The theologian, Ernst Kasemann, tells...
Illustration
The theologian, Ernst Kasemann, tells this story at the beginning of his book, Jesus
Means Freedom:
There was once a church in Holland whose members felt strictly bound to obey God's commandments, especially those concerning Sabbath-keeping. One Sunday, a terrific storm arose on the sea, and the village was threatened by wind and waves. Clearly, the dyke had to be strengthened that very day if the inhabitants were to survive.
The police notified the pastor, who now found himself in a religious dilemma. Should he call out the people of the parish, and set them to the necessary work, even if it meant profaning the Sabbath? Unable to decide such a weighty question on his own, he summoned the Church Council. After much discussion, the elders remained adamant: "We live to carry out God's will. God, being omnipotent, can always perform a miracle with the wind and waves. Our duty is obedience, whether in life or in death."
The pastor tried one last argument: "Did not Jesus himself, on occasion, break the fourth commandment and declare that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath?"
A venerable old man stood up: "I have always been troubled, Pastor, by something I have never yet ventured to say publicly. Now I must say it. I have always had the feeling that our Lord Jesus was just a bit of a liberal."
(From Jesus Means Freedom by Ernst Kasemann, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1972.)
There was once a church in Holland whose members felt strictly bound to obey God's commandments, especially those concerning Sabbath-keeping. One Sunday, a terrific storm arose on the sea, and the village was threatened by wind and waves. Clearly, the dyke had to be strengthened that very day if the inhabitants were to survive.
The police notified the pastor, who now found himself in a religious dilemma. Should he call out the people of the parish, and set them to the necessary work, even if it meant profaning the Sabbath? Unable to decide such a weighty question on his own, he summoned the Church Council. After much discussion, the elders remained adamant: "We live to carry out God's will. God, being omnipotent, can always perform a miracle with the wind and waves. Our duty is obedience, whether in life or in death."
The pastor tried one last argument: "Did not Jesus himself, on occasion, break the fourth commandment and declare that the Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath?"
A venerable old man stood up: "I have always been troubled, Pastor, by something I have never yet ventured to say publicly. Now I must say it. I have always had the feeling that our Lord Jesus was just a bit of a liberal."
(From Jesus Means Freedom by Ernst Kasemann, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 1972.)
