Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 29, 2012, the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Deuteronomy18:15-20

v. 15 Who is speaking?

v. 16 Is there any other reference to the people saying this?

v.19 What does it mean to be held accountable by God?

v. 20 What other gods?  Do we ever presume to speak in God’s name when God has not commanded us to speak?

Psalm111:1-10

v. 1 Who are the upright?

v. 2 What are the works of the Lord? How does one study them?

v. 6 What is the heritage of the nations?

v. 9  What is meant by “redemption”?  What is the difference between “Holy” and “awesome”?

v.10  What is meant by “fear”?  What is meant by “wisdom”?

1Corinthians 8:1-13

v.1 When was the last time you were concerned about food offered to an idol? What is meant by knowledge?

v. 2 I think Socrates would have liked this verse?

vs. 4-6 what is Paul really saying about idols, gods and God?

v.7 what is the relation between knowledge and conscience?

vs.7-13  What is more pastoral, to dumb things down, or to set high expectations while helping people meet those expectatons?

Mark1:21-28

v. 21 Who are “they”?

v. 22 When was the last time you were astounded by someone’s teaching?.  I’m glad I am not a scribe.

v. 23 How convienant!

v. 24 What is the irony here?

v. 25 What would Jesus rebuke this truth speaking  spirit, even if it was an unclean spirit?

v. 27 Indeed, what is this?

v.28 When was the last time you associated the word ”fame” with Jesus?

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 22, 2012, the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

Jonah3:1-5, 10

v. 1 What was the “word of the Lord” before the incarnation and how did it come to people?

v. 2 What do you know about Nineveh and what would be a modern equivalent?

v. 3 Three days to walk across? Really?  Is this perhaps hyperbole?

v. 4 What is so special about forty?

v. 5 So ritual without real repentance is OK?

v.10 This verse must a Process Theologian’s favorite.

Psalm62:5-12

v. 5 Who or what else might your soul wait in silence?  What does it mean to “wait in silence”?  What do you know about contemplative prayer?

v. 6 Are rock, salvation and fortress merely poetic synonyms or does each noun offer a unique  nuance?

v.7 Are deliverance and honor related?

v. 8 What times might we be tempted not to trust in God?  How does one pour bout one’s heart before God?

v. 9 What is the difference between a breath and a delusion?

v. 10 Why would anyone put confidence in extortion?  It is OK if riches increase, but if they do, do not set your heart on them.  How does this verse counteract the prosperity gospel?

v.11 What is the meaning of “once” and how is it related to “twice.”

vs.  11-12 Is God’s steadfast love the source of God’spower?

1 Corinthians 7:29-31

v.29 What is “the appointed time” being referred to?  How does any time grow short?   So much  for family values. This must be Newt Gingrich’s favorite verse!

v. 30 Let those who buy be as though they had no possessions? That is un-American!

v. 31 What is the present form of the world? How does it pass away?  Are Plato and C. S. Lewis any help here?

Mark1:14-20

v. 14 Is “after” a chronos or a kairos  reference? What is “the good news of God”?

v. 15 Is the good news of God the news that the time is fulfilled and the kingdom of God has come near?  How does the kingdom of God come near?

vs. 16-17 It sounds like Jesus had a thing for brothers.  I wonder why.

vs. 18-20 It sounds like Mark has a thing for “immediately”.

v. 20 Why would Jesus call James and John but not their father or the hired men?  I think it is a shame that the father’s name is not given here.

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt  page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 15, 2012, the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. http://summittoshore.blogspot.com/

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (11-20)

v. 1 What does it mean that “the voice of the Lord was rare in those days”?  What does the voice of the Lord sound like? Is the voice of the Lord rare today?

v. 3 What do you know about the spiritual discipline of incubation?  Have you ever slept in the sanctuary of a church?

v. 4 Where have we heard “Here I am” before? 

v. 7 How can God be calling a person by name if that person does not know God or the word of God has not yet been revealed to that person?

v. 8 Is there any symbolism behind the fact that God called Samuel THREE times?

v. 10 The Lord “stood” there?  Physically?  Is this a metaphor?

v. 11 What makes your ears tingle?

v. 13 Woe to the parents of pks!

v. 15 How many people do you think might of experienced a spiritual vision but are afraid to talk about it with anyone, even their pastor?

v. 16 Samuel still responds to Eli the same way he responded to God.

v. 19 Whose words, Samuel’s or God’s?  How does one earn the trustworthiness of others?

Psalm 139:1-6, 13-18

v. 1 How does the Lord search us?  What does it mean to be known by the Lord?

v. 4 How can God know what we are going to say before we ourselves know?

v. 5 What does it mean to be hemmed in by God?

v. 6 What was inscribed on the Temple at the Oracle of Delphi?

v. 13 What about in-vitro fertilization?

v. 14 Is the Human body, or the human eye, still enough evidence to support an argument for creation from design?  What would Darwin say about this verse?

v. 15 Was the psalmist made in the depths of the earth or in his or her mother’s womb?

v. 16 Is this book available for kindle or the nook?

v. 17 How much do thought’s weigh?

v. 18 Do you recall the story of Augustine and sand at a beach?

1 Corinthians 6:12-20

v. 12 I think this might be Ron Paul’s favorite verse.

v. 13 What is the definition of fornication? Did it mean anything different in Paul’s day than it does today?  How do we responsibly deal with this verse when many young adults are postponing marriage until they are in their late 20’s or even early 30’s?

vs. 12-18 Of all possible actions that might not be beneficial, why is Paul singling out fornication?

vs. 19-20 I think these verses have been used to speak out against the use of alcohol, tobacco, caffeine, meat, and who knows what else.

John 1:43-51

v. 43 What happened the day before this? Please note: Jesus found Philip.  Philip did not find Jesus.  I think I will market a new bumper sticker saying “Jesus Found Me”.

v. 45 Who are “we”?  Son of Joseph?  Why not son of the Virgin Mary?

v.46 Is this a rhetorical question?  Is not “come and see” the quintessential invitation?  I prefer it to “Are you saved?”

v. 47 How could Jesus know this?

v. 48 I think Psalm 139:16 would have been a better answer.

v.49 And Jesus did not even ask Nathaniel who people said he (Jesus) was!

v. 51 Was this ever  fulfilled or is Nathaniel still waiting to see this spectacular thing?

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Miracles?

Let's talk about miracles. Can people in an age of science believe in miracles?  What are miracles?
I want to offer three ways people might think about miracles ( You are encouraged to expand this list in the 'comments').

1. Miracles don't really happen. This view would contend that events which appear to be unexplainable and thus are attributed to God are simply events which are currently unexplainable. As our knowledge increases, science will be able to explain the 'miracle'. This is a variation of the God of the Gaps argument.

2. Miracles are or will be explainable and consistent with what we know about how nature works. But God is present in a particular way( for example the timing of an event) which makes the event a miracle. God works within natural processes, in particular and unique ways.

3. God sometimes intervenes in supernatural ways. God is the one ultimately in control, not the laws of nature, and so while the laws of nature may normally be operative, that doesn't exclude supernatural actions by God.

These three points are, obviously, the barest of a bare bones discussion about miracles. It seems to me that all three could be correct. Some things we call miracles, aren't. Some miracles occur within the constraints of natural processes. Sometimes God intervenes directly and supernaturally in human activities.

So readers, what do you think?
    What are miracles?
    Do miracles happen?
    How do we know when something is a miracle?

I'm looking forward to reading what you think!

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 8, 2012, the Baptism of the Lord (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Genesis 1:1-5

v. 1 There are several ways the verb can be translated.  Is it “when God created” or “when God began to create” or something else altogether?  What difference does it make?  Take a close look at the user notes in one or two study Bibles, or better yet, the gleanings and notes in The Torah.  Why is thispassage paired with Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism?

v. 2 What is the Hebrew word for “wind” and how else can the word be translated?

v. 3 What, if any, is the significance of light being the first thing created?

v. 4 What if God saw that the light was not good? How did God separate the lighgt from the darkness?

v. 5 Can there be day without night, or night without day?

vs. 1-5 How does one preach/teach this passage in a post Copernican and post modern world, especially considering there is at least one other Biblical (and different) account of creation?

Psalm 29:1-11

v. 1 Who are the heavenly beings?

v. 2 What is the name of the LORD?

vs. 3-11 How can one teach/preach using storm god imagery while recognizing that storm god imagery is not the only imagery applied to the LORD?  Sleeping under a small tarp in the wilderness during a nighttime thunder and lightning storm and hiking on a high wilderness ridge during a daytime thunder and lightning storm has greatly influenced how I read this passage.  What are your experiences of storms and how do those experiences influence how you understand this passage?

Acts 19:1-7

v. 1 Who was Apollos? What else do you know about him?  Why does Paul mention him?

v. 2 How could someone be a disciple and never have heard about the Holy Spirit.

v. 3 Were these disciples actually baptized by John?

v. 5 Did Paul actually baptize them with water, or simply lay his hands on them?  What is the difference between being baptized “in the name of the Lord Jesus” and being baptized “in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit”?  What does it mean to speak in tongues?  What does it mean to prophesy?

v. 7 “About” seems to be a relatively general term while “twelve” seems to be very specific and pointvto the twelve tribes of Israel and “the twelve” disciples of Jesus.

Mark 1:4-11

v. 4 I much prefer the descriptive phrase “John the baptizer” rather than the more usual “John the Baptist.”   At least Mark agrees with Acts regarding a description of John’s baptism.

v. 5 “All the people of Jerusalem” seems to be hyperbole.

v. 6 Where does this imagery come from and what does it point to?  Might locusts refer to something other than bugs?

v. 7 As I have asked in a previous rumination, what is so special about the thing of a sandal?

v. 8 Might this be some literary foreshadowing or reading developments back into the text?

v. 10 What do the heavens being torn apart look like?  Is there a difference between the Spirit “descending like a dove” and “descending as a dove”?  Did anyone other than Jesus see these things?

v. 11 Did anyone other than Jesus hear this voice?

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens  and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 8, 2012, the Baptism of the Lord (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Genesis 1:1-5

v. 1 There are several ways the verb can be translated.  Is it “when God created” or “when God began to create” or something else altogether?  What difference does it make?  Take a close look at the user notes in one or two study Bibles, or better yet, the gleanings and notes in The Torah.  Why is thispassage paired with Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism?

v. 2 What is the Hebrew word for “wind” and how else can the word be translated?

v. 3 What, if any, is the significance of light being the first thing created?

v. 4 What if God saw that the light was not good? How did God separate the lighgt from the darkness?

v. 5 Can there be day without night, or night without day?

vs. 1-5 How does one preach/teach this passage in a post Copernican and post modern world, especially considering there is at least one other Biblical (and different) account of creation?

Psalm 29:1-11

v. 1 Who are the heavenly beings?

v. 2 What is the name of the LORD?

vs. 3-11 How can one teach/preach using storm god imagery while recognizing that storm god imagery is not the only imagery applied to the LORD?  Sleeping under a small tarp in the wilderness during a nighttime thunder and lightning storm and hiking on a high wilderness ridge during a daytime thunder and lightning storm has greatly influenced how I read this passage.  What are your experiences of storms and how do those experiences influence how you understand this passage?

Acts 19:1-7

v. 1 Who was Apollos? What else do you know about him?  Why does Paul mention him?

v. 2 How could someone be a disciple and never have heard about the Holy Spirit.

v. 3 Were these disciples actually baptized by John?

v. 5 Did Paul actually baptize them with water, or simply lay his hands on them?  What is the difference between being baptized “in the name of the Lord Jesus” and being baptized “in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit”?  What does it mean to speak in tongues?  What does it mean to prophesy?

v. 7 “About” seems to be a relatively general term while “twelve” seems to be very specific and pointvto the twelve tribes of Israel and “the twelve” disciples of Jesus.

Mark 1:4-11

v. 4 I much prefer the descriptive phrase “John the baptizer” rather than the more usual “John the Baptist.”   At least Mark agrees with Acts regarding a description of John’s baptism.

v. 5 “All the people of Jerusalem” seems to be hyperbole.

v. 6 Where does this imagery come from and what does it point to?  Might locusts refer to something other than bugs?

v. 7 As I have asked in a previous rumination, what is so special about the thing of a sandal?

v. 8 Might this be some literary foreshadowing or reading developments back into the text?

v. 10 What do the heavens being torn apart look like?  Is there a difference between the Spirit “descending like a dove” and “descending as a dove”?  Did anyone other than Jesus see these things?

v. 11 Did anyone other than Jesus hear this voice?

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens  and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, January 1, 2012, the First Sunday after Christmas (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Isaiah 61:10-62:3

v. 10 How does one’s whole being exult? Most Presbyterians only exult with the mind.  I find it interesting that both bridegroom and bride imagery is employed.

v. 11 It seems righteousness must take root and grow and does not materialize out of thin air.

v. 2 What could this new name be?

Psalm 148:1-14

v. 1 Who, or what, is praising from the heavens?  Or is it the heavens that are praising.

v. 2 How do you deal with angels?

v. 3 It seems that everything above the earth is praising God.  What about everything below the earth?

v. 7 Now sea creatures below the surface of the earth join the choir.

v. 11 Some human voices finally join the chorus.

v.1-14 I think I would interpret this Psalm through an environmentalist’s lens.

Galatians 4:4-7

v. 4 What is”full” time?  Is this kairos time or the eschaton?  John Shelby Spong used a phrase from this verse as the title of his book about the birth of Jesus.  Why would Paul refer to Jesus being born of a woman rather than of the Virgin Mary?

v. 6 What do you think about translating “Abba” as “Daddy”?

vs. 4-7 These verses seem to base adoption as God’s children upon Jesus’ birth. So why did he have to die?

Luke 2:22-40

v. 22 What time was this?

v. 24 Why two turtledoves but no partridge in a pear tree or three French hens?

v. 25 Is there anything special about the name Simeon? 

v. 27 What was customary under the law?

v. 32 Gentiles?  I think Luke might be the only Gospel that could say this.

v. 40 Luke is long on prose but short on detail.

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, December 25, 2011, the Nativity of Jesus Christ (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.)  Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Isaiah 62:6-12

v. 7 Being a native of Appalachia, I resonate with this verse.  How does the mountain reference resonate with people not familiar with, or who do not have an affinity for, mountains?  Why are feet the body part mentioned?

v. 8 who are the sentinels?  The sentinels do not talk or yell, they sing.

v.9 How can ruins sing?

v. 10 What does it mean to uncover an arm?  Is this anything like the euphemism “to roll up one’s sleeve”?  Is this a proof text for universal salvation?

Psalm 98:1-9

v. 1 I am drawing connections with Isaiah 52:8 and 9

v. 2 Why all this arm talk? (see Isaiah 52:10)

v. 3 Must God be able to forget in order to remember?

vs. 4-6 I think these verses call for joyous, hearty singing rather than shallow funeral dirges I usually hear.

vs. 7-9 I am thinking of musicians  such as Paul Winter who incorporate animal sounds into their music.

Hebrews 1:1-4

v.1 How long ago? How many and in what various ways?

v. 2 Why the plural “worlds”?

v. 3 What do you make of “reflection” and “imprint”?  How are sins purified?

v.4 What name has been inherited?

John 1:1-14

v. 1 Is this an allusion to Genesis 1:1, or something else?  What do you know about the role of the logos in Greek Philosophy?

v. 2 Can we cite this verse to argue for the preexistent Christ, or only the preexistent Word?

v.5 How could darkness ever overcome light?

v. 7 Not all witnesses are called to testify, but John is.  Who believes through you and your testimony?

v. 10 Another verse which seems to support the preexistent Word.

v.12 What is meant by “power,” how does the Word give it away, and how do people use it to become children of God?

v. 14 If the Word became flesh, then the word existed before becoming flesh.

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens  and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, December 18, 2011, the Fourth Sunday of Advent (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

2 Samuel 7:1-11, 16

v. 1 Is this the beginning of institutionalized religion and the placing of buildings over mission?

v.2 David seems to be speaking to Nathan as God might.

v. 4 What carries more authority, the word of the king or the word of the LORD?

v. 6 What seems to be at stake here?

v. 11 Might God better live in community rather than in a building?  Note the play on the word "house.”

v. 16 Was this promise fulfilled?

Psalm89:1-4, 19-26

v. 1 How can the Psalmist, or anyone, sing forever and proclaim anything to generations?  Is this nothing more than poetic hyperbole?

v.3 Apparently an allusion to the First Reading.  Does this verse justify the lectionary pairing this Psalm with the First Reading?  This Psalm is actually an alternate. Another possibility is the Magnificat, Luke 1:47-55.  I have used the Magnificat the past few cycles and this year am opting to use the Psalm 89.

v. 19 Who is the faithful one?

v. 20 So David is the Son of God?

Romans16:25-27

v. 25 What does Paul mean by “My Gospel?”  What is the mystery that has been revealed?

v. 26 What does Paul mean by “prophetic writing?”

Luke1:26-38

v. 26 Sixth month of what? Why Gabriel?

v. 27 How can we read this verse with 21^st century sensibilities without reading our prejudices back into the text?

v. 28 What does Gabriel mean by addressing Mary as “Favored One?”

v. 29 Apparently Mary did not know what Gabriel meant.

v. 31 Note that Mary “will” conceive.  She apparently was not yet pregnant.

v. 35 Is there a difference between being proclaimed “Son of God” and actually being the Son of God?

v. 36 Apparently Elizabeth was between the second and third trimester.

v. 37 Could this be the key verse of the passage?

v. 38 Where have we heard “Here am I” before? 

ADDENDUM

In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens  and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time.  If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links. 

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, December 11, 2011, the Third Sunday of Advent (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11
v. 1 What does it feel like to have the spirit of the Lord upon oneself? The rest of this verse reads like the mission statement of Occupy Wall Street, if OWS had a mission statement.

v. 2 How can “the year of the Lord’s favor” and “the day of vengeance of our God” be mentioned in the same sentence?

v. 3 What is so special about oaks?

v.4 What other ancient ruins come to your mind in addition to Jerusalem? Iona? Lindesfarne?

v.5 More Scripture for OWS?

v. 10 What does it feel like for one’s whole being to exalt in God? God has clothed us with a tux and gown?

v. 11 What is the point of this simile?

Psalm 126:1-6
v. 1 In other words, we thought it not possible?

v. 2 Why laughter?

v. 3 What great things has the Lord done for us?

v.4 What is so special about the watercourses in the Negeb?

vs. 5-6 These verse, like Advent, proclaim a reversal of the status quo.

1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
v. 16 Good advice.

v. 17 What does it mean to” pray without ceasing”?

v. 18 I find giving thanks in all circumstances harder than praying without ceasing or always rejoicing.

v. 19 Oh, how many ways we quench the Spirit, let me count the ways.

v. 20 How do we despise the words of prophets?

v. 21 How do we “test” anything, let alone everything?

v. 23 Note the tripartite “spirit and soul and body”? What is the difference between spirit and soul? I would feel more comfortable with “mind, body and spirit”.

v.24 What is the meaning or sense of “call”?

John 1:6-8, 19-28
v. 6 Are some “sent” and others not?

v.7 “Witness” and “testify” are not usually in the mainline and Presbyterian vocabulary. Do they make you feel uncomfortable?

v. 8 Was someone saying John was the light?

v. 19 in this context, who or what is a Levite?

v. 20 “Confessed” is an interesting choice of words. John says, “I am not” while Jesus will say, at least seven times, “I am”!

v. 21 People thought John was Kahlil Gibran?

v. 23 Are these John the Baptizer’s words or John the Evangelist’s words?

vs. 24-25 What is the connection between the Pharisees and baptism?

v.28 What is so special about the thing of a sandal?

v.28 What difference does it make where this took place?

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens www.northchurchqueens.org and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time. If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if youwould like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Physics and Faith

One of the things people say about Christianity is that Christians believe odd, impossible things. And well, they’re right. We do.
Virgin birth.
A being who is both God and human.
The existence of miracles.
The resurrection.
That’s just off the top of my head.
If we thought more about it, I’m sure we could add to this list. We Christians believe some odd, impossible things.
And that’s why I find quantum mechanics so comforting. Yes, comforting. Because it is odd and and full of impossible things. Now, quantum mechanics  doesn’t prove any of what Christians believe. What quantum physics does is show us the oddness of the world. It is proof that rational, logical thought doesn’t completely explain the universe.
Now some of you are thinking, “Wait a minute, quantum mechanics is based on math which is rational and logical.” And you are right (At least I think you are. The math required to understand quantum mechanics is well beyond my abilities. I believe have to believe physicists when they tell me that quantum mechanics is based and supported by math.)
What I am talking about is the sort of rational, logical processes that allow us to think our way into a subject and understand it. You can’t think your way into quantum mechanics. It is simply too much at odds with the way the world that we know works.
I’m no physicist. but I find quantum physics fascinating.
Light can be both a wave and a particle.
A particle doesn’t exist in a particular location in space and time until it is observed.
We cannot know precisely both the location of a particle and its direction of motion at the same time.
The physical properties of a “thing” don’t exist until they are measured.
In the quantum world, milk can unspill and eggs unbreak.
And of course Schrodinger’s Cat.
That is just odd. Impossible. Not logical. Not rational. And yet it’s true.
To quote British scientist J.B.S.Haldane, “Now my own suspicion is that the Universe is not only queerer than we suppose, but queerer than we can suppose.” #
None of this proves Christianity, but it does undercut the argument that science is rational and Christianity isn’t.
We don’t “think” our way into quantum mechanics and we don’t “think” our way into faith. To be sure, we have to think and think hard about both. But thinking alone won’t do the job. At some point we have to do the work required to experience and understand both faith and physics. To truly understand, either quantum mechanics or Christianity, we have to enter into the practices, learn the disciplines of both.
The oddness of the universe makes the oddness of Christianity more believable. Physics doesn’t prove Christianity. But what quantum mechanics and Christianity both want to tell us is that the world isn’t exactly as it seems. It’s much, much more peculiar and much, much more wonderful than it seems.

# When Haldane lived the word “queer” meant odd or peculiar and was not a reference to one’s sexual orientation. Sometimes this quote is attributed to Arthur Eddington.
Here is a link to a video of a conversation between Stephen Colbert (out of character) and Neil DeGrasse Tyson. It’s a bit long, 84 minutes, but well worth your time. It’s funny, smart and informative.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, December 4, 2011, the Second Sunday of Advent (Year B)

Posted each Thursday, Lectionary Ruminations focuses on the Scripture Readings, taken from the New Revised Standard Version, for the following Sunday per the Revised Common Lectionary. Comments and questions are intended to encourage reflection for readers preparing to teach, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and encouraged. All lectionary links are to the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible via the PC(USA) Devotions and Readings website, but if you prefer another translation, feel free to use that instead. (Other references may be linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

Isaiah 40:1-11
v. 1 Perhaps this all too familiar passage from Isaiah reminds us that Advent is a season for the preacher to comfort, while Lent is a season for the preacher to afflict.

v. 2 This sounds like legal language.

v. 3 Whose voice is crying out?

vs. 3-4 Having grown up and spent most of my life in the mountains of West Virginia, I particularly resonate with the imagery of straight highways. On the other hand, I fear someone might want to relate the “every mountain and hill shall be made low” and following language to the ecologically devastating practice of Mountain Top Removal Mining.

v. 5 What is the mouth of the Lord?

vs. 6-7 How does 6b-7 fit in here?

v. 9 How can the prophet get up to a high mountain if all the mountains will be made low?

v. 11 Who is the mother sheep?

Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13
v. 1 Does this verse assume a theology of the land?

v. 2 How do you and your church deal with “Selah”?

v. 8 Does God speak peace only to God’s people?

vs. 8-9 What about people who do not turn to God in their hearts and who do not fear God? What does it mean to fear God? What does it mean to turn to God in your heart?

v. 10 I think this is fascinating imagery!

v. 12 Once again, I ask, does this verse assume a theology of the land? What is the connection between God and the land, the land and God? Does this feed into the Arthurian legend?

2 Peter 3:8-15a
v. 8 I do not know where it originated, but there is a joke that goes something like this. A person asks God if it is true that one day to God is like a thousand years. God answers “yes.” They then ask God if it is true that God will give them whatever they ask for. God again answers “yes.” The person finally asks God for a million dollars. God replies, “OK, I’ll do it tomorrow”.

v. 9 slowness vs. patience.

v.10 Of all the images that one could employ, why employ the imagery of a thief?

vs. 11-12 Shall we refer to this as the “Big Dissolution Theory?” How do we reconcile this imagery with contemporary cosmology that posits an expanding universe that seems to be expanding at an increasing rate and may expand indefinitely?

v.13 Where else can we find “new heavens and a new earth” language?

v. 14 What might be a spot or blemish?

Mark 1:1-8
v. 1 For a minute, there, I thought I was reading the incipit of Genesis.

vs. 2-3 Déjà vu! Why does Mark quote Isaiah 40:3?

v.4 Never having been a Baptist, I much prefer the NRSV “John the baptizer” rather than the more familiar John the Baptist”.

v.5 I think there is some hyperbole here.

v. 6 Has anyone else ever heard the explanation that “locusts” is not a reference to insects but to a nutty substance from a tree native to Palestine?

vs. 7-8 What power did John have? How could John have known all of this?

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens and writing Lectionary Ruminations, I also tutor part time. If you or someone you know needs a tutor, or if you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.