A Way of Seeing the World

Welcome to my new blog.

"Jesus Underneath" is the result of something that I have been kicking around for a while.

Like many (most) people in western culture today, I am an avid consumer of media. Growing up, my Christmas wish list consisted of three columns: Books, Movies, and Music. Nothing has really changed. My tastes have ebbed and flowed, but mostly just expanded. If you want to get a sense of the eclectic stew of what I enjoy, check my profile information. "A little bit of everything" is only the beginning, and I'm guessing you are a lot like me.

I was born and raised a Lutheran Christian. I have not only retained my childhood faith, but am now an ordained pastor, serving a congregation of the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod. During my seminary days, we were taught that "Jesus told stories...and you should too." I took that advice to heart, and now routinely pepper my preaching and teaching with story. Simply put: it works. I have had people approach me, in some cases years after the fact, to tell me that a story I shared had a profound impact on them. How do I know they were telling the truth? They remembered the plot points and the theme, and had applied it to themselves.

What I'm looking to explore in this blog is the place where our common stories and the story of Jesus collide. This is not a new concept. J. R.R. Tolkien touched on this idea in some of his essays and personal letters. In his recorded sermons, Presbyterian pastor Timothy Keller often talks about "the story under the story." He contends that, in one way or another, all great stories echo the Great Story of Jesus. I agree wholeheartedly. What finally pushed me to write about my thoughts on the subject was a scene near the end of 2016's "Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice." The imagery in it was so explicitly Christological, it could have been based on a Renaissance painting of Jesus' passion. Maybe it was. Perhaps the BluRay bonus features will reveal more. Yes, I watch the bonus features. That's the level of nerd with which you are dealing.

This is not to suggest that any of the filmmakers, authors or artists I will be referencing had any desire to create Christian allegory, or even a sense of 'applicability' (Tolkien's term.) That is the marvel of it all. Whether or not they were trying to do it; whether or not they wanted to do it; it is there. To this very moment, we tell each other (and treasure) stories of love, grace, and sacrificial heroes. From where have these ideals come?

The great thing about this way of seeing the world is that the well never runs dry. Jesus is underneath everything. Let's go looking for Him.