Category: SSCSJ
Paragraphs from SSCSJ
Here are a few paragraphs from Sacred Steps: Children’s Sermon Journal for September 9.
Psalm 146
These ideas about God are not unique to this psalm. Throughout the 1st Testament, God is consistently portrayed as being concerned with justice (e.g., Deut 10:18; Ps 140:12; 1 Sam 2:1-10; etc.). Showing concern for the oppressed, the poor, the widow, the orphan, and the stranger is a common theme within the 613 commandments found in the Torah. Israel is taught to take care of the most vulnerable members of their community because that is what God did for them in the Exodus and because that is how they will image God to the world (Gen 1:26-27) and be a “blessing” to others (Gen 12:2-3).
Isaiah 35:1-10
As 21st century believers, we read Isa 35 as part of the whole book of Isaiah. The arguments for a later date are very strong, but what if this oracle was spoken in the 8th century BCE? The tendency of many scholars is to declare any hopeful words found in the pre-exilic prophets to be from a later hand. They seem unwilling to entertain the idea that, among words of judgment, prophets could also express the possibility of a better future. There is no reason to make this conclusion. After all, most of the biblical prophets were really optimists (like God); they believed that people could change and that the future had not yet been determined. By sending prophets, God was always providing a way for people to make different choices and to return to the covenant they had with God. Prophets were the equivalent of God tossing humanity a life-preserver, an opportunity for them to save themselves from a future of feeling exiled from the Divine. Even when that exile became a reality, God would hold out an invitation to come home.
James 2:1-17
This text from James comes at an interesting time in American culture and politics. It invites those who claim Christian faith to think about wealth, “financial goals,” community, and how our choices “dishonor” the poor. A person who lives “pay check to pay check” will read and hear this text differently than a person with a comfortable life and an emergency fund. . . The alternate translation of verse 1 challenges the Christian orthodoxy that claims a “favored” status in receiving God’s grace, based on a belief in Christ Jesus. The alternate translation also reframes the discussion near the end of the reading about “faith and works.” “My brothers and sisters, do you hold the faith of our glorious Lord Jesus Christ without acts of favoritism?” (James 2:1, alternate translation noted in The New Interpreter’s Study Bible, New Revised Standard Version)
Mark 7: 24-37
Last week, Jesus spoke to the disciples about the origins of “defiling” words and actions. There is movement and action in the text this week. Jesus travels with the disciples to a place where he is not known in order to find some time away. Is he going on vacation? Is he trying to get away from crowds or escaping the questions of ruling authorities? No one knows. But, word about him spreads, and there is no place he can go and be free of this ministry he has begun. In the text this week, Jesus is the “object lesson” for the disciples about the origin of defiling words and actions. Some scholars, and Christians, want to rescue Jesus by claiming that he was testing the disciples, to see if they had ears to hear the last teaching.(1) Wouldn’t the narrator, like gospel writers do, tell us that bit of information to fill in the story in the same way they comment on the intent of the scribes, Pharisees, and how Judas fits in the story? Jesus was learning something about the expansive nature of God’s love in this exchange with a woman, who is the only person in Mark to win an argument with Jesus.(2) His healing of her child is his mea culpa. It is a very human Jesus, who has his own prejudice challenged, that confronts our image of “divine savior” and, for me, makes Jesus and his ways more accessible, even more believable, for modern and post-modern believers.
Notes
1. See: John Ortberg, “True Grit,” The Christian Century, August 23, 2003, p. 21.
2. Mary Ann Tolbert, “Mark Commentary,” The New Interpreter’s Study Bible, Abingdon Press 2003, p. 1822.
Paragraphs from SSCSJ
These are thoughts on the texts for September 2, 2012. Subscribers of Sacred Steps: Children’s Sermon Journal receive exegesis, commentary, and ideas for crafting the children’s sermon based on the Lectionary each week.
Psalm 15
If we simply take the final form of Ps 15, the plot twist can still make sense. While the one praying may begin the liturgy with an expectation of gaining access to a place, at the end she/he learns that worshiping God is best done in how one lives than in where one worships. This is a lesson that Israel struggled to remember throughout the stories of the 1st Testament. It is a reminder that prophets attempted to provide for the community throughout the generations. We also need to be reminded of this important connection between our worship and our work, between our prayer and our practice. What images do the “LORD’s tent” and “holy hill” call to mind for you? What is a holy place in your life? Is the sanctuary of your congregation such a space? Who gets to enter the sanctuary? Can you think of people who may not feel worthy to be in church because of the words spoken there? How does your life reflect the God you worship? How does your congregation live out their worship of God through service to the world? Does the liturgy in your worship assure people of God’s enduring presence, so that they “shall never be moved”?
Song of Solomon 2:8-13
While the Lectionary has listed “Song of Solomon” as the name of this biblical book, that is a traditional title and not its actual name. In Hebrew, this book is titled shir ha’shirim, which translates as “Song of Songs” (SoS). This is the Hebrew way of expressing the superlative; this text is the song that is better than all other songs. The next words in the Hebrew text are ‘asher le’shlomo, “which is of Solomon.” Like the many superscriptions in the Psalms (e.g., le’david), this is not meant as a byline but rather probably indicates that the text is “in honor of” Solomon or “dedicated to” Solomon. Since King Solomon was known for his many wives and concubines, one can see why this book of love poems would come to be associated with him. One tradition suggested that Solomon wrote these poems about his relationship with the Queen of Sheba (see 1 Kgs 10 or 2 Chr 9), but there is no evidence to support this claim.2
SoS is found among the Ketuvim, “Writings”, the third portion of the Jewish Bible, which was the last section to be canonized (perhaps not until 200 CE). Scholars think that SoS either was written at a late date (after the Babylonian Exile, no earlier than 5th century BCE) or was not accepted until late in the canonization process. The subject matter of SoS is erotic love that is expressed within a non-marital context. It contains no expressions of Israelite nationalism or of any explicit religious/ethical values. It is suggested that the subject matter of SoS almost prevented it from making it into the canon, or it might have been questioned because the female has such a dominant voice; she is in control of her sexuality and not the possession of some male (which was common in many ancient cultures, including Israelite). We know that the rabbis did debate its inclusion, and some believe that it was included only because of the traditional belief in Solomon’s authorship. However, it is more plausible that SoS was kept in the Jewish canon because the rabbis understood that the Divine was a part of all life, including sexuality. And we are indebted to them for this wise decision.
James 1:17-27
Are you “quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger?” Maybe a better way to consider the question is to think of settings in which you are likely to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger, as compared to situations in which you are quick to anger, interrupt, and not listen to others.8 How does this reflect on who you are as a person that claims Christian faith? Another way to ingest this text would be to evaluate your belief and practice as a “doer” or “hearer” of the word. A first question would be, “Whose word or what word?” Is it the “Word” proclaimed by the Gospel of John? Is it the “Word” proclaimed by the Apostle Paul? Is the “Word” the good news of God as proclaimed by Jesus of Nazareth in the gospels as a whole? The author of James provides a hint in vv. 23-24, though it is an awkward metaphor. A translation note in the NISB provides another way to read and hear the text.
Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23
This is a good week to put a few of your congregation’s traditions, as well as a few traditions of Christianity, under a microscope and ask, “Why?” Think about your worship service. Where are communion, offering, and preaching placed in your order of worship? Why do you have that order of worship? Who is chosen from the congregation as deacon or elder? How do you practice baptism, what do you ask a person who comes forward to join your congregation, and who is welcome into membership of your congregation? This is not about questioning for questioning’s sake. It is about determining the intentions of “traditions” and if those are consistent with the teachings of Jesus and your understanding of God. It’s about recognizing when a person, congregation, or religion chooses tradition’s interpretation of a sacred text over what the sacred text says or does not say. It is important to remember that the biblical witness was organized based on “tradition’s” power structures as well. Many Christian siblings, who continue to believe and argue that women should not be ministers, do so even though all the gospels agree that Mary Magdalene was one of the first to experience Christ’s resurrection and, according to the Gospel of John, was told by the risen Christ to go and tell (preach) to the disciples the good news that he had risen. Yet, the Roman Catholic Church and many Protestants deny women the process and the affirmation to answer their call to ordained Christian ministry, often based on church’s tradition.