Rev. C. Paul Grenier
UNITED CHURCH
OF CHRIST
No one puts surround sound on a black and white TV. It is a waste of money, better to buy a new TV as it comes with the latest speakers.
No one puts new wine into old wine skins. No one can drive forward by looking into their rear view mirror.
Old View, New View
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Once Truth was naked, and going through town trying to find somewhere to lodge for the night. She would knock on the doors of the town, but as soon as people opened the door and were exposed to the Naked Truth they immediately slammed the door and ran away. Some people were scared of the Naked Truth; some people were angered by her, and some just felt uncomfortable. So, Truth wandered through the town until she came to the house of Story. There Story let her in and clothed Naked Truth in Parable. The next day when Truth came into town dressed in Parable all the people welcomed her into their homes with open arms. Once Truth was naked, and going through town trying to find somewhere to lodge for the night. She would knock on the doors of the houses, but as soon as people opened their door and were exposed to the Naked Truth they immediately slammed the door and ran away. Some people were scared of the Naked Truth; some people were angered by her, and some just felt uncomfortable. So, Truth wandered through the town until she came to the house of Story. There Story let her in and clothed Naked Truth in Parable. The next day when Truth came into town dressed in Parable all the people welcomed her into their homes with open arms.
Truth and the Clothing of Story
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There once was a man with lots of musical talent who knew how to play the piano beautifully, but he was afraid that if he showed his talent to others they would judge him or laugh. So, he only played by himself, and eventually he grew tired and his skill was forgotten.
And again there was a man who had no talent who wanted to play the piano and enjoyed bringing joy to others even if it came at his own expense and embarrassment. So, he played the piano whenever he could, and for anyone who would bother to listen. As the years went by he improved and though he never became a master pianist, even after his death he was remembered for his joyful music.
Don’t hide your light under a bushel
For whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them.
Parable of the Talented and Not so Talented Piano Men
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Two women were doing menial administrative work in an office at a large hospital. One of the women showed her contempt for her boss by saying bad things about him to her co-workers, sloppily handling his paperwork, writing bad evaluations about him, and playing video-games on her cell phone when she thought no one was looking. The other woman worked hard for the benefit of all her co-workers.
One day without warning the head of the hospital announced cutbacks. She had looked at the evaluations and she fired the vindictive and lazy woman as well as her boss, but she gave the faithful and hard working woman a new managerial position.
No one knows the day or hour when the Master will return, when the cutbacks will come or the opportunities will arise. In those times those who have kept watch and been faithful with their responsibilities will be given more, and those who have slacked off or been spiteful will be discarded. For fate arises when opportunity meets preparation.
Parable of the Good and Bad Worker
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This is a famous painting that can either be seen as a young lady with a bonnet or an old woman, depending on your perspective. It is often used to illustrate how two people can see the same thing in two completely different ways.
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This images can be found on wikipedia and is labeled: Dreihasenfenster (Window of Three Hares) in Paderborn Cathedral).
The Image of Three Hares chasing each other who each appear to have two ears, but actually share three ears between them is a visual riddle/parable that has been used in Christianity to represent many things including the nature of the Trinity.
Paul's Parables
UNITED CHURCH
OF CHRIST
At first, Jesus' parables are short image rich stories that seem to convey a simple message. However, scholars have commented that they have many layers of deep meanings that are central to the Gospel. Christians view the parables not as mere similitudes that illustrate a single point, but as internal analogies where nature becomes a witness for the spiritual world. They are to be mulled over carefully and reflected upon.
Although, Jesus’ parables refer to simple everyday things, such as a woman baking bread (Lk 13:20-21), a wedding feast (Lk 14:15-24), or the aftermath of a roadside mugging (Lk 10:29-37); they deal with major religious themes, such as the growth of the Kingdom of God, the importance of prayer, and the meaning of love. Though many of these parables are familiar to Christians and non-Christians a like, the true power and meaning of Jesus' parables has often been eroded by the intervening millennia. What once was vivid and relatable imagery turned on its head to form powerful teachings, to us has become obscure and antiquated stories we’ve heard a thousand times.
A monk once went to his Abbot and complained that no matter how hard he prayed to God, he felt his prayers were never answered and he never got what he prayed for.
In response the Abbot gave his disciple an old woven basket and told him to take it to the river and bring it back full of water.
So, the Monk went and dipped the basket in the river, but whenever he pulled it out of the water, the water just ran through the basket and splashed all over the ground. He did this over and over again and finally gave up and went back to the Abbot in exhaustion.
He held out the basket and complained to the Abbot that he could not fill the basket with water. The Abbot smiled and said, “Yes, but look at the basket it has been washed clean and that is what prayer does it cleans out the dirt and clutter."
The Prayer Basket
One day a church was forced to close its doors for good, and all the people of the town cried out, “How could this happen! I was married in that church and we used to go to that church every Christmas Eve and Easter Sunday!”
Church Closing
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Once there was a mother who thought her son was a good boy until one day when she found a bottle of vodka hidden under his bed. She immediately tracked down her son and confronted him at his friend’s house. She yelled at him and smashed the bottle to bits.
Unfortunately, a few days later she found another bottle under his bed, so she yelled at him and smashed the new bottle and grounded him for a week.
Two weeks later she found a third bottle under the bed so she yelled at him, she smashed the bottle, and she grounded him for two weeks, and took away all his internet and phone privileges.
But alas, a little while later she found another bottle of vodka under her son’s bed. She was enraged by his inability to change his behavior, so she yelled at him, she smashed the bottle, and she grounded him and took away his internet and phone privileges for two weeks, she even took all his money away, and filled up the space under his bed with boxes.
The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
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A lovely young couple sat down to dinner one evening. Suddenly, without warning, a bone came between them and in the blink of an eye one was gone and the other was left sitting alone.
Luke 17:34-37 "I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left...." “Where, Lord?” they asked. He replied, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”
A Sudden Bone of Contention
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The following parables are my attempt to revitalize some of the teachings of Jesus with modern images and content. Through this presentation I do not claim that my modern interpretations capture Jesus’ original meanings. it is my humble hope that the following modern parables will help stimulate new ways of thinking about the scriptures and bring new insights into Jesus' teachings.
Though some of these parables may seem silly, edgy, or even offensive, we must remember that Jesus was not crucified for simply saying that we should all be nice to each other. Many of his parables were meant to provoke thought and questions. They were often critiques of the religious and political institutions of the day and probably made many people uncomfortable.
The Teen and His Troubled Mother
