#jesus in the temple

[artandthebible]

Jesus in the Temple

Artist: Heinrich Hofmann (German, 1824–1911)

Date: 1881

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Few scenes from the youth of Christ are so well known or beloved as Hofmann’s rendition of Luke 2:46-47, Jesus in the Temple. Even Hofmann’s harshest critic judged this painting “the most pleasing among the many representations of the subject.” As with many of Hofmann’s paintings, the narrative is more significant than the representation of a historically accurate setting. Here, only the classical columns and Seal of Solomon on the chair suggest a temple location. Of greater interest are the figures’ characteristics, gestures, and ways in which they interact with the “precocious” country boy from Nazareth.

Hofmann portrays the elders as thoughtfully developed personalities that viewers can relate to and compare with their own spiritual sensitivity. The ethereal beauty of the twelve-year-old Jesus contrasts markedly with the more corporeal, yet exquisitely painted, elders of the Jerusalem temple. In his lifetime many people questioned Hofmann about his model for the boy Jesus. Hofmann responded, “When I read about Christ in the Bible, there arises spontaneously before my fancy a picture of Him which I try to retain and to reproduce - that is my only prototype.” This personal vision of the young Christ resonated with viewers.

[slowtumbling]

Seeking God First

A Sermon on Prioritizing God in the New Year Scripture: Luke 2:41–52IntroductionWhen I was 12, life in our family was full of transitions and challenges. That year, we returned to Lost Gap, Mississippi after spending a year in Lowville, New York, the community where my parents grew up. We began hosting a small group in our home which by November, had blossomed into what became Jubilee Mennonite…

[absolutepokemontrash]

Y’all, this is going to be so random, but I was hit with a memory from my Catholic school days and I have this vivid memory of stumbling across a Bible story where Jesus walks into a village, sees someone possessed by a demon, and is like

“Begone, Beelzebub, go back to hell.”

And the demon just fuckin leaves because JC told him to

I always found that really funny, and even funnier when I think of it with Obey Me Beel-

Beel: He said I couldn’t possess that human anymore 🥺🥺🥺🥺

Belphie: Don’t you listen to that oily hippy! You can possess whoever you want, Beel.

Mammon: UGH, next thing you know Jesus is gonna be all “you can’t set up a shopping mall in the middle of the temple!” Like sorry you don’t like fun and money, bro 🙄

[j0celynh0rr0r]

Not today ,Jesus.

[dclanisms]

[wgm-beautiful-world]

Templo del Sagrado Corazón de Jesus en BARCELONA

[captain-athos]

I have a problem getting as into Bellini as the rest of the fandom bc his specific brand of cowardliness is so intensely familiar to me bro is the guy who gets himself a platform via general virtue signalling just enough to show how inclusive and progressive he could be but refuses to clarify on how progress might actually be achieved and backs out the second things get hairy and gets everybody else pepper sprayed. Like I do love him, anyone who’s read any of my fics would be able to see that but I do have trouble meow-meow-ifying him.

I mean imo there’s a reason you have representations of both conservative and progressive politics that kind of fucking suck in conclave and there’s a reason Vincent never clarifies which “side” he’s on and the reason is he’s the secret third option which is that the whole church is fundamentally fucking broken and no amount of progressive or conservative shaped bandaids are gonna fix those boo-boos because the system itself breeds corruption and selfishness and hierarchical oppression

[4him-iwrite]

Your body is a temple

"Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies."- 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

This is something that I struggle with BIG TIME. At times, I find myself taking care of body by exercising, eating well, and respecting my body (i.e. not engaging in sexual sin). But my problem is that I'm not consistent. One week I'm doing good , and then the next I'm eating a whole box of pizza with a 2 liter coke, being lazy, not showering, and or disrespecting my body. I forget that in moments of weakness that this body, that was gifted to me, needs to be maintained and fed high quality things, not only for my physical health but for my spiritual health as well. I forget that the things that I consume (media, music, etc.) should be life giving and not life draining. Though this body craves sexual gratification, it needs to be in the parameter that pleases God. Though this body craves sweets and relaxation, too much of either could be detrimental to my health and my productivity. Though God gives us free will to do what we please, He reminds us that not everything that's available to us is good. Our bodies are a gift that God has given us, and we should steward them well. Just because our body craves something does not mean we have to give in and consume the craving. Submit yourself, and your body to God; let the Spirit lead you and you'll find that honoring God with your body becomes a lot easier.

[latterdaysainttemples]

Inside the Deseret Peak Utah Temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Read the Church Newsroom article. Learn more about Latter-day Saint temples, their purpose, and find a temple open house near you.

[vibrant-dol]

quick little canto relationship sheet since i was thinking about it! they moved in pretty recently, so they only know a couple people!

[heathersdesk]

My grandfather was killed in a hit and run accident in 1978.

His mother and sister struggled with life after that. They decided to go on a trip across the United States together to get away from things for a while.

I discovered this trip when I was going through photo albums and suddenly saw a place I recognized.

The Salt Lake Temple.

They went to many places during that trip. But there was something truly special to me that, in one of the worst seasons of their lives, they ended up at the temple.

I served part of my mission at Temple Square. I was waiting for a visa to Brazil that I began to think was never coming. I had a truly horrendous time in the MTC babysitting a district of Elders who spent weeks on end bullying me and tearing down my self-esteem. I was told directly by someone, I forget who now, that I was being sent there to recover. And when I realized that the mission had no young Elders in it at all, that it was only Sisters and senior couples, I came to appreciate what that meant.

I had so many wild interactions there with so many people. Some of them were strange, like the guy who viewed the Book of Mormon as proof of alien interactions with humans. There were moments of heartbreak, like the woman who was in tears at the Christus statue who attacked us when we checked in on her. There were moments of pure delight, like when an LDS family with two young daughters came to that same Christus statue. The oldest girl, no older than 4 or 5, squealed "JESUS" and ran to the Savior's feet, little sister in tow. Whenever I hear someone mention the teaching to become as a little child, she is exactly who I think of.

There were also moments that were meant solely for me, like when I met the first Sister to ever be called to the Boston mission I had hoped to go to to wait for my visa. Boston has a large Brazilian population, many of whom are members of the Church. I had begged in prayer to be sent there and was told by other people it wouldn't happen because "Sisters don't go there." I had an entire conversation with the woman who was going to be that change. It seemed cruel to me at the time, dangling the carrot of something I wanted right in front of my face. In time, I've realized it was so I would remember that God does miracles and is aware of the desires of my heart, even if it means I don't get what I want. Someone needed to exercise enough faith to push that door open for women. I put my full weight behind it, and I can be just as proud that it opened for someone else.

But some of my favorite people I met there were people who just made me laugh. I met a Jewish convert from New York who told us his conversion story, how what drew him in was the Plan of Salvation. He summarized it in a New York accent in a voice I can still hear in my mind: "So you're a god, eventually. But can you pay RENT?!"

One of my favorite people I met was a Scottish convert named Agnes who was doing the Mormon trail across the US, beginning in New England and ending in Utah. She was a much older woman and told us all about her pilgrimage, and how she had cuddled with the oxen at the baptismal font in the Manhattan New York Temple. (I've been there. You enter into the baptistry on face level with them, or did the last time I was there.) She shared her testimony with us, and I'll never forget what she said.

She explained that the story of Joseph Smith was really hard to get her mind around. It truly is an insane set of asks: angels, gold plates, polygamy, and all the rest. She talked about how she came to accept it—not through any kind of empirical evidence or proof, but through faith and what that looked like.

For her, it was the recognition that being LDS was the best way she had ever encountered to live an excellent life. She said that the worst case scenario she could imagine is one where God would say to her, "You know that whole business with Joseph Smith was a load of crock, right? But you lived such a good life, I have to let you in anyway."

That has always stayed with me. Agnes was one of many people who came to the Square looking for something. I saw people come there looking for faith, or a fight, and truly everything in between. And it's only now that I'm older and wiser that I see something clearly now that I couldn't see then.

Agnes didn't need to come to Temple Square to find faith. She already had a tremendous amount of faith. She, and many others, were looking for conviction. I was at Temple Square long enough to learn you don't get that from a place. While a place like Temple Square can illuminate the possibilities for conviction through the lens of history, it doesn't bestow that conviction through contact or proximity alone. Conviction is made from the materials of your own life and your own choices. Your will, how firmly you place yourself into an immovable and unyielding position, is the measure of your convictions. It comes from within.

Faith is the decision to believe in what you cannot see, and what cannot be proven objectively. That never goes away. Nothing we experience in life, no place we ever visit, will create a shortcut under, over, or around that decision to believe, to trust in God. Faith, at its core, is a decision. The ability to continue making that decision over and over again, under all species of hardship and opposition, is conviction.

Where Jesus walked is nowhere near as important as how Jesus walked, and with whom. The same is true for all of us. Our walk with God might never take us anywhere near a temple because of where God has called us to go. But we are the holiest dwelling places of God on earth—not any of the buildings we've made.

Be a holy place of living faith wherever you are, whatever your circumstances may be. Worship God, no matter what places you can or cannot enter. There is more than one way to access a temple. One way is to enter a place that people invite God to dwell. The other is to become that place. There can be no separation from God where communion never ceases. It is the refuge that is unassailable by others for as long as the person wills it so. The torch within will not go out.

The temple is not special because it has some holy essence that springs forth out of nothing, to passively be absorbed by others. The temple is special because it directs people to Jesus Christ, who is the giver of healing and peace. The temple is just a building. It's Jesus Christ that is the true power behind it all, whose objective is to make you, me, and every person you know the holiest creature you've ever beheld. You are the end goal.

[lovingldsconvert]

i got endowed today!!! 🥳

it was really great

the end

[hiseyeisonthesparrow]

I think that every member of the Church has an incredibly unique set of beliefs and perspectives on gospel principles, topics, and traditions. But I think, while we are different in so many ways, we can all agree on one thing: one of the current endowment presentations is infinitely better than the other one. You know which one I'm talking about. It's not even close -- one is clearly superior.

[ourladyofomega]

The Cure: “Burn”

Machines Of Loving Grace: “Golgotha Tenement Blues”

Stone Temple Pilots: “Big Empty”

Nine Inch Nails: “Dead Souls”

Rage Against The Machine: “Darkness”

Violent Femmes: “Color Me Once”

Rollins Band: “Ghostrider”

Helmet: “Milktoast”

Pantera: “The Badge”

For Love Not Lisa: “Slip Slide Melting”

My Life With The Thrill Kill Kult: “After The Flesh (Nervous Xtians)”

The Jesus And Mary Chain: “Snakedriver”

Medicine: “Time Baby III”

Jane Siberry: “It Can't Rain All The Time”

[artandthebible]

Christ Healing the Paralytic at the Pool of Bethesda

Artist: Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (Spanish, 1617–1682)

Date: 1667-1670

Medium: Oil on Canvas

Collection: The National Gallery, London, England, United Kingdom

Painting Description

This painting shows one of the seven acts of charity described in the Gospel of Matthew and was part of a series that Murillo painted for the church of the Hospital de la Caridad in Seville. The Caridad was a charitable brotherhood dedicated to helping the poor and sick of the city; Murillo himself was a member.

The pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem was periodically visited by an angel, and whoever first touched its water after this would be cured of illness. Christ went to the pool and heard a sick man complain that someone always stepped into the water before him.

Here, Christ invites the man to stand, curing him; their mirrored hand gestures capture the powerful connection between them. The man’s raised arms create an upward motion, as if he is being lifted from the ground by an invisible force – a visual evocation of the miracle taking place.

Biblical Narrative

The name of the pool, “Bethesda,” is Aramaic. It means “House of Mercy.” John tells us that “a great number of disabled people used to lie [there] - the blind, the lame, the paralyzed” (John 5:3). The covered colonnades would have provided shade for the disabled who gathered there, but there was another reason for the popularity of the Pool of Bethesda. Legend had it that an angel would come down into the pool and “stir up the water.” The first person into the pool after the stirring of the water “was made well from whatever disease with which he was afflicted” (John 5:4). The Bible does not teach that this actually happened - John 5:4 is not included in most modern translations because it is unlikely to be original to the text - rather, the superstitious belief probably arose because of the pool’s association with the nearby temple.

On the day that Jesus visited the Pool of Bethesda, there was a man there who “had been an invalid for thirty-eight years” (John 5:5). Jesus asked the man if he wanted to be healed. The man replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred. While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me” (verse 7). Obviously, the man believed the urban legend about the stirring of the water. He blamed the fact that he was never healed on his tardiness in getting into the water.

[talesfromthebacklog]

Our lord and savior Shadow The Hedgehog.