παραβολοσ
the meaning of parabolos : for pi day, 3.14
something a little different this Saturday. today is “pi day” — 3.14 — and a great opportunity for me to tell you about parabolos.
parabolos is the name of my media production company. i have been producing films, videos, and books under this name for a number of years.
parabolos is a transliterated Greek word — παραβολοσ. the para- (παρα-) prefix can mean something like “against”, “alongside”, or “to the side” — think paranormal (to the side of normal), parachute (which defends against a fall). the -bolos (-βολοσ) ending is a form of a verb meaning “throw” — think ball, ballistics, etc. you may notice “parabolos” bears a resemblance to our English word “parable”, which comes from the feminine noun form, parabolé (παραβολή). a parable is a story thrown alongside a truth to help the listener understand.
and so parabolos is a masculine adverb which in a very literal way means “throwing aside”. and as most english words do not hold their exact literal meanings as their definition, parabolos would translate as “daring”, “gambling”, “venturesome”, “rashly”, “suddenly”, “dangerously". but you see the etymology. imagine our English idiomatic expression “throwing caution to the wind”.
the idea is: “throwing your life away”.
while the word “parable” appears many times in the Biblical text, i believe the only occurrence of a form of “parabolos” is in Paul’s letter to the Philippian church, referring to Epaphroditus:
“…i considered it necessary to send you Epaphroditus — my brother, coworker, and fellow soldier, as well as your messenger and minister to my need — since he has been longing for all of you and was distressed because you heard that he was sick. indeed, he was so sick that he nearly died.
however, God had mercy on him, and not only on him but also on me, so that i would not have sorrow upon sorrow. for this reason, i am very eager to send him so that you may rejoice again when you see him and i may be less anxious.
therefore, welcome him in the Lord with great joy and hold people like him in honor, because he came close to death for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up what was lacking in your ministry to me.”
— Philippians 2:25-30, CSB
the word “risking” emphasized above is paraboleusamenos (παραβολευσάμενος), a derivative of parabolos; Epaphroditus threw his life away to serve the church in Philippi.
real discipleship is more than being kind, more than being a good example, more than church attendance. the examples of real discipleship in Scripture are people like Epaphroditus, people who threw their own lives away so that God and neighbors may be loved.
did not Jesus say “no one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13)? and “if anyone wants to follow after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross daily, and follow Me” (Luke 9:23)? for whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of Me will save it”?
i suspect Paul speaks of Epaphroditus in the way he does because of the song he quotes just verses earlier:
“Adopt the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus,
…Who, existing in the form of God,
did not consider equality with God
as something to be exploited.
instead he emptied Himself
by assuming the form of a servant,
taking on the likeness of humanity.
and when he had come as a man,
he humbled himself by becoming obedient
to the point of death—
even to death on a cross.
for this reason God highly exalted Him
and gave Him the name
that is above every name,
so that at the name of Jesus
every knee will bow—
in heaven and on earth
and under the earth—
and every tongue will confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
— Philippians 2:5-11, CSB
obedience to the point of death.
this is a hard teaching. i suppose it’s why Jesus also says, “how narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.” (Matthew 7:14)
parabolos, my company, is — for me — the convergence of the ideas of Jesus’ teachings and His obedience, of His parables and His practice, His sermons and His servanthood. it’s what makes someone like Epaphroditus — someone who preached with words and deeds until it nearly killed him — someone we continue to talk about two thousand years later.
my stories are an outpouring of the turmoil of my soul, a monument to how God has brought me thus far, a symbol raised for everyone to see where our Help comes from. for me they are not just entertainment. i am working to make them better and more challenging so that every reader, every viewer will be forced to walk away with a decision to make about how they truly trust and follow The Lord.
the work of Flannery O’Connor has helped me understand the way Jesus taught. Jesus ends the Sermon on the Mount with a warning to those in a foundationless house: “…it collapsed with a great crash!” a violent and disturbing ending for a Sermon which begins “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for the kingdom of heaven is theirs.” why doesn’t He end on an up note? why not send everyone out encouraged?
when i first read Flannery O’Connor’s “Everything That Rises Must Converge”, i was so angry. it’s a ten page story (linked above) and worth taking a few minutes to read. it’s very engaging and well-written.
but it ends with an arrogant and dismissive son holding his collapsed mother, trying to wake her up, calling out into the empty streets for help. what‽ this is the end‽ i was so angry. i wanted to throw the book across the room.
the next thing i knew i was on the phone talking with my mother. after we exchanged the usual “how are you”, she asked if i needed something, was there a purpose to my call, …did i just call to talk? i wasn’t even sure why i called, i don’t even remember dialing.
my phone in one hand, i looked at the short story in the other. what had just happened?
i hated this story. but it made me call my mother. how? how did this author who has been dead for decades reach through her pages and force me to call my mother?
as i read more short stories of hers, i realized many of her stories have a kind of frustrating ending. the story presents an idea of injustice, but leaves it unresolved. like a song stuck in your head where the only way to get it unstuck is to find the song and listen to it in total, O’Connor has stuck injustice in my head and the only way to right it is to find it in the world and right it myself.
“— with a great crash!”
i finally understood.
my latest novel God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen attempts this. the main character begins with a small question of character, and through the course of the narrative does not necessarily answer that question, but instead arrives at bigger, deeper questions.
i don’t do this to frustrate the reader. the story is often light and wholly entertaining. but more important than momentary enjoyment are the deeper questions of life. in this case, questions of peace. for the believer, how to trust the promises of God when the math we’ve been taught in Sunday school doesn’t seem to add up. for the non-believer, why is peace so difficult (impossible?) to achieve in this world, and is there any hope for anything like a real peace ever to come? this is not a Santa Claus saturday read. these are tough questions with no easy answers.
i like happy endings. i like optimism, joy, and delight. and i believe we can have and enjoy those things. and i hope to make more stories — like “kindling” and “ciao bella” — that have endings more suitable for our usual taste in entertainment.
but i am desperate for people who have not considered Christ to see He offers a response to the things in life that cause so much turmoil — for us as individuals, for us as people. and i am desperate for people who claim the name of Christ to truly live like Him — dangerously, venturesome, risking their lives — not simply showing up to a weekend appointment and trying not to cuss too much.
i don’t know if my attempts are any good yet. people seem to like the few small things i’ve done, but my audience isn’t wide enough yet to bring harsh criticism. and in some ways, i envy Flannery O’Connor… her work roaming the earth with power and her long gone to rest without having to face her critics with the immediacy of the Internet.
but i keep working at it. i’m not good at much of anything, but i think The Lord has given me gifts at storytelling. if nothing else, He’s given me a passion for studying it and working on it and getting better, if i will accept the challenge of the work that comes with the passion. all i can say is, i’m trying.
and that is parabolos. and as the π might indicate, it’s something that encircles me, encompasses me, engulfs me. every day i’m presented with my life — a wide array of choices — a life i have to throw away in order to keep movin down the hard, narrow Way.
every day i’m asked: “how will you throw your life away?”
