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In 1986, having been married to me only one year, my wife was casting about for an interesting birthday present. She wandered into a coin shop and found a case of coins from antiquity. She already knew me well enough to know that I would be fascinated by them. The owner didn't know much about the coins, only that they were from Rome, and he was pretty sure that one of them dated from the time of Christ. That's the one my wife bought.

She was absolutely right about my reaction to this gift—I fell in love with this coin the minute I saw it. I couldn't believe that I was holding something so old in my hands...

Click here to read the rest of this essay at The Christian Century online.

My Dupondius - click for closeup

Archive of Christian Century Articles by Gordon Atkinson

Is the earth ancient and are you a young child, wandering her surface and running your small hands over the bumps and buckled plates of her wisdom? Or are you the old one, tired and cynical and wise, trying to recapture your innocence by walking barefoot and kissing the feet of a newborn morning?

Is goodness somewhere deep in your heart, laid in before the ages and waiting for the year of jubilee? Or is goodness a damsel locked in a distant tower, and you the prince charming who will redeem her at any price?

Are you dragging store-bought values behind you on a little string, smiling like a rube and looking for applause from the masses? Or do you listen to the mysterious voice that lives in the low places beneath your heart? Will you proclaim those words in public, or don't you have the courage?

Can God be jerked out of the heavens and thrown to the ground? Will you leer at her there and run your clumsy hands over her body? Will you brag to your friends later that you’ve known God? Or is God the ultimate seductress, unmoved by our adolescent advances, laughing at our wanton desire and sitting, legs crossed, just outside the orbit of our highest thoughts?

And if you do meet God on the way, how will you stand?

Will you stand frightened and cowed, mired in ancient dogma that binds your feet like sheets in a dream? Or will you laugh in the face of God, smirking and superior? Will you cleave instead to the cyborg beauty, the sacred science you have set apart and called your own?

Or perhaps, having tried all of these things, you will cast off your clothing and stand naked before the horizon, watching God flutter away like a butterfly, soaring beyond all words, swooping east and west to gather all mystics and cynics into the delight of her bosom.

Who are you?

Where are you?

What are you, and what do you intend?

Tell me, for you intrigue me, and I would know you like a father or a brother or a lover or a friend.

rlp

I present to you, a short film called "Credo" by director Keith Snyder and starring Larry Picard. Keith describes this film as "yet another 9-minute screen opera about God and religious violence."

But first a quick story about how I discovered Credo. Keith Snyder emailed me a long time ago. Then he came to hear the sermon I did last Spring at Cornell. He handed me a copy of his short film, "Credo." I took it home and lost it. Then I was embarrassed to admit that I had lost it, so I just said nothing. Finally he wrote to see if I had watched it. The truth came out, but he was kind and sent me another copy, which I sat on my desk at the church, where I looked at the cover day after day.

I have a strange way about me. There are certain things I don't do until the right time. I have no way of explaining to anyone how I know it is the right time, but I feel it. A number of weeks went by and then one day, not too long ago, I decided it was time to watch Credo.

I loved it. It's lovely, precious, and endearing. And it's certain to spark some pretty intense conversations. As you watch it, remember this: It is a work of art, not a theological treatise. Don't pick the theology apart. Also, you should remember that in the Jewish scriptures (Old Testament) God repents several times. In Genesis God repents and is sorry that he created humankind. In First Samuel God repented that he made Saul king. And, most stunningly, in Exodus God is angry and about to destroy the children of Israel. Moses intervenes and demands that he repent of this anger.

"Why are you angry with Your people, which you brought out of Egypt with a mighty hand? . . .Turn from your fierce wrath and repent of this evil against your people...And the Lord repented of the evil which He said He would do unto his people." (32:11-14)

This notion of God experiencing regret is only a problem if you are into the whole omniscient and omnipotent thing. And since those ideas are NOT IN THE BIBLE, I don't feel obligated to believe them myself.

Yeah, not in the Bible. The omni concept is more of a Greek, philosophical thing. Surprised aren't you? Here's a little article about this by Tony Campolo, who is a huge hero of mine.

Keith Synder explores the idea of God, evil, and repentance in this wonderful little film. And if you can let go of the omni stuff, then you make room for the idea that Larry Picard's God character might actually be possible. Which is cool because I absolutely adore Larry in this film. I wish he was my friend in real life, but I'd have a hard time not always wanting to pray to him. ;-)

Follow the link below and you can watch it online. Enjoy!

The website has the lyrics, which are worth reading
to make sure you didn't miss anything

Six minutes on the back porch with Real Live Preacher.
Because my memory card only holds six minutes of video.
And because six minutes is plenty long enough for anyone.

rlp