Metmom's reference to Psalm 22 makes sense, as Jesus the scholar knew it and was suffering not only from the crucifixion but the realization of being inescapably centered in that prophecy in that very moment of time. When pondering how one being can save billions with their finite sacrifice I submit that His was infinite, with that real-life Twilight Zone mental torture being just one aspect. Morbid, I know - but it seems part of His ordeal was to spare us of horrors no decent person should know. Too metaphysical for me. It's like worrying too much about the future: get obsessed doing that and the Present (and what you could have done otherwise) will have passed you by.
The answer to the missing socks conundrum is, of course, 42. That's the bottom line because Willie Mays said so.
The Christadelphians may not be mistaken; technically. Even among the various Protestant churches I've attended there's debate whether one is transported/judged/transformed immediately or if you're in a stasis awaiting the events of Armageddon and the Final Judgement (en masse at one predetermined time in the future). When they say death is a state of unconsciousness I think they might be confusing death with being a voluntary member of the Democrat Party. Being unconscious yet still able to vote - it's a miracle!
You know some people refuse to be organ donors in the belief that we're supposed to keep all our parts together or risk damnation. How they account for the body's constant cell sloughing/regeneration, let alone teeth and hair loss, I've no idea. I think if God is God the Creator and Source of All Life details like that, alterations from accidents and illnesses or even cremation pose no obstacle to Him - especially considering it's not the body that goes on, but the soul.
It seems like a Jeff Foxworthy joke: "If your god can't put you back together due to lost parts, instructions or an expired warranty; you might have a deity problem."
Thank you, Mike, for your kind words and that wonderfully reflective take on Psalm 22—it’s a profound reminder of the depths of Christ’s love, isn’t it? That sense of Him bearing not just the physical agony but the weight of prophecy fulfilled in real time... it does stretch our understanding of sacrifice in ways that feel both humbling and infinite, as you say. And sparing us from such shadows? A mercy we can only glimpse.
Haha, 42 for the socks—classic! And Willie Mays as the ultimate authority? I’ll take that wisdom any day; he knew how to catch the uncatchable.
You’re on the point about those debates among our Protestant brothers and sisters— Scripture invites deep pondering on the soul’s journey after death. Well, not only Christian scripture, but the Islamic one in the Quran and Hadiths seems to me as too much fan fiction while the Hindu and Buddhist streams are way too bleak. Jainism is still bleak but a little less (think Star Gate Ascension) but the Zoroastrian one is intriguing.
In Catholic thought, we hold that the soul, created immortal by God, meets Him face-to-face right away in what’s called the particular judgment, with the body’s resurrection and final renewal coming later at Christ’s return. It’s a hopeful vision: immediate communion for the faithful, purification for those who need it, and justice for all, trusting in God’s boundless creativity to weave everything together, parts and all. No expired warranties in His economy!
Your Foxworthy quip had me chuckling—truly, if our Creator knit us from stardust and breath, a few missing pieces or even a cosmic shuffle won’t stump Him. It’s all in His hands, after all.
Grateful for the conversation, Mike—it’s a joy sharing these thoughts.
Keep pondering the mysteries and may God guide you and me on our journeys to Him
Hi, funny we spoke about our questions on Eli Eli, łamach...
Today’s first reading at mass was
First reading Wisdom 9:13-18
Who can divine the will of God?
What man indeed can know the intentions of God?
Who can divine the will of the Lord?
The reasonings of mortals are unsure
and our intentions unstable;
for a perishable body presses down the soul,
and this tent of clay weighs down the teeming mind.
It is hard enough for us to work out what is on earth,
laborious to know what lies within our reach;
who, then, can discover what is in the heavens?
As for your intention, who could have learnt it, had you not granted Wisdom
and sent your holy spirit from above?
Thus have the paths of those on earth been straightened
and men been taught what pleases you,
and saved, by Wisdom.
Pretty apt, eh :)