I attended the Catholic Theological Society of America annual conference in San Diego held at the beginning of June and one of the things that has really stayed with me was what my friend and colleague Ruben Habito (of Perkins School of Theology) was expounding in his presentation at the Asian/Asian-American Theology Consultation. He suggested that Jesus can be a "Zen Koan." Of course, to understand that, one has to understand first what a Koan is. A Koan is a way of grappling with something that is not usually cognitively penetrable. What it could do to the practitioner of Zen requires that the practitioner swallow it into one's system and let it dissolve there like--Habito adds--an Alka-Seltzer tablet. Then, with continuous engagement, the Koan becomes more and more a part of one's system until it can lead one to SATORI (enlightenment).
Jesus, as well as some other significant sections of Christian doctrine, can also be thought of in a way as not cognitively penetrable. Take teachings such as the divinity and humanity of Christ, the various attributes of God, etc. But if one considers them like Zen-Koans, they become, in a way, understandable. They are actually transformed into ways by which we can penetrate deeper the greatest mysteries of life and of reality. They can act as remarkable paths for us to hold what are usually thought of as irreconcilable entities in a creative and harmonious balance of yin-yang.
