Monday 11 March 2019

Why Climb A Mountain To Pray?

Luke 3:21-22     .....and while He was praying, heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him.....

Matthew 14:23  .....After He had sent the crowds away, He went up into the hills by Himself to pray.....

Mark 6:46           .....After bidding them farewell, He left for the mountain to pray.....

Mark 1:35           .....In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.....

Matthew 5:1      .....Seeing the crowds, he went onto the mountain. And when He was seated his disciples came to Him.....

Luke 5:15-16      .....But the news of Him kept spreading, and large crowds would gather to hear Him and have their illnesses cured, but He would go off to some deserted place and pray.....

          These are just six of a relatively large number of instances where the New Testament talks of Jesus the Nazarene going to pray, or preparing to preach. It would appear that no two sources can ever agree about the exact wording of these quotes but, nonetheless, these passages are often taken to be literal truth.

Quote:          "The reference to going up a mountain prior to preaching [see fifth quote, above] is considered by many to be a reference to Moses on Mount Sinai. Lapide feels that the clumsy phrasing implies that this verse is a transliteration from the Hebrew, and that it was an exact replica of a passage describing Moses. Boring notes that the reference to Jesus sitting may be an allusion to Deuteronomy 9:9, where in some translations Moses is described as sitting on Mount Sinai." [Source - Wikipedia, Matthew 5:1]

          Of course it is quite possible that the Nazarene did take time out to do a little mountaineering or hill walking, although one doubts whether he was dressed or otherwise prepared for such exercise. There is a much more likely interpretation [in my opinion] of the passages quoted above, and that is that these trips were symbolic, a journey upwards into the higher regions of the mind. There is no doubt that the symbolism of the mountain or hill [and I would add that of an ascending flight of stairs, a ladder, or some other means of ascent] is very powerful and of great value in meditation. Similarly, the imagery associated with deserted or secluded spaces can be used in meditation to effect contact with higher processes of the mind. It is in these states of meditation that heaven opens and that the Holy Spirit can be said to descend. Only in these states can one truly escape the 'illnesses' of the chattering ego.
          One does not need to be a religious, to hold a belief in God, to carry out the kind of meditation or spiritual exercise apparently carried out by Jesus, that of mentally climbing a mountain to meet with a 'wise person' in whatever form that image appears. Not only is such a journey greatly uplifting and reinvigorating, but there may also be an added bonus of a gift, perhaps a simple pebble which changes into a precious stone embodying a truth as one descends to everyday consciousness.
          No, I do not believe that the stories of Jesus literally climbing high places, only and simply to commune with God the Father, are anything but elements of the Christ mythology. Guided imagery, pathworking, meditation with symbols, are so much more convenient and practical. And God, to revert to a more religious approach, is to be found in the inner space, not out in the realist and physical world. Heaven, in the form of enlightenment, is open to anyone who seeks.

14 comments:

  1. I realize I am subject to the amnestic moments of an old man. When I cannot remember a name or place, I get up and walk through a doorway --sometimes several doorways-- and the names come to me. Moving, climbing, stimulate areas of mind that don't ordinarly communicate in a general way. Perhaps the same mechanism is at work in scripture.

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    1. Hi Geo;
      The mind is without a doubt a mysterious place, and much that occurs there is steeped in mystery. Some doorways are closed, perhaps because what lies behind no longer needs to be revisited. Others are wide open, yet one may feel trepidation at what lies still hidden in the darkest corners. But then there are those doors, at the summits of experience, which are a little ajar and from which emanate blinding light, and we enter an emptiness filled with something divine. Mystery, paradox and magic. Who can tell what lies beyond the range of our inner sight? How do we describe the indescribable? Indeed, perhaps this truly is what the writers of scripture struggle with, as mystics have done down the centuries.

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  2. Hi Tom,
    I would agree it’s not surprising in those NT prayerful references we have frequent reference to the mountains and to places of solitude. After all, as I think you may have mentioned in the past, Christ’s public ministry encapsulated the mystical expanded OT texts in contradiction to the nonbelief of the Sadducee’s and to the rigidity of the rule based existence attributed to the Pharisees.
    So it’s going to have parallels with those revelatory events in the OT, as a natural symbolic reference point by the NT writers. Best not to think in terms of an interpretative exercise but rather as a confirmation of how to take a more open minded leap forward, analogous to climbing a mountain, as you may be suggesting.
    Best wishes

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    1. Hi Lindsay;
      Take a more open-minded leap forward, yes. Repent; look at things in a new way; think again. Yet when one looks into the mind, when one inwardly climbs a mountain [as well as descending into the depths] one feels a need to describe and explain. In the times of the gospel writers, legend and mythology were the normal ways of expressing the otherwise indescribable. The discovery of a Christ-self must have been a staggering experience. How better to try, in some way, to make known the powerful images arising from that discovery than in mythological stories.

      To me the NT makes no sense except by approaching its myths, legends, stories, through the medium of imagery, the only way that the mind can communicate with consciousness. [Maybe I should post one of my earliest journeys up a mountainside, and a journey or two to show how the mind can reveal other truths.]

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  3. Hi Tom,
    Indeed, I think that would be a faithful extension to your current archival discussion. As you say, the amazingly fruitful imagery of ‘The Christ’ as expressed in those myths, legends, allegories and parables are works thereafter that always remain relevant to us as in a timeless truth.
    Best wishes

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    1. Hi Again;
      I have to say that it was only this new, to me, approach to the NT that has not only brought new meaning but also a deeper respect for the NT writings. For that I feel a growing sense of gratitude and awe.

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  4. Tom:

    If you have a minute, I’d really appreciate it if you took a look at Emily’s Virtual Rocket. This is a serious newsblog which has been taken from e-newspapers and e-magazines from around the world, with an emphasis on transgender issues. Also, with his election, I look for articles which critique Donald Trump.

    I hope you enjoy this. Please paste the following:

    Emilysvirtualrocket.blogspot.com

    If you like it, please consider putting it among your favorite blogs. I would greatly appreciate it.

    Sincerely,

    Emily Shorette
    thoreaugreen@gmail.com

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    1. Emily;

      I have had a look at your newsblog and would like to say that there are items there which are of interest. But, I must add that continual news - if it is indeed news and not yet more airing of people's personal opinions - does little if anything to authenticate our thoughts and feelings about the dysfunctional world in which we live. It becomes all too easy to look 'out there' and ignore what is going on 'in here', and our contribution to the world's dysfunctioning.

      As far as transgender and other LGBT issues are concerned, because I do not fall into those categories [how I do hate the categorising of people!] I feel I lack the experiential authority to comment, except where they touch on their psycho-spirituality, something that is common to us all.

      Finally, and I do thank you for reading GWYNT, it is not my intention for this blog to act as a platform for political and social issues, no matter how important they are.

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  5. Tom, sorry for the delay in commenting. I do read your posts but am not in perticularly verbal mode at present and sometimes there simply isn't anything to say. I am nonetheless impressed by the exploratory yet respectful and positive attention you give to reading the New Testament and if Jesus could be invited out for a drink, i'm sure he'd be delighted to sit down with you and talk things over.

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    1. Ah Natalie;

      How delightful. I could buy him a mineral water, and he could turn it into champagne! If only.....

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    2. I think he'd bring the champagne, best quality. And maybe ask you to turn it into mineral water (fizzy) just to test your mystical powers.

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    3. Do you think he's looking for a sign?

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    4. Tom, I don't know! It seems to me that you give every sign of being mystically receptive. But turning wine into water might not be required.

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