Episode Details

• A huge thanks to Joseph McDade for his generous permission to use his music: https://josephmcdade.com/
• Thanks to Palmtoptiger17 for the beautiful logo: https://www.instagram.com/palmtoptiger17/
• Discord Discussion Board: https://disboard.org/server/474580298630430751 
• The Historic Faith Courses: https://thehistoricfaith.com/
• My Sonnet Compilation: https://www.amazon.com/My-First-Sonnets-J-G-Elliot-ebook/dp/B01LXXIIQN/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=my+first+sonnets&qid=1585870352&sr=8-2

• Richard Rohr's "Sermon on the Mount": https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003A0IASQ/ref=cm_sw_r_em_api_uOXEFbGCN7ASQ
• Dallas Willard's "The Divine Conspiracy": https://www.amazon.com/Divine-Conspiracy-Rediscovering-Hidden-Life/dp/0007596545/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=dallas+willard+divine+conspiracy&qid=1601907374&sr=8-1

Jade

In life the only certainty we get

Is that death for each of us is assured

We, like the gods, insure through jade rabbit

Our destiny’s sufficiently ensured

But pestle and mortar cannot concoct

A cure for pestilence which mortifies

Impending doom, our sacred lives, defrocks

And minds, in time, to lunacy it drives

What can we prize in life's vap'rous glory?

Truth - a lowly and humble parapet

Our choice, to bay as beasts in furore

Or put truth into our pipes and smoke it

Worry not for tomorrow is its own

And emperor is seated on his throne

[Mt. 6:25-34, 7:7-11]. While jade can have a number of colors, green is the most well known (along with white). Especially in Asia (particularly China), jade was thought of as scholarly and imperial. It could supposedly increase the longevity of your life and heal.

The “Jade Rabbit” (or hare) is a shape ancients in the East saw in the moon. If you look it up, you can find the shape of a rabbit who appears to be grinding up substances with a mortar and pestle. This rabbit supposedly mixed the elixir of life for the gods. I reference it here because of the reference to “jade,” but also because jade has an association with nobility and status – which the gods certainly had. We set ourselves up as gods as we seek to immortality the same. The last line with “Destiny” also makes this stanza a nerd reference, as the “jade rabbit” is an exotic weapon in the Destiny franchise of video games.

There is a wordplay going on here, as the “pestle” and “mortar” the jade rabbit uses has as its roots “pest” and “mort.” We see these roots come back in “pestilence” and “mortifies.” This isn’t a mere repetition of root words, but rather a juxtaposition of ideas. Whereas the rabbit uses his “pest” and “mort’ to perpetuate life, we see that “pest” and “mort” are the ultimate takers of life. This doesn’t mean that it is the rabbit in the moon that kills us, but rather that placing our hope in such things is the opposite of true life. There are also a lot of things going on just with the word “mortifies” here, as there are a number of definitions coming into play here. In short, it means that it brings about fear (I’m mortified), it brings about decay, and it is death (mortem in Latin is death) to us mortals. 

The knowledge of our demise, in time, disrobes our vain and lofty beliefs about ourselves. No matter how great someone is in life, they are made equal in death. We stand naked in front of the world with