April 25, 2025 • 13 mins
In this episode of The Infinitely Precious Podcast, James explores the ancient Aramaic understanding of “heaven” (shmaya) and “earth” (ar’ah) as interwoven realities—not distant opposites, but expressions of deep unity and sacred individuality. Drawing from the teachings of Neil Douglas-Klotz, Dr. Lamsa, and the wisdom of Jesus’ first-century context, he invites us to reimagine heaven and earth not as separate realms, but as a divine tapestry we live within right now. Through this lens, we come to see ourselves as both uniquely particular and infinitely connected—waves and particles in God’s ever-unfolding creation.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Intro (00:00):
Welcome to the infinitely precious podcast produced by
(00:03):
infinitely precious LLC. Yourhost is James Henry. Remember,
you are infinitely precious andunconditionally loved for the
gift you already are.
James (00:12):
Hello, beloved. It's me, James, and this is our Friday
podcast together. The Fridaypodcast, I tried to lift up some
specific thoughts that areoftentimes more unique. I answer
questions or struggle togetherwith you, share my thoughts
(00:36):
about something I've beenworking on, something that's
been part of my thinking aboutspirituality and the like. So,
as I have been thinkingrecently, many of you might know
who are my listeners, if you'rea first time listener, you
wouldn't, that I have been doingsome work to learn classical
(01:00):
Aramaic, the language of Jesus,on my own.
I have some workbooks and someonline materials that I use to
sort of work my way through. Iaccompany that with the writings
of Neil Douglas Klotz as well asDoctor. Lamsa who is another
(01:23):
Aramaic scholar from the earlylate 1800s, early 1900s. And
they talk a little bit about adifferent way of seeing the
world through the lenses ofJesus. So much of the theology
and the way we look at thingslike, for instance, heaven and
earth, which are our topicstoday, come from a perspective
(01:49):
that is more western than it isMiddle Eastern or Aramaic in
context.
So the way we tend to think of,for instance, heaven as a place
and earth as a place doesn'tfully capture the essence of
what Jesus may have been talkingabout in the first century.
(02:10):
Certainly someone who wassteeped in Aramaic cosmology,
first century Palestiniancosmology, the way of looking at
the universe. So I just thoughtI would share some thoughts
about that because I found thethoughts that I found from these
(02:32):
other scholars as well aspondering on my own to be very
helpful. So in the first centuryunderstanding of heaven, shmaya,
and earth, ara, we're not justtalking about something located
far off for the heavens andseparate from earth which is
(02:56):
either the dirt on which westand or the planet in which we
find ourselves here. It's morethan that.
The two of them are seen asinterpenetrating realities. When
we speak about heaven, Shmaya,we are talking about the
connectedness, the unity, thecommunity of all things in the
(03:21):
universe. The fact that they'reall connected to each other.
That and even modern physicstells us that my atoms that make
up my body are often affecting,not just often but directly
affected, you know, quantumentanglement with atoms all over
(03:44):
the universe. If they've everbeen in contact before, they are
connected now.
We are connected to each other.So it's an invitation to see us
as part of a much largercommunity, a unity, a sacred
unity, if you will, of what thedivine is still creating all
around us all the time as theuniverse continues to expand. So
(04:08):
when we think about heaven, wecan think about this this sense
of belonging to each other, ofnot just the human community but
the entire planetary communityand not just the planetary
community or the solar systemcommunity or even the galaxy
(04:31):
community but the universalcommunity of which we are all
part. And so that understandingof that divine connection that
was created in the beginning andis still being created and will
be created is where we draw thatidea of heaven, shmaya, the
(04:59):
interconnectedness of allthings. On the other side of
that, we have the earth.
Now, the earth, when we speak ofearth, we think of this planet,
we think of the dirt, I alreadymentioned that, but also think
of unique particularity. Thinkof the fact that each one of us
(05:21):
brings a unique contribution tothis unity of which we talked
about when we were talking aboutheaven. We each have a unique
specific identity, a particularidentity, a particular aspect
that we bring to all of this,and it's not just the human
aspects, it's every rock andblade of grass and everything
(05:44):
else that just seems to be blandrepeats of each other.
Everything in its uniquenesscontributes to the unity but is
also particular. So, every bird,every song of every bird, every
(06:05):
plant, rock, droplet of water,you name it, not only here but
everywhere contributes to the inits particularity and is unique
in that way.
And those two are not seen asopposites of each other, but
connected to andinterpenetrating each other,
(06:28):
blending together, if you will,like a huge tapestry woven into
one another. And that wovennessallows us to see our connection
and live into that connectionwhile at the same time
celebrating what is unique ineach one of us. So part of this
(06:49):
journey of life is finding a wayto not it's not a balance as
much as a connection between ourbeing a part of everything and
our being the unique self thatwe are. How do we bring those
together? And so anunderstanding of seeing these
(07:12):
two pieces as connected to oneanother rather than, hey,
someday I will die and I'm goingto a place and that place is
called heaven.
Rather than seeing that, this isnot a conversation necessarily
about what occurs for us afterthe termination of this
(07:34):
particularity that is in a bodyreality. But not so much as that
as seeing how we are connectedto each other, the blending
together of things. You know,even in Colossians, it's very
(07:55):
interesting the writing of Paul.He says, and I quote from
Colossians chapter one versessixteen and seventeen, for in
him, and he's talking aboutChrist, the logos, the
connectedness of all thingsperhaps or that which is in but
not all things. For in him allthings were created, things in
(08:20):
heaven and on earth.
He is before all things and inhim all things hold together. So
when we think about this, evenfrom a very Christocentric way
of looking at the universe, thatChrist is holding everything
together in all things, but notall things. And that
(08:45):
connectedness having created usand binding us together, the
individuality, the universality,the communion, the communal
connection all together drawingus into this beautiful kind of
(09:09):
well interconnected relationshipbetween heaven and earth right
here and now as opposed to twovery separate places that offer
kind of that we have approachedin a very dualistic kind of way,
eitheror kind of place, eitheron earth or in heaven kind of
thing, to recognizing thatconnection, that interconnection
(09:36):
of all things is also bound upin our individuality. One way
that I think is very helpful tothink about it, it was for me,
is elementary physics asNewtonian physics as described
by the author Neil Douglas Klotzin several different places. But
(09:58):
he talks about, for instance,when we think of light as both a
wave, it behaves like a wave andlike particles as well.
I don't remember if you rememberthat from high school physics or
not, maybe you didn't take highschool physics, but light is
both a wave and particles. Andthose particles might be the
(10:20):
individuality that we're talkingabout with earth, you know, that
earth piece, and the wave, theconnectedness and continuity of
things being heaven, Shmaya. Andseeing them as interconnected
means that right here, rightnow, right where I am, I am
(10:42):
being both particular and partof an infinite unity that God is
in the process of continuouslyrenewing and making and creating
in every moment. I'm a part ofthat. And when Jesus invites us
to see ourselves as a part ofboth, recently I even preached
(11:08):
about this on a Sunday morningwhen I talked about the Lord's
Prayer, the line that yourkingdom come, your will be done
on earth as in heaven.
Actually, the order in Aramaicis in heaven as in earth, in
unity as in particularity. Mayyour heart's desire be in that
(11:32):
connectedness of the two,drawing us into kind of
awareness that we're walking inboth places and that this
kingdom of God, this queendom ofGod that we are inviting can
live in and through us and is,you know, that we are being both
(11:58):
the particular, the unique, andpart of this vast infinite unity
at the same time invites us toappreciate this place that we're
a part of. We're walking alittle bit in both places at the
(12:18):
same time and if we can drawthem together, the very best of
both can emerge in our selfexpression. That's what I hear
when I hear about heaven andearth. I don't know what you
think about that, but that'swhere I find myself.
So I just thought I would sharethose thoughts with you today
(12:42):
because they excite me andencourage me and help me see
perhaps a little deeperimplication to what Jesus, the
one whom I follow, was teachingin that first century, maybe
just a little aspect I hadmissed out on. So I hope that
(13:05):
that was helpful. If it wasn't,certainly I encourage you to
send me any questions, comments,concerns, thoughts, and
particularly questions if you'dlike me to address them. You may
not always like the answer thatI give or my thoughts about
something because rarely ananswer, it's thoughts about
something. If you are interestedin that, please email me at
(13:29):
infinitelypreciousllcgmail dotcom.
Otherwise remember you areinfinitely precious and
unconditionally loved for thegift you already are. Until the
next time I join you, wish youall the best.
Welcome to the infinitely precious podcast produced by
(00:03):
infinitely precious LLC. Yourhost is James Henry. Remember,
you are infinitely precious andunconditionally loved for the
gift you already are.
James (00:12):
Hello, beloved. It's me, James, and this is our Friday
podcast together. The Fridaypodcast, I tried to lift up some
specific thoughts that areoftentimes more unique. I answer
questions or struggle togetherwith you, share my thoughts
(00:36):
about something I've beenworking on, something that's
been part of my thinking aboutspirituality and the like. So,
as I have been thinkingrecently, many of you might know
who are my listeners, if you'rea first time listener, you
wouldn't, that I have been doingsome work to learn classical
(01:00):
Aramaic, the language of Jesus,on my own.
I have some workbooks and someonline materials that I use to
sort of work my way through. Iaccompany that with the writings
of Neil Douglas Klotz as well asDoctor. Lamsa who is another
(01:23):
Aramaic scholar from the earlylate 1800s, early 1900s. And
they talk a little bit about adifferent way of seeing the
world through the lenses ofJesus. So much of the theology
and the way we look at thingslike, for instance, heaven and
earth, which are our topicstoday, come from a perspective
(01:49):
that is more western than it isMiddle Eastern or Aramaic in
context.
So the way we tend to think of,for instance, heaven as a place
and earth as a place doesn'tfully capture the essence of
what Jesus may have been talkingabout in the first century.
(02:10):
Certainly someone who wassteeped in Aramaic cosmology,
first century Palestiniancosmology, the way of looking at
the universe. So I just thoughtI would share some thoughts
about that because I found thethoughts that I found from these
(02:32):
other scholars as well aspondering on my own to be very
helpful. So in the first centuryunderstanding of heaven, shmaya,
and earth, ara, we're not justtalking about something located
far off for the heavens andseparate from earth which is
(02:56):
either the dirt on which westand or the planet in which we
find ourselves here. It's morethan that.
The two of them are seen asinterpenetrating realities. When
we speak about heaven, Shmaya,we are talking about the
connectedness, the unity, thecommunity of all things in the
(03:21):
universe. The fact that they'reall connected to each other.
That and even modern physicstells us that my atoms that make
up my body are often affecting,not just often but directly
affected, you know, quantumentanglement with atoms all over
(03:44):
the universe. If they've everbeen in contact before, they are
connected now.
We are connected to each other.So it's an invitation to see us
as part of a much largercommunity, a unity, a sacred
unity, if you will, of what thedivine is still creating all
around us all the time as theuniverse continues to expand. So
(04:08):
when we think about heaven, wecan think about this this sense
of belonging to each other, ofnot just the human community but
the entire planetary communityand not just the planetary
community or the solar systemcommunity or even the galaxy
(04:31):
community but the universalcommunity of which we are all
part. And so that understandingof that divine connection that
was created in the beginning andis still being created and will
be created is where we draw thatidea of heaven, shmaya, the
(04:59):
interconnectedness of allthings. On the other side of
that, we have the earth.
Now, the earth, when we speak ofearth, we think of this planet,
we think of the dirt, I alreadymentioned that, but also think
of unique particularity. Thinkof the fact that each one of us
(05:21):
brings a unique contribution tothis unity of which we talked
about when we were talking aboutheaven. We each have a unique
specific identity, a particularidentity, a particular aspect
that we bring to all of this,and it's not just the human
aspects, it's every rock andblade of grass and everything
(05:44):
else that just seems to be blandrepeats of each other.
Everything in its uniquenesscontributes to the unity but is
also particular. So, every bird,every song of every bird, every
(06:05):
plant, rock, droplet of water,you name it, not only here but
everywhere contributes to the inits particularity and is unique
in that way.
And those two are not seen asopposites of each other, but
connected to andinterpenetrating each other,
(06:28):
blending together, if you will,like a huge tapestry woven into
one another. And that wovennessallows us to see our connection
and live into that connectionwhile at the same time
celebrating what is unique ineach one of us. So part of this
(06:49):
journey of life is finding a wayto not it's not a balance as
much as a connection between ourbeing a part of everything and
our being the unique self thatwe are. How do we bring those
together? And so anunderstanding of seeing these
(07:12):
two pieces as connected to oneanother rather than, hey,
someday I will die and I'm goingto a place and that place is
called heaven.
Rather than seeing that, this isnot a conversation necessarily
about what occurs for us afterthe termination of this
(07:34):
particularity that is in a bodyreality. But not so much as that
as seeing how we are connectedto each other, the blending
together of things. You know,even in Colossians, it's very
(07:55):
interesting the writing of Paul.He says, and I quote from
Colossians chapter one versessixteen and seventeen, for in
him, and he's talking aboutChrist, the logos, the
connectedness of all thingsperhaps or that which is in but
not all things. For in him allthings were created, things in
(08:20):
heaven and on earth.
He is before all things and inhim all things hold together. So
when we think about this, evenfrom a very Christocentric way
of looking at the universe, thatChrist is holding everything
together in all things, but notall things. And that
(08:45):
connectedness having created usand binding us together, the
individuality, the universality,the communion, the communal
connection all together drawingus into this beautiful kind of
(09:09):
well interconnected relationshipbetween heaven and earth right
here and now as opposed to twovery separate places that offer
kind of that we have approachedin a very dualistic kind of way,
eitheror kind of place, eitheron earth or in heaven kind of
thing, to recognizing thatconnection, that interconnection
(09:36):
of all things is also bound upin our individuality. One way
that I think is very helpful tothink about it, it was for me,
is elementary physics asNewtonian physics as described
by the author Neil Douglas Klotzin several different places. But
(09:58):
he talks about, for instance,when we think of light as both a
wave, it behaves like a wave andlike particles as well.
I don't remember if you rememberthat from high school physics or
not, maybe you didn't take highschool physics, but light is
both a wave and particles. Andthose particles might be the
(10:20):
individuality that we're talkingabout with earth, you know, that
earth piece, and the wave, theconnectedness and continuity of
things being heaven, Shmaya. Andseeing them as interconnected
means that right here, rightnow, right where I am, I am
(10:42):
being both particular and partof an infinite unity that God is
in the process of continuouslyrenewing and making and creating
in every moment. I'm a part ofthat. And when Jesus invites us
to see ourselves as a part ofboth, recently I even preached
(11:08):
about this on a Sunday morningwhen I talked about the Lord's
Prayer, the line that yourkingdom come, your will be done
on earth as in heaven.
Actually, the order in Aramaicis in heaven as in earth, in
unity as in particularity. Mayyour heart's desire be in that
(11:32):
connectedness of the two,drawing us into kind of
awareness that we're walking inboth places and that this
kingdom of God, this queendom ofGod that we are inviting can
live in and through us and is,you know, that we are being both
(11:58):
the particular, the unique, andpart of this vast infinite unity
at the same time invites us toappreciate this place that we're
a part of. We're walking alittle bit in both places at the
(12:18):
same time and if we can drawthem together, the very best of
both can emerge in our selfexpression. That's what I hear
when I hear about heaven andearth. I don't know what you
think about that, but that'swhere I find myself.
So I just thought I would sharethose thoughts with you today
(12:42):
because they excite me andencourage me and help me see
perhaps a little deeperimplication to what Jesus, the
one whom I follow, was teachingin that first century, maybe
just a little aspect I hadmissed out on. So I hope that
(13:05):
that was helpful. If it wasn't,certainly I encourage you to
send me any questions, comments,concerns, thoughts, and
particularly questions if you'dlike me to address them. You may
not always like the answer thatI give or my thoughts about
something because rarely ananswer, it's thoughts about
something. If you are interestedin that, please email me at
(13:29):
infinitelypreciousllcgmail dotcom.
Otherwise remember you areinfinitely precious and
unconditionally loved for thegift you already are. Until the
next time I join you, wish youall the best.
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