HENRY V (1599)
by WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE
ACT IV SCENE iii
KING HENRY —
“From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be rememberèd—
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition;
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day”
This is probably one of the more famous passages from William Shakespeare’s Play, Henry V. The words highlighted in bold, was introduced into our contemporary world through the HBO special — Band Of Brothers, a 10-part miniseries highlighting the courageous exploits of the 101st Airborne Division, the Screaming Eagles, 506th PIR, EASY COMPANY, led by Major Dick Winters. Both this quote & the miniseries showcased the closeness of men in combat; shoulder to shoulder as each trusted the man next to them by force & compulsion otherwise lives would have been lost. The exploits of these men through Normandy & into Germany & the final Victory, a bond was formed that was stronger than blood. A bond that was not necessarily instilled in these men to gravitate toward each other. Rather, the stress & distress, the constant barrage of gunfire & artillery, the immense suffering of wounded, dying & dead comrades thrust upon them that these strangers shared a common one-ness of cruelty of warfare — that unless they survived together they would be dead men.
As much as it is true of men, is there not a common shared purpose among a sisterhood? I am thrust into the history of the women’s suffrage movement where a common cruelty of preventing & dislodging the women’s right to vote was fought on the battlefield of consciousness — there existed a wrong that needed to be righted; an injustice not only perceived but also beheld as unbecoming a intelligent society calling itself the beacon of democracy. Until, finally that reality became true for those women & now true for all women.
REVELATION 3:7
The words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens.
A Brotherhood of Men & a Sisterhood of Women. This is the very meaning of ‘Philadelphia’ - a place of brotherly love. And yet, we have in our language that displays this very definition highlighting the exactitude of what this ‘place’ is supposed to represent — a fellowship. A Fellowship that comprises of its membership a certain quality of sameness in principle & idea; a coming together deriving that purpose from that shared quality; a quality that is more than just gender or even something simply intrinsic as a common understanding. It is the common shared principle & quality of having Jesus.
The key of David is a cryptic message — what is it & who has it? The answer is quite clear in the definite for those who fully understand to the listening ear of the Holy Spirit’s words. There is only one Holy One & only one True One — Jesus Christ, Messiah. He opens & shuts; He is the both the entry way & the way inside — and what is inside this door? The room is the Fellowship of the Triune — being in the Presence of the Trinity & immersing oneself with the Face of Him who raised Jesus from the dead. This enormity of the Power of God only for those who holds that Key of David in their heart — the Holy Spirit; the Spirit of Christ.
REVELATION 3:12
The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.
This passage contains three (3) identifying markers for these individuals — 1) they are pillars; 2) they will be forever present in this new city; 3) in this new city, these pillars will have a new name.
Why a pillar? Because if the pillar were to leave or become disjointed the entire structure would collapse. The importance of the pillar is revealed not in that there will be one but several pillars — the implication is that everyone in the Fellowship of Christ are called pillars & as such their personal responsibility adheres to the edifice & the structure that they are now beholden. Furthermore, they will never leave — they cannot leave for their very purpose is itself upheld by the Power & purpose of the Divine Trinity keeping both them, the pillars, & they, the structure & foundation of this Fellowship together in a perfect unity of oneness.
The New City is the New Jerusalem — Jeru/salem is actually two words in Hebrew : the cognates of these two words mean “the foundation or way of Peace or perfection.” In other words, Jerusalem is a city of perfect restitution & consummation; in this city we find our perfect unity not only within ourselves but also within each other. And only those with a New Name may enter — The Key of David. We, who hold Jesus in our hearts & minds that believe unto Him through the power of the Holy Spirit will ever enter this New City when He returns.
REVELATION 3:8
“I know your works.
Behold, I have set before you an OPEN DOOR,
which no one is able to shut.
I know that you have but little power,
and yet you have kept my word
and have not denied my name”
But there is another meaning & purpose of this ‘Open Door’ —
JOHN 14:23
23 Jesus answered him,
“If anyone loves me,
he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him
and make our home with him”
Here, Christ explains that something really strange & altogether esoteric is occurring with individuals who ‘Loves Him’ & ‘Keeps His Word.’ There is a spiritual & physical bond taking place between God & Christ & individuals — making our home with him — makes it very clear that some aspect of the divine will now reside in this person; how they do it remains unclear in this passage but could be further explained here —
LUKE 24:28-31
28 So they drew near to the village
to which they were going.
CHRIST acted as if HE were going farther,
29 but they urged CHRIST strongly, saying,
“Stay with us, for it is toward evening
and the day is now far spent.”
So CHRIST went in to stay with them.
30 When CHRIST was at table with them,
HE took the bread & blessed
and broke it & gave it to them.
31 And their eyes were OPENED,
and they recognized HIM.
And CHRIST vanished from their sight
What in the world is going on here in this passge in Luke?
Christ is walking with two of His disciples but Luke makes it plain they do not reconzie Him as the risen Messiah, yet. They invite Christ into their home & He shares a meal with them — a meal that is reminiscent of the Last Supper. As Christ gives them the broken bread, the disciples suddenly realize that they are in the presence of Christ. Then He’s gone — as suddenly as He appeared.
The meaning is both plain & at the same time cryptic — Jesus is the reason that these disciples’ eyes were opened in the first place; they would not have had this opportunity unless they invited Him into their home, or better, their hearts. Home & heart are related in Scripture because “the home is where the heart is.” Is it not true for us, that our homes are consistent with our very being? In other words, how we make our homes is very revealing about ourselves & who we are as individuals. Thus, throughtout the New Testament Gospels, Jesus is constantly in the presence of people directly IN their homes as a physical analogy & metaphor to the very real purpose of Christ Jesus entering our hearts. No matter how clean we try to make it, Christ comes in regardless of its appearance for it is the heart He seeks not its condition.
Moreover, the heart is revealing conerning the welfare of the entire person. Christ breaks the bread to show that our new condition is found in the breaking of our bodies. Full restoration is in store for those us who eat of His Bread. When this takes place our hearts are given over to His fullness & His Glory & into His Fellowship forever. Why did He vanish? Because Christ no longer needed to be physically present — in His place, with full restoration of their hearts to Him, the Holy Spirit entered; or better still, the physical manifestation of Christ Jesus vanished & in His place entered these men’s hearts as the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of Jesus dwells in all who believe evidenced by this passage.
And that is why there is no more full & perfect harmony of purpose & oneness than marriage — the coming together of body & soul of two people into a unity. Thus, marriage is the epitome of this physical metaphor to elaborate what Christ is doing for Christians. We are not bonded together because we are Christians — that is true but there is more. We are bonded together because Christ unites all of us into Himself in Marriage — INTO Himself.
In other words, our brotherhood & sisterhood & fellowship in Christ, occurs because we all have been United IN Him; into His perfect Body. This is why He is both the Head & the Body of Christ — both the structure that we uphold as pillars & THE Perfect Pillar that He upholds all of us unto Himself. He is both the New City, the New Name, & the Foundation by which this Name & City come together. Thus, that is why we repeat — it is By Him & Through Him & In Him, that we, as Believers, have our being & essence & quality In Christ throughthe Transformation by His Spirit.
