There are many references to boats in the Gospels. From those used by disciple-fishermen, to those used for transportation, boats are mentioned throughout. Mark 5:2 Just as Jesus was getting out of the boat, a man with an unclean spirit came from the tombs and met him. Mark 5:18 As he was getting into the boat the man who had been demon-possessed asked if he could go with him. Trump isn’t particularly known for his love of boats and yachts though he did buy Adnan Khashoggi’s yacht in the 1980’s and renamed it Princess Trump Princess: Inside Donald Trump’s Lavish 86 Metre Superyacht | Boat International. More recently Trump’s supporters held a boat parade in Texas where several boats got into trouble Multiple Boats Sink During 'Trump Boat Parade' On Texas Lake | HuffPost Given the paucity of Trump connections to boating we’ll use this brief chapter on boats to delve into transportation in general a bit. In fact, there are no other modes of transportation mentioned in the Gospels, at least not that Jesus or his followers used – aside from their feet, of course. Hard to imagine Trump getting around much on his feet. Long hikes and visions of Trump just don’t match up somehow. In perhaps the most famous disciple encounter, Jesus instructs Simon to catch people instead of fish. Like Simon (Peter) other disciples were fishermen. Matthew 4:21 Going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in a boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets. Then he called them. 4:22 They immediately left the boat and their father and followed him. Jesus and His disciples used boats regularly, sometimes to get away from the crowds. Matthew 14:13 Now when Jesus heard this he went away from there privately in a boat to an isolated place. But when the crowd heard about it, they followed him on foot from the towns. Walking on water without the boat? Quelling the sea from dry land? These are major miracle stories which would be difficult to imagine without the boat. Sometimes, things apparently got too crowded on shore. Matthew 13:1 On that day after Jesus went out of the house, he sat by the lake. 13:2 And such a large crowd gathered around him that he got into a boat to sit while the whole crowd stood on the shore. Traveling by boat seems to have been a preferred method of travel. Not so much by Trump it would seem. Peter walked on water as well, from a boat. Matthew 14:29 So he said, “Come.” Peter got out of the boat, walked on the water, and came toward Jesus. Many of Trump’s supporters wouldn’t be surprised to him walking on water in this way.
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The Gospels paint a vivid picture of the agricultural segment of the economy in Jesus’ time. We see sheep, herbs, fruit, eggs, etc. The list is long. How does this apply to Trump? Trump in pop culture is associated with steaks, Kentucky Fried Chicken, food boxes, a fast food buffet for the Clemson Tigers, the list goes on. And if we look at the broader discussion of agriculture we see discussions of sowing, weeds, and other such things, particularly in the parables. Matthew 13:24 He presented them with another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a person who sowed good seed in his field. 13:25 But while everyone was sleeping, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away. 13:26 When the plants sprouted and bore grain, then the weeds also appeared. 13:27 So the slaves of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, didn’t you sow good seed in your field? Then where did the weeds come from?’ 13:28 He said, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the slaves replied, ‘Do you want us to go and gather them?’ 13:29 But he said, ‘No, since in gathering the weeds you may uproot the wheat with them. 13:30 Let both grow together until the harvest. At harvest time I will tell the reapers, “First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned, but then gather the wheat into my barn.” Fish are probably the most famous foodstuff of the Gospels, after bread. Luke 24:41 And while they still could not believe it (because of their joy) and were amazed, he said to them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 24:42 So they gave him a piece of broiled fish, Fruit is found often in the Gospels with references to what comes from a good tree, or a bad tree, an apparent analogy to good and evil. The fruit mentioned most in the Gospels is the fig. Grapes are close, especially if one counts wine and allusions to “fruit of the vine”. Mark 11:13 After noticing in the distance a fig tree with leaves, he went to see if he could find any fruit on it. When he came to it he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. Even though we don’t see Christ eating any – it could be concluded that Jesus was a pescatarian - we find chicken, pigs, oxen, and, most notably, sheep, with Jesus the shepherd. The most vulnerable of all is the lamb, used by Jesus to refer to the disciples, and is a metaphor for Jesus with John the Baptist’s reference to Jesus as “the Lamb of God”. In this passage we see Christ referring to his disciples as lambs: Luke 10:3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs surrounded by wolves. Lambs vs wolves? This is difficult for most Christians to get their arms around as few of us like the idea of being lambs and much prefer to be a wolf, especially in today’s times as evidenced by the spike in gun sales leading up to the election. Even Walmart stopped selling guns temporarily. So, it seems valid to wonder how Trump might see himself in this scenario: Lamb or wolf? |
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