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NoMatthew 18:20
If 2 or more are gathered, but not in the name, then the gathered would understand God as dualistic vs monistic as in Exodus 3:14 ?
that would make some sense if one understands the Name and that Christ is the teacher, the advocate, and the teacher, spirit is in self.That verse had particular significance in the 17th Century, for radical groups like the Levellers, the Anababtists, the Plymouth Brethren etc, because by implication, if two or three gathered together in Christ's name was a congregation, then there was no need for Bishops, Priests, hierarchies, nor for great churches and cathedrals.
If 2 or more are gathered, but not in the name, then the gathered would understand God as dualistic vs monistic as in Exodus 3:14 ?
that would make some sense if one understands the Name and that Christ is the teacher, the advocate, and the teacher, spirit is in self.
this has to do with the essence of the name and not a personality. so as you've eloquently pointed out, the Shekinah is with you, or god is with us. immanuelOne possibility.
For where two or three…midst of them: the presence of Jesus guarantees the efficacy of the prayer. This saying is similar to one attributed to a rabbi executed in A.D. 135 at the time of the second Jewish revolt: “…When two sit and there are between them the words of the Torah, the divine presence (Shekinah) rests upon them” (Pirqê ’Abôt 3, 3).
From a personal perspective, I consider debates about the nature of the messenger - particularly given the turbulent history of Christianity - to be a distraction from the message. The message itself - That you should love each other, as I have loved you - is unequivocal. Everything else is mostly window dressing, though I do love a church window.