Good Morning Yamon Ki Yesepar and Nevim Arith Hayomim:

I Kings 8:11: “So that the priest could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord had filled the house.”

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Clarke’s Third Law – Arthur C. Clarke

“Any sufficiently researched Christian theology is indistinguishable from Jewish mysticism.”  A great man once said that.

If  I use the word “mysticism” I would probably conjure up pictures of crystal balls and tarot cards.  When we refer to Jewish mysticism or Jewish mystics, we need to be very careful in how we define our words.   A Jewish mystic is one who is simply seeking a deeper relationship with God.  Based upon that definition, most Christians I meet would be considered Jewish mystics.

In I Kings we learn that the priest could not “stand” when the cloud appeared and the room was filled with the glory of God.  Now if that doesn’t smack of mysticism, I don’t know what does. I don ‘t see how a relationship with God can be expressed as any deeper here on earth as described in I Kings 8:11.

The word “stand” in Hebrew is “amad” and could mean many, many things.  It could mean to stand, but also opposed, confirm, appoint, remain, defend, stop, wait, stand firm and many other  possible usages.  One thing is certain, something physical happened to the priest when the cloud appeared and filled the house with the glory of God.

The word “glory”  is “Kavod” which comes from the word “kavad” which means a weight. Thus we tend to conclude that the glory of the Lord so weighted the priest down that they could not stand. But, the question needs to be asked: “Just what was this weight.  A cloud is simply a gas which has little weight to it.   This cloud had to be more than a gas to bring the priest to their knees or forced them on their faces.

There is another meaning to the word “kavod (glory)” that is rarely used.  That is the word “heart.”  I helped to pay my way through school working as a ventriloquist.  I would often perform on a stage where a spot light was put on me.  The auditorium was dark so I could not see the audience.  Even though I could not see the audience, the moment I stepped onto the stage, I could feel the audience.  I could tell if they were a happy audience, ready to laugh or a quiet audience who would need some coaxing to laugh.  I could also tell if it were a hostile audience or a friendly audience.  The audience would not say a word, I could not see them, but I could feel them.   Often I would introduce myself without my wooden friend, Ralphie.  I would tell a few jokes or a story.  I would use these few moments before the audience to decide what routine I would use as my routines were designed for different types of audiences. I had to trust what I felt to decide on the routine I would use.

If anyone has performed on a stage, they will understand this quiet communication with their audience.   In truth, what the entertainer feels is the “heart” or the “kavod (glory or heart)” of the audience.  Some even refer to it as a “mystical” feeling.  You would describe it as a heavy feeling or a light feeling.  Sometimes  I felt that heaviness of the audience such that I found it difficult to move across the stage.

The attitude of the audience would mix with my confidence or lack of confidence, my fears or lack of fears.   This then manifested itself in my ability to move.  The “lighter’ the audience, the more animated I would be.  This is what I believe the priest felt. They felt the heart or God, the attitude of God.

In essence what Arthur C Clark said in his third law is that magic is only science that has yet to be discovered.   Along the same lines, Jewish mysticism is only theology that Christians have yet to explore.   To be sure there is world of Jewish mysticism that I will not touch, maybe 90% of it.  But there is some that I feel is very Biblically based, like a cloud that can descend upon you and weigh you down to your knees or your face.  Mystics might call it some realm of cosmic energy.  What I call it is the heart of God descending  and his joy or grief or whatever emotion is coming from His heart is so powerful when mixed with your emotions, you may not be able to move or it hinders your movement.

No, I am not a mystic, nor am I close to one according to most people’s definition of a mystic. I am simply one who longs to feel the presence, the Kabod  (glory or heart) of God.

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