tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13413591.post5330204138289307412..comments2023-09-25T11:05:14.371-04:00Comments on The Balanced Center: Scripture Saturday--Think Outside the BoxStaying in Balancehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14729612779930162079noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13413591.post-60257099429787229812010-12-05T16:16:57.082-05:002010-12-05T16:16:57.082-05:00I don't think Jesus was opposed to organized r...I don't think Jesus was opposed to organized religion either. I think he wanted to hold those at the top of Judaism to standard of integrity. He wanted to tell everyone that the Kingdom of God is here--and can come by our own actions towards each other.Staying in Balancehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14729612779930162079noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13413591.post-60197889361019971062010-12-05T15:28:26.906-05:002010-12-05T15:28:26.906-05:00I don't see Jesus against organized religion. ...I don't see Jesus against organized religion. He was a very observant Jew. But He was against the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and the worldly things the Jewish religious leaders allowed to go on within the temple courts of Jerusalem. The Pharisees rigidly ruled the Jews according to the Jewish law, which they twisted toward their own advantage, and which they sneaked around whenever they felt like it. I bet plenty of Pharisees committed adultery, for instance, and got away with it because they never were caught or because their buddies looked the other way.<br /><br />I see that behavior as being what Jesus condemned, not the Jewish religion itself. There is a tendency to condemn organized religion because of the hypocrisy of human leaders - we are all sinners - but Jesus is with the Church and the Church is necessary to the world. Without the magisterium, people could interpret sacred scripture and tradition any way they wanted. In fact, that's why we have so many different sects today. I think Jesus was telling us to look beyond the human and get a right relationship with God, not letting the human interfere with that.Barbara Schoenebergerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16951360211636509133noreply@blogger.com