Sunday, October 08, 2006

Why Al Gore hates the NRSV

This morning, according to the Episcopal lectionary, we humans saw our lust for earth-domination biblically confirmed. What's more, Christians have been granted permission to subjugate even other people, and, believe it or not, "nothing will be outside our control." Muwwaaaa... The Nietzchean lust for power that movies like Little Miss Sunshine did so much to cleverly subvert has now been confirmed by the Scriptures themselves!

How? Read for yourself - the Bible... scratch that, the gender neutral NRSV, told us so. This morning's passage from Hebrews quotes Psalm 8 with Christ in mind, but the need to render the Psalm in the plural for gender inclusive purposes both sacrifices Christological prophecy to the age of the waitron, and - the best part - gives what the author of Hebrews intended Crist to have directly to us! Behold the NRSV's rendering of Hebrews 2:5-9:
"Now God did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. But someone has testified somewhere,
'What are human beings that you are mindful of them, or mortals, that you care for them? You have made them for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned them with glory and honor, subjecting all things under their feet.'
Now in subjecting all things to them, God left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone."
Notice how gendered Jesus shows up, rather inexplicably, just in time to give us a little encouragement as we wait for the day when "all things will be subjected" under not his, but our feet. If you think about it, a legitimate reading of this tranlsation could argue that earth, others, and yes, even Christ will be subjected to us. Inclusion - what a rush.

Warning: Other translations were a total buzzkill to my powerhigh. So glad my congragation abruptly switched ot the NRSV.

In the meantime, look out earth - I'm going shopping.