Something A Zen Master Taught Me About Jesus

Something that's always hit me about Jesus is that he's always in the moment. Often that means poor planning. Or messed up plans. As a planner - that disturbs me because I want Jesus to like me.

It sounds horrible to say that, doesn't it? But it's true. And I bet it's true of you too.

I was reading a lecture by Zen Monk, Shunryu Suzuki the other day. He was lecturing right after Apollo 11 landed. And he talked about how the astronauts were hailed as heroes.

"I don't know how you feel, but I don't feel that way." He said of the astronauts being heroic. Then he said something I found profound. He said, "This is why we practice zazen."

Zazen is the zen practice of sitting meditation usually staring at a wall. You do nothing but sit and zone out. You don't focus (and you don't not focus). You just sit.

What I take him to mean is that so many of us strive to be recognized as heroes for doing something extraordinary. When the real heroes are the ones of us who recognize the extraordinary in the ordinary.

So Jesus recognizing the person in front of him rather than the opportunity ahead in the next city.
Jesus seeing the significance of the widow's offering instead of the potential to meet expenses.
Jesus calling attention to the power of wine and bread (the most common meal) and making it into something extraordinary.

Perhaps we all have opportunities to walk on the moon more than we recognize.