Who are the pillars of the church? If others look to you as a “pillar of the church,” what kind of pillar are you?

Jesus answers that question in our gospel reading for this morning, but to get to his answer we’ve got to exercise the discipline of historical context. We’ve got to put his words and images in the context of the culture of his day. So here we go . . .

Anyone who has ever had a class on Greek and Roman culture has had to recall and recognize the three distinctive types of architectural columns used to support the stately monuments, temples, and public buildings that adorned their world. Let’s see how well you remember your columns…anyone?

I’ll give a hint: Doric is one.

There you go. The three are the Ionic, Doric, and Corinthian. These three styles of supportive pillars f…