Well, it has been a while! I thought I would just take a break and start again in September but with two new team members and some changes in my personal life on top of the usual September flurry which seemed to spill over into October, here we are in mid-November!
November 21, 2010 - Reign of Christ Sunday
Click here for the full text (NRSV) for this Sunday's readings.
I have chosen to work with only two selections: Colossians 1:11-20 and Luke 23:33-43.
This Sunday is a baptism Sunday for us so I need to find a link between the reign of Christ and baptism. The obvious one is that the reign of Christ is what the children are being baptized into, but I would appreciate any suggestions for other possibilities.
Colossians 1: 11-20
What the heck is this Pauline author getting at? Is the ancient hymn in vs. 15-20 (notice how each line starts with "he" and lists a series of descriptions that dance around the mystery) really saying that all of God was in the human person of Jesus (v. 19)? I suspect not but you may differ. Looking at v.15 the Greek word ikon is translated as image. To give this a modern spin, an icon on your computer screen is a small image giving you access to the full program. I think this is more what the hymn means -- the person of the earthly Jesus gives us an entry point to the character of what lies beyond.
Thinking back to the "olden days" of computers, in the early 80's when I turned on my computer I was confronted with C:> which meant that I had to know what programs lay behind the screen and what they might do. Sometimes when I managed to call a program up onto the screen I had to do some programming to make it work and produce the results I wanted. Now all I have to do is click on icons and menus, then supply a little content and this blog appears! Is if fair to say that Jesus and the New Testament are icons that help us access the meaning and power of the Old Testament? I like this concept better that the supersessionist ones that claim Jesus and the NT make the Old Testament irrelevant.
Luke 23: 33-43
For Paul himself Jesus was the icon: "For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and him crucified." (1 Corinthians 2:2) Even though he experienced the resurrected Christ on the road to Damascus, Paul places less emphases there than on the Cross. The Gospel of Mark, in its oldest version, ends with the empty tomb. At the same time the cross is one of the most avoided concepts in much of liberal Protestantism. I personally have an aversion to the celebration of the gore of the crucifixion ala Mel Gibson's "The Passion of The Christ" as realistic as it may have been. For me now it is not the blood but the stark contrast between the violence of empire and the non-violence of the reign of Christ that is most significant. The cross is the throne of the non-violent servant-king Jesus, if you will, showing us that non-violent service is the way of reconciliation with God and with each other. When we close the door on the bully nature of violent coercion and manipulative abuse of others and creation, whole new avenues of relationship open to us that can bring healing and wholeness to life.
Looking forward to your comments.
Monday, November 15, 2010
Saturday, February 20, 2010
For Sunday, February 28, 2009
My apologies for the long delay since the last post. Between a short vacation and subsequent stomach and sinus problems I haven't had the time or the energy to keep this up. Hopefully that will improve now!
For the full NRSV text of the readings for this Sunday from the Revised Common Lectionary click here
Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18
I have to admit there are times like this when I wonder what the good lectionary composers were thinking. I suppose someone somewhere has a need to know how to perform the proper animal sacrifices in order to "cut a covenant," but I have no idea where to find them. Even as a theophany it doesn't register on me. What is with the smoking, hovering, moving pot? Was God "incensed"? Was the flaming torch a harbinger of the Olympics? Strangely the covenant that is being made is cut off from the end of the reading.
I suppose the promise of descendants for Abraham is significant. If you look at the number of Jewish, Muslim and Christian people in the world today that promise seems to be fulfilled. Whether they are as many as the stars in the sky can be argued now that the Hubble telescope has revealed (to quote Carl Sagan) "billions and billions of galaxies" -- and each with countless numbers of stars.
Psalm 27
I do like this Psalm! Below I refer to Jesus' calm assertiveness in the face of the threat from Herod. I suspect he could have written this psalm if it had not written him. Why does my faith feel so cheesy when I read it?
Philippians 3:17-4:1
Want to know who the real enemies of Christ (or any major religion) are? Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things.(Phil. 3:19) Hard to find it put any more succinctly, so why do we waste our time putting down other people of well placed faith just because we can attach a label to them and dismiss them accordingly?
Luke 13:31-35
I have a friend who fled Uganda immediately after his business partner's criticism of Idi Amin appeared in the local paper. His friend didn't make it. The moral of the story is that you don't mess with tinpot dictators like Amin or King Herod. They do have power over life and death. Ask John the Baptist. Most of us in North America have no idea what it is like to live with that kind of constant background or explicitly upfront threat to our lives. We are blessed.
When friendly Pharisees (yes there were some) warn Jesus of the threat to his life, I am amazed at his apparently calm, yet implicitly assertive and compassionate, response. Go tell him I am just doing God's work here (implication -- kill me and you kill God's work!)
Jesus' compassion for Jerusalem needs to be handled with care. This is not food for anti-Semites. Jerusalem is symbolic of political and religious power which tends to kill off any attempt at change -- from outright murder through to funding cuts and peroguing parliament. (You have to be Canadian to understand that last one.)
For the full NRSV text of the readings for this Sunday from the Revised Common Lectionary click here
Genesis 15:1-12, 17-18
I have to admit there are times like this when I wonder what the good lectionary composers were thinking. I suppose someone somewhere has a need to know how to perform the proper animal sacrifices in order to "cut a covenant," but I have no idea where to find them. Even as a theophany it doesn't register on me. What is with the smoking, hovering, moving pot? Was God "incensed"? Was the flaming torch a harbinger of the Olympics? Strangely the covenant that is being made is cut off from the end of the reading.
I suppose the promise of descendants for Abraham is significant. If you look at the number of Jewish, Muslim and Christian people in the world today that promise seems to be fulfilled. Whether they are as many as the stars in the sky can be argued now that the Hubble telescope has revealed (to quote Carl Sagan) "billions and billions of galaxies" -- and each with countless numbers of stars.
Psalm 27
I do like this Psalm! Below I refer to Jesus' calm assertiveness in the face of the threat from Herod. I suspect he could have written this psalm if it had not written him. Why does my faith feel so cheesy when I read it?
Philippians 3:17-4:1
Want to know who the real enemies of Christ (or any major religion) are? Their end is destruction; their god is the belly; and their glory is in their shame; their minds are set on earthly things.(Phil. 3:19) Hard to find it put any more succinctly, so why do we waste our time putting down other people of well placed faith just because we can attach a label to them and dismiss them accordingly?
Luke 13:31-35
I have a friend who fled Uganda immediately after his business partner's criticism of Idi Amin appeared in the local paper. His friend didn't make it. The moral of the story is that you don't mess with tinpot dictators like Amin or King Herod. They do have power over life and death. Ask John the Baptist. Most of us in North America have no idea what it is like to live with that kind of constant background or explicitly upfront threat to our lives. We are blessed.
When friendly Pharisees (yes there were some) warn Jesus of the threat to his life, I am amazed at his apparently calm, yet implicitly assertive and compassionate, response. Go tell him I am just doing God's work here (implication -- kill me and you kill God's work!)
Jesus' compassion for Jerusalem needs to be handled with care. This is not food for anti-Semites. Jerusalem is symbolic of political and religious power which tends to kill off any attempt at change -- from outright murder through to funding cuts and peroguing parliament. (You have to be Canadian to understand that last one.)
Monday, January 11, 2010
Sunday, January 17, 10 - Second Sunday after Epiphany
The readings for Jan. 17 are:
Isaiah 62:1-5 • Psalm 36:5-10 • 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 • John 2:1-11.
and they can be found in full here.
Isaiah 62 - This passage is found at the end of the second part of the Book of Isaiah, sometimes referred to as Second Isaiah or Deutero-Isaiah, and speaks of the coming end of the Babylonian Captivity. Isaiah speaks of a time in which the captives held in Babylon were ridiculed (cf Psalm 137) by their captors. The common view would have been that Israel's God had abandoned her, failing to protect her and that the god(s) of Babylon had prevailed. The foreseen return of the captives to their homeland is envisioned as the vindication of the faith of the captives in the power of their God. The imagery moves beyond vindication by speaking of the coronation of Israel and the relationship between God and Israel as husband and wife -- speaking powerfully to the esteem God holds for Israel and the intimacy of their relationship.
In our own lives and relationship with God can we see times when we felt abandoned and desolate only to realize how deeply God cares for us and values our relationship?
Psalm 36: 5-10
This Psalm picks up on the constant, loving faithfulness (heb.=hesed) of God and God's righteousness. The Lectionary drops the verses of the Psalm which describe the wicked and evil ones to whom God's steadfastness is contrasted.
1 Cor. 12: 1-11 - Paul's classic honoring of the diversity of spiritual gifts and their common source. He is trying to shift our focus from competing over who has the best gift to a recognition that all spiritual gifts are important because they come from the same source. Later he will argue that some are more beneficial because they serve more than the individual.
Recognizing the source of gifts is essential as well if we are to appreciate the giver rather than feed our own hubris.
John 2: 1-11 - Wedding at Cana. John Spong, who usually insists on a metaphorical interpretation of biblical stories, makes an interesting case for this passage being a description of Jesus' own wedding. I prefer to stick with metaphor. Reflecting on this story a while back I realized that our bodies are mostly water -- about 98% if I remember right. If God's extravagant gift of the Spirit turns our bodies into wine that is quite an amazing metaphor for complete transformation! I'll have to let this soak in a bit more and see where it leads. Suggestions???
The water Jesus uses is ritual water representing ritual cleanliness. It is transformed into the wine of relationship -- feasting and conviviality. It is consumed rather than used externally like the water so we are not just washing off impurity but being changed from within, perhaps becoming more relational than ritual.
Isaiah 62:1-5 • Psalm 36:5-10 • 1 Corinthians 12:1-11 • John 2:1-11.
and they can be found in full here.
Isaiah 62 - This passage is found at the end of the second part of the Book of Isaiah, sometimes referred to as Second Isaiah or Deutero-Isaiah, and speaks of the coming end of the Babylonian Captivity. Isaiah speaks of a time in which the captives held in Babylon were ridiculed (cf Psalm 137) by their captors. The common view would have been that Israel's God had abandoned her, failing to protect her and that the god(s) of Babylon had prevailed. The foreseen return of the captives to their homeland is envisioned as the vindication of the faith of the captives in the power of their God. The imagery moves beyond vindication by speaking of the coronation of Israel and the relationship between God and Israel as husband and wife -- speaking powerfully to the esteem God holds for Israel and the intimacy of their relationship.
In our own lives and relationship with God can we see times when we felt abandoned and desolate only to realize how deeply God cares for us and values our relationship?
Psalm 36: 5-10
This Psalm picks up on the constant, loving faithfulness (heb.=hesed) of God and God's righteousness. The Lectionary drops the verses of the Psalm which describe the wicked and evil ones to whom God's steadfastness is contrasted.
1 Cor. 12: 1-11 - Paul's classic honoring of the diversity of spiritual gifts and their common source. He is trying to shift our focus from competing over who has the best gift to a recognition that all spiritual gifts are important because they come from the same source. Later he will argue that some are more beneficial because they serve more than the individual.
Recognizing the source of gifts is essential as well if we are to appreciate the giver rather than feed our own hubris.
John 2: 1-11 - Wedding at Cana. John Spong, who usually insists on a metaphorical interpretation of biblical stories, makes an interesting case for this passage being a description of Jesus' own wedding. I prefer to stick with metaphor. Reflecting on this story a while back I realized that our bodies are mostly water -- about 98% if I remember right. If God's extravagant gift of the Spirit turns our bodies into wine that is quite an amazing metaphor for complete transformation! I'll have to let this soak in a bit more and see where it leads. Suggestions???
The water Jesus uses is ritual water representing ritual cleanliness. It is transformed into the wine of relationship -- feasting and conviviality. It is consumed rather than used externally like the water so we are not just washing off impurity but being changed from within, perhaps becoming more relational than ritual.
Thursday, December 17, 2009
Toward a New Year that is New
I am not preaching for the next two Sundays so I went back to the bin and found these thoughts/notes that may or may not have been part of an old sermon. I believe it was Jeremiah 31:7-14 from the Second Sunday After Christmas that got me started.
I do hope you are having or have had a faith-filled Christmas and looking forward to a New Year of hope and joy.
You were given a great gift this Christmas
what are you going to do with it?
Put away with all the decorations?
Return it?
Re-gift it?
Actually re-gifting the gift of love is why we are here!
Jeremiah:
When we are overwhelmed and scattered
God will restore us
When life has lost its meaning
God will give us new vision
New vision gives us hope
Hope transforms the present
When we are desolate and overcome with grief
God will bring us merriment and dancing
When we are in the depths of despair
God will lead us to joy
The promise is not that we will never be defeated
The promise is that we have a future
The promise is not that we will never suffer
The promise is that we will never be alone
The promise is not that we can never fail
The promise is that there will always be a new beginning
The promise is not that we will never be hurt
The promise is that we will always be loved
The promise is not that we will never do wrong
The promise is that we will always be forgiven
In November 1963, seventeen year old Laura Welch borrowed the family car to attend a party with some friends. A few hours later, the Welches received the kind of telephone call every parent dreads: staff from a local hospital were calling to tell them that Laura had been in an accident. She never saw the stop sign, so she drove through the intersection at normal speed, plowing through a car that had the right of way. Laura suffered only bruises. The driver of the other car, a track star at the local high school and a good friend of Laura's, died on impact. Laura would later say that this tragedy shaped her perspective on life at a young age. She gained compassion and wisdom from it. Friends and family alike marvel at her "serenity and strength." You also have grown to respect her qualities as a adult. For Laura Welch went on to become Laura Bush, wife of the President.
Brett Blair, ww.eSermons.com adapted from "First Lady" by Ann Gerhart from The Perfect Wife: The Life and Choices of Laura Bush, condensed in Reader's Digest January 2004 pp. 166 167.
The promise is not that life will be wonderful
The promise is that we will always have hope
In the early 1960s, the German theologian Jurgen Moltmann wrote a incredible book called "Theology of Hope". This work, which is available in some church libraries, takes as its assumption that true Christian faith can only have its transforming effect on the individual, on society and on the world when it is rooted in a vision of hope. "From first to last, and not merely in the epilogue," wrote Moltmann, "Christianity is hope, forward looking and forward moving, and therefore also revolutionizing and transforming the present." In Moltmann's view, to live in hope does not mean that one lives in a state of disconnectedness from the present because of some expectation of a greater although unrealized future; rather, to live with a vision of hope gives a person and the church the inspiration and the motivation never to settle for the status quo, but rather to challenge and perhaps even work towards the transformation of any dimension of life that is not in line with that envisioned hope.
The promise is not that we will always be young and strong
The promise is that in our weakness there is room for God
The promise is not that life will always be beautiful
The promise is that there will always be beauty in life
Image - homecoming, family reunion
Vision - If your life is meaningful today it is because you have hope in a vision of the future. Hope does not mean being disconnected from today and living in the future.
Gerhard Frost writes in Seasons of a Lifetime: "If I am asked what are my grounds for hope, this is my answer: LIGHT is lord over darkness. TRUTH is lord over falsehood. LIFE is lord over death. Of all the facts I daily live with, there is none more comforting that this: If I have two rooms one dark, the other light and I open the door between them, the dark room becomes lighter without the light one becoming darker. I know this is no headline, but it's a marvelous footnote, and God comforts me in that." Think about that. The dark room becomes lighter without the light room becoming darker. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
I do hope you are having or have had a faith-filled Christmas and looking forward to a New Year of hope and joy.
You were given a great gift this Christmas
what are you going to do with it?
Put away with all the decorations?
Return it?
Re-gift it?
Actually re-gifting the gift of love is why we are here!
Jeremiah:
When we are overwhelmed and scattered
God will restore us
When life has lost its meaning
God will give us new vision
New vision gives us hope
Hope transforms the present
When we are desolate and overcome with grief
God will bring us merriment and dancing
When we are in the depths of despair
God will lead us to joy
The promise is not that we will never be defeated
The promise is that we have a future
The promise is not that we will never suffer
The promise is that we will never be alone
The promise is not that we can never fail
The promise is that there will always be a new beginning
The promise is not that we will never be hurt
The promise is that we will always be loved
The promise is not that we will never do wrong
The promise is that we will always be forgiven
In November 1963, seventeen year old Laura Welch borrowed the family car to attend a party with some friends. A few hours later, the Welches received the kind of telephone call every parent dreads: staff from a local hospital were calling to tell them that Laura had been in an accident. She never saw the stop sign, so she drove through the intersection at normal speed, plowing through a car that had the right of way. Laura suffered only bruises. The driver of the other car, a track star at the local high school and a good friend of Laura's, died on impact. Laura would later say that this tragedy shaped her perspective on life at a young age. She gained compassion and wisdom from it. Friends and family alike marvel at her "serenity and strength." You also have grown to respect her qualities as a adult. For Laura Welch went on to become Laura Bush, wife of the President.
Brett Blair, ww.eSermons.com adapted from "First Lady" by Ann Gerhart from The Perfect Wife: The Life and Choices of Laura Bush, condensed in Reader's Digest January 2004 pp. 166 167.
The promise is not that life will be wonderful
The promise is that we will always have hope
In the early 1960s, the German theologian Jurgen Moltmann wrote a incredible book called "Theology of Hope". This work, which is available in some church libraries, takes as its assumption that true Christian faith can only have its transforming effect on the individual, on society and on the world when it is rooted in a vision of hope. "From first to last, and not merely in the epilogue," wrote Moltmann, "Christianity is hope, forward looking and forward moving, and therefore also revolutionizing and transforming the present." In Moltmann's view, to live in hope does not mean that one lives in a state of disconnectedness from the present because of some expectation of a greater although unrealized future; rather, to live with a vision of hope gives a person and the church the inspiration and the motivation never to settle for the status quo, but rather to challenge and perhaps even work towards the transformation of any dimension of life that is not in line with that envisioned hope.
The promise is not that we will always be young and strong
The promise is that in our weakness there is room for God
The promise is not that life will always be beautiful
The promise is that there will always be beauty in life
Image - homecoming, family reunion
Vision - If your life is meaningful today it is because you have hope in a vision of the future. Hope does not mean being disconnected from today and living in the future.
Gerhard Frost writes in Seasons of a Lifetime: "If I am asked what are my grounds for hope, this is my answer: LIGHT is lord over darkness. TRUTH is lord over falsehood. LIFE is lord over death. Of all the facts I daily live with, there is none more comforting that this: If I have two rooms one dark, the other light and I open the door between them, the dark room becomes lighter without the light one becoming darker. I know this is no headline, but it's a marvelous footnote, and God comforts me in that." Think about that. The dark room becomes lighter without the light room becoming darker. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it."
Friday, December 11, 2009
Sunday, Dec. 20, 09, Advent 4, Year C
The lectionary scriptures for this Sunday are here.
Micah 5:2-5a
Bethlehem (house of bread)is a small town in the clan area of Ephrath, in the ancient, traditional tribal territory of Judah, one of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel. Rachel, Jacob's favored wife, had died giving birth to Benjamin and was buried at Bethlehem. (See chapters 27-50 in Genesis for the Jacob saga and chapters 13-20 of Joshua (come on, it's not that much)to see how the newly conquered promised land was divvied up among the 12 sons of Jacob and 2 sons of Joseph).
In the honour system of the Middle East it is essential to establish "street cred." The early Christian church pointed to these verses as prophesying Jesus as the Messiah, God's anointed King, and probably gave rise to the tradition of Jesus being born in Bethlehem even though he was known as Jesus of Nazareth in his time. These verses in turn point to the prophetic words of Jacob on his deathbed (Genesis 49, Vs. 8-12 in particular).
Psalm 80:1-7
Invokes the ancient clan names of Jacob/Israel and his descendants Benjamin and Joseph, and Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh to remind God and us of God's saving grace and protection, shining light in our darkest days.
Hebrews 10:5-10
Offers, in its own convoluted way, for those who still believe in killing and burning animals to appease and angry god, the idea that Jesus' death was the last such offering required. To those of us who no longer believe in animal sacrifice as the centerpiece of worship this doesn't mean much any more. However, we may want to consider, in light of this passage, why we still sacrifice our young people in "just" wars, especially in the name of the Prince of Peace. We are a strange lot!
Luke 1:39-55
Stories of two delightful pregnancies with earth up-heaving consequences, never mind leaping in the womb with gladness! If you haven't seen the Magnificat in Eugene Peterson's "The Message" get right on it. It begins,
"I'm bursting with God-news;
I'm dancing the song of my Savior God.
God took one good look at me, and look what happened --
I'm the most fortunate woman on earth!"
Peterson's take on familiar words will give you fresh ears to hear how Mary saw her perhaps unwanted pregnancy as having the possibility of turning the world upside down. Is this what happens when we come to see God's work in our own lives and the lives of our children? How can tyrants of any kind have power over us when we have such an intimate relationship with the creative power of the universe?
Micah 5:2-5a
Bethlehem (house of bread)is a small town in the clan area of Ephrath, in the ancient, traditional tribal territory of Judah, one of the 12 sons of Jacob/Israel. Rachel, Jacob's favored wife, had died giving birth to Benjamin and was buried at Bethlehem. (See chapters 27-50 in Genesis for the Jacob saga and chapters 13-20 of Joshua (come on, it's not that much)to see how the newly conquered promised land was divvied up among the 12 sons of Jacob and 2 sons of Joseph).
In the honour system of the Middle East it is essential to establish "street cred." The early Christian church pointed to these verses as prophesying Jesus as the Messiah, God's anointed King, and probably gave rise to the tradition of Jesus being born in Bethlehem even though he was known as Jesus of Nazareth in his time. These verses in turn point to the prophetic words of Jacob on his deathbed (Genesis 49, Vs. 8-12 in particular).
Psalm 80:1-7
Invokes the ancient clan names of Jacob/Israel and his descendants Benjamin and Joseph, and Joseph's sons Ephraim and Manasseh to remind God and us of God's saving grace and protection, shining light in our darkest days.
Hebrews 10:5-10
Offers, in its own convoluted way, for those who still believe in killing and burning animals to appease and angry god, the idea that Jesus' death was the last such offering required. To those of us who no longer believe in animal sacrifice as the centerpiece of worship this doesn't mean much any more. However, we may want to consider, in light of this passage, why we still sacrifice our young people in "just" wars, especially in the name of the Prince of Peace. We are a strange lot!
Luke 1:39-55
Stories of two delightful pregnancies with earth up-heaving consequences, never mind leaping in the womb with gladness! If you haven't seen the Magnificat in Eugene Peterson's "The Message" get right on it. It begins,
"I'm bursting with God-news;
I'm dancing the song of my Savior God.
God took one good look at me, and look what happened --
I'm the most fortunate woman on earth!"
Peterson's take on familiar words will give you fresh ears to hear how Mary saw her perhaps unwanted pregnancy as having the possibility of turning the world upside down. Is this what happens when we come to see God's work in our own lives and the lives of our children? How can tyrants of any kind have power over us when we have such an intimate relationship with the creative power of the universe?
December 13, 2009 Advent 3 Year C
I am not preaching on Sunday so here is a short sermon from a few years back on the Philippians reading.
May you always be joyful in your union with the Lord. I say it again: rejoice! Show a gentle attitude toward everyone. The Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart. And God's peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4 7 GNB).
How on earth can we rejoice always? Is the Apostle Paul not aware of the suffering in the world? Are we hearing in these words Paul or Pollyanna? Is life so simple that we just need to look on the sunny side, always on the sunny side, look on the sunny side of life? Should we all go around humming "Don’t worry, be happy"?
Surely the Apostle Paul doesn’t know life as we know it, with all its suffering, misery and pain. Surely he doesn’t know about baby=s starving to death around the world, about child abuse and domestic violence.
Or does he? Biblical times are violent times – just as much and probably more violent than our times. People suffer, babies die. Life is tough, then as now.
Maybe Paul is encouraging us all to be masochists, to enjoy our suffering? Like ascetics relishing how much they were suffering for God. But I suspect not.
Or was he telling us to simply ignore suffering and focus on heaven? You know the old promise – there’ll be pie in the sky when you die by and by. So find joy in the distant heavenly future and ignore the plight of the present.
Well, the Apostle Paul if nothing else is a realist who knows suffering and despair. That is why he gives his life to the message, taking the message of Christ throughout the Mediterranean.
And that is why he ends up in prison sentenced to death.
And it is in prison that Paul writes these words. Imagine you are in jail and facing certain death. Would these be the words you write to your friends? ". . . Rejoice! Show a gentle attitude toward everyone. The Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything . . ."
But Paul writes more than that. He doesn’t just say rejoice, he says rejoice in your union with the Lord. In other words, know that God is with you in your suffering and you will know joy.
And he doesn’t just say, "don't worry, be happy!" He says, "Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart."
He encourages us not to waste time worrying, which we all do, but instead do two things, first, give thanks for what you have, and then ask for what you really need.
Give thanks in prayer and ask for what you truly need. Whether you get what you need or not you will get what you really need and that is the peace which comes from being united with Christ, the union in which we rejoice.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. Thanks be to God.
May you always be joyful in your union with the Lord. I say it again: rejoice! Show a gentle attitude toward everyone. The Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart. And God's peace, which is far beyond human understanding, will keep your hearts and minds safe in union with Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4 7 GNB).
How on earth can we rejoice always? Is the Apostle Paul not aware of the suffering in the world? Are we hearing in these words Paul or Pollyanna? Is life so simple that we just need to look on the sunny side, always on the sunny side, look on the sunny side of life? Should we all go around humming "Don’t worry, be happy"?
Surely the Apostle Paul doesn’t know life as we know it, with all its suffering, misery and pain. Surely he doesn’t know about baby=s starving to death around the world, about child abuse and domestic violence.
Or does he? Biblical times are violent times – just as much and probably more violent than our times. People suffer, babies die. Life is tough, then as now.
Maybe Paul is encouraging us all to be masochists, to enjoy our suffering? Like ascetics relishing how much they were suffering for God. But I suspect not.
Or was he telling us to simply ignore suffering and focus on heaven? You know the old promise – there’ll be pie in the sky when you die by and by. So find joy in the distant heavenly future and ignore the plight of the present.
Well, the Apostle Paul if nothing else is a realist who knows suffering and despair. That is why he gives his life to the message, taking the message of Christ throughout the Mediterranean.
And that is why he ends up in prison sentenced to death.
And it is in prison that Paul writes these words. Imagine you are in jail and facing certain death. Would these be the words you write to your friends? ". . . Rejoice! Show a gentle attitude toward everyone. The Lord is coming soon. Don't worry about anything . . ."
But Paul writes more than that. He doesn’t just say rejoice, he says rejoice in your union with the Lord. In other words, know that God is with you in your suffering and you will know joy.
And he doesn’t just say, "don't worry, be happy!" He says, "Don’t worry about anything, but in all your prayers ask God for what you need, always asking him with a thankful heart."
He encourages us not to waste time worrying, which we all do, but instead do two things, first, give thanks for what you have, and then ask for what you really need.
Give thanks in prayer and ask for what you truly need. Whether you get what you need or not you will get what you really need and that is the peace which comes from being united with Christ, the union in which we rejoice.
In life, in death, in life beyond death, God is with us. Thanks be to God.
Thursday, November 26, 2009
Second Sunday in Advent, Year C, December 6 09
This Sunday's readings are:
Malachi 3:1-4 or Baruch 5:1-9 • Luke 1:68-79 • Philippians 1:3-11 • Luke 3:1-6
I have to say right off that I am partial to the Baruch reading over Malachi -- it has more "juice" and is not heard much in Protestant circles. We don't include the Apocrypha in our bibles like the Roman church does. I guess I am partial to the imagery -- preferring to dress up for a great occasion (the coming of God's peace) instead of being refined in the fire. Am I avoiding suffering again? I hope so!
Instead of a psalm from the Book of Psalms, this Sunday we have a psalm from the Gospel of Luke. This time it is Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, who bursts forth into song. He has been mute since refusing to believe the messenger (angel) Gabriel who announces that Zech's aging wife, Elizabeth, would give birth, not just to a child but a prophet. When he acknowledges that he and Elizabeth will break the tradition of naming their child after a family member by calling him "John," his voice is restored and he sings this prophetic song. He also breaks the tradition of the father being the giver of the name (Luke 1: 59-60).
In the Letter to the Philippians Paul is obviously grateful for this congregation he is writing to. For me the key verses are at the end:
"For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God." (NRSV, vs. 8-11)
Accurate or not I like to think of "pure and blameless" as being free from the urge to cast blame on either others or self and just be responsible. It is hard to argue with knowledgeable and insightful love overflowing. Love doesn't overflow unless we are filled with it first, and there is way too much naive and blind love out there. We often think of love as being wild and impetuous. Here Paul states his preference for a more studied approach to love.
John the Baptist should not be " one crying in the wilderness" but, as one of my OT profs taught, "one crying, 'In the wilderness prepare the way." The difference is subtle, perhaps only one of emphasis. It is in the wilderness of our lives, however, that we need a way, a road, even a barely discernible path!
By clearly stating who the agents of the Roman Empire and the religious establishment were at the time, Luke is not just helping us date the ministry of John but also painting a picture of the exact wilderness Israel was in the middle of and looking for a way out.
This is a serious and important Sunday for women as we mark the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre. The massacre symbolizes in a very clear way the part of the wilderness we are in today. Will there ever be peace on earth as long as men treat women as objects? Or as long as we (men and women) must have a target for our pain and frustration instead of finding more therapeutic and redemptive avenues of deliverance?
Malachi 3:1-4 or Baruch 5:1-9 • Luke 1:68-79 • Philippians 1:3-11 • Luke 3:1-6
I have to say right off that I am partial to the Baruch reading over Malachi -- it has more "juice" and is not heard much in Protestant circles. We don't include the Apocrypha in our bibles like the Roman church does. I guess I am partial to the imagery -- preferring to dress up for a great occasion (the coming of God's peace) instead of being refined in the fire. Am I avoiding suffering again? I hope so!
Instead of a psalm from the Book of Psalms, this Sunday we have a psalm from the Gospel of Luke. This time it is Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist, who bursts forth into song. He has been mute since refusing to believe the messenger (angel) Gabriel who announces that Zech's aging wife, Elizabeth, would give birth, not just to a child but a prophet. When he acknowledges that he and Elizabeth will break the tradition of naming their child after a family member by calling him "John," his voice is restored and he sings this prophetic song. He also breaks the tradition of the father being the giver of the name (Luke 1: 59-60).
In the Letter to the Philippians Paul is obviously grateful for this congregation he is writing to. For me the key verses are at the end:
"For God is my witness, how I long for all of you with the compassion of Christ Jesus. And this is my prayer, that your love may overflow more and more with knowledge and full insight to help you to determine what is best, so that in the day of Christ you may be pure and blameless, having produced the harvest of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ for the glory and praise of God." (NRSV, vs. 8-11)
Accurate or not I like to think of "pure and blameless" as being free from the urge to cast blame on either others or self and just be responsible. It is hard to argue with knowledgeable and insightful love overflowing. Love doesn't overflow unless we are filled with it first, and there is way too much naive and blind love out there. We often think of love as being wild and impetuous. Here Paul states his preference for a more studied approach to love.
John the Baptist should not be " one crying in the wilderness" but, as one of my OT profs taught, "one crying, 'In the wilderness prepare the way." The difference is subtle, perhaps only one of emphasis. It is in the wilderness of our lives, however, that we need a way, a road, even a barely discernible path!
By clearly stating who the agents of the Roman Empire and the religious establishment were at the time, Luke is not just helping us date the ministry of John but also painting a picture of the exact wilderness Israel was in the middle of and looking for a way out.
This is a serious and important Sunday for women as we mark the anniversary of the Montreal Massacre. The massacre symbolizes in a very clear way the part of the wilderness we are in today. Will there ever be peace on earth as long as men treat women as objects? Or as long as we (men and women) must have a target for our pain and frustration instead of finding more therapeutic and redemptive avenues of deliverance?
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