went vegetarian - good though - a beet salad with goat's cheese and gaspacho. Why don't I like having fun? As I walked back, I thought on Mary Jill's terrible use of metaphor in that talk. At least I hear it as terrible. God makes metaphor into flesh. Dan Brown may be better than I thought. Maybe I should read him. There's a copy in this lonesome apartment.

When we read the Song as allegory - it is not because we are senseless! Spiritual does not mean cerebral. And she has traditional assumptions about Paul's meaning in 1 Corinthians 7 - I wish that all men were as I am - but each has his own gift. Why, does that mean he is celibate? i.e. sexless? I once asked a Jewish friend of mine if God could have anything to do with sex. His instant reply was 'No! Impossible.' It's not a Jewish thing, or a Christian thing, or a Greek thing. Spurn the adjectives. It just isn't true. And the Scriptures do not need to be read that way.