Who is "Jesus of Ecology"?

Revisioning Jesus and a telling a story

By: Neil Douglas-Klotz,
Joseph Grabill,
Deborah Oberg,

Introduction:
We know Jesus by such names as Son of Man, Son of God, Christ, Savior, and Lord. To add "ecology" as part of a proper name may sound odd. Yet, we believe a reading of the biblical texts and of the Roman Galilee environment unveils "Jesus of Ecology." This name or title compares with the familiar "Jesus of Nazareth," and enriches Jesus' identity by immersing it within his cosmic home, not just tagging it with the home of his youth.

We are retelling below the story of Jesus' healing the deaf and dumb man found in Mark 7:31-37. We are amplifying the story by adding information derived from study of the Aramaic language which Jesus spoke, by using the Hebrew tradition of expanded rendition ("midrash") of biblical texts, and by adding information about ecological aspects of Galilee.

The story begins with Jesus going from the Mediterranean Sea to the Sea of Galilee basin. He was walking through the northern part of a Palestinian land which included 2600 plant species. This number was unusually large considering the small size of Palestine and considering the desert region which occupied half of Palestine. He was walking among olive, fig, and date palm trees, vineyards, and wild mustard bushes. Galilee was the most biodiverse area of Palestine, having no desert. In the Ten Towns area, he was walking in a region which had a mixed population of Jews and Greeks.

In the following story the biblical text is in quotes and the additions to the biblical text are in italics. This story draws upon both the Good News Bible and an English translation from the Peshitta version of the Aramaic New Testament. To help link Jesus to his indigenous roots and his native tongue, we are throughout the text using his name in Aramaic which is "Isho'a." The word "Isho'a" in Aramaic can be translated as "Source of Elemental Life which Restores and Preserves."

Jesus ("Isho'a" in Aramaic) healing the deaf and dumb man:
Now the story in Mark: "Isho'a then left the neighborhood of Tyre and went on through Sidon to Lake Galilee, going by way of the territory of the Ten Towns." The roads he took meandered among oak and pine forests; among carob, mint, mustard, oleander, and pistachio plants; and among cultivated fields of olive, fig, and date palm trees, wheat and barley, and vineyards. "Some people brought him a man who was deaf and could hardly speak, and they begged Isho'a to place his hands on him. "Isho'a took the man aside, so the crowd could not see, and placed his fingers gently into the man's ears. As they breathed together, Isho'a drew closer, spat on the ground, and touched the man's tongue, uniting his sensing self with the other." Isho'a had mixed his saliva with the soil. Rubbing moist, earthy hands together, Isho'a soothingly had put his fingers on the man's lips and tongue. The man tasted the powerful humus, swallowing both his own and the healer's saliva. The throat of the man opened to new sensations.

Breathing with "shemaya" (Aramaic), the universe of vibration: Isho'a was breathing deeply close to the man, and they were inhaling and exhaling in the same rhythm. The man reverberated with Isho'a's spirit. "As Isho'a focused on the One Source of all sensation and knowing, he raised his glance and awareness upward, breathing one long and powerful breath with "shemaya" [Aramaic]--the universe of vibration." This breath was a groan, and the man found himself breathing the same sound. Continuing their synchronized breathing, their bodies opened up with vibrations down to their legs. The man's feet were standing upon and receiving the healing energy of the One Source. "Releasing his hands from the man's ears, Isho'a said forcefully, "Ethphatah!" [Aramaic] which means 'Be opened, expand, clear the way--allow yourself to be penetrated by the waves of space that give and receive all sound, hearing, and speech.'" The man, receiving healing energy through Isho'a, was open to being opened in a fresh way. When Isho'a's hands stopped cupping his ears, and the percussive "Ethphatah" sounded, the man's whole being said 'Yes!'

"At that instant, the man's ears were opened, his tongue loosened, and he spoke clearly." 'Thank you,' he said. 'Having ears, I can hear. Having a tongue, I can speak. Thank you.' "Then Isho'a ordered the people not to speak of it to anyone; but the more he ordered them not to, the more they told it. And all who heard were completely amazed. 'How well he does everything!' they exclaimed. 'He even causes the deaf to hear and the dumb to speak!"

"Shemaya" (Aramaic): heaven or universe of vibration? In the story we used the Aramaic word "shemaya." This Aramaic word in English versions of Mark 7 is usually translated "heaven." The root "shem" can mean the universe of light, sound, vibration, name, and word, and the ending "aya" can mean the specific expression of this universe. Listeners to this story in Aramaic would know that the word "shemaya" referred to resonance between the universe of vibration and the particular vibrations in the deaf and dumb man. The English word "heaven" does not capture these layers of meaning.

The ecology of the Sea of Galilee region:
Jesus was sensitive to his whole environment. The "One Source" in the text refers to the interdependent oneness of God and Earth. The Gospel of Thomas (saying 77) records that Jesus said: "Split a piece of wood; I am there. Lift up the stone, and you will find me there." The Jordan River, flowing from the mountains of Lebanon, immersed Jesus in baptism. When Jesus took the man aside so the crowd could not see, Jesus could easily have taken him into a thicket including mustard bushes and aromatic mint plants. Mustard leaves were used for many ailments, including those of the throat and ears. Mint had medicinal uses. Jesus could have rubbed his hands on the mustard leaves before he spat on the ground and put his hands into the man's ears.

Jesus and healing:
His healing style included laying on of hands, like the contemporary practices of therapeutic touch, which is a cross- cultural and universal style of spirit/mind/body practice by shamans. The spirit/mind/body flexibility of a shaman allows her or him to move her energy field to adjust to the frequency of another's energy pulse. Shamans see and hear and maneuver within the realm of another's history, being nomads of the soul. Jesus was a wanderer within the habitat of the realm of God, including the biodiverse Galilee and the psyches and bodies of his neighbors.

"Jesus of Ecology" and today:
Jesus' stories and life style were embedded within regenerative Earth. With the deaf and dumb man, as with the blind man in the story in John 9, Jesus used mud made with spit to reconnect ailing people with the restorative power of soil, mouth enzymes, and water. Today a message "Jesus of Ecology" has for the human species is that the realm of God is rooted and grounded in reciprocity among non-human and human members of Earth's community. We believe that "Jesus of Ecology" is revealed in biblical texts and in first-century Galilee's ecology, and that this evidence is environmentally and spiritually relevant to us at the turn of the millennium.

A walking meditation:
Here is an exercise which invites improvisation. With a partner, sit or walk in a meditative or prayerful manner beside favorite trees or plants. Take along or find beside the path herbal leaves to crush. Inhale their fragrance. Deepen your breathing. Speak to each other of a desired healing of spirit, mind, or body. Facing each other, breathe in the same rhythm. With hands made wet by saliva, touch the soil and then touch or hold each other in a place or way which symbolizes the healing process. When the timing is right, repeat the Aramaic word "ethphatah" (eth-fah-tah) softly and feel the sound in the region of the heart. Ask for the universal vibration and the particular vibrations of each person to resonate. Ask to be open to the "Source of Elemental Life which Restores and Preserves."

Suggested readings on "Jesus of Ecology":

Matthew Black, An Aramaic Approach to the Gospels and Acts. 1967.
Neil Douglas-Klotz, Prayers of the Cosmos: Meditations on the Aramaic Words of Jesus. 1990.
Neil Douglas-Klotz, Desert Wisdom. 1995. The translation from the Aramaic in Mark 7 quoted above comes from this source.
James A. Duke, Medicinal Plants of the Bible. 1983.
Michael Zohary, Plants of the Bible. 1982.