For the past few weeks I have felt led to discuss & explore the Jewish concepts of Shalom & Sabbath. Why - you ask? For one I think every person has within in them a longing for peace & rest. I live in a culture that longs for both but seems to have lost both the art & science of finding it. We were created for Eden but have been cursed with the sting of death by sin. Like a confused deer caught in the headlights of an approaching car - we freeze in shock of our impending death not knowing what to do. I chuckle as I drive down my city's streets and see the health stores & gyms& wellness centres. We desire to live forever but believe the lie that our money can buy happiness & health.
What is shalom you ask? I refered to it as peace above and it is commonly known as a Jewish greeting. Much like our own North American greetings - it has lost its meaning over time. How are doing? is not a question looking for an honest reply but a way of breaking the ice. Shalom is about restoring what has been lost or broken. Shalom exists when the prodigal son comes home to his Father. Shalom exists when a child is born into this world. Shalom exists when we seek God in prayer. Shalom is about mending relationships with God, with people, and with creation.
In Brian McLaren’s book, A New Kind of Christian, there is a scene when one of the characters defines religion. Neo’s description of religion also describes the intent of the concept of Shalom. “The old Latin roots of the word simply mean ‘reconnecting,’ you know—broken ligaments, severed connections, being reconnected and defragmented. That sounds like exactly what we need, don’t you think? We’re ‘deligamented,’ disconnected, fragmented people who need to be‘religamented,’ reconnected, put back together with God, with on another, reintegrated within ourselves, reconnected to the world we are part of.” I desire this blog to be a place where Shalom reigns or is at the very least rekindled.
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