St John of the Cross and the Spiritual Canticle

Dearest e-votees,

Today is the day in the year set aside to commemorate St. John of the Cross.  I have been exploring some of his life story and his writings today.  One of his writings is the Spiritual Canticle which is a poetic allegory.

I was caught by one particular stanza.  Perhaps it will captivate you as well.  Peace,

Karl

+ + +

You can read the entire Spiritual Canticle at: St. John of the Cross: Spiritual Canticle of the Soul and the Bridegroom Christ - Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org)  I was particularly captured by stanza 15:

XV

The tranquil night

At the approaches of the dawn

The silent music,

The murmuring solitude,

The supper which revives, and enkindles love.

Advent is a time of darkness and still.  A tranquil night if you will.  We wait during the long nights of winter.  Nights when the snow sucks up the sound and maybe all we hear is the crunching snow underfoot.  We wait for warmth.  We wait for light.  We long to hear music, song, speech, noises of any sort.

We know the dawn is coming.  It comes every day.  It comes every year with the spring.  It comes at the end of all time with the full consummation with the promises of God coming to fruition.  We long for the awaited spring to come.  We long for the warming sun to rise.  We long for the Son to come as promised.

We know the rhythm and cadence of silence.  We know solitude.  We know sanctuaries and worship services shuttered out of an abundance of caution during a pandemic.  We long for music to break the silence.  We long for the song a robin in springtime.  We long for singing choirs of angels.  We long to gather as faith communities to sing of God's promises and our hopes and dreams at the coming reign of God.

We may find ourselves in solitude but we can't stay there.  We hear the murmuring within our own soul.  We long to murmur with others.  We long for the icy winter to thaw and for babbling brooks to give voice to the hope of spring.  We stand graveside longing for life to spring forth.  We know the dead of winter but know, too, the new life of spring.

We know of the power of communal meals.  Holiday feasts sustain our souls.  Shared laughter and drink with friend feeds us to our core.  Gathering around the promises and the incarnation of communion draws us to pools of grace and heals our hurts.  This supper revives.  This supper enkindles love.

Dear God, we thank you for the lyrical verses and images of St. John of the Cross.  Help us await the bridegroom.  Help us rest, look, pray and linger our way through Advent.  Revive us and enkindle love.  Amen.

Speaking and Singing Word to One Another

 Dearest e-votees,  

Today is a day set aside in the church to commemorate Ambrose, the bishop of Milan.

Ambrose is credited with the innovation of singing hymns antiphonally.  (One person sings part of the psalm and the gathered group responds with the next portion or the antiphon).

Many worship services to this day practice responsive reading or singing as a way to share in God's word together.  

Peace,

Karl

+ + +

There are lots of ways to confess our sins and to be assured of God's forgiveness.  Confession and absolution are important parts of our worship services.  Often the congregation as a whole confesses and the pastor offers a word of absolution.  That is good and salutary.  Sometimes the weight and burden of the guilt lead one to offer confession in a one-on-one setting with an offended party or with a member of the clergy.  The words of absolution from one who has been wronged or on behalf of the church and God through a called minister are also good and salutary.

But what speaks quite powerfully to me and through me is when a community practices responsive confession and forgiveness.  Part of the gathered community offers a word of confession.  The other part of the gathered community receives that confession and then speaks a word of forgiveness and absolution.  Immediately thereafter the groups switch parts so that all confess and all speak forgiveness.  I like this because it powerfully embodies for me the mutual consolation of the saints.  All of us are sinners and need to confess.  All of us are called to speak forgiveness and good news to those who seek comfort in the gospel.  

I am not a big fan of hierarchy and power differentials.  When people come into the church looking for the boss I often quip that I'm middle management.  I may have the honor, privilege and responsibility of serving in an ordained capacity but I am just as desperately in need of grace and forgiveness as anyone else.  

The responsive confession and forgiveness feels good and right to me.  Please know that you are a beloved child of God and forgiven this day.  If you see me around please remind me of those things as well.  

Dear God, shape us into your people as we speak and sing your words between ourselves.  Help us bear one another well and bear you well to one another.  Amen.

Giant Disruptions in Our High Holy Seasons

 Dearest e-votees-

One of the things that has been on my bucket list for a while is to watch all 123 of the American Film Institute's top 100 movies of all time.  (There are 123 because they made their original list in 1998 and then revised it in 2007).  You can see the lists summarized here. Being the cinephile I am I have assembled all of these 123 movies into a collection that fits neatly into a cabinet I am working my way through.  This pandemic has opened up some time to make progress on this project.

Part of the joy of this is seeing movies I would never have picked out by myself.  It is good for us to be challenged, blessed and interrupted by the tastes and expertise of others.  This week I found myself watching Giant (Giant (1956) - IMDb).

Peace,

Karl

+ + + 

Somewhere in the midst of this 200-minute western epic is a Thanksgiving scene.  It is actually two Thanksgiving scenes that contrast one another.  The main couple are having some stresses in their marriage.  They are having Thanksgiving apart.  She and the three children are with her family having dinner.  The children had befriended Pablo the turkey and were traumatized when he was served on a platter for the holiday feast.  The children are inconsolable.  He is at his sprawling cattle ranch in Texas with his own turkey and no one to share it with.

These scenes struck me deeply this year.  Many of us are having what are normally high holy days filled with family and food in a much more constrained way separated by miles and concerns over health.  Some of us are suffering strains on relationships due to distance or extreme proximity that are stressful and hard.  Some of us are deeply traumatized (over all manner of circumstance) and may well find ourselves inconsolable.

For years and years we have been offered a picture of Thanksgiving as a feast of fellowship with family and friends.  Images of pilgrims and original peoples breaking bread together challenge us to live up to higher ideals that transcend current cultural and racist divisions.  A major theme of the movie Giant deals with relationships between Texans and Mexicans; between current squatters and original peoples.  We all know at some level that Thanksgiving isn't a holy day without blemish.

Most of us fall somewhere between the Rockwellian images of family feasts and abundant tables and the gritty reality of wresting away control of a "new" land from current occupants.  Most of us long for deep family connections and warm encounters but know the disconnects and chills that come through pandemics and festering arguments and seething political divisions that divide us.  Most of us long for tears of joy and stirred hearts but can also relate to those other tears of the inconsolability of the broken ways of our own sin and the sins of others.

As we linger in the afterglow of Thanksgiving and lean into the glow of the Advent candles and the hearth of Christmas I hope and pray for joy and peace for you and your family.  May you find consolation as needed in the abiding love of our Lord and Savior, Jesus.  Maybe you be surprised by grace and whimsy in unexpected places as this year continues along in new and unfamiliar forms.  May the disruptions and interruptions bless you and draw you closer to one another and to God.

God, have your way in us.   Help us love you well and reflect you to others.  Amen.

The Audacity of a Single Thankful Heart

 Dearest e-votees,

As you well know tomorrow is the day set aside for Thanksgiving here in the United States (our neighbors to the north already had their day on October 12).  President Abraham Lincoln set aside the last Thursday of November to be that national day set aside for giving thanks.

You may not know that there are daily texts set aside for the commemoration of Thanksgiving.  The gospel text is the cleansing of the 10 people with leprosy in Luke 17:11-19.

I hope and pray you find yourself in a place surrounded by friends and family (in person or through the interwebber), with ample food on your plate and ample gratitude in your heart.

Blessed Thanksgiving to you and yours.

Peace,

Karl

+ + +

Leprosy (whatever exactly it was in Biblical times, not necessary what we would classify as leprosy today) was a malady that caused separation.  Those with leprosy would be cut off from those who did not have it.  They may have been isolated into separate communities or colonies. They may have abided by the regulations spelled out in Leviticus 13:45-46 to greet people crying "Unclean!  Unclean!" and living outside the camp.  There is quite a bit of attention devoted to leprosy in the 13th chapter of Leviticus.  And the upshot is that if you have leprosy it is not good news for your ability to defy social distancing and to flourish in community.

Jesus was passing between Samaria and Galilee (that is to say between Gentile territory and Jewish territory--that is to say between an "us" and a "them") and he encounters people who are living in between.  Perhaps as ones suffering from leprosy that have been rejected by both "us" and "them"--they are in some sense an über-them (outsiders to all).  Normally Samaritans and Jews wouldn't associate.  But in their mutual malady these 10 lepers had blended across that social divide.  There were 9 Jews and one Samaritan.  

Jesus tells them to go an show themselves to the priests (see Leviticus 13) and they go.  Presumably the 9 Jews go one way and the 1 Samaritan goes the other way to their respective priests.  All 10 of them demonstrate some faith as they leave before having been healed.  It is in the journey that they are healed.  Only the Samaritan, however, after realizing what had happened turned back towards Jesus to give thanks.  Jesus offers praise for the Samaritan's actions.  

We are living in a time chock-full of "us"s and "them"s.  We all struggle with maladies (self-inflicted and from without).  We all need cleansing and healing.  Jesus comes into the world to do just that.  All of us are able to be made clean by Jesus.  Will we follow where he leads and answer his call?  And when we see ourselves being made well--being salved, being saved--do we turn to Jesus and offer thanks and praise?  Jesus invites us to turn from our ways that do not honor God and to give thanks.  Abraham Lincoln offer the same sort of call in his Thanksgiving proclamation.  Today God still calls us to be a people of repentance and gratitude.  Will we?  Are we able to hear Jesus speak to us as he did to the lone grateful one:  Rise and go your way, your faith has made you well?

Dear God, be with us wherever "our way" takes us.  Stir up your faith and your healing in us.  Help us never stop thanking you.  Amen.

Thankfulness

Dearest e-votees,

One of my favorite Biblical passages is Philippians 1:3-6:

3 I thank my God every time I remember you, 4 constantly praying with joy in every one of my prayers for all of you, 5 because of your sharing in the gospel from the first day until now. 6 I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work among you will bring it to completion by the day of Jesus Christ. (NRSV)

It seems a good passage to linger with as we lean into Thanksgiving.

Peace,

Karl

+ + +

When I studied Philippians at seminary it was in a class called Prison Epistles.  This is one of Paul's letters that we believe was written while he was imprisoned.  It is likely towards the end of his life when he is nearing his martyrdom from the business end of a Roman sword.

As Paul reflects on this relationship with the saints at Philippi he has two responses:  thankfulness and sustained prayer.  Think about the sustained relationships you have throughout your life.  Are you able to give thanks for those people every time you remember them?  I wish I was as gracious and loving as Paul holds himself out to be.  Do you constantly remember with you in all your prayers for those people?  Again, I wish I was as gracious and loving as Paul holds himself out to be.  Sometimes I suspect that Paul might be overselling himself.  Nonetheless verses 3 and 4 serve as aspirational goals for me in any community in which I find myself--particularly faith communities that I am blessed to serve.

What truly resonates with me in this passage is verse 6.  Paul expresses steadfast confidence that the one who began a good work among you (I believe this to be God, not the mission-planter Paul) will bring it to completion.  When a baby (or an adult convert for that matter) is baptized God begins a good work which will be brought to completion.  When someone engages the work of reconciliation God is in that work and it will be brought to completion (at least to do the good that the effort can if not 100% reconciliation).  When we wrestle in fervent prayer, seek to see Christ in our neighbors and those who aren't our neighbors yet, step further along the costly path of discipleship those faith endeavors (begun by God) will be brought to completion.  

I want you to know:  I thank God for you.  I thank God for God's stirrings in your life that will be brought to completion.  When I pray for you (which is never enough, let alone constantly) I give thanks and find joy.  Have a blessed celebration of Thanksgiving (whether incarnational or virtual) with friends and loved ones.  You are a blessing.  I see the image of God (imago dei) in you.

Peace and blessings,

Karl

Calendars out of synch

 Dearest e-votees,

I don't know about you but keeping track of time on the calendar and routines during the day has been challenging.  Normal rhythms have been out-of-whack for quite a while.  Day blurs into night blurs into day.  Weekdays blur into weekend blur into week.  Sabbath time looks very different than it used to.  The changing clocks just add another level of detachment.  It feels like I am living in chapter 2 of Slaughterhouse 5:  "Billy Pilgirm has come unstuck in time".

How about you do you have your chronological and routine moorings?

Peace,

Karl

- - - - - -

Another piece of the "Where am I and what time is it?" conundrum is the fact that the church and the world work on very different calendars.   Our church year ends this Sunday with Christ the King Sunday.  The world has another 43 days until the big ball drops in Times Square.

The church enters into a season of Advent at the tail end of November which leads all the way up to Christmas Eve.  The radio stations and stores started trimming the shelves and decking the aisles with Christmas paraphernalia weeks ago.  People have swapped out their spooky lawn decorations for Christmas bits (although there are some staunch owners of inflatable turkeys who won't let Thanksgiving pass by unnoticed).  The isolation, extra-time and pent-up energy are causing some to over-function even more than usual in terms of holiday decorating.  At least most places aren't as out of control at the mall in 'It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown" which has a Christmas Display labeled 246 shopping days until Christmas.

The point of all of this is that we are always being pressed upon with competing calendars, schedules, priorities and deadlines.  Work and play, friends and family, holy and secular.  It can be very stress-inducing and detrimental to all of those realms of our life even in the best of times.  These, it seems, aren't the best of times.  Layer a pandemic, various levels of lockdown and constraint and the craziness of an election that won't seem to stay within the bounds of normal election dates and all of us become a little unstuck in time.

I don't get all bent out of shape about Christmas oozing over and past Advent.  Some churches are even having an extended time of Advent this year to help cope with the distancing of the pandemic.  If it is helpful to fire up the Hallmark movies and the holiday music for your soul you'll find no objection from me.

My hope and prayer for all of us is that we will let Jesus help us find our bearings and grounding during this disorienting time of shifting sands of time.  Michael Card, in "The Final Word" spoke of Jesus as eternity stepping into time so we can understand.  I have always resonated with that turn of the phrase.  In the fluidity of our schedules or lack thereof may we find some time to let Jesus come in to bring direction, grounding and understanding in the ways that matter most.

God, we invite you.  Come into our lives in your time and in your way.  Help us be gracious to others on different calendars and different levels of unstuckness in time.  You are our Rock and our Redeemer.  Help us rest in and cling to you amidst all the churning around us.  Amen

Blessed All Saints Day Eve to you and yours

Dearest e-votees,

For those of you who observe Halloween--happy Halloween!  I hope you have a safe and good time making memories with those you love.

Tomorrow is All Saints Sunday.  It is a day set aside in the church year to commemorate our blessed dead.

Peace,

Karl

- - - - -

Here is our appointed 2nd reading in the Revised Common Lectionary (aka RCL) comes from 1st John 3:1-3:

1See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. 3And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. (NRSV)

God has called us God's children.  We have been adopted, welcomed and grafted into the family of God.  In baptism we are reborn as children of God.  

Part of the work of family is to commemorate and celebrate our blessed dead.  We got to where we are today (successes and wrinkles both) through the legacy of our families.  Our forefathers and foremothers have shaped us into our very selves.  Everything we have comes as gift from the hands of a gracious God and often conveyed through our family members.

If we have had great success we do well to paraphrase Sir Isaac Newton:  If we have seen further it is because we have stood on the shoulders of giants (read giants as our foremothers and forefathers).

As you remember, celebrate, commemorate, grieve and however else recognize those who have gone before you, biologically and spiritually, I invite you to light a candle, ring a bell and say a prayer of thanks for who they were and how they've helped you to become.

God, thank you for all those who have preceded us.  Help us never forget them and look forward to when we will be reunited with them again.  In the strong name of Jesus we pray.  Amen.

Eve of Reformation: Justified by Grace

 Dearest e-votees, 

I hope and pray that this e-vo finds you happy and well.  It is the night before Reformation Sunday.  I have been looking forward to this worship service for a while now.  It is a festive day for our expression of faith and it will be good to gather in the parking lot once again with the saints of Messiah.  I hope and pray you have somewhere good to gather in worship.  If you are so inclined we will be streaming a version of this service on Facebook at a watch party this coming Thursday (October 29, 7:00 EST).  You are welcome to join us if you are free and so inclined.  

Peace, 

Karl 

- - - - - - - - 

One of the key insights that was perhaps re-discovered and certainly lifted up by Martin Luther and the other reformers is the central concept that we are saved by grace (pure gift from God) and not by the works we do.  For those of you who watch "The Good Place" this concept would certainly undo one of the underlying drivers of the show.

We believe that there isn't a running odometer ticking off our good deeds.  Neither is their a sin-o-meter tracking our demerits.  The truth is that we can't begin to do enough good and shun enough evil to save ourselves.  All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God as Paul wrote in the 3rd chapter of Romans.  And even if we could do enough good--which we can't--if we're doing it merely to save our sorry skins than it isn't such an altruistic endeavor after all.  Our old Adams and old Eves are always quick to do something for our own sake and to point an accusing finger at a nearby snake or spouse or whoever else falls into our crosshairs. "The Good Place" really is an interesting look into some of our more primal and self-serving motivations.  You might want to give it a watch some time. 

This isn't to say that good works don't matter.  How we respond to God is crucially important.  How we respond to neighbor is crucially important.  Jesus says the whole law and the prophets can be fulfilled  by loving God and loving neighbor.  At one point in scripture it even includes the psalms (Luke 24:44) among the things fulfilled in the ministry of Jesus.

We couldn't do what was required--Jesus could and did.  We can't do what is required today on our own (we are still sinners and fall short of the glory of God) without God's help.  We do good works not to earn God's favor--not attainable--but rather as a way to thank God and serve neighbor in response to God.

My wife has a Bonhoeffer quote in her pastor's study--"Salvation is free but discipleship will cost you everything" by Dietrich Bonhoeffer.  We can't earn the healing.  We can't earn the right standing.  We can't earn God's favor.  It comes to us as a free gift (which cost Jesus everything).  But we can learn and grow in following in the ways of Jesus.  We can become disciples.  We can take up our crosses and follow after Jesus.  If we do it will cost us everything.  That's what it means to grow in the likeness of Jesus.

I hope and pray you have a blessed celebration of the Reformation.  May God's grace and free salvation bless you again and again.  Blessings as you allow God to grow you in the likeness of Christ.  That is, after all, what it means to be a Christian.

Dear God, have your way in our lives.  Teach us to stop trying to please you in order for a reward.  Help us to accept the give and learn to do as you please as our humble way of saying "Thank you.".  Amen.

Jesus the master of Kobayashi Maru

Dearest e-votees,

This Sunday's gospel lesson sure seems like the world hasn't advanced very far in the last two millennia.

Jesus is approached by Pharisees and Herodians (a very unholy alliance) and they seek to capture him in his words with yet another "Gotcha!" question.  

They simply ask if it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not.  If he says "yes" then the religious leaders can point out Jesus supporting the occupying force of the Romans and write him off as one who sides with the enemy.  If he says "no" then he can be turned over to the Romans as one undermining the "Pax Romana" (see meditation in 10-14 Taize worship service).  No matter how Jesus answers he is trapped.  For you Trekkies is is really a Kobayashi Maru.  Yet Jesus, aware of their malice, channels his inner James T. Kirk and escapes the inescapable.

Peace,

Karl

- - - - - -

The trap of the Pharisees and the Herodians is that implied in their question are two competing human loyalties--the emperor and to one's people.  By forcing Jesus to pick one they were trying to force him to antagonize the other.  

Jesus rewrites the question by taking out of the human realm (are you loyal to the person of the emperor or the people of your heritage?) and elevating to a higher authority (are you remembering a Hebrew National ad campaign just about now?).  

He essentially says do whatever you will in terms of your questions about loyalty to people.  But never forget loyalty to God.  Whatever is God's (and what isn't?) ought to be rendered to God.  Neither the Pharisees nor the Herodians would ever suggest withholding from God what is God's.  Check mate.

Jesus has danced out of their snare and got to the crux of the matter.  Soon, in the gospel of Matthew, he will get to the crux of the crux.  Good Friday is looming.  He will have other opportunities to bow to Herod and Pontius Pilate coming soon but he will defer his loyalty to God.  He will give to God what is God's which will release that to us too.

What things of human origin seek to unduly distract and ensnare us?  What "emperors" are coming after us wanting their fare share?  Can we learn a little something from Jesus here?  For God's sake I hope so. 

Dear God, rescue us from the snares set in our paths.  Give us focus and courage to put you above others.  Thank you for all you give us.  Help us return to you with faith and gratitude.    Amen.

Philippians 3:10-11

Dearest e-votees,  

Our appointed epistle lesson from this Sunday comes from Paul's letter to the community of  believers in Philippi.  In a letter that is full of powerful, deep and resonant themes and quotations is the following verse:

I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

Paul is at a place in his life and ministry where his imminent death is certainly becoming more apparent.  He doesn't shy away from that fate but rather embraces it.

When we are facing a literal or metaphorical death in our own lives, our work, our relationships, our vocations and our avocations, our social, political or religious contexts how do we respond?  Might Paul have something to teach us? 

Peace,

Karl 

---- 

Jesus calls on his followers to take up their crosses and follow after them.  That is not a call to comfort, wealth and undisturbed existence despite the turmoil and woundedness in the world.

Jesus came to do a work in the world.  It required confronting religious and political leaders.  It required seeking justice and healing for those who had been neglected, dismissed and ostracized.  It required calling out hypocrisy and holding up a mirror to those around him then and to us to this very day.

When we abide the call to take up our crosses and follow after Jesus we are called to come and die (as was brilliantly expounded upon by Bonhoeffer in The Cost of Discipleship).  In baptism our old Adams and our old Eves are brought to be drowned so that our new Adams and our new Eves could be raised.  In our daily lives of faith and discipleship we are called to repentance (to allow that which must to die in order to bring to life that which should come to life).  Our concern is not for our own welfare alone but for our neighbor as well.  We can't love God fully if we ignore neighbor.  We can't fully love ourselves if we ignore neighbor.  If we want to grow into Jesus' work of fulfilling the law, the prophets and the psalms we have to love God more fully and loving our neighbor and ourselves more fully.

Jesus laid down his life fully and completely for the sake of the world, for the sake of his friends and for the sake of all--those in the mainstream and those on the fringes.  We are called to engage in this work as well.  And in doing so we just may see Jesus' resurrection power at work in us--literally and metaphorically.

Lord of life, bring us to the deaths that we must endure.  Work your resurrection power in us that we might have life and be bearers of that life and resurrection hope in the world.  Thank you for the call towards the cross.  Amen.

St. Francis' Call to Action

Dearest e-votees,

Saint Francis of Assissi is quoted as having said:  "Preach the gospel, use words if necessary."  What he seems to be saying is that actions speak louder than words.  What he seems to be saying is that if you have to choose between action and words--go for action.  What he seems to be saying is that words aren't always necessary.

Saint Francis leads well into the parable in this Sunday's appointed gospel reading:  Matthew 21:28-32.

Peace,

Karl

+ + +

Jesus speaks, in the hearing of the chief priests and the elders and the crowds that he had been teaching, a parable of a man and his two sons.

He tells one of his sons to go in the field and work.  His son says "I will not" but then changes his mind and goes to work after all.  His words say "no" but his actions say "yes".

He tells the other one of his sons to go in the field and work.  This son says "I will go" but then changes his mind and doesn't go to work after all.  His words say "yes" but his inaction says "no".

Jesus pulls it all together with the question:  "Which of these two sons did the will of his father?"  The answer is the first.  The answer affirms that actions are more important with words.  

This parable leads Jesus to praise prostitutes and tax collectors who have come to a place of repentance (like the first son initially saying no with their actions and presumably their words, but the changing his mind ending with proper actions and hopefully their words).

This parable leaves religious leaders (chief priests and the elders) at the wrong end of the story.  They initially said yes with their words (and presumably their actions) but drifted away in a fashion that left them self-righteous, hypocritical and nasty.  Beyond all that, even when they saw the first sons (the tax collectors and the prostitutes) turn in repentance and change their actions they couldn't be bothered.  

This all reminds me of another story of a father and his two sons.  The elder son (the second son in the above parable) does what he should but has a hard and callous heart towards his younger brother.  He does the right things but says things that are ill-considered.  His actions started well but fell apart and it took his soul along with them.

The younger son (the first son in the above parable) doesn't do what he should.  He speaks horribly telling his dad he's as good as dead to him and makes his way off with his part of the inheritance.  While away he has a change of heart.  He comes to a place of repentance.

The father (cipher for God) loves both sons (in both parables) but is truly pleased by those whose actions come around as they live into repentance.  God runs in the Luke 15 story (not what dignified patriarchs do).  He wants the elder brother to rejoice with him.  But his heart is in too hard a place--for now at least.

Dear God, help us live lives that bring glory to you and joy to people we encounter.  Help us rejoice in repentance and refrain from hypocritical judgment of others.  Help us preach the gospel with actions.  Help us speak words that match those actions and offer others hope as well.  Amen.

Gotcha Moments and Driving Authority

 Dearest e-votees-  

I don't know if you noticed (probably have) but there is a rather vicious political climate with adversaries seeking to take down one another with ensnaring questions, sound bites and slanted coverage.  The closer we get to the election, towards milestone numbers of deaths due to COVID-19 and to sorting out what to do with a recently vacated Supreme Court seat the more vicious and devolved the interactions become.  What we need is level-heads, selfless and courageous discerning and communication and efforts that transcend the party and state lines.  What we have seems to be markedly different if not diametrically opposed.

If only we were back in the good old days of Jesus' time--a kindler simpler time when folks didn't resort to such chicanery--oh wait, that's not how it was.

Peace,

Karl

+ + +

In this Sunday's appointed Gospel text the chief priests and elders approach Jesus and ask:  "By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?"  (see Matthew 21:23)  Their authority is being threatened by Jesus and his ministry of healing, restoration and the ushering in of the reign of heaven.  Perhaps they are trying to find out the exact nature of the authority that empowers Jesus and threatens them.  Perhaps they're hoping to find a point of accusation or an Achilles' heel by which to take down Jesus.  If they can catch Jesus with an incriminating sound bite perhaps they can put him aside.  

Jesus is well aware of the games that are at play.  His ministry seemed full of people trying to catch him in a trap of one sort or another:  “Teacher, this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.  Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” (The Scribes and the Pharisees in John 8:4-5)  “Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?" (collectors of the Temple tax in Matthew 17:24)  "Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality.  Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?”  (Pharisees and Herodians in Matthew 22:16-17).

Jesus manages, as he often does, to turn around the moment of decision onto those seeking to entrap him.  In the case of the woman taken in adultery he forces those present to figure out who is sufficiently sinless to cast the first stone (spoiler alert:  none of them).  In the case of paying taxes to the emperor or not he forces them to consider what ultimately belongs to God and what ultimately belongs to Caesar.  In the case of the temple tax Jesus seems to give them a break and simply (well, not so simply) has Peter pay the tax for each of them with a 4 drachma coin drawn miraculously from the mouth of a fish drawn out of the nearby lake.  In this Sunday's case he forces those questioning him to answer where did the authority come from in the baptisms John performed:  from human origin or divine origin?  He stymies the chief priests and elders.

Maybe the better thought is to stop trying to trap Jesus and instead question and examine ourselves.  Where does our authority come from?  To what are we called?  Who gives us this calling?  How are we to live out that calling in a way that is loving, helpful and truthful and brings glory to God?  

The world around us may call out our lives and how we carry ourselves in the world.  We can engage in fruitless debates or we can rest in the assurance that the call on our lives comes from our God and through our baptisms.  We can seek to entrap others in our own "gotcha!" moments or we can allow our lives to be captivated by the love and grace of God.  We can struggle against God (and do about as well as those who tangled with Jesus) or we can pray and trust that God will equip us to engage in important struggles in the world against powers and principalities, injustices and bigotries.  What do you think?

God, help us learn from and trust in you.  Help us be loving and gracious to a world that often is not.  Stir us to live into the callings you have placed on our lives.  Amen.

Living into the Community of Romans 8:28

Dearest e-votees,  

This Sunday's appointed Old Testament text is the reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers.  Joseph, as you will recall, was the favored son of the dozen of Jacob's brood(s).  He was lavished with a coat of many colors.  He had dreams of his brothers and parents falling down in adoration of him.  

At some point the brothers decided to push him down a pit rather than fall at his feet.  The left him in a pit to perish until they saw another way.  They sold him into slavery (one connection with this week's gospel text).  

After many years there came a time of reckoning (another connection with this week's gospel text).  The brothers find themselves needing to go and seek assistance during a time of famine.  They find themselves in the very presence of the brother they sold off as a slave.  They were worried about retribution (still yet another connection with this week's gospel text).  Joseph speaks a gospel word when he says "Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good..."  I wonder how we might treat long-lost siblings who pawned us off for some spending money and some peace and quiet.  

Peace,  

Karl 

+ + +

Romans 8:28 says "We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose." (NRSV)

This doesn't say that all things that happen to us are good.  Clearly things beset us and we also bring things upon us that aren't good.  Traumas, afflictions and sins and their harmful consequences aren't good.

This doesn't say that all things that happen to us originate from God.  Free will, quantum probabilities and powers and principalities not aligned with God can cause all manner of events and consequences in our lives.

What this does say is that God is able to work towards good all things.  For those who love God--for those called according to God's purpose.

Let us assert that we are called according to God's purpose.  In baptism we are set aside with a calling to abide by God's purpose.  When we are in touch with who God has made us to be there is a purpose and a calling at work.  When others inspire us with glimpses of the divine there is a calling on us according to God's purpose.  We are called.  God's purposes are at work in the world.

So that leaves the question do we love God?  And if so, does that mean that things will always work out for good.  And if not, is it our fault that bad things happen to us and that they can't get resolved to a good end?  In other words, do we buy into a world where our love for God is the coinage and happy endings and good results are what is purchased through the vending machine?

This transactional approach with God is broken on so many levels.  If we love God it is only because God loved us first.  Even on our best days we can't love God the way God deserves to be loved.  Jesus affirms that to fulfill the Law and the Prophets we need to love God with all our heart, soul, strength and mind--and also to love our neighbors are we love ourselves.  An honest look in the mirror leads us to affirm that we can't love ourselves very well.  Consequently loving our neighbors as ourselves is exceedingly problematic.  And loving God, who we cannot see, is a dicey proposition.

Rather than focusing on what we do or don't do let's train our eyes and our hope on what God does.  In this account with Joseph and his brothers God softens Joseph's heart.  He is able to move past betrayal towards reconciliation.  He is able to lift his brothers and his father out of the hit they dug for themselves.  He is able to return blessing for curse, kiss for deathblow, hope for being cast into despair.

God can and will do that work in us too.  God loves us and so we grow, haltingly and falteringly, into loving God.  God calls us and gives us purpose and so we learn to trust and to lean into the future into which God beckons us.  God will bring good--even when we inflict harm on ourselves and others.  Jesus' prayers from the cross betray God's heart in the midst of us betraying Jesus.

Help us, dear Lord, be a people who live, claim and enflesh Romans 8:28.  Work your good in us and through us.  Help us be more like Joseph, more like Jesus, more like Stephen, more like you created us to be--all to your glory.  Amen.

Are We Unforgiving Servants?

Dear e-votees,  

This Sunday's appointed gospel text is Matthew 28:21-34. It is Jesus teaching about the unforgiving slave.  There are two amounts of money that are at play in this teaching.

The first amount is the astronomical amount that the first slave owed his master.  The amount in the Greek is 10,000 talents.  A talent is an amount of matter.  There were a variety of talents in the ancient world but 33 kg is a reasonable amount for us to use for the sake of this conversation.

10,000 talents x 33 kg/talent x 2.2 lbs/kg (assuming at the surface of the earth) x 16 oz/lb x $1,936.25/oz (from jmbullion.com) = $22,491,480,000.

100 denarii * 1 day's wage/1 denarius * 8 hours/work day (assumption) * $25.12 (average hourly wage in US in April 2020 according to tradingeconomics.com = $20,096.

In other words the first servant owed to the master 1,119,202 (rounded) times the amount that the second servant owed to him.

Peace,

Karl

- - - - - - - -

Thank you for letting me channel my former mathlete self in the calculations above.  The point of the parable is not exact numbers.  The point is that the amount the first servant owed to the master is astronomically huge in comparison to the relative trifle that was owed to him.  If you remember your PSAT/SAT/GRE type comparison questions the point is this:

[amount owed to master]:[amount owed from other servant]::[amount that God has forgiven us]:[amount that others could possibly owe us] 

We have perhaps been exceedingly forgiving towards others who have wronged us.  We may have forgiven what seems like an enormous amount.  We may not have been forgiving at all.  Probably somewhere more in the middle.  

Regardless of what we have forgiven it pales in comparison to what God has freely (free to us anyway, costly to God) forgiven us.  Until we can square up the cost of what God has forgiven us then we shouldn't worry about turning our attention towards what others owe us.  If we are tracking with this parable, however, we quickly realize that is a fool's errand.  We can never fully repay God. Therefore all we can do is strive to live in a way that blesses others in response to how much God has blessed us.  How did Paul say it last week at the end of our epistle lesson?  As yes, "Owe no one anything, except to love one another, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law." (Romans 13:8)

God shape us into people who are so aware and appreciative of the great measure of forgiveness and grace you have lavished on us that we spend our days learning to do that to others.  We pray this in the name of Jesus.  Amen.

The Debt to Love One Another

Dearest e-votees,

Our appointed epistle lesson for this coming Sunday comes from Romans 13:8-14.  

Paul writes that we should owe no one anything except to love one another.  Maybe I'll send this text along with my next payments to Discover, Chase, student loan servicing, etc., etc. and see what they say about wiping out my debts.  Then again maybe that's not really what Paul is getting at.  

Peace,

Karl

-----  

This text seems to have three strands:  

1.  Focus on what we owe others, not what they owe us.

It is understandable that we might want to make sure that we get our share--that we get at least as much as we give.  Since early childhood we have been steeped in what is fair.  We know that one sibling splits the cake and the other chooses which piece they want--make sure it is fair.  We know to watch what we get and watch what others get--make sure it is fair.  We know to watch and make sure that the rules aren't applied to our disadvantage (not always so vigilant in our advocacy when things are tilted in our favor).  But Paul, in this passage and in his life, is less worried about what he receives for himself but rather focused on those around him and if they are getting what they need.  Our baptismal call is to follow after Jesus.  Jesus spent his giving life to others while giving his life away--ultimately on the cross.  We are called to join in that journey.

2.  What we should seek to give to others is love.

There are all sorts of things we might give others.  Sometimes in is to satisfy some sense of justice in us.  Sometimes it is in hopes to making them beholden to us.  Sometimes it is to bring joy and delight into their lives.  Sometimes it is in the hope of stirring up friendly affections (perhaps with obligations, the Greek word for love fie-le-oh has some of those connotations).  Sometimes it is in hope of stirring up more passionate, sexual affections (the Greek word for love ehr-ohs has those connotations).  But the love we are called to give is ah-gah-pay (the Greek word for love that connotes a sacrificial love; a word more descriptive of the one doing the loving than the worthiness of the recipient of that love).  John 3:16:  For God so ah-gah-pay-ed the world...  There may be times, desires and needs to give gifts of all manner to those we care for but the ultimate thing we are called to give is ourselves in sacrificial love.  We give because it is life-giving and salutary to the recipient not because there might be anything or any return in it for us.

3.  The love God gives and wants us to give is not license for self-gratification but rather a call to take up our cross and lay down our lives for the sake of others.  

We have limited time and resources in this life.  We are called to use our freedoms, our privileges, our time, our talents and our treasures not in merely gratifying ourselves and our fleshly, turned-in impulses but rather to live into the salvation we have been given.  We are called to grow into the likeness of Christ and to offer hope, healing and love to all around us.  Jesus spent 3 short years in public ministry.  The disciples had relatively little time to do their work as well before 11 of the 12 died premature, human-caused deaths.  What are we doing with our comparatively lengthy and problem-free ministry contexts?  How are we helping to live into eternal life and help shape eternity for others as well?

God, help us know and live into your love.  Help us pour ourselves out in love to the world.  Help us pay our debt to Jesus, who paid our debts on the cross, by living out the calling and obligation to love others.  Amen.

August 23 "Who do you say that I am?"

Dearest e-votees,

Featured in this morning's gospel text is Jesus asking the disciples "But who do you say that I am?"  There are all sorts of ideas being floated about who people think Jesus is.  But Jesus isn't focusing on what the crowd may think but rather what the disciples are thinking and saying.

It sets the stage for Peter's bold confession of Jesus as the Messiah.  How would you answer that question were Jesus to ask you directly:  "Who do you say that I am?"

Peace,

Karl

------------

Peter answers Jesus' question well but Jesus said that he didn't do that on his own but through God speaking through him.  It is hard for us to discern on our own who this Jesus really is--particularly since we are so far removed geographically, culturally and temporally from the portion of earth where Jesus lived, died and lived again; ministered and taught.  We certainly need God's help and inspiration in order to respond to Jesus' question well.  

Maybe it would serve well, as well, to consider the question:  "Who does God say that I am?"  If you had to offer a response to who God has made you to be, loved you to be, called you to be what might you say?

• God says I am loved.
• God says I am forgiven.
• God says I was created in God's image (imago dei).
• God says I have been set free and released.
• God says I have been called and equipped.
• God says I have a hand as part of the church in loosing things on earth.
• God says I have a hand as part of the church in binding things on earth.
• God says I am part of the community with the Trinity.

What else might you add to this list that God says about you?

As we live into these things we become more open and able to have God more fully revealed to us.  We grow into knowing that Jesus is Messiah.  We grow into building our lives more fully around him and finding our life through him.

God, show us who you are.  God, show us who we are in you and through you.  Help us engage others that they may know the promises made to them by God and what there identity is and can be.  Amen.

August 18 Many Members Called to Be One Body

Dearest e-votees,

We are in a world that seems intent on fostering divisions between one group, one coalition, one party, one faction and another.  The upcoming election, the rabid partisan politics and the conventions that are afoot highlight the ever-widening gaps that separate us from others fashioned in the image of God.  Overt and systemic racism highlight those broken places too.  Sexism and all manner of -phobias do too.  We are a fractured species.

This coming Sunday's appointed epistle lesson from Romans 12:1-8.  It speaks of us all being members together of the body of Christ.  We are all gifted differently but part of that same one body.  We are not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought but regard ourselves with humility and sober judgment.  I would encourage you to give this brief reading your attention.  Sometimes the non-gospel readings fade into the background on Sunday worship services--much to our loss.

Peace,

Karl

--------------

The beginning of this Sunday's text urges us not to be conformed to this world but rather to be transformed in the renewing of our minds towards God's purposes.  I would expect that "mind" is more than just cerebral in the Greek.  I think it safe to say that in all of our facets--mind, body, spirit and soul--we would do well to let God transform us rather than be conformed to the world.

We live in a world that exerts great pressures on us.  Stresses, the need to survive, the desire to thrive (at least in the ways the world defines thriving) and social pressures force us into forms that reflect our fallen world.  When push comes to shove we can be coerced into the likeness of the world around us.  Truth be told, often we don't even need the force.  We buy into the models of the world and gladly heed the siren calls from Madison Avenue to emulate and exceed the achievements of our neighbors.  We covet in thought, word and deed--by what we do and what we neglect to do--we wound ourselves and grieve God.

1 Corinthians 12 is all about being part of a body bigger than ourselves.  It reminds us to value the function and contributions of other parts of the body in addition to our own.  It calls us to not let ourselves be separated and ranked and disproportionately esteemed.  Christ is our head and all of us have a God-given place to serve in the body.   There is no room for arrogance and self-serving judgment.

If we could take in and live our Romans 12 and 1 Corinthians 12 we would do well.  But it seems we always fall short.  So Paul follows up 1 Corinthians 12 with the chapter on love.  It is often taken on as a wedding text but it has so much more to say to us than to merely adorn a wedding bulletin or an embroidered pillow or wall hanging.  There is a most excellent way.  As our church letterhead says: Faith, hope, love… and the greatest of these is love - First Corinthians 13:13.  We are called to love--to love God, to love others as ourselves (which of course necessitates us having a healthy self-love as well).  As Burt Bacharach's song says so well:  What the world needs now is love, sweet love.  (If you haven't seen it or seen it enough you can see a virtual symphony singing this song at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QagzdvzzHBQ).

Lord, we and all those in the world need love, sweet love.  Thank you for sending Jesus.  Help us to grow into loving you and loving neighbor as self.  Heal the divisions in our body of humanity.  Heal the divisions in the body of Christ.  Help us to seek humility and self-reflect with sober judgment all to your glory.  Amen.

August 11 Psalm 67 God's Expansive Blessings

Dearest e-votees,

Our appointed Psalm for this coming Sunday, the 11th Sunday after Pentecost, is Psalm 67.

I encourage you to give it a read before we continue on with this devotion.  If you don't have a Bible handy you can read it in a variety of translations at www.biblegateway.com. Go ahead, this e-vo will be here when you get back.

Peace,

Karl

----------

What struck you as you read that psalm?  One of the things that catches me is how closely the opening verse:  May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face to shine upon us, (NRSV) aligns with the Aaronic Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26):  The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine up you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. (NRSV)   I have always loved speaking that blessing over the gathered saints at the end of a worship service.  They are the words that Aaron was instructed to speak over the Israelites.  These words carry gravitas and grace; benevolence and blessing.  

Psalm 67 makes the move to expand the Aaronic Blessing to stretch beyond the boundaries of the Israelite community to the ends of the world.  The move is from an egocentric blessing for just us to a blessing more akin to Tiny Tim's "God bless us everyone!"

At one time God's blessing and choosing seemed to be particularly for one people group.  Jesus even seems to speak to that end in this Sunday's appointed gospel lesson.  But the move has been that those who have been blessed are now sent and called to bring that blessing to bear on others.  How have you been blessed by God?  How might you be a bearer of that blessing to others that may happen your way or to whom God might send you?  

God of blessing and favor.  Thank you and send us.  And shape our hearts and minds to let others bear your blessings and favor to us as well.  God bless us everyone.  Amen.

August 6 "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Dearest e-votees,

What do you do with Jesus' question to Peter in the appointed gospel lesson for this Sunday "You of little faith, why did you doubt?"?  What tone do you imagine in Jesus' voice--compassion? anger? scolding? _________ (other)?  It is an interesting thought experiment as to what feelings and tones you would layer into Jesus' voice were you making a video of this scene.

Peace,

Karl

------------

Water was an ominous and primordial threat back in ancient times (maybe it still is based on the popularity of "Deadliest Catch", "Shark Week", "River Monsters", etc., etc.).  The waters were mysterious and treacherous and had who knows what lurking beneath the surface.  Peter as a fisherman would be well-acquainted with the dangers--both real and legendary--of the turbulent waters.

The sea of Galilee is known for strong squalls.  Relatively shallow waters and strong winds combine to make some life-threatening storms.  Matthew 8:23-27 gets at this primal fear.  The twelve disciples (four of home were professional fishing partners) are terrified that they are going to drown.  Meanwhile Jesus naps in the back of the boat.  Does he know something they(we) don't?

I have wandered around in cemeteries looking at the tombstones.  There are two that I have never forgotten.  One was a Scrabble board where the family has spelled out things like "brother", "loveab[]e" (love the use of a blank), "fiance", etc., etc.  (you can see it at https://www.themarysue.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/scrabbletombstone.jpg).  The other was a picture of a pair of hands sticking up out of the water communicating how that one had lost their life.  Peter was thinking of one of those tombstones while out on the water that day and it wasn't the one with Scrabble tiles.

Peter doubted because he knew the dangers of the sea.  Peter doubted because his speak-first-think-later ways had put him in a hazardous spot (probably not for the first time).  Peter doubted because he probably still wasn't sure if this was Jesus as opposed to some sea creature or spirit taking the form of Jesus.  Peter doubted because he is human and wasn't ready to meet his maker yet (though in truth that is just what he was doing).

We learn to be fearful and to question and to look askance and to doubt in order to survive.  Hesitate too long in the face of danger and you just might find yourself in the belly of a beast or in the belly of the sea.  We have evolved to make snap judgments as a matter of survival.  Jesus surely knew this.  Was he really surprised that Peter was having second thoughts while toed-up to the brink of his mortality?

Even the "You of little faith..." is puzzling.  Jesus says that if you have faith the side of a mustard seed you can tell a mountain to uproot itself and fall into the sea.

I have to wonder if what Jesus said wasn't just for Peter but for those overhearing--the disciples.  And for those still overhearing (overreading?)--us disciples.

There are things that will scare us--awful things and awe-ful things.  And one of them just might be the end of us.  But we need not doubt.  God has us by the hand.  God knows us and loves us.  God has saved us and will save us.  May our faith grow and our doubts be overwhelmed by the love and grace of God.

Lord, it is us you.  Bid us to come to you.  Keep us secure.  Amen.

August 4 Musings on the Details of Matthew 14:22-33

Dearest e-votees,

This Sunday's text is the account of Jesus walking on water, Peter's engaging of Jesus on the waves and the calming of the storm.

Clearly this account is meant to show an aspect of Jesus' ability to control and overpower the chaotic forces of nature (waters were thought to be especially chaotic and hazardous).  It is part and parcel with Jesus calming the storm in Matthew 8:23-27.

You can ponder that precise text alone and during the sermon this Sunday.  For today, however, I thought it might be interesting to imagine some of the details Matthew may have left on the editing room floor.

Peace,

Karl

-------------

With a flick of the pen Matthew says that Jesus sent the disciples ahead while he stayed back to dismiss the crowds.  This is a massive crowd.  There were 5,000 men who were fed.  Adding in family members this number swells to the size of a large, modern day political rally.  Jesus could, I suppose, send the people away with a blessing for traveling mercies and a benediction.  If so, that would have been a quick matter.  I imagine, however, that Jesus would linger with people on the way out the door.  Imagine a super snack Sunday at Messiah supersized up to 20,000 people or so and Jesus engaging as many as he could before they leave--staggering to ponder.

It was already getting late in the day which is why the disciples approached Jesus suggesting he send the crowds on their way to find food.  After the meal it is later still.  After sending the massive throng away it is later still.  Jesus makes his way up the mountainside by himself as it grows even later.  Jesus is very alone in the wilderness.  He is exposed and alone late at night and engages God in prayer--more exposing and more solitude.  The contrast between the enormous crowd and the solitary Jesus engaged in prayer is stark and borderline cinematic.

After prayer Jesus decides to go a rejoin the disciples he sent out ahead of him in a boat.  There is a boat from the time of Jesus that can be seen to this day in the Holy Land.  It was exposed during some drought times as the water level dropped in a lakebed.  Those who found it preserved what had appeared, dug a bit deeper, preserved that level and continued until the whole boat was able to be transported.  It is now preserved and dubbed "The Jesus boat" (you can read about it if so inclined at https://www.seetheholyland.net/jesus-boat/).  After a while Jesus approaches the disciples as they struggle against the wind in something akin to the Jesus boat.  The disciples see Jesus approaching on the top of the water and presume hi is a ghost.

Peter says "Lord, if it is you, command me to come out to you on the water."  That, of course, implies Peter is thinking this very much might not be Jesus.  It is a bizarre request from Peter to an unknown entity on the water.  Jesus bids Peter to come and he does.  Is this a faithful Peter, a foolish Peter, an impulsive Peter or a(n) _________ Peter?  Just who is this calling to Jesus from the boat and what is he hoping for?

Once Jesus is back in the boat I wonder what Peter and the others are thinking.  Surely they have in their minds the words of Matthew 8:27:  "What sort of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey him?"  Maybe they're thinking I'm still not sure he isn't a ghost.  As can be seen one of the things that happens across the gospels is people offering food to see if someone is truly corporeal and/or back from the dead.  The presumption is that ghosts/spirits/specters don't eat food like we flesh and blood folk.  I wonder if some of the 12 basketfuls of loaves and fishes ended up in the boat.  I wonder if the disciples tried to encourage Jesus to eat some of the leftovers just to be sure he was who they thought he might be.

One of the beautiful parts of reading books is that the the important facts are conveyed clearly but the details, the colors, the sounds, the smells, etc., etc. are left for the readers' minds to fill in.  Sometimes the stories of scripture are less detailed than I would like--maybe you have that thought too.  I think the Holy Spirit in her wisdom gave us what we needed and beckons us and our theological curiosities to engage the story with our whole selves to backfill the details.

May you and your faithful and curious imagination enter into this Sunday's appointed gospel text and in the texts in the days ahead.

God, help us to dwell with you and the scriptures you have provided with all of the life-giving truths as well as the maddening and engaging ambiguities.  Help us grow more fully into relationship with this one who truly is the Son of God.

July 30 Abundance of Loaves and Fishes

Dearest e-votees-

This Sunday's appointed text is Matthew's account of the feeding of the 5,000 with 

May God's abundance and provision sustain you and others through you.

Peace,

Karl

-------

As you probably know we have four gospels that made it into the canonical scriptures:  Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.  Three of these gospels are very similar and obviously information passed between them (and perhaps a lost document referred to as "Q" as well).  These three gospels are Matthew, Mark and Luke and are referred to as the synoptic gospels since they all have a very similar perspective.  John has a very different set of details, perspective and theological slant than the synoptics.

There is only one miracle that Jesus performed that ended up in all four gospels.  It is the account of the feeding of the 5,000.  You can read about it in: 

Some things to note:

• It seems that 5,000 was the tally of men. Adding in women and children greatly enhances to total fed.
• the loaves and fishes were a little boy's lunch. That said, there is no way that they started out with the volume to fill 12 basketfuls.
• There are 12 disciples out fetching the scraps and 12 baskets. Clearly not a coincidence.

Some applications for us:

• We might look at our own resources and say "There is too great a need. Look at all these people. I only have a little boy's lunch." What might Jesus say back to us?
• What might have happened this day if the little boy's lunch didn't come into play?
• Are we mindful when walking around filling up a basket of how much has come to be? Are we grateful for God's provision or grumbly about having to serve in the role of a busperson?
• Was this a story just for the time of Jesus or does this sort of thing still happen?
• The whole event began by Jesus being stirred with compassion (literally a stirring of the bowels in Greek). Are we open to being stirred with compassion for those in need around us?

Dear God, there is a world in need in us and around us. You have compassion and grace for us. In the words of Tiny Tim "God bless us, everyone!" We pray you stir us and use us as agents of your blessing. Help us render service and tend to the needs (physical, emotional, spiritual) of others all to your glory. Amen.

July 10 Pay it Forward, Backward, Sideways and Every Which Way

Dearest e-votees,

This Sunday's text includes Matthew's account of the parable of the sower and the interpretation (both relayed by Jesus).  Sunday's readings also includes Isaiah 55:10-11 which speaks of God's word going out like the rain and the snow and not returning (you know the water cycle--SCIENCE!!!) without accomplishing the purpose for which it is sent.

As recipients of God's good news and saving grace we get to go out as well and scatter seeds.  It is part of the calling we receive and are empowered to do in our baptisms.

Peace,

Karl

----------------

Isaiah 55:10-11 (NRSV) says:

10  For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return there until they have watered the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty but shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.

 

You may remember the 2000 movie "Pay It Forward" which you can find out about on IMDB (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0223897) which revolved around the idea of randomly doing three big favors for people you don't know exponentially releasing blessings and goodness into the world.

You may remember the movement based around the quotation "Practice random acts of kindness and senseless beauty" by Anne Herbert that was launched when she first wrote the quote on a placemat in Sausalito, CA (you can read more on this at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Random_act_of_kindness).

You may remember (or may not since it did not garner nearly the attention it should) the 2015 movie "Batkid Begins:  The Wish Heard Around the World" (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3884528) which documents the remarkable story of San Francisco turning into Gotham City for the day for the sake of granting the wish a young leukemia patient.  The contagious kindness and incredible outpouring of love are staggering.  Check it out.

What all of these things--Jesus' parable and interpretation, Isaiah's text, fictional movie, counter-cultural scrawling and incredible true documentary--have in common is that we don't know where things will take root, nor to what extent they will grow and multiply, nor to what the final impact will be.  What we have are calls and examples for us to go out and to share generously of the blessings we have received.

The story of the so called "Prodigal Son" is the story of one who wastefully squanders his inheritance (www.m-w.com defines "prodigal" as "characterized by profuse or wasteful expenditure").  Truth be told it is the father (cipher for God) who is the prodigal one (both when the son is departing and even more gloriously when the son returns) who is prodigal.  The sower of Jesus' parable is also prodigal in the scattering of seed.  We who have reaped so generously of God's prodigal blessings are in turn to go and be prodigal.

One thing to remember is this is part of taking up our cross and following after Jesus.  We deny ourselves in order to bless others.  Being generous and kind can have bad returns.  Look at Jesus on the cross.  Look at Haley Joel Osment's character who (SPOILER ALERT:) ends up dead and in a near cruciform position (hints of Pieta by Michelangelo as well when Helen Hunt enters the scene).  There are no guarantees that doing the right thing will keep us safe.  In fact, sometimes just the opposite.  But we do them nonetheless.  It is the way of Jesus. 

God thank you for all of your blessings.  Send us as agents of your blessing as well.  Thank you that you bring the growth and accomplish the purpose according to your ways and plans.  Amen.