In Matthew 11 the disciples of John the Baptist confront Jesus wanting to know if he was “the one.” Was Jesus ‘it,’ or should they keep waiting for someone else? It’s an interesting encounter to say the least. The disciples of Jesus had barely figured out who Jesus really was, and here’s another man’s disciples who seem to have put two and two together. But, the deeper point here is that they were ‘waiting’ to […]
In a previous life (or so it seems) I worked at a wilderness residential treatment center for troubled boys for two years. It was ‘wilderness’ in the sense that we were outside in tents made of mostly raw materials 365 days a year. It was ‘residential’ in the sense that we lived there. Most weeks I’d work a 110 hour shift before I then had 48 hours off. Then I’d go back and do it […]
The beginning of the second chapter of Isaiah is the vision of God’s abiding shalom come to earth, as a gift for all people. It’s the peace of God which not only passes all understanding, but which removes even the instruments of potential conflict from the face of the earth. Weapons of war are beaten into tools of trade. And the ways of warcraft are no longer taught. God’s peace will one day reign, says […]
And, in case you missed it: the new creation has already begun. It began in Christ. It began with Resurrection. In the Resurrection Jesus was made so new that his followers didn't even recognize him. They thought he was the gardener. They thought he was a stranger. He walked through closed, locked doors. He is made new. And, in baptism WE are made new.
Kenda Creasy Dean’s book “Almost Christian” should send shivers down the spine of any person in America (and beyond) who cares about the Christian faith. Drawing from the data of the National Study on Youth and Religion (NYSR) Dean says that America’s youth aren’t opposed to Christianity and the Church at all. In fact they have fond feelings for it. But, that’s because they think that Christianity is about 1) being nice and 2) feeling […]
The story of God and humanity is a covenant-story. And the story tells us, and shows us, over and over again, that God always seeks to be in relationship with us. And, admittedly, the story also shows how we always try to wriggle out of the deal. And, yet, God never stops the pursuit.
And here, in the 17th chapter of Luke, Jesus takes his disciples to a place that is in-between. They aren't in the land of the Samaritans. And they aren't home either. Where are they? They're nowhere. They're everywhere. As much as liminal periods are opportunities for danger, they are also opportunities for growth. Liminal periods are places where we can grow, where we can 'find ourselves,' and where we can orient our lives to shape what the next room we'll inhabit will look like. Where are we going? Where is God taking our lives? When we're beneath the limnus we can take the opportunity to find out. To ask God. To make it happen.
Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness! Morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed Thy hand hath provided; Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me! These words have roared in church sanctuaries countless times by countless faithful hymn-singers. Although the hymn isn’t sung often in the Episcopal Church, I remember it fondly from my childhood days as a Methodist. It’s one of those hymns that just ‘takes me back’ to […]
Old Testament law dictates what can be eaten, and what cannot be eaten: lamb but no lobster, steak but no shrimp, summer vegetables but no swine. Of course, these rules seem odd and foreign to a Christian audience that happily and readily eats broiled lobster and bacon-wrapped shrimp. The odd-nature of these rules, and the fact that they seemingly have absolutely nothing to do with our lives and faith, contributes to the shunning of the […]
But, this isn't a simple parable meant to ward us off of greed. It's a story to demonstrate two different interior predispositions. Do we live with a predisposition towards God, or to anything else? That's what this passage is about. And Jesus' point is the point of the Old Testament, according to Dr. Freedman: living a life predisposed to coveting anything is the road that leads to sin. And it's a well worn path. And it's a path that leads no where good.