Lectionary Ruminations for for Sunday, November 27, 2011, the First 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 64:1-9
v. 1-9 In the NRSV this Reading is formatted as poetry rather than prose.

v. 1 Why is the tearing open of the heavens associated with the coming down of God?

v. 2 Both images seem to suggest something happening quickly; not instantaneously but not slowly.

v. 3 Hey God, remember when?

v. 4 So there ARE other gods, but gods who do not work for those wait for them?

v. 5 I find the order interesting. Did we sin because God was angry? Did wetransgress because God hid from us?

v. 6 I like the leaf imagery followed by the wind imagery, the wind blowing fallen dry leaves here and there.

v. 7 So it is God’s fault that no one calls on the divine name because God has hidden the divine face from us?

v. 8 Yet? From an early church perspective, God’s work is not done until is is fired by the Holy Spirit.

v. 9 You can be a little angry, God, but please, do not be exceedingly angry. You can remember my iniquity for a little while, but please, not forever. Do not be too hard on us, God, after all, we are your people.

Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19
v. 1 An interesting first verse in light of last week’s Readings. What are cherubim and where would you find them?

v. 2 Who are Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh and why are they mentioned when no one else is mentioned except Joseph?

v. 3 What does God’s shining face represent?

v. 4 Is God angry with people’s prayers rather than the people who pray those prayers?

v. 5 is this Anti-Eucharistic imagery?

v. 7 I think I am hearing a refrain.

v.17 Who is at God’s right hand?

v. 18 Is this a quid pro quo?

v. 19 Is this déjà vu all over again.

1 Corinthians 1:3-9
v. 3 This is always a good way to begin a letter.

v. 5 What does it mean to be enriched in speech and knowledge?

v. 7 What does it mean to lack in a spiritual gift? What is Paul referring to when he writes about “the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ?”

v.9 Here is a good Reformed word – “called”.

Mark 13:24-37
v. 24 It takes only the first four words to make this reading sound apocalyptic.

v. 25 This verse always reminds me of a passage in C. S. Lewis’ “The Last Battle” in the Chronicles of Narnia.

v. 26 What is it about clouds?

v. 27 How many times does Scripture mention the four winds? The mention of “the four winds” reminds me of Native American and Pagan spirituality.

v. 28 I find this verse enhanced by personally experiencing the need to pick and eat figs soon after they are ripe because they will not stay ripe very long before they will spoil on the branch.

v. 30 How do we interpret this verse about 50 generations later?

v. 34 What does it mean to be spiritually awake?

ADDENDUM
This Sunday is the First Sunday in Advent and the first Sunday in Liturgical Year B – the year of Mark’s Gospel.

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, November 20, 2011, Christ the King (Reign of Christ) Sunday (Year A)

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.

Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24
v. 11 How did God lose these sheep in the first place?

v. 13 How can one not read this and be a Zionist?

v. 16 God will search out and rescue the 99% while punishing the 1%?

v. 20 I think it is time for me to eat less, exercise more, and drop a few pounds.

vs. 23-24 David, King of the 99%!

Psalm 100:1-5
v. 2 If we are to worship God with gladness, why do so many worship services feel like a funeral and so many worshipers act like they are mourners?

v. 3 How many people in the pew understand the nuance of “LORD” and “God”? Does this verse justify this Psalm being paired with the Ezekiel Reading?

Ephesians 1:15-23
v. 15 How might Paul have heard of the Ephesians faith?

v. 17 What is “a spirit of wisdom and revelation”?

vs. 18-19 I love these phrases: the riches of his glorious inheritance, the immeasurable greatness of his power.

vs. 20-21 Yes, this Sunday is Christ the King.

Matthew 25:31-46
v. 31 How much do we need to know about the theologically loaded title “Son of Man” to responsibly interpret this passage? Does the mention of a throne justify this being the Gospel Reading for Christ the King?

vs. 32-33 The Gospel’s “sheep and goats” juxtaposed with the “sheep and sheep” of the Ezekiel Read seems to offer us a mixed, or confused, metaphor.

vs. 35-45 How do members of the Tea Party and the 1% read these verses.

v. 46 Must there be eternal punishment?

ADDENDUM
The conclusion of another lectionary cycle brings us to Christ the King. Do these Readings say anything new to us in 2011 that they did not say in 2008? Does the emergence of both the Tea Party and the Occupy Wall Street movement, not to mention the fact that we are already into the campaign cycle of the next Presidential election, influence how we interpret these Readings?

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, November 13, 2011, the Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Judges 4:1-7
v. 1 Here we go again. This is beginning to remind me of déjà vu all over again. How many times did the Israelites do what was evil in the sight of the LORD? How many times do we?

v. 3 This is beginning to sound like a broken record. How many times do we cry out to the LORD, asking the LORD to get us out of trouble we have gotten ourselves into?

v. 4 What blasphemy, a female prophet! With regard to male prophets, how often are we told who their wife was?

v. 5 Do you think the Palm of Deborah was known by that name in Deborah’s day?

v. 6 How dare Deborah speak for God!

Psalm 123:1-4
v. 1 I though God was enthroned on the cherubim. Are the cherubim in heaven or in the Temple?

v. 2 So God is a master and maid while we are servants and mistresses. While the Israelites in the Judges passage cry to the LORD, the psalmist simply looks to the LORD. Maybe those eyes were sad, droopy puppy dog eyes that the LORD simply could not resist.

vs.3-4 Are the main complaints contempt and scorn?

1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
v. 1 What times and seasons? If nothing needs to be written to the Thessalonians about times and seasons, then why does Paul bring it up?

v. 2 Is this an example of chiastic structure: “day lord / thief night”?

v. 3 Since I am of the male persuasion, I chose not to comment on this verse. If there is anyone of the female persuasion out there who would like to comment, please do so.

vs. 4-5 There is a lot of “light” and “darkness” to keep track of. Beware of racial stereotypes.

v. 6 Since the overriding metaphor is staying awake, why does Paul add “sober”?

v. 8 Does the breastplate of faith and love, and the helmet of salvation, change the metaphor? Note that a breastplate and a helmet are entirely defensive rather than offensive.

v. 10 Is Paul using “sleep” to mean more than one thing?

Matthew 25:14-30
v. 14 “It is as if” make this what? What is “it”?

v. 15 What is a talent? Ability to do what?

v. 18 What were the abilities of the first and second slaves? What was the ability of the third slave?

v. 21 What does it mean to enter into the joy of the master?

v. 24 Maybe the third slave said too much in addition to not doubling the talent.

v. 27 If we take this too literally, it begins to break down seems illogical.

vs. 28-29 I think I will not read these verses aloud anytime soon in Zuccotti Park.

v. 30 Have we heard anything like this before? Where?

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.

"God According to God"

There is no shortage of books on the topic of science and religion, there is much to chose from. One of my goals with these monthly posts is to suggest resources that will further the conversation between science and religion. Many Christians (myself included) don't read much outside our own faith tradition. As a way to begin to remedy that oversight, I want to bring Jewish author Gerald L. Schroeder's book, God According to God: A Scientist Discovers We've Been Wrong About God All Along to your attention. Schroeder is a physicist (he has a Ph.D. in physics and earth science from MIT) and a bible scholar. He has spent much of his professional life searching for and exploring the spiritual and physical unity in the world.

Schroeder's students, like many of us, wonder if God is in control why isn't the world perfect? He suggests that the problem isn't with God, as that question assumes. Rather the problem is with our "stunted perception of the biblical God that we imbibe in our youthful years".

So we grow up retaining this childhood notion of an all-powerful, ever present, ever involved, never erring Creator. Unfortunately, that image fails when as adults we discover that the facts of life are often brutally at odds with this popular, though misguided piece of wisdom.... By abandoning preconceived notions of the Author of creation and replacing them with the Bible's description and nature's display of God- we will learn about God according to God.

I'll confess that I have not finished reading this book, but so far I'm enjoying it immensely. Reading Jewish commentaries on Old Testament texts have always been enriching experiences for me. I am finding the insights of a Jewish scientist on the relationship between science and religion equally enriching. You and I may or may not agree with all of Schroeder's ideas but our thinking about science and scripture and God will be expanded and enhanced by them.

What interfaith or non Christian resources have you found helpful as you think about the relationship between science and religion?

Thanks to the Grand Dialogue Book discussion group for introducing me to this book.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, November 6, 2011, the Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Joshua 24:1-3a, 14-25
v. 1 What do you know about Shechem? The listing of “elders, heads, judges, and the officers” suggests a rather organized society, just forty years after the Exodus.

v. 2 Why does Joshua point back one generation to Terah rather than to Abraham?

v. 14 What is this talk about putting away other gods all about?

v. 15 Three choices: Serve the gods our ancestors worshiped before God called Abraham, serve thelocal gods of the Amorites, or serve the LORD.

vs. 14-18 Is this about monotheism, or about recognizing that of all the gods, only one, the LORD, is the one who has saved us?

v. 19 “You cannot serve theLORD”?

v. 23 Did the people actually have statues of gods, or is this a metaphorical “put away”?

v. 25 Is this the third covenant? What statutes and ordinances are being referred to?

Psalm 78:1-7
v. 1 Who is the speaking?

v. 2 What are “dark sayings from of old”?

v. 3 This sounds like a reference to the oral tradition.

v. 4 Why might you want to hide dark sayings from children?

v. 5 Is the speaker not a child of his/her ancestors?

vs.1-7 This Psalm reads like a call to educational ministry and mission. What would this psalmist say about the state of Biblical literacy, or lack of, in today’s church?

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
v. 13 How might we be uninformed?

v. 14 What does Paul mean “God will bring with him”?

v. 15 What is this all about?

vs. 16-17 Does this presuppose a pre-Copernican three tiered universe? How do we translate this into modern cosmological terms?

v. 18 How are these words encouraging? See item #16 on page 914 in the PC(USA) Book of Common Worship. See also page 949.

Matthew 25:1-13
v. 1 A kingdom parable?

v. 2 Why ten bridesmaids? Why five foolish and five wise?

v. 5 What is this about “delay”? Note that both the wise and the foolish become drowsy and fall asleep.

v. 6 Why midnight? Who shouted?

v. 9 What about sharing?

v. 12 This sounds curt.

v. 13 This point does not fit. Based on what precedes, the point ought to have been “Be prepared. Keep a supply of oil.” Otherwise, the wise bridesmaids should not have slept while the foolish bridesmaids did sleep.

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 you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, October 30, 2011, the Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Joshua 3:7-17
v. 7 Moses’ body is barely cold in the grave and God is already promoting Joshua.

v. 8 Indiana Jones, where are you?

v. 10 By “this” refers to what?

v. 11 “the LORD of all the earth” is an interesting phrase. What about “heaven”? Listen for a refrain in verse 13.

vs. 14-17 Is the Ark taking the place of Moses’ rod? Is the purpose of this narrative to establish Joshua being equal to Moses?

Psalm 107:1-7, 33-37
v. 1 Is it not redundant to say that steadfast love endures forever? Then again, this is poetry.

v. 3 The four cardinal directions.

v. 4 Is “some” wandered in desert wastes, what did others do? Is this about the Exodus, or something else?

v. 5 I wonder if this verse influenced any New Testament authors, such as the author of John 6:35?

vs. 33-37 An example of the first being last and the last being first, or rather the topsy-turvy world of Divine judgment and grace.

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13
v. 9 Is this emphatic or interrogative? Do you think the Thessalonians really remembered? Would have they have remembered without Paul reminding them?

v. 10 I have never charged you for a single cent, or asked you for any donation to help support Lectionary Ruminations. See how pure, upright and blameless my conduct toward you has been!

v. 13 Is “constantly” hyperbole?

Matthew 23:1-12
v. 1 What does it mean when a Gospel tells us that Jesus is speaking to both the crowds and the disciples?

v. 2 What is “Moses’ seat”?

v. 3 Can you think of any current day examples ofpeople whose teachings we should follow but not follow their actions?

v. 4 What do you know about phylacteries and fringe? Are there any Christian comparisons?

v. 6 Where the best seats in Synagogues in the back?

v. 7 If you happen to be ordained and/or serving in a pastoral position, how do people address you?

v. 9 What can Hallmark do with this on Father’s Day?

v. 10 Ouch!

vs.11-12 See my rumination on Psalm 107:33-37.

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, October 23, 2011, the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Deuteronomy 34:1-12
vs. 1-3 Why all the geographical references?

v. 4 Once again, the women are not mentioned. Why would God allow Moses to see this land, even show him this land, if he were not going to be allowed to enter it?

v. 6 We know the vicinity of where he was buried but not the actual place. Why?

v. 7 Is there any sexual connotation here?

v. 9 Joshua was ordained by Moses? What is so special about the laying on of hands? Why? What do you know about Reiki?

vs. 10-12 It was true then. Is it still true today?

Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17
v. 1 How can the Lord be a dwelling place? What does it mean to dwell in the Lord?

v. 3 Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, or in a more modern cosmology, ashes to ashes, star-dust to star-dust.

v. 4 I know this is metaphor, but do the metaphorical match. 1000years = 1 day to just a few hours.

v. 5 What does “them” refer to? Mortals? 1000 years?

v. 14 I think this verses harkens back to verse 5b. As the grass is renewed in the morning, God’s steadfast love renews us daily.

v. 17 What work?

vs. 1-6,13-17 Does this psalm reflect the pre-exodus period?

1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
v. 2 Shame on those Philippians.

v. 3 What do we do with this “gospel of God” when we usually use the terminology “Gospel of Jesus Christ”?

v. 5 I am hearing a refrain. “As you know” here and “You yourselves know” in verse 1.

v. 7 What sort of demands? What is the imagery of a “nurse tenderly caring for her own children”?

v. 8 How does Paul and his colleagues share their own selves?

Matthew 22:34-46
v. 34 Is the Gospel writer playing on some rivalry here?

v. 35 What is the meaning of “test”? Was he asking about the Decalogue or the entire Leviticual law code?

v. 37 What is Jesus quoting?

vs. 38-39 If this is the first and greatest, how can there be anything like it?

v. 39 What is Jesus quoting?

v. 40 What does Jesus add the prophets to the law?

v. 41 This is becoming a dialogue. Is this question also a test, a tit for tat?

v. 42 Were not all male Jews “sons of David”?

v. 44What is Jesus quoting?

v. 45 I want an answer!

v. 46 But as a practitioner of the Socratic Method, I think questions are good. Sometimes the questions we ask are more important than any answer we might receive.

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, October 16, 2011, the Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.
 Exodus 33:12-23
vs.12-23 How would you categorize this conversation between Mosses and God?

v.12 Why does Moses think God will send someone with him?

v. 14 What is God’s “presence”? Is this the answer Moses might have been expecting?

v. 15 Is Moses challenging God?

v. 17 Moses gets his way!

v. 18 What is God’s “glory”?

v. 20 Why can no one look upon the face of God and live?

v. 23 So God basically “moons” Moses?

Psalm 99:1-9
v. 1 Why would the peoples tremble? What are cherubim and how does God sit enthroned upon them?

vs. 3, 5, 9 What does it mean to be “Holy”?

v. 5 God has a footstool?

v. 6Is this Psalm as much about Moses, Aaron, and Samuel as it is God?

v. 7 Why does God not speak like this any more.

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10
v. 1 It appears three people are writing this letter. What else do we know about Silvanus?

v. 2 Always? Constantly? Is this hyperbole?

v. 4 Who is “he”?

v. 5 What do power, the Holy Spirit, and full conviction add to the word?

v. 6 How did the Thessalonians imitate Paul, Silvanus, Timothy and Jesus?

Matthew 22:15-22
v. 15 Can you spell “conspiracy”?

v. 17 What trap is being set?

v. 18 What was their malice? Why are they hypocrites?

v. 19 What is the irony here?

v. 20 I suggest you consult some other translations of this verse. What are other options for the Greek translated here as “head”?

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 you would like to be a tutor, check out my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

The Planet Mercury

Did you know this?

• Mercury travels around the sun every 88 days.
• Temperatures on Mercury can reach 800 degrees F during the day and then because the atmosphere is thin (and thus does not retain heat) temperatures can drop to -290 degrees F.
• A day on Mercury is 58.646 Earth days or 1407.5 hours.
• Mercury is just a bit bigger than our moon.
• Messenger, NASA's mission to Mercury was launched August 3, 2004. On March 17, 2011 Messenger began orbiting Mercury. But before that happened the spacecraft did several "flybys" of Mercury, Venus and Earth. This link explains why the "flybys" are needed. Going into orbit around a planet isn't easy, this link explains how Messenger did it and stays there.

If you want to see Mercury for yourself, this link will tell you where to look.

The NASA Messenger site has all sorts of information. You'll be amazed at what there is to learn about Mercury.

Sometimes it's just good to ponder how big the universe is, and how little any of us knows about it.

Psalm 148

¹ Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord from the heavens;

praise him in the heights!

² Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host!

³ Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars!

⁴ Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens!

⁵ Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and they were created.

⁶ He established them for ever and ever; he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed.^*

⁷ Praise the Lord from the earth, you sea monsters and all deeps,

⁸ fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command!

⁹ Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars!

¹⁰ Wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds!

¹¹ Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth!

¹² Young men and women alike, old and young together!

¹³ Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted;

his glory is above earth and heaven.

¹⁴ He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his faithful,

for the people of Israel who are close to him.

Praise the Lord!

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, October 9, 2011, the Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Exodus 32:1-14
v. 1 The people grow impatient with Moses and in the vacuum left by his leadership turn to Aaron. What lessons can pastors learn from this?

v. 2 As of the closing bell last Wednesday, the spot price of Gold was

v. 3 An example of group think?

v.4 Why a calf? Why is “calf” singular and “gods” plural?

v. 7 Finally, God speaks up. It is about time!

v. 9 What does it mean to be stiff necked.

v. 10 Is God offering Moses a bribe? A reward? A temptation?

v. 11 Note that God is the God of Moses, not of the people. Is Moses buttering-up God?

v. 13 Why are the women never mentioned?

v. 14 God changes the divine mind?

vs. 1-14 Is there a a kernel of a Stewardship Sermon anywhere in this Reading?

Psalm 106:1-6, 19-23
v. 1 According to the rules of logic, must not love endure forever in order to be steadfast?

v. 4 What does it mean to be remembered by God?

v. 5 This is beginning to sound like a nationalistic Psalm.

v. 6 Here is a good phrase to include in a prayer of confession of sin.

v. 19 Are we to read this as a comment on how our ancestors in verses 6 sinned?

v. 23 Is Moses an illustration of what it means to “stand in the breach”?

Philippians 4:1-9
v. 1 How and why are the Philippians Paul’s “joy and crown”?

v. 3 Whom is Paul addressing as “my loyal companion”? What does this verse possible say about women serving as leaders in the early church? Is “The Book of Life” available from Amazon.com and/or available for download on a kindle?

v. 4 This is surely an often quoted verse.

v. 6 Does the advice of this verse depend on the fact that “The Lord is near”?

v.9 I wish we knew exactly what the Philippians had learned, received, heard, and seen.

Matthew 22:1-14
v. 1 In seems the author is aware that Jesus often spoke in parables.

v. 2 Here is “a kingdom parable”. Must we equated the king with God and the son with Jesus?

v. 4 Was there not a previous parable where a king sent slaves?

v. 5 What does it mean to “make light of” something?

v. 10 So the kingdom of God is filled with both good and bad?

v. 11 How gosh, going to a royal underdressed!

v. 12 I think he should have answered “Your slaves invited me and I was gathered in with everyone else here”.

v. 13 I know this is only a parable, but still, this seems like harsh punishment simply for showing up at a royal wedding underdressed.

v. 14 What is the difference between being “called” and “chosen”.

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Pastor of North Church Queens an 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, October 2, 2011, the Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20

v. 1 What might it mean that what follows are referred to as “words”? Why does he Revised Common Lectionary skip over some of these words?

v. 2 Why, in the NRSV and many other translations, does “LORD” appear in all uppercase letters?

v. 3 What about other gods “after” the LORD?

v. 4 What about imaginative or imaginary forms? Does Plato’s theory of forms have anything to say here? What about Anselm’s ontological argument? How do we make idols today? How do Moslems avoid making idols?

v. 7 What about making a rightful use?

v. 8 I think Seventh Day Adventists have a right to boast about this one. How do you remember the Sabbath and keep it holy?

v. 12 This one comes with a promise—or is it a reward?

v. 13 What is murder? We seem to have wordsmithed this one to death!

v. 14 What does this commandment have to do with premarital sex?

v. 15 Unless the thief is already rich and has the government behind them?

v. 16 What about bearing false witness against people who are not your neighbor? Does Jesus have anything to add here?

v. 17 Why does “house” appear before “wife”? What about anything that belongs to someone other than your neighbor?

vs. 18-20 What do these verses add to what precedes them? Early in my ministry, I discovered Jan Milic Lochman’s Signposts to Freedom: The Ten Commandments and Christian Ethics and I highly recommend it as a thoughtful interpretation of the Ten Commandments.

Psalm 19:1-14
vs. 1-6 Do we have to buy into a pre-Copernican three-tiered universe in order to read this as God’s word?

vs. 7-9 Were you aware there are so many synonyms for “law”?

v. 10 Since when is the law, any law, more desirable than gold and sweeter than honey?

v. 14 This verse is often quoted/prayed by preachers before they preach a sermon, and I think wrongly so. A Prayer for Illumination prior to the reading of Scripture is sufficientforboth the readingof the word and the preaching of the word.

Philippians 3:4b-14
v. 4b Is there a pun at work here?

v.7 What gains might Paul have had?

v. 10 How will Paul become like Christ in his death?

vs. 12-14 What is the metaphor Paul is employing?

Matthew 21:33-46
v. 33 If this is a parable, is it wrong to equate God with the land owner? If so, who might be the tenants?

v. 34 and likewise, who might the slaves be?

v. 37 A son, but not necessarily an only son.

v.42 Where might we read this in scripture?

v. 43 Is this parable a “kingdom parable”?

v. 45 If verse 45 is true, what, then, is the irony of verse 46?

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, September 25, 2011, the Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.
Exodus 17:1-7
v. 1 What does it mean to journey “by stages”? Did the LORD command them to journey or journey by stages? Why would anyone camp at a place where there was no water?

v. 2 How many time now, have the people quarreled with Moses? How is quarrelling with Moses the same as testing God?

v. 4 How many pastors, how many times, have similarly cried out?

v. 5 So Moses served in a multi staff congregation! I want to know more about this staff. Where might it be now?

v. 6 “The rock”? Was this a well-known rock? The only rock? What do you know about Horeb?

v. 7 “Is the LORD among us or not?” seems to be the question of the day. Why do we never see churches with names like “Massah and Meribah (put your denomination here) Church”?

Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16
v. 1 Who is the speaker?

v. 2 Apparently someone was teaching in parables centuries before Jesus. I love the phrase “dark sayings from of old”. It reminds me of literature such as Beowulf and the Legend of King Arthur as well as The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. I imagine the whole congregation of Israel gathered around a blazing fire while camped for the night, telling stories from the past as well as re-hashing the day’s events. I sometimes wonder what dark sayings from of old have been lost from the oral and written tradition.

v. 4 Why would anyone want to hide such things from their children?

v. 12 Where is Zoan?

vs. 15 & 16 Do these two verses talk about the same thing?

Philippians 2:1-13
v. 1 If?

v. 2 Are we to assume Paul’s joy was not yet complete?

v. 4 This certainly runs against most current political rhetoric.

v. 5 Based on this verse, are we then to think and act in accordance with verses 6-8?

v. 6 How would one exploit equality with God?

vs.9-10 Was “Jesus” above every name before it was given to Christ, or was it elevated above every name because of Christ’s obedience?

v. 11 Is this not the most basic confession of the Christian faith?

v. 12 How do we work out our own salvation? Why with fear and trembling?

v. 13 Or? What is the meaning and function of this verse?

Matthew 21:23-32
v. 23 Is this a legitimate question? And the answer is?

v. 24 Tit for tat?

vs. 25-27 In other words, do not speak the truth but the most politically advantageous answer.

v. 27 Did the chief priests and elders really know but were not willing to answer, or did they really not know?

vs. 28-32 How does this parable logically follow from what precedes it?

v. 28 What is the symbolism of the vineyard?

v. 31 Touché! Maybe the tax collectors and prostitutes will go into the kingdom ahead of the chief priests and elders, but perhaps the elders and chief priests will still get in.

v. 32 And the lesson is?

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Designated 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, September 18, 2011, the Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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.
Exodus 16:2-15
v. 2 Why do many Pastor’s sometimes feel like Moses and Aaron? How do we complain and what do we complain about?

v. 3 What is a “fleshpot”?

v. 4 How is God sending bread to a hungry people a test? What exactly and specifically are God’s instructions?

v. 5 Why is twice as much gathered on the sixth day?

v. 6 What is so special about the evening?

v. 7 How will the people see the glory of the Lord in the morning? What is “the glory of the Lord”? What are Moses and Aaron?

v. 10 If the people were already in the wilderness, how could they look “toward” the wilderness? What and where is our wilderness?

v. 11 How shall eating meat and bread convince people that the Lord is their God?

v. 13 Have you ever eaten a quail? I have. They are delicious, but not very satisfying if you are particularly hungry.

v. 14 What is this fine flakey substance called?

Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45
v. 1 What is the LORD’s name? How can one call on the LORD’s name when one is not permitted to pronounce the name of the LORD?

v. 1-2 What are the LORD’s deeds and works?

v. 6 Why are offspring always the offspring of only men?

v. 38 Egypt was glad?

Philippians 1:21-30
v. 21 How can dying be gain?

vs 21-26 Is Paul really struggling, or is this just rhetoric?

v. 27 What is a life worthy of the gospel.

V.30 What is Paul’s struggle?

Matthew 20:1-16
v. 1 A kingdom parable.

v.8 The last shall be first and the first last – this is the only way this parable works.

v.9-10 How would The Tea Part handle these verses and this parable?

How does this parable preach with high unemployment in a fragile economy?

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Designated 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.

Memories and Dreams - A Sermon Ten Years Aftter 9-11

Memories and Dreams

A Sermon by the Reverend John Edward Harris, D. Min.

Preached at the Whitestone Community Service of Prayer

In Remembrance of the Events of September 11, 2001

St. Luke Roman Catholic Church, Whitestone, NY

September 10, 2011

When the topic of the terrorist attacks of ten years ago comes up in conversation, as it has so often of late, what is one of the first questions we are likely to ask or to be asked? “Where were you when you first learned of the attacks?”

I was living in West Virginia, having started a new pastorate just the week before. As I was driving to the hospital to visit a member, I was listening to NPR, when an announcer broke in to regular programming to say that a plane had reportedly crashed into one of World Trade Towers, but that details were sketchy. A little later, as I was visiting the member and his wife in his hospital room, we were watching the coverage of the events on the television in his room when the second plane hit the tower. At least that is the way I remember it now ten years later.

Nearly two weeks later, I wrote in my journal for the first time after the attacks. Here is an excerpt from what I wrote. Please keep in mind that the chronology might be a little off because I was writing from memory.

“Tuesday, September 11, is a day that will live long in my memory and in the memory of all Americans. Around 9:00 AM, a 747 or 757, hijacked out of Boston, flew into one of the Twin World Trade Towers. Less than 15 minutes later, another hijacked airliner crashed into the second tower, a crash watched my millions, if not during the live coverage of the first crash, then on taped replay. Within the hour, a third hijacked airliner, out of Dulles, crashed into the Pentagon. And a fourth jetliner, hijacked out of Newark, crashed into a field in Somerset County, Pennsylvania, after passengers and crew tried to retake the plane from the hijackers. Its intended target may have been Camp David, or the White House or Capitol.

Within an hour or two after being crashed into by the two planes, both Twin Towers collapsed in upon themselves to the ground. Two weeks later, debris is still being removed and any hope of finding survivors is nil. In total, over 5,000 people were killed or are missing from the result of the terrorist attacks.

The attacks are being linked to Saudi Arabian Islamic Fundamentalist Terrorist Osama Bin Laden, believed to be hiding out somewhere in Afghanistan.

President Bush has declared war on Terrorism and American Forces are being deployed to the Persian Gulf and Middle East for an expected retaliatory strike against terrorist camps and bases, an assault that will undoubtedly involve US ground troops and some US causalities.”

Ten years ago, we began a new chapter in America’s history. We are still looking back, still remembering, still asking questions, still wandering what it all means. The end of this chapter in America’s history has yet to be written, however. American troops are still in Afghanistan and still in Iraq in what is now the longest war in American history. As we live and breathe, and remember those who died on September 11, 2001, you and I, along with Government workers from the President of the United States to the Army Private serving in Afghanistan, along with Captains of Industry to the construction worker laboring to rebuild the World Trade Center, along with Bishops and Moderators and Church leaders to the average worshiper in the Synagogue, Church and Mosque, are still living in aftermath of 9-11 and wondering how to move forward, how to bring this chapter to an end.

This evening, in a small part of the great city of New York known as Whitestone, Protestants and Roman Catholics have broken down historical barriers that have divided us centuries and have come together to remember and pray for peace. We have gathered not just to look back and remember, but also to look forward and dream as we pray.

Yes, as Christians we do look back; back to God’s good creation broken by sin, back to God’s promises to Noah and to Abraham and Sarah, and back to the birth, life, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace. We also look forward, however. Along with Isaiah, Joel, and Micah, we look forward to beating swords in plowshares and spears into pruning hooks. Along with John on the Island of Patmos we dream of a new heaven and a new earth. We dream of the holy city, not New York but the new Jerusalem, and in that city God will wipe away every tear. Death will be no more. Mourning, crying, and pain will have ended. In the midst of the city will be the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb. On either side of the river will be the tree of life. The leaves of the tree will for the healing of the nations.

As disciples of the Prince of Peace, we must not only dream of peace, and pray for peace, but be peacemakers, asking for and offering forgiveness, seeking and working for reconciliation not only between Roman Catholics and Protestants, but also among Jews, Christians, and Muslims, indeed, among peace loving people of all faiths, and even no faith.

We who lived through the events of September 11, 2001 can never forget the events of ten years ago tomorrow, nor fail to remember the people who lost their lives that day and the days soon after. However, let us dwell not on what once was but on what shall be, looking not to the past but to the future, a future that for Christians is filled with hope and the promise of peace. Let us not ask one another “Where were you and what where you doing ten years ago tomorrow?” Rather, let us ask one another “Where do you want to be and what do you want to be doing ten years from tomorrow?”

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, September 11, 2011, the Twenty-Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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 are linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

Exodus 14:19-31
v. 19 Are the “angel of God” and the “pillar of cloud” one and the same; or, are they different manifestations of the same reality?

v. 20 What is the meaning of “army”? How could fleeing slaves have an army in the military sense of the word? How could the cloud light up the night? What did not come near the other?

v. 21 How might we variously understand the action of Moses stretching his hand over the sea? What, if any, is the significance of the wind? Might the causeway at Lindisfarne, off the eastern coast of England, in any way help us envision how God might have been working here?

v. 22 How might we variously understand “wall”?

v. 24 Why did the Egyptian army panic?

v. 25 Why did Captain Kirk, in a damaged Enterprise, enter the Nebula when Kahn, in a perfectly functioning starship, sought to engage him in battle?

v. 26 What is it about the hand off Moses?

v. 27 When did the water’s part and when did the water’s return? How might we variously understand “tossed”?

v. 28 Does this verse conflict with the one before it?

v. 30 If it was the LORD that saved Israel, why did Israel “fear” the LORD and believe in Moses as well as in the LORD?

Psalm 114:1-8
v. 1 When did Israel go out from Egypt?

v. 2 Is the reference to “Judah” a reference to a, to a people, or both?

v. 3 Does this verse conflate two events?

v. 4 How do mountains and hills “skip”?

vs. 5-6 Why are bodies of waters being compared, or poetically paired, to mountains and hills?

v. 7 Is this a reference to the God of the earthquake?

v. 8 When did God turn rock into a pool of water and flint into a spring of water?

Exodus 15:1b-11, 20-21
v. 1b Yes, there are other psalms, or songs, in the Bible, other than in the Book of Psalms. Who first sang this one? This is an alternative to Psalm 114. Which of the two, if either, will you use, and why? How are they different and how are they similar?

v. 3 Must we maintain this militaristic image of God, especially on a day such as 9-11-11?

v. 6 What is the significance of the LORD’s ”right hand”?

v. 8 God has nostrils? The parting of the waters was the result of God sneezing?

v. 11 And the answer to the questions asked in this verse is . . .

v. 20 Miriam was a prophet? Why is she identified as Aaron’s sister rather than as the sister of both Aaron and Moses? When was the last time you heard a tambourine played in a service of worship?

Romans 14:1-12
v. 1 What does it mean to be “weak in faith”?

v. 2 This verse sounds shockingly timely.

v. 4 “Servants of another”? Who is Paul talking about? “Their” own lord? How many “lords” are there?

v. 5 Is Paul talking about the Sabbath and the Lord’s Day (Saturday and Sunday), or what?

v. 6 Do you know the meaning of the word “adiaphora”, especially as Calvin used it?

vs. 7-9 These verses are often used as part of the funeral liturgy. What do they have to do, however, with what precedes or follows?

v. 11 Where is this written?

Matthew 18:21-35
v. 21 Why might the word “church” seem out of place here? How might we account for it being used here? Is there anything special about the number “seven” in this context?

v. 22 Is there anything special about “seventy-seven”? Are there parallels to this passage in the other Gospels, and if so, how do they agree and disagree?

vs. 23-35 Does this qualify as a “Kingdom Parable”?

v. 35 Is this a threat? Does this verse suggest that forgiveness, even salvation, is revocable?

ADDENDUM
Asking the obvious, how do any of these Readings help us preach, and/or teach, ten years to the day, of the tragic events of 9-11-2001? Are you dumping the lectionary for other readings?

In addition to serving as the half time Designated 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.

Why?

Sometimes I wonder why things are the way they are. Today I want to ask your thoughts on a particular question to see if you can help me understand. Why has it become so important that Genesis chapters one and two be interpreted literally? Why those particular chapters? This is not a science and religion question. This is a Bible interpretation question.

Many of us who take the Bible seriously believe that if our lived experience conflicts with what we believe a particular Biblical text says, we need to re-evaluate our interpretation of that text. It seems intuitively clear to us that there should be some congruity between the “real world” and what we believe God is communicating to us through the Bible. Of course sometimes the point of contact is that our ways and God’s way are quite different- but even then what is said about the human condition rings true to our experience.

Let me give you a couple of examples. A plain, literal reading of Mark 11:24 and Matt 18:19 suggests that if we and a couple of others, seriously, thoughtfully ask God for something or ask God to do something that those prayers will be answered. Now, I don’t know about you, but my experience is not that simple- I ask, God gives. It just doesn’t happen all that often to me or to anyone I know.

Now some of you are already forming a response to my example by thinking of an alternative understanding text. You might be thinking ,the plain reading of the text says this but it can also be read to mean something somewhat different, something more complex, more nuanced. And that is my point. When my experience of prayer doesn’t match what I think the Bible says, I re-evaluate my interpretation. I don’t assume my experience is false. I don’t assume the Bible is bunk. I assume my interpretation is flawed and needs to be rethought.

Here’s another example. In Matthew 10:34, Jesus says “Do not think I have come to bring peace to the earth; I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” This statement is not in harmony with other things Jesus says. Such as blessed are the peacemakers. Love your enemies. And so on. Our experience of Jesus in the rest of the gospel doesn’t match with the plain, literal meaning of this text. So we have to think again about what Jesus might mean in Matt 10:34.

If you have spent much time in Bible study, it’s very common for someone at the end of the session to say something like, “I’ve read that story a hundred times. I always thought it was about A and today because of our discussion, it seems to be about B. I have never thought about it from this perspective before.” Someone thought they understood the meaning of a text and as a result of discussion and hearing other people’s experiences and their own experience, a new understanding emerges for them.

We change what we think various texts mean fairly often based on how our experiences and the text interact.

So here’s the question. Why are some of us so opposed to reinterpreting Genesis one and two? If a plain reading of the text doesn’t match with experience, in this case evolutionary biology and cosmology, why wouldn’t it be appropriate to adjust our interpretation of it? Changing our interpretation does not mean we do not take the Bible seriously. It does mean we don’t take our interpretation so seriously. We allow for interpretive mistakes, we allow for growth in understanding, we allow for nuance and complexity. Perhaps we even allow ourselves to say we don’t fully understand.

So here again is my question. Why, for some of us, are the first chapters of Genesis exempt from any re interpretation that moves away from a plain literal reading?

I’d like to know, what do you think?

Cross posted at Conversation in Faith

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, September 4, 2011, the Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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 are linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore.

Exodus 12:1-14
v. 1 God now speaks top BOTH Moses and Aaron. What about Mariam?

v. 2 What month? I think Israel recognized at least two calendars, one civil/religious and the other agricultural.

v. 4 How many people does it take to eat a lamb?

v. 10 Do not let anything remain until the morning! BUT, if anything does remain until the morning, burn it. What sort of logic is this?

v. 12 What is the irony here? Why is judgment executed on the gods of Egypt rather than upon Pharaoh?

v. 13 Is the blood a sign for the whole congregation of Israel or a sign for God?

v. 14 Do “day of remembrance”, “a festival”, and “a perpetual ordinance” all suggest the same thing to you?

Psalm 149:1-9
v. 1 What is a “new song” and the difference between a “new song” and any other sort of song?

v. 3 When was the last time people worshipping in your congregation praised God’s name with dancing? When was the last time you heard a tambourine (or a lyre) in worship?

v. 5 Singing for joy on couches?

v. 6 I do not like the militaristic imagery. This and the following verses are beginning to sound like a call to a holy war.

Romans 13:8-14
v. 8 Here is a solution to our national debt!

v. 9 Of all the commandments, even all the ten commandments, why are these four mentioned?

v.11 What time is it? “For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers” is logically a true statement unless there is no salvation.

v. 12 What are the works of darkness? What is the armor of light?

v. 13 May we logically assume that “reveling and drunkenness, debauchery and licentiousness, quarreling and jealousy” are among (or all of) the works of darkness?

vs. 12-13 Is the assumption thatsome types of behavior are more typically engaged in at night and refrained from during the day?

v. 14 Putting “on the Lord Jesus Christ” is the antithesis of gratifying desires of the flesh”?

Matthew 18:15-20
v. 15 How does someone “sin” against you?

v. 16 What “word” are these “witnesses” confirming?

v. 17 What does it mean for church member to be “as a Gentile and a tax collector”?

v. 18 Have we heard these words before, in another context?

v. 19 Just two? Anything? Is this an example of hyperbole?

v. 20 What does it mean to “gather in my name”?

vs. 15-21 Is this an example of primitive church discipline, or something else?

ADDENDUM
In addition to serving as the half time Designated 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 our my WyzAnt page and follow the appropriate links.

Shaking Out the Welcome Mat

Hello, all, I know it's been a long time!

I've been a little busy with the new baby, children home from school for summer vacation, travel, etc. But I have been checking in with the blog and noticed that it has been a long time since I've gotten a RingSurf request.

I decided to do a manual check, and . . . RingSurf is locked up. I can't seem to log in using our usual user name and password and the "reset password" button doesn't seem to be working, either. So we don't currently have access to the ring.

On the positive side, many of us use the blog roll more often than the web ring, anyway. So if you'd like your blog linked from here, please email PCUSAblog at gmail dotcom and send us your URL as well as a brief description of your blog. I'll add your link and welcome you here on a Monday morning.

Now on to introductions!

I'd like to introduce our newest member, Herb Swanson, who blogs at Rom Phra Khun: A Pastor's Blog.

"My name is Herb Swanson. I am the pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Lowville, NY. Rom Phra Khun is my personal blog although FPC's website links to it. The church is, of course, in no way responsible for these contents.

Rom Phra Khun is Thai. It means, literally, “in the shade of goodness/blessing” and is used in the Thai Bible to translate “grace,” as in the grace of God. It is a beautiful metaphor for that grace rooted in a semi-tropical environment where shade is a blessing. To stand in the shade of God’s grace is to stand in a cool, sheltered, and safe place. It echoes the 25 years that my wife, Warunee ("Runee"), family, and I spent in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Rom Phra Khun is meant to be a mindful, reflective playground—serious & not so serious all at one time. So, whether you come once or often, peace & blessings on the journey, Herb"

Welcome, Rev. Swanson!

Lectionary Ruminations for Sunday, August 28, 2011, the Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year A)

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 are linked to the NRSV via the oremus Bible Browser.) Lectionary Ruminations is also cross-posted on my personal blog, Summit to Shore. 

Exodus 3:1-15
v. 1 The Moses saga continues with last week’s infant Moses now a married grown man. What other great figures from the Jewish Scriptures spent their early life as shepherd? Is the fact that Moses’ father-in-law was a priest a foreshadowing of Moses future role? Why would Moses lead his flock beyond the wilderness where there be dragons or deities? Did Moses know he was near Horeb, the mountain of God, or is this description hindsight?

v. 2 Note that in the NRSV it is “the”, not “an” angel of the LORD. Why do we usually refer to this as “the burning bush” rather than “the bush that was not consumed”?

v. 3 Turn aside? Where had Moses been looking before he looked at the bush.

v. 4 How often in the Jewish Scriptures does God call a person’s name twice? How many people in the Jewish Scriptures, and who, respond to God “Here I am.”

v. 5 Why do some people remove their shoes and socks when standing on holy ground? Why do Christians not worship barefooted?

v. 6 Who was Moses’ father? Abraham? Isaac? Jacob? Someone else? Why are only the men mentioned? Can we be faithful to Scripture and include Sarah, Rebekah, Leah and Rachel as well as Zilpah and Bilha? Why was Moses afraid to look at God?

v. 7 What took God so long to respond? How does God “know” their suffering?

v. 8 Where has God come down from and why did God need to come down at all? What is a land flowing with milk and honey like?

v. 10 So, God comes down (v. 7), but sends Moses!

v. 11 A perfectly good question.

v. 12 It sounds like the confirmation will be after the fact? It is like me telling you that you are a excellent Biblical scholar and you asking me how you can be sure that you are an excellent Biblical Scholar and me answering that you will know you are an excellent Biblical Scholar when you post a comment to this blog.

v. 13 Why does Moses refer to “your ancestors” rather than “our ancestors”? Why is knowing God’s name so important?

v. 14 “I AM WHO I AM”? Why, in NRSV, does this appear all in upper case letters?

v. 15 So, exactly what, is God’s name and title? Is God’s name and title the same?

Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26, 45c
v. 1 Why, in the NRSV, does “LORD” appear all in uppercase? What is God’s name? What are God’s deeds?

v. 2 This is beginning to read like a couplet.

v. 4 How does one seek God’s presence?

vs. 23-26 Is this merely a retelling of salvation history, or something more going on here?

v. 45c A budding psalmist can never go wrong ending a psalm this way.

Romans 12:9-21
v. 9 How can love not be genuine? Is “hating evil” the opposite of “holding fast to what is good”?

v. 14 What does Paul mean by “bless”and”curse”?

v. 16 What if we extended the admonition to “live in harmony with one another” to extend to other species? I think Socrates would have liked this verse.

v. 18 And what if by “all” we meant all living creation, not just other humans?

v. 19 What is the “wrath of God”? While Paul advises us to not avenge ourselves, what about state sanctioned punishment for crime? How many times is “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord” quoted out of context and misapplied?

v. 20 Since when is food and water the same as burning coals? Is this good statecraft and foreign policy? What would H. Richard Niebuhr say about this?

v. 21 Paul is sounding like Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. Or maybe King and Gandhi learned their non-violent civil resistance from Paul! Or Jesus?

Matthew 16:21-28
v. 21 From what time on?

v. 22 Why did Peter take Jesus aside? Why did Peter rebuke Jesus?

v. 23 Did Jesus just refer to Peter as Satan? What is the pun in referring to Peter as a stumbling block? What is the human thing Peter was setting his mind on? What was the divine thing Jesus wanted Peter to set his mind on?

v. 24 What does it mean to “deny” oneself? Is there a difference between taking up Jesus’ cross versus taking up our own cross?

v. 25 What is the meaning of this? Is this a paradox?

v. 27 Who is “the Son of Man”? Why this shift from moral admonition to apocalyptic language?

v. 28 How shall we interpret this passage nearly two centuries after the death, resurrection and ascension of Christ? What does it mean to “see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom”? Can we read this as a reference to the Christian Pentecost of Acts rather than a second coming of Christ?

ADDENDUM
Many Christians along the east coast of the United States may be reading and hearing these passages following, or anticipating, the affects of hurricane Irene. Is there anything in any of these Readings to address this situation?

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