Several days ago, I wrote to Didier Fievet about coming to the pastoral workshop in the city of Rennes, which included a biblical study, hermeneutical analysis, and roundtable discussion, all in French. I needed transportation to get there, seeing as I have no car. He did not respond to me until this morning at 9:30am, one hour after which I awoke from my drowsy slumbers and stumbled over to my computer. Pastor Fievet found a person who wanted to take me to the workshop, so I called her up, and one hour and half later, we were on our way. It's amazing how some things work. I got my email, responded to the call, and on my way, I went. It seems counter-intuitive for how I am most of the time, carefully planning details. I'm learning a lot about spontaneity while living here in France. Spontaneity with just a little bit of planning is the very best, in my opinion... for some things.
I talked to my driver named Isabelle about a number of things during our journey to and from Rennes from my future vocation, family, etc. to her family, current events, Christianity (including the differences between various denominations, notably the Evangelique and Reformed perspectives that I have noted well during my time here), and history of Bretagne. She was a delightful driver, and I found joy speaking with her about her family and perspectives on various topics. We arrived in Rennes about 1/4 hour late, but it appeared the workshop had only just begun when we arrived.
The workshop was truly insightful. Every person present was part of this biblical study, and today for three hours, we plunged into the text from Genesis 2:16-17 and 3:1-22, which was essentially the interdiction and misunderstanding and the famous Fall of Man. Essentially, this turned into a 3-hour seminary class, where we looked at the text in light of the Greek and Hebrew. Right beside me, a madame was engrossed into the word of the Hebrew text and commented on how Elohim, the name for God, was noted in this particular text. We went into sermon topics to address in this text such as the commandment and consequence (punishment). Such discussion would prepare these pastors to preach in a methodical, hermeneutical way, something my father does every Sunday. It was great to appreciate the profession of my father and to see how hermeneutical understanding of the Biblical text is a rather intricate process, but fascinating, nonetheless.
Several things within the workshop brought me back to my classes at Covenant, and I was enthralled with how the pastor brought his hermeneutic to bear. He talked about this "transgression" or the Great Fall as the first communication between God and man. What was most interesting was the way he said that it wasn't the disobedience that counted, but rather man's desire to choose between the good and the bad in order to become like a "god," to know all things and to live for oneself. This was the sin, the forbidden text. It was a desire to become free from God and yet the true liberty lay in the "constitution" of the people of God. This was made clear in a number of passages. The pastor touched on a few. The constitution in Genesis was the commandment. After Israel was freed from Egypt, the constitution was the 10 Commandments. This matter of constitution would be very important for the Hebrew people, and I thoroughly enjoyed the manner in which the pastor brought it out in his workshop.
After all was said and done, Isabelle and I returned to the Mayenne. We passed through a little town called Vitré, a beautiful place with medieval architecture, some of which resembled Le Mans. We got out of the car took a little walk, looked the Eglise Notre Dame, the Chateau
Vitré. As it was beautiful and cold outside, it made for a perfect visit. The photos are down below of this little town.
Such an enjoyable day. I am thankful that the pastor emailed me this morning. I was unsure I would even have this marvelous opportunity, but again, the Lord works and provides. Thank the Lord for vacation time.
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