Fixating on What Jesus Would Say

Ok, now I'm really fixated on what Jesus might say about being an "orthodox practicing and believing Catholic." Not like fixating on WWJmS is anything new and different in my life. I frequently find myself in this zone. Believe you me, it is not as simple an exercise as the cheesiness of those woven WWJD bracelets might suggest. There's a lot for me to ponder before I can come up with even a smarty pants answer like the one in my previous post.

For one thing, I devote time to wondering whether Jesus would be speaking in Aramaic or Hebrew. Yes, I do realize that for most of the time the right answer is Aramaic. That doesn't stop me from wondering about when Jesus might have spoken in Hebrew. Nor does that stop me from amusing myself by wondering what, had he spoken Yiddish, Jesus might have called his apostles. Especially Peter.

Welcome to my world. I once spent nearly ten minutes during a psychotherapy session wondering about this very thing while my Conservadox Jewish therapist listened. And the DSM-IV category for that would be?

Next, I get all bollixed up about whether the Jesus I imagine speaking is the historical Jesus or the Jesus of Holy Scripture. Should I be thinking historically critically or allegorically? I try to do both simultaneously, which can be exhausting -- in an exhilarating kind of way. I believe my willingness to engage in this intellectual exercise would inspire Jesus to say that I am clearly a Jew of some sort, and most welcome to hang around with him.