I’m on sabbatical right now, and my “main” project is about creating a robust spirituality of hope. Below is small piece of this project, which is still very much in process. By the waters of Babylon we sat down and wept. When the Hebrew Bible wants to deal with pain, it turns to poetry. Psalm 137 is one of those poems that scrapes the emotion off the sides of the human condition. It starts with […]
Ezekiel 17:22-24 is the Hebrew Bible Lesson properly appointed for Proper 6B, Track 2 according to the Revised Common Lectionary. The king had abandoned the covenant that God had made with his people, and instead was looking to buttress himself with an alliance with the Egyptians. Instead of drawing strength from God, the king was looking towards the help of another nation. This does not please God. And, so judgment will follow. But, judgment isn’t all […]
Genesis 3:8-15 is the Hebrew Bible Lesson properly appointed for Proper 5B, Track 2 according to the Revised Common Lectionary. The story of the Garden in Genesis is the story of brokenness. And, as such, it’s a story that we know all too well. We know it in our bones. In the beginning, after God had drawn us out of the clay and filled us with His breath, God was right there with us. He […]
A reflection on Exodus 33:12-23, the Hebrew Bible lesson for Proper 24a, according to the Revised Common Lectionary. God takes Moses, and he puts him in a little crack in a rock atop a mountain. God was going to pass by Moses, and God wanted to let Moses catch a glimpse of Him. So God passed by – but Moses wasn’t allowed to look yet. He wasn’t able to look until God had already passed. […]
This Sunday (Proper 22a) we have the 10 Commandments in Exodus 20. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about Sabbath these days…particularly in the sense that as a culture we don’t get any…. and I’m going to be preaching on that this Sunday. Walter Brueggeman’s recent book “Sabbath as Resistance” is amazing, and I recommend it highly. A hi-def version of the infographic below can be downloaded in PDF form here.
See the former things have come to pass, and new things I now declare. Isaiah 42:9 Our faith stretches back into history like the roots of a mighty oak stretch into the earth, grabbing at the earth and clutching onto the bedrock beneath. But, our faith is not just a lesson in history.
Many years ago my wife and I moved to Atlanta. We roamed around our new city, taking in the sights and sounds of our exciting new home. On one of our travels we happened by a place where there were some interesting shops. Above the shops was a towering building with a very unique cantilevered roof. Not long after that trip her birthday was coming up, and I wanted to go back to those shops […]
The following is a reflection on Revelation 7:9-17, the New Testament lesson appointed for Easter 5C, and All Saint’s Day, Year A according to the New Revised Common Lectionary. The Book of Leviticus tells of the major festival of Tabernacles. All Israel was to gather together, and construct temporary shelters, called tabernacles, to remind themselves of their ancestors dwelling in temporary shelters for the forty year wilderness journey. They were also to pray, waving palm, […]
The following is a reflection on Luke 9:28-36, the Gospel lesson for the Last Sunday in Epiphany, year C, according to the revised common lectionary. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!” When the Israelites were freed from Pharaoh’s hand, and they were wandering […]
The following is a reflection on 1 Samuel 1:4-20 & 2:1-10, the Old Testament and Psalm Lessons for Proper 28B, according to the Revised Common Lectionary. Twice in the Bible people who are praying are mistaken for being drunk. Hannah on the threshold of the Temple of Shiloh is praying for a son and is castigated by Eli. “Put away your wine,” he says. On the day of Pentecost the apostles are filled with the […]