Women and Carers of Nature
(The Kingdom of God As a New and Different History)
our host: Women and Carers of Nature
This stopover introduces us to a little known synonym for the Kingdom of God, ‘age-to-come.’
Alternative History. If there exist two groups of people whose ardent wish is to change the course of history, it would be women and carers of nature. They are our hosts at this juncture in our journey. They will help us to understand that salvation or Kingdom of God is an alternative history. Jesus and the First Look have a name for it, the ‘age-to-come.’
In the story of humanity, so replete with wars, violence, disease, pain,
sorrow, one longs for salvation. For the Second Look, it is to get out
of this world and up into heaven. For the First Look, salvation is to experience
another history for this world, an alternative history.
Jewish Background
Two Ages: ‘This Age’ and ‘The Age-to-Come.’ The Jews around the time of Jesus spoke of ‘two ages.’ This referred to two epochs, eras or histories.42 There is ‘this age,’ the presently ongoing history of Israel and humanity. It is a history of pain, suffering, death, sin, oppression. Looking for salvation, they looked forward to the end of this presently ongoing history and to a different and new history in the future, an ‘age-to-come,’ where there would be justice, peace, life, health, joy. Salvation for the Jews meant experiencing a new history, a new era, a new epoch, a new age. Of course, it will be a history of or on this earth. The age-to-come is synonymous with Kingdom of God.
Jesus and the Age-to-Come
Jesus: Kingdom of God Is a New History. Did Jesus and the New Testament also speak of salvation and Kingdom of God as a new history? Yes. Since we are dealing with an unfamiliar, yet important, matter, it is good to have a visual image of the New Testament texts. Here are direct or indirect references to the age-to-come in the New Testament:
Whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come. (Mt 12:32)
He raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. (Eph 1:20-21)
For it is impossible to restore again to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come…. (Heb 6:4-5)
Jesus said to them, ‘Those who belong to this age marry and are given in marriage; but those who are considered worthy of a place in that age and in the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage.’ (Lk 20:34-35)
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father; to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen. (Gal 1:3-5)
The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. (Mt 13:37-43)
When he was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, ‘Tell us, when will this be, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’ (Mt 24:3)
As anticipations of the age-to-come, women, like our hosts, today work to end millennia of patriarchy and to re-create a history of gender equality. Nature-carers work to end the rape of Mother Nature; and they help us to see the trees, birds, waters as our brothers and sisters … and to rediscover our bondedness with them.
The Dimension of History
History-Consciousness and Christian Consciousness. This biblical idea of an age-to-come is one of the new and refreshing bits of learning I picked up in the course of my search through the scriptures. It provides a whole new dimension to the understanding of ultimate salvation. It provides the dimension of history. The big lesson that the age-to-come can teach us is that ultimate salvation is a new and different history for nature and for humankind, collectively and individually. Our hosts, women and people who want to correct and re-edit the story of our planet resonate with this.
My old catechism looked forward to a ‘place’ called heaven; First Look theology looks forward to a ‘place’ called the new world. But First Look theology provides a further sharpening: it looks forward to a new history, a new era, a new epoch, a new age.
This is in contrast to the Second Look’s final salvation which is an a-historical private affair, that is, limited to souls seeing God in heaven. A good bit of concern for history—economic, social, political—has been felt in Church documents since Vatican II.
Our PCP II is outstanding in this regard. Would that there were more echoes in the everyday catechesis of schools and parishes. Then participation in ongoing history today will not be a matter for occasional rallies only but a part of habitual Christian consciousness and action. Shaping history toward the Kingdom of God becomes a normal chore in the household of God.
First Look and Second Look Vocabulary and Meanings
An Instructive Note. Let us play a little game. The text of Mk 10:17-30 offers a fascinating word study. It offers an opportunity to compare Second Look meanings with First Look ones. For the Second Look, ‘to be saved,’ ‘eternal life,’ ‘Kingdom of God’ mean ‘going to heaven.’ Not so for the First Look. Run your eye through the following; pay attention to the italicized words:
a man ran up and knelt before him,
and asked him, ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ (v 17)
… Jesus looking at him, loved him
and said, ‘You lack one thing;
go, sell what you own,
and give the money to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven;
then come, follow me.’ (v 21)
When he heard this, he was shocked,
And went away grieving,
For he had many possessions. (v 22)
Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples,
‘How hard it will be for those who have wealth
to enter the kingdom of God!’ (v 23)
And the disciples were perplexed at these words.
But Jesus said to them again,
‘Children, how hard it is
to enter the kingdom of God! (v 24)
It is easier for a camel
to go through the eye of a needle
than for someone who is rich
to enter the kingdom of God.’ (v 25)
They were greatly astounded,
and said to one another, ‘Then who can be saved?’ (v 26)
Jesus looked at them and said,
‘For mortals it is impossible, but not for God;
for God, all things are possible.’ (v 27)
Peter began to say to him,
‘Look, we have left everything and followed you.’ (v 28)
Jesus said, ‘Truly, I tell you,
there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters
or mother or father or children or fields,
for my sake and for the sake of the good news, (v 29)
who will not receive a hundredfold
now in this age—
houses, brothers and sisters,
mothers and children, and fields
with persecutions—
and in the age to come eternal life. (v 30)
(Mk 10:17-30)
(a) inherit eternal life (v. 17, 30)
(b) enter the Kingdom of God (vv. 23, 24, 25)
(c) to be saved (v. 26)
(d) age-to-come (v. 30)
Familiarity with the signposts we have encountered to date would tell
us that none of these four expressions means going to heaven after death
(Second Look). Rather, from the context, it is clear, first, that these
four expressions are synonymous; second, that they carry a biblical—therefore,
First Look—meaning.
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Eternal Life. Biblically speaking, eternal life, a favorite Second Look expression, does not mean the life of beatific vision for the soul in heaven. Rather it is the fullness of life with resurrection, banquet, justice, joy, experiencing God in a new earth at the end-time.
Salvation. Biblically speaking, to be saved does not mean saving the soul for heaven but entering the Kingdom and the fullness of life.
Possible Problematic Sayings: Let us now take up two expressions which can be misleading:
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Mt 5:12)
Note too, of course, that the word ‘heaven’ can function as a substitute for the word ‘God.’ Thus: your reward will be great in heaven (i.e. in the eyes of God) and you will have treasure in heaven (i.e., before God).
Biblical Salvation
Biblical Expressions for Ultimate Salvation. We have encountered the following biblical expressions:
Kingdom of God (highlighting the aspect of God’s sovereignty)
New-heaven-and-new-earth (accent on ‘world’ or ‘earth’)
Age-to-come (accent on history)
Eternal life (dimension of life)
These are all practical synonyms for ultimate salvation. Of these the most frequent in the New Testament is Kingdom of God. Age-to-come and new-heaven-and-earth are relatively much rarer, but they are also used.
Biblical salvation refers to that fullness of life in the age-to-come, where I and every human being, having vanquished death, will participate in a new history of life-giving justice, joy, compassion, seeing God, being sons and daughters of God, and where God will be all in all.
Our hosts, the women and nature-carers help us to conclude with this thought: Today, working for eternal life is not just bringing souls to the everlasting life of heaven, as I used to think, but includes working towards that fullness of life for each human being, for all humanity and Sister Nature, as we journey towards the definitive age-to-come.