Helsinki, Finland
International SBL (Society of Biblical Literature) Conference, July 31 – August 3, 2018, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland. Read a paper: Jerusalem of Stones as a Witness of God’s Love: The Vantage Point of Salvation Through the Eyes of Righteous Simeon (Luke 2:22-40).
Abstract:
The place is what shapes the identity of persons, families, and nations. It affects making the crucial decisions in life that bring people to God or away from him. Jerusalem has always been the center of God`s revelation, the witness of generous loving acts, and the place par excellence which shapes the lives of all. From the beginning of the world until today, Jerusalem carries the mystery of the city “knit together” (Ps 122:3) and deserves to be called Axis Mundi – the center of the world. In fact, in the city of Jerusalem, Righteous Simeon and Anna testified the extraordinary event of presenting Jesus in the Temple by Joseph and Mary and seeing the universal “salvation” (Luke 2:29) of the world. In this paper, I argue that the vantage point of salvation through the eyes of Righteous Simeon did, indeed, assume the revelation of God through the acts of loving-kindness. It was inseparable from the city of many stones itself. Hence, this point in space impacted human identity, ideology, as well as orientation because Jerusalem is not merely the city of its characteristic white lime stones by which it is naturally surrounded. It is the city of the Stone of Foundation (Even HaShetiyah), and of the stone of faith (religions), but above all, it is the keystone of salvation. Perceiving Incarnated Word spatially, Simeon observed the purpose of the Creation: to become a “new Creation” (2 Cor 5:17) and be in communion with God. Consequently, by meeting Christ, one gains life everlasting and elevates the Holy City of Resurrected Christ to New Jerusalem, and transfigures the stones of Jerusalem into “the living stones” (1Peter 2:5), “bringing unity to all things in heaven and on earth under Christ” (Eph 1:10). Finally, Jerusalem is the place where spatial becomes eternal through the glorious resurrection.
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