The notes this week were prepared by Elizabeth Bryce. There are five postings, this introduction and one for each of the four lectionary readings. You might want to begin with one reading that connects to your questions this week. If you have feedback or comments, I would be happy to respond, and will try to do so later in the week.
Take a moment to centre yourself in prayer:
O Rock of Ages, we remember with thanks the power of your Word. That power works in us and in others, keeping alive our faith in your goodness, keeping alight our witness to your gospel. In times of weakness, preserve us, in times of willfulness, forgive us. Transform us, O God, and raise us from spiritual death to lives of liberating love, Amen.
All Saints’ Day –
• In early Christian scriptures (especially the epistles), the word “saint” referred simply to a person of faith, or collectively “saints” were a group of faithful believers who formed a worshipping community.
• Over the years, the church started to use the word “saint” to refer to people of special significance, and that tradition has evolved within the Roman tradition to a series of special recognitions, such as canonization.
• Theologically, it recognizes a common bond between Christians that is stronger than death, all Christians living and dead are saints of the church.
• Celebrated since the 7th century after Christ, on November 1st.
• Hallowe’en came later - in response to the holiness of All Saints Day, people needed an opportunity to get their demons/fears out beforehand. Combining it with the ancient Celtic day of the dead, called Samhain, “lost souls” go out and make their presence known the night before All Saints, but are vanquished by the saints’ presence at the dawning of the holy day.
Questions for reflection:
1. Who are the “saints”, the faithful ordinary people, whom you’ve encountered on your journey?
2. If you had to dress up as your personal demon or fear, what kind of costume would you wear?
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
Part 2: Ruth 1:1-18
In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a certain man of Bethlehem in Judah went to live in the country of Moab, he and his wife and two sons. 2The name of the man was Elimelech and the name of his wife Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Chilion; they were Ephrathites from Bethlehem in Judah. They went into the country of Moab and remained there. 3But Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, died, and she was left with her two sons. 4These took Moabite wives; the name of one was Orpah and the name of the other Ruth. When they had lived there for about ten years, 5both Mahlon and Chilion also died, so that the woman was left without her two sons or her husband.
6 Then she started to return with her daughters-in-law from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the LORD had had consideration for his people and given them food. 7So she set out from the place where she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law, and they went on their way to go back to the land of Judah. 8But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, ‘Go back each of you to your mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9The LORD grant that you may find security, each of you in the house of your husband.’ Then she kissed them, and they wept aloud. 10They said to her, ‘No, we will return with you to your people.’ 11But Naomi said, ‘Turn back, my daughters, why will you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? 12Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me, even if I should have a husband tonight and bear sons, 13would you then wait until they were grown? Would you then refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has turned against me.’ 14Then they wept aloud again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ 16But Ruth said,
‘Do not press me to leave you
or to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people,
and your God my God.
17Where you die, I will die—
there will I be buried.
May the LORD do thus and so to me,
and more as well,
if even death parts me from you!’
18When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
Background:
It is likely the story of Ruth was written down in a later time, after the exile to Babylon, as a critique of those returning to Israel who would cast off their foreign wives. It is placed in “chronological” order, to reflect the history of the time before there were kings, and to set the stage for the anointing of King David.
The story:
Israel was troubled. There was no central authority – in Judges it says that “all the people did what was right in their own eyes.” In a time of famine, when there is no compassion from the community, Naomi and her husband Elimelech pack up their 2 sons and move to Moab. Their sons marry Moabite women, then tragedy strikes again. All three men in the household die, and the women have no means to survive. Naomi hears that prosperity has returned to Israel, and decides to return. Her daughters-in-law set out with her, but Naomi, perhaps remembering the treatment of foreigners by her people, tells them to return to their families and start over with new husbands. One woman, Orpah, agrees. Ruth will not leave, however, and makes the choice to accompany Naomi to her homeland, in spite of the personal hardship it will involve.
An important word in the passage is hesed, which has no direct translation in English, but means something like loving-kindness, or faithfulness, or loyalty. The daughters in law demonstrated hesed to their husbands’ family throughout illness and grief, now Naomi wants to show them hesed by freeing them for a better life. Ruth, whose name means “compassion” surprises Naomi with even greater hesed than she believed possible.
Naomi was not an easy travelling companion – she was returning to a nation that owed her nothing, she was bitter with God and with others. She was manipulative, and devised a way to exploit Ruth’s beauty for her own security. Yet it is Naomi’s great reversal from bitterness to redemption that makes the story sacred, and Ruth’s compassion that makes it possible. Ruth is a humbling commentary on those who believed that hope could only arise from within the 12 tribes of Israel.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Have you ever seen God work across entrenched divisions and make an outsider a sign of hope?
2. How does Ruth’s compassion inform the decisions and choices you make?
6 Then she started to return with her daughters-in-law from the country of Moab, for she had heard in the country of Moab that the LORD had had consideration for his people and given them food. 7So she set out from the place where she had been living, she and her two daughters-in-law, and they went on their way to go back to the land of Judah. 8But Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, ‘Go back each of you to your mother’s house. May the LORD deal kindly with you, as you have dealt with the dead and with me. 9The LORD grant that you may find security, each of you in the house of your husband.’ Then she kissed them, and they wept aloud. 10They said to her, ‘No, we will return with you to your people.’ 11But Naomi said, ‘Turn back, my daughters, why will you go with me? Do I still have sons in my womb that they may become your husbands? 12Turn back, my daughters, go your way, for I am too old to have a husband. Even if I thought there was hope for me, even if I should have a husband tonight and bear sons, 13would you then wait until they were grown? Would you then refrain from marrying? No, my daughters, it has been far more bitter for me than for you, because the hand of the LORD has turned against me.’ 14Then they wept aloud again. Orpah kissed her mother-in-law, but Ruth clung to her.
15 So she said, ‘See, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and to her gods; return after your sister-in-law.’ 16But Ruth said,
‘Do not press me to leave you
or to turn back from following you!
Where you go, I will go;
where you lodge, I will lodge;
your people shall be my people,
and your God my God.
17Where you die, I will die—
there will I be buried.
May the LORD do thus and so to me,
and more as well,
if even death parts me from you!’
18When Naomi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
Background:
It is likely the story of Ruth was written down in a later time, after the exile to Babylon, as a critique of those returning to Israel who would cast off their foreign wives. It is placed in “chronological” order, to reflect the history of the time before there were kings, and to set the stage for the anointing of King David.
The story:
Israel was troubled. There was no central authority – in Judges it says that “all the people did what was right in their own eyes.” In a time of famine, when there is no compassion from the community, Naomi and her husband Elimelech pack up their 2 sons and move to Moab. Their sons marry Moabite women, then tragedy strikes again. All three men in the household die, and the women have no means to survive. Naomi hears that prosperity has returned to Israel, and decides to return. Her daughters-in-law set out with her, but Naomi, perhaps remembering the treatment of foreigners by her people, tells them to return to their families and start over with new husbands. One woman, Orpah, agrees. Ruth will not leave, however, and makes the choice to accompany Naomi to her homeland, in spite of the personal hardship it will involve.
An important word in the passage is hesed, which has no direct translation in English, but means something like loving-kindness, or faithfulness, or loyalty. The daughters in law demonstrated hesed to their husbands’ family throughout illness and grief, now Naomi wants to show them hesed by freeing them for a better life. Ruth, whose name means “compassion” surprises Naomi with even greater hesed than she believed possible.
Naomi was not an easy travelling companion – she was returning to a nation that owed her nothing, she was bitter with God and with others. She was manipulative, and devised a way to exploit Ruth’s beauty for her own security. Yet it is Naomi’s great reversal from bitterness to redemption that makes the story sacred, and Ruth’s compassion that makes it possible. Ruth is a humbling commentary on those who believed that hope could only arise from within the 12 tribes of Israel.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Have you ever seen God work across entrenched divisions and make an outsider a sign of hope?
2. How does Ruth’s compassion inform the decisions and choices you make?
Part 3: Psalm 146
1Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul!
2I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
3Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
on that very day their plans perish.
5Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD their God,
6who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith for ever;
7 who executes justice for the oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
9The LORD watches over the strangers;
he upholds the orphan and the widow,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10The LORD will reign for ever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD!
The words of the psalm are not a fleeting ecstatic moment – the Psalmist acknowledges that God deserves to be praised a whole lifetime, even through tragedy. We are always empowered to make choices about how we view the world – is our cup half full or half empty? Do we understand the world from a perspective of scarcity or abundance?
This author has chosen the worldview of faith – realistic (even cynical) about the abilities of human authorities, God’s power is understood to be without limit, but intended for the defense of the powerless. The God of Jacob is the one who raises the second son to unexpected status, thus the world’s standards are overturned.
Mary Donovan Turner points out the use of 10 verbs to describe God at work: keeps faith; executes justice; gives food; opens the eyes; lifts up; loves; watches over; upholds; brings to ruin (the wicked). The righteous person is one who joins God in these works.
Question for Reflection:
1. Where do you see “the saints” working with God in those 10 ways?
2. Are you only comfortable with the first 9? Why?
2I will praise the LORD as long as I live;
I will sing praises to my God all my life long.
3Do not put your trust in princes,
in mortals, in whom there is no help.
4When their breath departs, they return to the earth;
on that very day their plans perish.
5Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD their God,
6who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith for ever;
7 who executes justice for the oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8 the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
9The LORD watches over the strangers;
he upholds the orphan and the widow,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10The LORD will reign for ever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD!
The words of the psalm are not a fleeting ecstatic moment – the Psalmist acknowledges that God deserves to be praised a whole lifetime, even through tragedy. We are always empowered to make choices about how we view the world – is our cup half full or half empty? Do we understand the world from a perspective of scarcity or abundance?
This author has chosen the worldview of faith – realistic (even cynical) about the abilities of human authorities, God’s power is understood to be without limit, but intended for the defense of the powerless. The God of Jacob is the one who raises the second son to unexpected status, thus the world’s standards are overturned.
Mary Donovan Turner points out the use of 10 verbs to describe God at work: keeps faith; executes justice; gives food; opens the eyes; lifts up; loves; watches over; upholds; brings to ruin (the wicked). The righteous person is one who joins God in these works.
Question for Reflection:
1. Where do you see “the saints” working with God in those 10 ways?
2. Are you only comfortable with the first 9? Why?
Part 4: Hebrews 9: 11-14
11 But when Christ came as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation), 12he entered once for all into the Holy Place, not with the blood of goats and calves, but with his own blood, thus obtaining eternal redemption. 13For if the blood of goats and bulls, with the sprinkling of the ashes of a heifer, sanctifies those who have been defiled so that their flesh is purified, 14how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to worship the living God!
If you didn’t see last week’s installment, you might want to check out the posting on Hebrews about the role of Jesus Christ as High Priest in the line of Melchizadek.
It is important to remember that the author sets Jesus within the framework of the Jewish faith, not in opposition to it. There are 2 main traditions where Christ brings new life as high priest:
1. Regulations for worship
2. Site of worship
The author suggests that Christ the high priest fulfills once and for all the tradition of blood sacrifice by offering his own life on the cross. He also does this not in the physical tent or ark of the Jerusalem temple, but in the greater and perfect tent of God’s kingdom. The readers would have understood the similarities between the cross of Jesus and the Day of Atonement rituals.
Question for Reflection:
How do you understand your own mistakes and weaknesses, after hearing the affirmation that Christ has already, once and for all, purified our conscience?
If you didn’t see last week’s installment, you might want to check out the posting on Hebrews about the role of Jesus Christ as High Priest in the line of Melchizadek.
It is important to remember that the author sets Jesus within the framework of the Jewish faith, not in opposition to it. There are 2 main traditions where Christ brings new life as high priest:
1. Regulations for worship
2. Site of worship
The author suggests that Christ the high priest fulfills once and for all the tradition of blood sacrifice by offering his own life on the cross. He also does this not in the physical tent or ark of the Jerusalem temple, but in the greater and perfect tent of God’s kingdom. The readers would have understood the similarities between the cross of Jesus and the Day of Atonement rituals.
Question for Reflection:
How do you understand your own mistakes and weaknesses, after hearing the affirmation that Christ has already, once and for all, purified our conscience?
Part 5: Mark 12:28-34
28 One of the scribes came near and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, he asked him, ‘Which commandment is the first of all?’ 29Jesus answered, ‘The first is, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; 30you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.” 31The second is this, “You shall love your neighbour as yourself.” There is no other commandment greater than these.’ 32Then the scribe said to him, ‘You are right, Teacher; you have truly said that “he is one, and besides him there is no other”; 33and “to love him with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength”, and “to love one’s neighbour as oneself”,—this is much more important than all whole burnt-offerings and sacrifices.’ 34When Jesus saw that he answered wisely, he said to him, ‘You are not far from the kingdom of God.’ After that no one dared to ask him any question.
Throughout the gospel of Mark, there is an increasing sense of urgency. Things happen very quickly in the first few chapters. By this point in the gospel, Jesus’ popularity is established, he has deftly criticized his opponents and demonstrated how his teachings resonate with God’s power. This particular teaching is the pinnacle – at the conclusion of the reading it tells us: After that no one dared to ask him any question.
Like the author of Hebrews, Jesus does not pretend that his take on the commandments supercede the tradition of covenant, but that it fulfils it uniquely. Love of God, the first commandment, is lived out in love of neighbor and self. The scribe (a temple representative) is not far from the kingdom of God, but Jesus fulfils it. Entering the kingdom will not be based on knowing all the right answers, it will demand that we live them out in our choices.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Is it more difficult for you to “love one’s neighbor as oneself” or “love oneself as one’s neighbor?”
2. How do you understand the primacy of a commitment to Christ within a pluralist world?
Throughout the gospel of Mark, there is an increasing sense of urgency. Things happen very quickly in the first few chapters. By this point in the gospel, Jesus’ popularity is established, he has deftly criticized his opponents and demonstrated how his teachings resonate with God’s power. This particular teaching is the pinnacle – at the conclusion of the reading it tells us: After that no one dared to ask him any question.
Like the author of Hebrews, Jesus does not pretend that his take on the commandments supercede the tradition of covenant, but that it fulfils it uniquely. Love of God, the first commandment, is lived out in love of neighbor and self. The scribe (a temple representative) is not far from the kingdom of God, but Jesus fulfils it. Entering the kingdom will not be based on knowing all the right answers, it will demand that we live them out in our choices.
Questions for Reflection:
1. Is it more difficult for you to “love one’s neighbor as oneself” or “love oneself as one’s neighbor?”
2. How do you understand the primacy of a commitment to Christ within a pluralist world?
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Readings for October 25, 2009 Introduction
The notes this week were prepared by Elizabeth Bryce. There are five postings, this introduction and one for each of the four lectionary readings. You might want to begin with one reading that connects to your story this week. If you have feedback or comments, I would be happy to respond, and will try to do so later in the week.
Take a moment to centre yourself in a prayer from John Calvin, in celebration of the 500th year of his birth
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou shinest on us by thy word, we may not be blind at midnight, nor wilfully seek darkness, and thus lull our minds asleep: but may we be roused daily by thy words, and may we stir up ourselves more and more to fear thy name and thus present ourselves and all our pursuits, as a sacrifice to thee, that thou mayest peaceably rule, and perpetually dwell in us, until thou gatherest us to thy celestial habitation, where there is reserved for us eternal rest and glory through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
This Sunday is also called Reformation Sunday:
On the night of October 31, 1517 Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany. Luther knew that many of the faithful would worship there for All Saints’ Day (November 1), and see his theses in protest of church corruption and misguided theology. It also contained an invitation to a scholarly debate.
Question for Reflection:
If you were to nail 95 theses (or less) on your church door, which aspects of your church’s life need “reformation” today?
Take a moment to centre yourself in a prayer from John Calvin, in celebration of the 500th year of his birth
Grant, Almighty God, that as thou shinest on us by thy word, we may not be blind at midnight, nor wilfully seek darkness, and thus lull our minds asleep: but may we be roused daily by thy words, and may we stir up ourselves more and more to fear thy name and thus present ourselves and all our pursuits, as a sacrifice to thee, that thou mayest peaceably rule, and perpetually dwell in us, until thou gatherest us to thy celestial habitation, where there is reserved for us eternal rest and glory through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
This Sunday is also called Reformation Sunday:
On the night of October 31, 1517 Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, Germany. Luther knew that many of the faithful would worship there for All Saints’ Day (November 1), and see his theses in protest of church corruption and misguided theology. It also contained an invitation to a scholarly debate.
Question for Reflection:
If you were to nail 95 theses (or less) on your church door, which aspects of your church’s life need “reformation” today?
October 25, 2009 - Part 2
Job 42:1-6, 10-17
If you didn’t have a chance to read the background on Job in last week’s posting, you might want to read it through, to give you an idea of the story and the depth of Job’s struggles with God.
This week’s passage is Job’s response to God, after God’s defense has been offered:
Then Job answered the Lord; I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
“Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?”
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
If you watch curling on TV, you know what the TSN Turning Point is: the point at which momentum changes and the probability of victory becomes clear. This passage is Job’s Turning Point. In the midst of all the arguments from his friends, in the midst of all Job’s denials, in the midst of God’s answer rising out of darkness, it all comes clear right here. Contemporary process would call it a “paradigm shift”.
It is sometimes hard to know who is speaking – initially Job, who quotes God, then confesses his ignorance. So, then why would Job go on to say that he will speak? More likely it is God’s voice who invites Job to “Hear, and I will speak;”
Job’s story reminds us of the reality of human loss; the breakdown of a simplistic theology that says if you are good, only good things will happen to you, so if bad things come, you must have done something wrong. Throughout it all, Job has trusted his heart, though he questions all human logic, he maintains his trust somehow God will respond. Finally, in the thick of the storm that is his life, Job hears God’s voice, and his eye acknowledges God’s reality. Job is pushed beyond all his expectations and welcomed into a new relationship with God. When he emerges, his perspective on all life is changed, and even his daughters receive a share of his blessing!
Job is one of the scripture stories that gets all done up with a happy ending, but somehow it seems superficial, tacked on to gloss over the real struggle for faith. Hope is already in the works, even in the midst of Job’s suffering, but it still hurts. Job’s repentance at the end of the passage is really an acknowledgement of where he stands in relation to God, not an admission of past sin.
Questions for reflection:
What small signs of hope along the way have kept you engaged in your relationship with God, even long before a “happy ending”?
Have you ever had a moment where you have felt like you encountered God? How did that change you?
If you didn’t have a chance to read the background on Job in last week’s posting, you might want to read it through, to give you an idea of the story and the depth of Job’s struggles with God.
This week’s passage is Job’s response to God, after God’s defense has been offered:
Then Job answered the Lord; I know that you can do all things,
and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted.
“Who is this that hides counsel without knowledge?”
Therefore I have uttered what I did not understand,
things too wonderful for me, which I did not know.
Hear, and I will speak; I will question you, and you declare to me.
I had heard of you by the hearing of the ear,
but now my eye sees you;
therefore I despise myself, and repent in dust and ashes.
If you watch curling on TV, you know what the TSN Turning Point is: the point at which momentum changes and the probability of victory becomes clear. This passage is Job’s Turning Point. In the midst of all the arguments from his friends, in the midst of all Job’s denials, in the midst of God’s answer rising out of darkness, it all comes clear right here. Contemporary process would call it a “paradigm shift”.
It is sometimes hard to know who is speaking – initially Job, who quotes God, then confesses his ignorance. So, then why would Job go on to say that he will speak? More likely it is God’s voice who invites Job to “Hear, and I will speak;”
Job’s story reminds us of the reality of human loss; the breakdown of a simplistic theology that says if you are good, only good things will happen to you, so if bad things come, you must have done something wrong. Throughout it all, Job has trusted his heart, though he questions all human logic, he maintains his trust somehow God will respond. Finally, in the thick of the storm that is his life, Job hears God’s voice, and his eye acknowledges God’s reality. Job is pushed beyond all his expectations and welcomed into a new relationship with God. When he emerges, his perspective on all life is changed, and even his daughters receive a share of his blessing!
Job is one of the scripture stories that gets all done up with a happy ending, but somehow it seems superficial, tacked on to gloss over the real struggle for faith. Hope is already in the works, even in the midst of Job’s suffering, but it still hurts. Job’s repentance at the end of the passage is really an acknowledgement of where he stands in relation to God, not an admission of past sin.
Questions for reflection:
What small signs of hope along the way have kept you engaged in your relationship with God, even long before a “happy ending”?
Have you ever had a moment where you have felt like you encountered God? How did that change you?
October 25, 2009 - Part 3
Psalm 34:1-8
I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
Let the humble hear and be glad.
O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Look to him, and be radiant;
So your faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor sould cried, and was heard by the Lord,
And was saved from every trouble.
The angel of the Lord encamps
Around those who fear him, and delivers them.
O taste and see that the Lord is good,
happy are those who take refuge in him.
An individual song of thanksgiving, but not for personal use only. Often these individual testimonies to faith were made public in community to teach and inspire others for their own times of struggle.
Psalm 34 is also an acrostic psalm, which means that each line begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in sequence from A to Z, so to speak.
The section we read has 3 main themes, which give us our reflection points.
Questions for Reflection:
“Bless the Lord at all times” – it is not realistic to spend the whole day, every day in worship. How can we make the more mundane parts of our lives shine with the wonder of God?
“Heard by the Lord and saved from every trouble” – what do we do with the question of suffering in the short-term, when ultimately the Christian response is to focus on a long-term hope, whether you call it new life, or the kingdom of God?
“Taste and see that God is good!” – the whole person should be able to celebrate God, not just the intellect. How do YOU celebrate God with all five senses?
I will bless the Lord at all times;
His praise shall continually be in my mouth.
My soul makes its boast in the Lord;
Let the humble hear and be glad.
O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together.
I sought the Lord, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
Look to him, and be radiant;
So your faces shall never be ashamed.
This poor sould cried, and was heard by the Lord,
And was saved from every trouble.
The angel of the Lord encamps
Around those who fear him, and delivers them.
O taste and see that the Lord is good,
happy are those who take refuge in him.
An individual song of thanksgiving, but not for personal use only. Often these individual testimonies to faith were made public in community to teach and inspire others for their own times of struggle.
Psalm 34 is also an acrostic psalm, which means that each line begins with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet, in sequence from A to Z, so to speak.
The section we read has 3 main themes, which give us our reflection points.
Questions for Reflection:
“Bless the Lord at all times” – it is not realistic to spend the whole day, every day in worship. How can we make the more mundane parts of our lives shine with the wonder of God?
“Heard by the Lord and saved from every trouble” – what do we do with the question of suffering in the short-term, when ultimately the Christian response is to focus on a long-term hope, whether you call it new life, or the kingdom of God?
“Taste and see that God is good!” – the whole person should be able to celebrate God, not just the intellect. How do YOU celebrate God with all five senses?
October 25, 2009 - Part 4
Hebrews 7:23-28
23 Furthermore, the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; 24but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues for ever. 25Consequently he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
26 For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 27Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people; this he did once for all when he offered himself. 28For the law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect for ever.
The beginning of this chapter introduced the readers to Melchizadek, at one time a high priest and king in the region of Israel and felt by some to be greater than Abraham, whom Melchizadek blessed, according to Genesis 14. Therefore, from a Christian perspective, Christ as high priest is greater than all the Levites, even if they are descended from Abraham.
This is a good example of Christian midrash (interpretation) on an older text. The author of Hebrews is blending the story of Melchizadek with the Christian superiority complex. For early Christians with a Jewish background, this continuity between Melchizadek and Christ translated into a sense of security. While priests live and die, this is one priest (Christ) who will intercede on their behalf forever.
The stories of priests in the scriptures often raise questions of corruption, exploitation of the role where one intercedes with God on another’s behalf. In Christian faith, especially the Reformed tradition, we are encouraged to go directly to Christ, without requiring intervention of a priest.
Question for reflection:
How do you understand the role or need for clergy, in the midst of your relationship with God?
23 Furthermore, the former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office; 24but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues for ever. 25Consequently he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
26 For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 27Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people; this he did once for all when he offered himself. 28For the law appoints as high priests those who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect for ever.
The beginning of this chapter introduced the readers to Melchizadek, at one time a high priest and king in the region of Israel and felt by some to be greater than Abraham, whom Melchizadek blessed, according to Genesis 14. Therefore, from a Christian perspective, Christ as high priest is greater than all the Levites, even if they are descended from Abraham.
This is a good example of Christian midrash (interpretation) on an older text. The author of Hebrews is blending the story of Melchizadek with the Christian superiority complex. For early Christians with a Jewish background, this continuity between Melchizadek and Christ translated into a sense of security. While priests live and die, this is one priest (Christ) who will intercede on their behalf forever.
The stories of priests in the scriptures often raise questions of corruption, exploitation of the role where one intercedes with God on another’s behalf. In Christian faith, especially the Reformed tradition, we are encouraged to go directly to Christ, without requiring intervention of a priest.
Question for reflection:
How do you understand the role or need for clergy, in the midst of your relationship with God?
October 25, 2009 - Part 4
Mark 10:46-52
They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.
This is the second story of Jesus healing a blind man in the gospel of Mark, the other is found at Mark 8:22-26. They bracket a section of stories where Jesus’ followers are being urged, metaphorically, to “see” what is right in front of them. Unfortunately, many seem to be “blind”, and this is a spiritual blindness that is much harder to heal!
Unlike the earlier blind man, who was supported by others in finding a way to see Jesus, in this story the crowd tries to keep Bartimaeus away – they do not want to hear what he sees in Jesus. In Mark, Bartimaeus is the first one to call Jesus “Son of David”, hinting at the procession of palms into Jerusalem, and Jesus’ confrontation with those who would accuse him of trying to reign politically. Throughout the story, Jesus’ “royal status” becomes more and more apparent, which he uses to help a noisy beggar become whole again – in a sense, they make each other whole.
Question for reflection:
In modern society, religion is often stereotyped as something that puts blinders on its believers, science and logic can truly see. Have there been times in your life when you feel that your faith journey has helped you see something others couldn’t?
They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’ So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.
This is the second story of Jesus healing a blind man in the gospel of Mark, the other is found at Mark 8:22-26. They bracket a section of stories where Jesus’ followers are being urged, metaphorically, to “see” what is right in front of them. Unfortunately, many seem to be “blind”, and this is a spiritual blindness that is much harder to heal!
Unlike the earlier blind man, who was supported by others in finding a way to see Jesus, in this story the crowd tries to keep Bartimaeus away – they do not want to hear what he sees in Jesus. In Mark, Bartimaeus is the first one to call Jesus “Son of David”, hinting at the procession of palms into Jerusalem, and Jesus’ confrontation with those who would accuse him of trying to reign politically. Throughout the story, Jesus’ “royal status” becomes more and more apparent, which he uses to help a noisy beggar become whole again – in a sense, they make each other whole.
Question for reflection:
In modern society, religion is often stereotyped as something that puts blinders on its believers, science and logic can truly see. Have there been times in your life when you feel that your faith journey has helped you see something others couldn’t?
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Readings for Sunday October 18, 2009
Readings for Sunday October 18, 2009
Job 38:1-7, (34-41) • Psalm 104:1-9, 24, 35c • Hebrews 5:1-10 • Mark 10:35-45
The study this week is written by Steve Clifton. Please post your comments and feedback and I will do my best to respond during the week.
The art work is Job and His wife by Georges de la Tour. Spend a moment to reflect upon this painting.To see this in a larger size follow:
http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/diglib-fulldisplay.pl?SID=20091013579345703&code=act&RC=46621&Row=2
Take a moment to centre yourself in prayer:
Creator God,
you call us to love and serve you
with body, mind, and spirit
through loving your creation
and our sisters and brothers.
Open our hearts in compassion.
Open our minds to your word.
We pray this in the name of Jesus. Amen
Job 38:1-7, (34-41)
Recall the story of the Book of Job. Job, a good and righteous man, is being tested. Many afflictions and trials come his way. His friends counsel him saying that he should curse God. Job turns away from his counsellors instead.
Job has complained of God’s indifference and injustice to him; he has asked why his misfortune happened. He has pleaded that God hear him, answer him. Now God, appearing in a “whirlwind” (as he does elsewhere in the Old Testament) answers him by asking him rhetorical questions. First he asks: who are you to doubt, in your ignorance, the sum total of my plans and works? Stand up like a man; answer the questions I put to you...”
Our reading is only a small part of God’s speech. God asks five main questions:
• Were you present at creation?
• Do you know your way around the cosmos?
• Would you know how to operate it?
• Would creation and creatures obey your commands? and
• Are you capable of providing for animals and birds as I am?
After God’s speech, Job says: “See, I am of small account; what shall I answer you? ... I will not answer” (40:4-5). With God’s appearance Job is at last able to articulate what he has been suspecting all along: he and his friends thought they understood the world; now he realizes that they do not. And so his complaint against God evaporates.
In essence, God tells Job that Job is not God and so cannot understand the ways of God. Why does Job suffer? Why do bad things happen to good people? It remains a mystery.
Questions for reflection:
• Why do you think that there is suffering in the world? This question has been answered in many different ways. Are we to learn from it? Do we bring it on ourselves? Is it a mystery, something beyond our understanding?
• If you had a chance to meet with God face to face as Job does, what would your questions be? And how do you think God would answer?
• Would God’s answer to Job satisfy you if you were in Job’s place Can you live with mystery or would you like a clearer explanation?
• God`s answer to Job has a sarcastic tone. Do you think that God has a sense of humour?
Psalm 104:1-9, 24, 35c
This psalm is a hymn of praise to God, the creator. Verses 2-4 tell of the creation of the heavens and verses 5 to 9 of the earth. To the ancients, “light” (v. 2) was a thing, so comparing light to a garment makes sense. God built his heavenly dwelling on the chaotic (unruly, disordered) “waters. The hot wind in verse 4 is the sirocco, a desert wind from the east; the “wind” brings rain clouds from the sea; both are under God’s control. People saw the earth as a disk supported by pillars (“foundations”, verse 5). Before God’s creative acts, the “waters” (verse 6) covered the earth. God chased away chaos, bringing order; he restricted the waters to the mountain tops (as snow) and the “valleys” (verse 8, as rivers). He will never again permit the waters to cover the earth (verse 9) and all that lives (verses 10-18): creatures depend on him for their very existence (verses 27-30). God’s “works” are countless. God has made them “in wisdom”, with perfection of design and ethic, absolute integrity, truth and beauty. Praise the Lord!
The Psalmist looks to the beauty of Creation and sees the Creator behind it all. Creation leads to praise of the Creator. This psalm almost reads like a reverse of the Job passage, doesn't it? Instead of God prompting Job to remember what God has done, here the psalmist remembers on his own what God has done.
Questions for reflection:
• Do you see the Creator when you look at Creation? Does a sunset, or geese in flight, or a crimson forest move you to praise?
• Are there places or landscapes that are “thin places” for you; are there places in nature that lead you to feel close to God?
• “Bless the Lord, O my soul." We normally ask God to bless us and others. What does it mean for us, instead, to bless God, to be a blessing to God?
• The clothing/fabric imagery in this psalm is interesting - God is enveloping, wrapping around us and the world, surrounding, covering, protecting. How do you feel when thinking of God as One who is wrapped around you, like a comforter on a cold night?
Hebrews 5:1-10
The letter to the Hebrews is addressed to the Christian community in Jerusalem. Its first audience lived in the shadow of Jerusalem’s Temple. The letter uses language and images that were familiar to Jerusalem Jews who worshipped in the Temple with its High Priest and its animal sacrifices. Basing his argument on the Old Testament, the author argues for the superiority of Christ to the prophets, angels and Moses. Christ offers a superior priesthood, and his sacrifice is much more significant than that of Levite priests. Jesus is the "heavenly" High Priest, making the true sacrifice for the sins of the people
The author has told us that “we have a great high priest” (4:14) who has been raised to heaven, namely “Jesus, the Son of God”. Now he compares the high priests of Judaism with Christ.
Christ was also appointed by God – at his baptism, when God said: “You are my Son ...” (v. 5). Christ also fulfills Psalm 100 as unlike other high priests, he is “priest forever”. He ranks with “Melchizedek”, the Canaanite priest who brought bread and wine to Abram, and blessed him. During his earthly life (“the days of his flesh”, v7), Jesus prayed to God in anguish (at Gethsemane) to the one who would “save him from death”, i.e. resurrect him (bring him back to life). Because of his proper respect (“reverent submission”), the Father heard him. Although already God’s Son (v. 8), he learned a needed human trait, obedience, through suffering. His work of salvation complete (“made perfect”, v9 he, as eternal priest, offers salvation forever to all the obedient, the faithful. He is high priest forever.
Questions for reflection:
• Check out Genesis 14:17-20 and Psalm 110:4 for context about Melchizedek.
• How does the image of Jesus as a "high priest" speak to you? What priestly functions do you see Jesus filling? How is Jesus a priest? The author gives his answer in verses 7-10.
• Most often, we do not think of Jesus as someone who had to "learn" obedience (v.8), but as one who simply was obedient. But maybe there is something valuable in thinking of Jesus learning to obey God through his faithfulness to God's plan for him. Does this make Jesus more human? More accessible? Does it give us hope that if Jesus could learn then maybe we can too? What do you think? Or do you prefer to think of Jesus as the one who has got it all together?
Mark 10:35-45
Earlier in the gospel the disciples have argued about which of them is the greatest. Now two members of the inner circle ask a favour of Jesus: they seek positions of special dignity at the messianic banquet in heaven at the end of time (v.37). Jesus answers: you do not know the implications of what you ask. In the Old Testament, one’s “cup” (v.38) is one’s lot assigned by God, be it blessing or condemnation. Here, Jesus is speaking of his suffering and death. Do John and James really want to drink the cup that Jesus will drink from at Gethsemane and Golgotha? James and John confidently answer yes (in verse 39) and accept all the consequences. But as for getting the best seats at the heavenly banquet, only God knows whom God has called to special places in the kingdom.
Jesus tells all the disciples: earthly authority depends on power and force but for disciples, it is different; to be “great” now and in the kingdom a disciple must serve others; to be “first”, one must serve even more humbly, as a “slave”. Jesus, the “Son of Man” is the example: he gave even his life for the freedom of others, gaining their release from punishment and death for their sins. The first shall be last...
Questions for reflection:
• The other ten disciples are mad at James and John. For asking a silly question of Jesus? For taking up an old argument? For pledging to follow him in a way they hadn't? Because they want the places of greatness for themselves?
• Jesus talks (again!) about a different world-order, a different system of greatness and power. Over and over again Jesus has to remind his friends that in God’s Kingdom, the first are last and the least are first....that the greatest are servants to all? How many times must he tell them this first-last master-servant stuff before they get it? Then again...how many times must he tell us before we get it?
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Introduction to Thanksgiving Sunday Readings - October 11, 2009
The study this week is written by Elizabeth Bryce. Please post your comments and feedback and I will do my best to respond during the week.
Take a moment to centre yourself in prayer:
Merciful Creator, we breathe in your Spirit.
With all our senses we open ourselves to your creation;
filling our noses with the smell of baking;
filling our eyes with a riot of colour;
filling our hands with the weight of the harvest;
filling our ears with the crunch of crackling leaves;
filling our mouths with the taste of your goodness.
Fill our hearts also, O God, with the wisdom to recognize these blessings, the humility to give thanks and the compassion to share with others. Amen
In Canada, this week, we take a break from the lectionary readings and reflect on the harvest celebration of Thanksgiving.
- Each fall, the Ojibwe people celebrated Wataybugaw, meaning the changing of the colours, holding pow-wows as a symbol of their thanks to creator and to community.
- In 1578, the explorer Martin Frobisher celebrated a European-style service in Newfoundland, to give thanks for safe passage across the ocean.
- Samuel de Champlain marked a harvest festival shared with the aboriginal people near his settlement in the early 17th century (unfortunately, the sharing didn’t last long.)
- The October date for Thanksgiving was not set until 1957, when it was set for the second Monday in October because of conflicting observances between a November Thanksgiving and November 11 Armistice/Remembrance Day.
Questions for reflection:
What makes you feel thankful?
What are the obstacles that might stand in the way of your wholehearted celebration of thanksgiving?
Take a moment to centre yourself in prayer:
Merciful Creator, we breathe in your Spirit.
With all our senses we open ourselves to your creation;
filling our noses with the smell of baking;
filling our eyes with a riot of colour;
filling our hands with the weight of the harvest;
filling our ears with the crunch of crackling leaves;
filling our mouths with the taste of your goodness.
Fill our hearts also, O God, with the wisdom to recognize these blessings, the humility to give thanks and the compassion to share with others. Amen
In Canada, this week, we take a break from the lectionary readings and reflect on the harvest celebration of Thanksgiving.
- Each fall, the Ojibwe people celebrated Wataybugaw, meaning the changing of the colours, holding pow-wows as a symbol of their thanks to creator and to community.
- In 1578, the explorer Martin Frobisher celebrated a European-style service in Newfoundland, to give thanks for safe passage across the ocean.
- Samuel de Champlain marked a harvest festival shared with the aboriginal people near his settlement in the early 17th century (unfortunately, the sharing didn’t last long.)
- The October date for Thanksgiving was not set until 1957, when it was set for the second Monday in October because of conflicting observances between a November Thanksgiving and November 11 Armistice/Remembrance Day.
Questions for reflection:
What makes you feel thankful?
What are the obstacles that might stand in the way of your wholehearted celebration of thanksgiving?
Joel 2:21-27 part 2 for Oct 11, 2009
Reading: NRSV
Do not fear, O soil;
be glad and rejoice,
for the LORD has done great things!
Do not fear, you animals of the field,
for the pastures of the wilderness are green;
the tree bears its fruit,
the fig tree and vine give their full yield.
O children of Zion, be glad
and rejoice in the LORD your God;
for he has given the early rain for your vindication,
he has poured down for you abundant rain,
the early and the later rain, as before.
The threshing-floors shall be full of grain,
the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
I will repay you for the years
that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army, which I sent against you.
You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is no other.
And my people shall never again
be put to shame.
There is some controversy in putting a date to the prophecy of Joel. Some find themes of literature from after the Babylonian exile, which would place Joel just prior to the time when the temple was being rebuilt in the 4th century BCE. Other biblical scholars note his references to earlier events and place him as early as the 8th century BCE.
What really characterizes Joel, however, is a much more timeless experience of hardship. The people of God have suffered poverty and famine because of successive plagues of locusts, which Joel interprets as God’s punishment for their lack of faith and compassion. He calls them to repent and change their ways, so that God will remove their calamity and renew the earth.
In a unique way, Joel describes God’s renewal as coming first to the earth and its creatures, before redeeming the human element. If God punishes with locusts, then God redeems with rain on the pastures and fruit trees, so that the animals no longer need to fear starvation.
Question for Reflection:
Joel seems to have a sense that all life is inter-connected and that God is a part of the chain. In what ways do we disrupt that natural balance of creation and contribute to our own destruction?
How do we understand God to be at work in the environmental crisis of our time, as punisher or redeemer? How can we offer our repentence?
Do not fear, O soil;
be glad and rejoice,
for the LORD has done great things!
Do not fear, you animals of the field,
for the pastures of the wilderness are green;
the tree bears its fruit,
the fig tree and vine give their full yield.
O children of Zion, be glad
and rejoice in the LORD your God;
for he has given the early rain for your vindication,
he has poured down for you abundant rain,
the early and the later rain, as before.
The threshing-floors shall be full of grain,
the vats shall overflow with wine and oil.
I will repay you for the years
that the swarming locust has eaten,
the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,
my great army, which I sent against you.
You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied,
and praise the name of the LORD your God,
who has dealt wondrously with you. And my people shall never again be put to shame.
You shall know that I am in the midst of Israel,
and that I, the LORD, am your God and there is no other.
And my people shall never again
be put to shame.
There is some controversy in putting a date to the prophecy of Joel. Some find themes of literature from after the Babylonian exile, which would place Joel just prior to the time when the temple was being rebuilt in the 4th century BCE. Other biblical scholars note his references to earlier events and place him as early as the 8th century BCE.
What really characterizes Joel, however, is a much more timeless experience of hardship. The people of God have suffered poverty and famine because of successive plagues of locusts, which Joel interprets as God’s punishment for their lack of faith and compassion. He calls them to repent and change their ways, so that God will remove their calamity and renew the earth.
In a unique way, Joel describes God’s renewal as coming first to the earth and its creatures, before redeeming the human element. If God punishes with locusts, then God redeems with rain on the pastures and fruit trees, so that the animals no longer need to fear starvation.
Question for Reflection:
Joel seems to have a sense that all life is inter-connected and that God is a part of the chain. In what ways do we disrupt that natural balance of creation and contribute to our own destruction?
How do we understand God to be at work in the environmental crisis of our time, as punisher or redeemer? How can we offer our repentence?
Psalm 126, part 3 of Oct 11 2009
Reading: NRSV
A Song of Ascents
When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
‘The LORD has done great things for them.’
The LORD has done great things for us,
and we rejoiced.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears
reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
carrying their sheaves.
Psalm 126 could very well be the people’s response to God’s redemption prophesied in Joel, or any other crisis. The harvest theme makes it particularly appropriate to be paired with Joel in the Thanksgiving readings. Note the two repetitions in the first stanza, which make it so fitting for a leader and congregation as call to worship and response:
“ONE: Then it was said among the nations, the Lord has done great things for them. ALL: The Lord has done great things for US and we rejoice!”
The author of the psalm seems to have experienced one of those times when hope seems impossible, and yet is surprised by an unexpected gift of new life. We don’t know how long it took for those fortunes to be reversed, or what the situation might have been. We only know that having experienced that unexpected sense of hope, the author would have everyone take hope from his or her witness. “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy.”
Question for Reflection:
Have you ever had an experience of renewed hope that you would share with others to give them hope in times of crisis?
What would it be like for you to understand that story from the perspective of faith and call it “testimony”?
A Song of Ascents
When the LORD restored the fortunes of Zion,
we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
‘The LORD has done great things for them.’
The LORD has done great things for us,
and we rejoiced.
Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears
reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
carrying their sheaves.
Psalm 126 could very well be the people’s response to God’s redemption prophesied in Joel, or any other crisis. The harvest theme makes it particularly appropriate to be paired with Joel in the Thanksgiving readings. Note the two repetitions in the first stanza, which make it so fitting for a leader and congregation as call to worship and response:
“ONE: Then it was said among the nations, the Lord has done great things for them. ALL: The Lord has done great things for US and we rejoice!”
The author of the psalm seems to have experienced one of those times when hope seems impossible, and yet is surprised by an unexpected gift of new life. We don’t know how long it took for those fortunes to be reversed, or what the situation might have been. We only know that having experienced that unexpected sense of hope, the author would have everyone take hope from his or her witness. “May those who sow in tears reap with shouts of joy.”
Question for Reflection:
Have you ever had an experience of renewed hope that you would share with others to give them hope in times of crisis?
What would it be like for you to understand that story from the perspective of faith and call it “testimony”?
Matthew 6:25-33, part 4 for Oct 11 2009
Reading: NRSV
‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
This passage is one piece of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew’s edition of Jesus’ basic teachings. Jesus’ use of creation imagery is strong in this passage. Like Joel, perhaps he sees the earth and its creatures as interconnected with humanity, sharing some very basic characteristics. We learn from creation and extend that learning to our understanding of the eternal realm. Creation opens our eyes to the “big picture”.
This is NOT a passage about financial planning. Jesus is reminding his listeners that, ultimately, all that we have comes from God. All that we are is loved by God, so ultimately, we are always in God’s care.
Questions for Reflection:
We understand so much about nature, biology, cosmology from a scientific point of view. Does knowing “how things really work” decrease, instead of increasing, our understanding of God?
In this current age of recession and the threat to pensions and retirement savings, what does it mean to hear Jesus say: “Do not worry…”? How do we respond faithfully?
‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
This passage is one piece of the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew’s edition of Jesus’ basic teachings. Jesus’ use of creation imagery is strong in this passage. Like Joel, perhaps he sees the earth and its creatures as interconnected with humanity, sharing some very basic characteristics. We learn from creation and extend that learning to our understanding of the eternal realm. Creation opens our eyes to the “big picture”.
This is NOT a passage about financial planning. Jesus is reminding his listeners that, ultimately, all that we have comes from God. All that we are is loved by God, so ultimately, we are always in God’s care.
Questions for Reflection:
We understand so much about nature, biology, cosmology from a scientific point of view. Does knowing “how things really work” decrease, instead of increasing, our understanding of God?
In this current age of recession and the threat to pensions and retirement savings, what does it mean to hear Jesus say: “Do not worry…”? How do we respond faithfully?
1 Timothy 1:1-7, part 5 for Oct 11, 2009
Reading: NRSV
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.
This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God;
there is also one mediator between God and humankind,Christ Jesus, himself human,
who gave himself a ransom for all —this was attested at the right time.
For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
Traditionally, the letters to Timothy were considered to be authored directly by Paul to his assistant Timothy, when Paul went on a missionary journey and left Timothy to care for and minister to the church at Ephesus. However, some scholars cite visible differences in language styles to suggest an author other than Paul (ie. Paul used middle-class koine Greek, the letter to Timothy uses upper class Hellenistic Greek).
The themes of this letter are themes of good leadership, teaching about prayer, avoiding false teachers, conduct towards widows, putting faith before material wealth. They reflect the concerns of a settled community rather than the seedling one that would have been tended by Timothy.
In today’s passage, the author urges the reader to pray at all times for all people. There is specific mention of supporting civic leaders with prayer, so that there might be stability and peace in the nation, and therefore stability in the church community. These were a people who knew the real cost of war and rebellion.
The author also defends Christians praying for non-Christian leaders by telling the reader that it is God’s will that all should be saved, even though it will be through Christ as mediator.
The author is preparing the Christian community and its leaders to live their faith IN the world, not to separate themselves or consider themselves above the wider community. They don't seem to be under the impression that Jesus would come again within their generation, and end life on earth, making the world disposable. They realized they would have to blend in and get along with both their neighbours and the authorities.
While we do not have to assume all the values of society around us, people of faith have much to accomplish in the midst of their neighbours and political structures.
Questions for reflection:
How do you understand your faith making you distinct from the wider community?
How do you understand your responsibility for supporting the wider community?
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings should be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity.
This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God;
there is also one mediator between God and humankind,Christ Jesus, himself human,
who gave himself a ransom for all —this was attested at the right time.
For this I was appointed a herald and an apostle (I am telling the truth, I am not lying), a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and truth.
Traditionally, the letters to Timothy were considered to be authored directly by Paul to his assistant Timothy, when Paul went on a missionary journey and left Timothy to care for and minister to the church at Ephesus. However, some scholars cite visible differences in language styles to suggest an author other than Paul (ie. Paul used middle-class koine Greek, the letter to Timothy uses upper class Hellenistic Greek).
The themes of this letter are themes of good leadership, teaching about prayer, avoiding false teachers, conduct towards widows, putting faith before material wealth. They reflect the concerns of a settled community rather than the seedling one that would have been tended by Timothy.
In today’s passage, the author urges the reader to pray at all times for all people. There is specific mention of supporting civic leaders with prayer, so that there might be stability and peace in the nation, and therefore stability in the church community. These were a people who knew the real cost of war and rebellion.
The author also defends Christians praying for non-Christian leaders by telling the reader that it is God’s will that all should be saved, even though it will be through Christ as mediator.
The author is preparing the Christian community and its leaders to live their faith IN the world, not to separate themselves or consider themselves above the wider community. They don't seem to be under the impression that Jesus would come again within their generation, and end life on earth, making the world disposable. They realized they would have to blend in and get along with both their neighbours and the authorities.
While we do not have to assume all the values of society around us, people of faith have much to accomplish in the midst of their neighbours and political structures.
Questions for reflection:
How do you understand your faith making you distinct from the wider community?
How do you understand your responsibility for supporting the wider community?
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