NYT OPINION: A Christmas Conversation About Christ
By Nicholas Kristof
Section: Opinion
Source: New York Times
Published Date: December 24, 2022 at 02:00AM
Nicholas Kristof: Merry Christmas! I’m full of admiration for Jesus’ teachings, which strike me as left of center — I say that just to needle you a bit! — but I do have trouble swallowing the miracles. So let’s start with the Nativity. Why insist today on Mary’s virginity?
The Rev. Dr. Russell Moore: That’s a foundational Christian belief. As to the contrast between the miracles and Jesus’ teaching, I would argue that the teachings are actually the harder of the two to reconcile with the world we know. “Love your enemies” and “turn the other cheek” are really hard to comprehend. That’s why you sometimes hear Christians dismissing the Sermon on the Mount as “weakness” or “not realistic” in times like these. Some people try to accept Jesus’ ethics while dismissing his miracles, and some try to do the reverse. The Gospel says we should accept both.
Kristof: When the Gospels were written, people didn’t understand science — of conception or so much else. For example, the idea of Jesus “ascending” to heaven suggests that heaven is spatially above us, which few now believe. So why insist on inerrancy of the Bible? Why take “ascension” or people burning in hell literally?
Moore: This is what C.S. Lewis called “chronological snobbery.” First-century people certainly did understand how babies are conceived. That’s why when Mary told Joseph she was pregnant, his response was not “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” but instead to start the process of breaking their betrothal. At first, he assumed (wrongly) that she had cheated on him. The miracles of Jesus were signs precisely because they seemed to contradict the way the world normally works. The Gospels themselves record people trying to find other ways to explain them away, even then.
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By Nicholas Kristof
Section: Opinion
Source: New York Times
Published Date: December 24, 2022 at 02:00AM
“Jesus loves New York Times readers, too.”
This is the latest installment in my occasional series of conversations about Christianity. Previously, I’ve spoken with the Rev. Timothy Keller, Jimmy Carter, Cardinal Joseph Tobin and others. Here’s my interview with the Rev. Dr. Russell Moore, a former senior official of the Southern Baptist Convention who is now editor in chief of Christianity Today. It has been edited for length.Nicholas Kristof: Merry Christmas! I’m full of admiration for Jesus’ teachings, which strike me as left of center — I say that just to needle you a bit! — but I do have trouble swallowing the miracles. So let’s start with the Nativity. Why insist today on Mary’s virginity?
The Rev. Dr. Russell Moore: That’s a foundational Christian belief. As to the contrast between the miracles and Jesus’ teaching, I would argue that the teachings are actually the harder of the two to reconcile with the world we know. “Love your enemies” and “turn the other cheek” are really hard to comprehend. That’s why you sometimes hear Christians dismissing the Sermon on the Mount as “weakness” or “not realistic” in times like these. Some people try to accept Jesus’ ethics while dismissing his miracles, and some try to do the reverse. The Gospel says we should accept both.
Kristof: When the Gospels were written, people didn’t understand science — of conception or so much else. For example, the idea of Jesus “ascending” to heaven suggests that heaven is spatially above us, which few now believe. So why insist on inerrancy of the Bible? Why take “ascension” or people burning in hell literally?
Moore: This is what C.S. Lewis called “chronological snobbery.” First-century people certainly did understand how babies are conceived. That’s why when Mary told Joseph she was pregnant, his response was not “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” but instead to start the process of breaking their betrothal. At first, he assumed (wrongly) that she had cheated on him. The miracles of Jesus were signs precisely because they seemed to contradict the way the world normally works. The Gospels themselves record people trying to find other ways to explain them away, even then.
Read more at: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/24/opinion/a-christmas-conversation-about-christ.html
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