Friday, August 29, 2008
August 31st Worship Service
Better late than never. What are we doing this Sunday? Be sure to publish any discussions that may have happened already. It's Labor Day weekend, so labor or laboring could be a theme. Who what when why where and how are we making this one happen? Thanks for your continued input!
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
notes from august 24th meeting
Good Citizenship Sunday
Welcome
Song
Genesis reading
Call to worship
Matthew reading
Message:
- Archaic religion: dependance, single file line
- Modern religion: individualism, spreading out/bubbles
- Historic religion: transcendent power, rocks – who do you say I am?
Pledge/Prayer juxtaposition…Prayer wins
Passing of peace/Blessing bowl
Communion
Song
Benediction
THOUGHTS:
Pledge to the slaughtered lamb
Focus on Jesus
The Church’s One Foundaton – song
On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand – song
Cannot serve God and ____________
“Undr God SUGGESTS A HIGHER LOYALTY
Factoid box on bulletin
Peter’s Rock in every nation
Peter vs. Petroleum
Not bashing, but calling to a higher loyalty
Go Down, Moses – sing for Labor Day?
Shall we gather at the river – song
NEEDS:
Rocks
Sharpees
Readers
Musicians
Welcome
Song
Genesis reading
Call to worship
Matthew reading
Message:
- Archaic religion: dependance, single file line
- Modern religion: individualism, spreading out/bubbles
- Historic religion: transcendent power, rocks – who do you say I am?
Pledge/Prayer juxtaposition…Prayer wins
Passing of peace/Blessing bowl
Communion
Song
Benediction
THOUGHTS:
Pledge to the slaughtered lamb
Focus on Jesus
The Church’s One Foundaton – song
On Christ the Solid Rock I Stand – song
Cannot serve God and ____________
“Undr God SUGGESTS A HIGHER LOYALTY
Factoid box on bulletin
Peter’s Rock in every nation
Peter vs. Petroleum
Not bashing, but calling to a higher loyalty
Go Down, Moses – sing for Labor Day?
Shall we gather at the river – song
NEEDS:
Rocks
Sharpees
Readers
Musicians
Do you know my Name?
I have really enjoyed listening to Rickie Lee Jones' album THE SERMON ON EXPOSITION BOULEVARD over the last year or so. Here is a blurb from a New York Times article about the album:
Whatever it is Christ said doesn’t get a fair shake,” Rickie Lee Jones said. On a rainy December day, she was sniffling and coughing, fighting a bad cold and losing. “There’s not much written, it was done 150 years later, and it was used to create an empire. So can we get rid of all that and just see what the guy said?”
Anyways her song "WHAT"S MY NAME" fits this week. It might be good just to have this music in the background before and after service--the same way that the church basement roadshow folks used bruce springsteen after and before their performance.
Here are the lyrics.
For a thousand years
I've lay upon the Lake Victoria
I was winged and many-colored
And nobody knew my name
For a thousand years
I fell out of the sand into the Guadeloupe
And I made many songs into the air
And nobody knew my name
I fell like water
In sweet gasps of hydrogen up
Into the sea over the Bikini Islands
And I dove into the liquid concrete of sweet silver lake
The liquid concrete of down by the river
And nobody knew my name
Now I walk among them and I sing to them
And I open up my wrists
And nobody knows my name
And I translate into many hours of history
But nobody knows my name
I stood in the four winds
I stood in the four winds
I stood in the four winds
And nobody knows my name
So I walk again
Yeah, I walk every night
So I walk again
I look at you
Sweet every face
Do you know my name
Do you, do you know my name
Do you know my name
Do you know my name
Say it
Do you know my name
Say it
Do you know my name
Do you know my name
Do you know my
Do you know my name
Do you know my
My...
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
August 24th Worship Service
let's start looking ahead to get ourselves better organized...cool. there is already a really good august 31 discussion going.
15th Sunday after Pentacost
* Exodus 1:8-2:10: A pharaoh who did not know the family of Joseph made his descendents into hard-labor slaves and tried to reduce their numbers by infanticide. The Hebrew midwives and the daughter of Pharoah had other ideas, and Moses is born and raised in the royal household.
* Psalm 124 (UMH 846): Refrain: Alternate refrain: "If it had not been for the Lord on my side" (TFWS 2053). See "Psalms for Singing" for an alternative.
* Romans 12:1-8: Against the backdrop of their mixed Jewish-Gentile community, Paul calls the Christians at Rome to offer themselves fully to God with transformed minds (not conformed to a Jewish-Gentile dichotomy/enmity paradigm), but with the awareness that we are being made into one body, each of us with differing gifts.
* Matthew 16:13-20: In a stronghold of Roman authority, Jesus asks the disciples who others say that he is. Peter confesses, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." Jesus then calls Peter and the church in which he will eventually lead to storm the gates of death, assured of victory, and to take authority to "bind and loose" on earth.
Art Response:
First Voice:
Who do people say that I am? (Matthew 16:13)
Second Voice:
Some say you are a figment of imagination.
Some say you are irrelevant.
Some say you never existed.
Some say your existence doesn’t matter.
Some say you belong to another race.
Some say you belong to another party.
Some say you belong to the status quo.
Some say you are weak.
Some say you look after the rich, the powerful, and the famous.
First Voice:
Who do yousay that I am? (Matthew 16:15)
(Invite responses, and then end with the following.)
You are our Lord
You are our Teacher
our example
our Savior
our friend
our comforter
our advocate
our companion.
You are mother and father when none can be found.
You are love!
You are the firstborn of all creation.
You are for all races and peoples.
You belong to no political party.
You are on the side of the poor and weak.
Your arm is long and bends toward justice.
You are our source and our destination,
Our Alpha and Omega,
Our beginning and end.
You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
15th Sunday after Pentacost
* Exodus 1:8-2:10: A pharaoh who did not know the family of Joseph made his descendents into hard-labor slaves and tried to reduce their numbers by infanticide. The Hebrew midwives and the daughter of Pharoah had other ideas, and Moses is born and raised in the royal household.
* Psalm 124 (UMH 846): Refrain: Alternate refrain: "If it had not been for the Lord on my side" (TFWS 2053). See "Psalms for Singing" for an alternative.
* Romans 12:1-8: Against the backdrop of their mixed Jewish-Gentile community, Paul calls the Christians at Rome to offer themselves fully to God with transformed minds (not conformed to a Jewish-Gentile dichotomy/enmity paradigm), but with the awareness that we are being made into one body, each of us with differing gifts.
* Matthew 16:13-20: In a stronghold of Roman authority, Jesus asks the disciples who others say that he is. Peter confesses, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God." Jesus then calls Peter and the church in which he will eventually lead to storm the gates of death, assured of victory, and to take authority to "bind and loose" on earth.
Art Response:
First Voice:
Who do people say that I am? (Matthew 16:13)
Second Voice:
Some say you are a figment of imagination.
Some say you are irrelevant.
Some say you never existed.
Some say your existence doesn’t matter.
Some say you belong to another race.
Some say you belong to another party.
Some say you belong to the status quo.
Some say you are weak.
Some say you look after the rich, the powerful, and the famous.
First Voice:
Who do yousay that I am? (Matthew 16:15)
(Invite responses, and then end with the following.)
You are our Lord
You are our Teacher
our example
our Savior
our friend
our comforter
our advocate
our companion.
You are mother and father when none can be found.
You are love!
You are the firstborn of all creation.
You are for all races and peoples.
You belong to no political party.
You are on the side of the poor and weak.
Your arm is long and bends toward justice.
You are our source and our destination,
Our Alpha and Omega,
Our beginning and end.
You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
August 17th Worship Service
thoughts?
Lectionary:
Genesis 45:1-15: The other "bookend" of the Joseph story --Joseph, now second in command in Egypt, reveals his identity to his brothers and promises to provide land, food, and protection for the family during the famine and beyond, thanks to God's gracious provision.
Psalm 133 (UMH 850): The blessing of living together in unity -- a fitting response to the Genesis reading for today. See "Psalms for Singing" for another alternative.
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32: Paul concludes his excursus on the theological connection between God's covenant with Israel and the church (which includes both Jewish and Gentile people, but especially Gentiles) with a strong affirmation of Israel's place in God's saving intent toward the whole world. All-- Jew and Gentile -- receive salvation by God's mercy and grace, not by merit. And to Gentiles -- God's calling and gifts cannot be called back, which means Israel's place is permanently secure while Gentiles are like grafts of a wild olive tree into a domesticated olive tree (verses 16-21, not in the lectionary reading, but critical to the argument).
Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28: Jesus tells the crowd that it is what comes out of the heart that pollutes us. Then Jesus discovers great faith coming from the heart of a foreigner (the Canaanite woman) who won't take "no" for an answer.
Fringe Festival Tie-in: I talked with Kate Lamonte yesterday. She is performing in a Fringe Festival performance that opens next weekend. It is called Moved and Kate will be singing. She said that she would be willing to perform on Sunday morning and also perhaps bring one of the dancers along with her.
Dramatic Reading of Genesis?
A Dramatic Reading of Scripture: Genesis 45:1-5
(Adapted from Genesis 45:1-15, CEV)
Female Voice: When Joseph was alone with his brothers, he told them,
Male Voice:“I am Joseph.”
Female Voice: Then he cried so loudly that the Egyptians heard him and told
about it in the king’s palace. Joseph asked his brothers if his father was still alive,
but they were too frightened to answer. Joseph told them to come closer to him,
and when they did, he said:
Male Voice:Yes, I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. Don’t
worry or blame yourselves for what you did. God is the one who sent me ahead of
you to save lives. Now hurry back and tell my father that his son Joseph says,
“God has made me ruler of Egypt. Come here as quickly as you can. You will live
near me in the region of Goshen with your children and grandchildren, as well as
with your sheep, goats, cattle, and everything else you own. I will take care of you
there during the next five years of famine. But if you don’t come, you and your
family and your animals will starve to death.”
Female Voice: Joseph and Benjamin hugged each other and started crying.
Joseph was still crying as he kissed each of his other brothers. After this, they
started talking with Joseph.
(Tony Peterson, Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Year A)
Dramatic Reading of Mathew:
The reading from Matthew for this Sunday provides two stories that can be read perhaps most fruitfully side by side, assuming you include the optional verses (10-20). Indeed, they might be read precisely alongside each other as you offer the reading of the text as follows:
Reader 1: 10-11 Reader 2: 21-23a
Pause for reflection
Reader 1: 12-14 Reader 2: 23b-26
Pause for reflection
Reader 1: 15-20 Reader 2: 27-28
Silence
Lectionary:
Genesis 45:1-15: The other "bookend" of the Joseph story --Joseph, now second in command in Egypt, reveals his identity to his brothers and promises to provide land, food, and protection for the family during the famine and beyond, thanks to God's gracious provision.
Psalm 133 (UMH 850): The blessing of living together in unity -- a fitting response to the Genesis reading for today. See "Psalms for Singing" for another alternative.
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32: Paul concludes his excursus on the theological connection between God's covenant with Israel and the church (which includes both Jewish and Gentile people, but especially Gentiles) with a strong affirmation of Israel's place in God's saving intent toward the whole world. All-- Jew and Gentile -- receive salvation by God's mercy and grace, not by merit. And to Gentiles -- God's calling and gifts cannot be called back, which means Israel's place is permanently secure while Gentiles are like grafts of a wild olive tree into a domesticated olive tree (verses 16-21, not in the lectionary reading, but critical to the argument).
Matthew 15:(10-20), 21-28: Jesus tells the crowd that it is what comes out of the heart that pollutes us. Then Jesus discovers great faith coming from the heart of a foreigner (the Canaanite woman) who won't take "no" for an answer.
Fringe Festival Tie-in: I talked with Kate Lamonte yesterday. She is performing in a Fringe Festival performance that opens next weekend. It is called Moved and Kate will be singing. She said that she would be willing to perform on Sunday morning and also perhaps bring one of the dancers along with her.
Dramatic Reading of Genesis?
A Dramatic Reading of Scripture: Genesis 45:1-5
(Adapted from Genesis 45:1-15, CEV)
Female Voice: When Joseph was alone with his brothers, he told them,
Male Voice:“I am Joseph.”
Female Voice: Then he cried so loudly that the Egyptians heard him and told
about it in the king’s palace. Joseph asked his brothers if his father was still alive,
but they were too frightened to answer. Joseph told them to come closer to him,
and when they did, he said:
Male Voice:Yes, I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt. Don’t
worry or blame yourselves for what you did. God is the one who sent me ahead of
you to save lives. Now hurry back and tell my father that his son Joseph says,
“God has made me ruler of Egypt. Come here as quickly as you can. You will live
near me in the region of Goshen with your children and grandchildren, as well as
with your sheep, goats, cattle, and everything else you own. I will take care of you
there during the next five years of famine. But if you don’t come, you and your
family and your animals will starve to death.”
Female Voice: Joseph and Benjamin hugged each other and started crying.
Joseph was still crying as he kissed each of his other brothers. After this, they
started talking with Joseph.
(Tony Peterson, Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Year A)
Dramatic Reading of Mathew:
The reading from Matthew for this Sunday provides two stories that can be read perhaps most fruitfully side by side, assuming you include the optional verses (10-20). Indeed, they might be read precisely alongside each other as you offer the reading of the text as follows:
Reader 1: 10-11 Reader 2: 21-23a
Pause for reflection
Reader 1: 12-14 Reader 2: 23b-26
Pause for reflection
Reader 1: 15-20 Reader 2: 27-28
Silence
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Labor Sunday - Aug 31
The Romans passage is good for a Love and Harmony in the workplace idea.
The Exodus passage could go with a "Moses was a Labor Guy" message.
I'll keep looking for ideas to share in upcoming Tuesday meetings.
Joe
The Exodus passage could go with a "Moses was a Labor Guy" message.
I'll keep looking for ideas to share in upcoming Tuesday meetings.
Joe
Friday, August 8, 2008
What You Preach--central song for 9-11 worship service/?
Can we learn it?
Click here to listen to it
WHAT YOU PREACH
[ folk -- written by Sarah Crews; Prescott, AZ ]
We are living in dangerous days
And I am freightened by what you say
We are bound to guard our borders
Sacrifice our soldiers
What kind of world is this
Where hatred can persist?
It chills right to the core
This talk of holy war
Really love your brother
Love your neighbor like that too
And only do to others
What you would want them to do to you
What they did in New York City
Is the darkest kind of crime
What can we tell our children
If we respond in kind?
We only teach them violence
It is how the West was won
Destroy the man who is different
Than your own begotten son
And really love your sister
Love your neighbor like that too
And only do to others
What you would want them to do to you
What you would want them to do to you
We are living in dangerous days
And I am freightened by what you say
It chills right to the core
This talk of holy war
Click here to listen to it
WHAT YOU PREACH
[ folk -- written by Sarah Crews; Prescott, AZ ]
We are living in dangerous days
And I am freightened by what you say
We are bound to guard our borders
Sacrifice our soldiers
What kind of world is this
Where hatred can persist?
It chills right to the core
This talk of holy war
Really love your brother
Love your neighbor like that too
And only do to others
What you would want them to do to you
What they did in New York City
Is the darkest kind of crime
What can we tell our children
If we respond in kind?
We only teach them violence
It is how the West was won
Destroy the man who is different
Than your own begotten son
And really love your sister
Love your neighbor like that too
And only do to others
What you would want them to do to you
What you would want them to do to you
We are living in dangerous days
And I am freightened by what you say
It chills right to the core
This talk of holy war
We are No. 4! In terms of cool things to do this week according to Indy.Com
Indy.com ranks things to do each week and the FRINGEFILM ended up no. 4. Second Skin (that's my brother-in-law on the poster) got featured as the film to see. The article has nice things to say about the church.
Indy.com top 10
Indy.com top 10
Thursday, August 7, 2008
Communion/Passing the Peace...what about this text?
HolyCommunion - Summer
Revd Rex A E Hunt
eMail: rexae@optusnet.com.au
Web site: www.rexaehuntprogressive.com
CELEBRATING COMMUNITY: SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION...
Invitation
O God, true source of humanity, mother and father of us all.
You renew us so we may grow like you.
All We gather together.
Thanksgiving
May God be with you.
All And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
All We lift them up to the Holy One.
Let us give thanks
All It is right to give our thanks and praise.
God of the summer’s day and the (holiday) season,
All Praise and wonder be.
God of the lingering sunset and early dawn,
All Praise and wonder be.
God of the hot north wind and the refreshing shower,
God of the shady tree and the cool water bag,
God of the ripening harvest and sparkling sea,
All Praise and wonder be.
All creation blesses the Source of Energy and Life.
For all things bright and beautiful.
For all things dark and mysterious and lovely.
For all things green and growing and strong.
For all things weak and struggling to push life up through rocky earth.
For all human faces, hearts, minds, and hands which surround us.
And for all non human minds and hearts, paws and claws, fins and wings... (G A Ricciuti/bb)
All Praise and wonder be.
So we join our praise with all your people across the generations, saying
All Holy, holy, holy, Celebrating God,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
All Hosanna in the highest.
In our praise and thanksgiving we also remember the ways of Jesus
who walked the dusty roads of Galilee,
who taught from seashore and mountainside,
who told stories of the sower and the seed,
the lilies of the field, and the birds of the air.
May we, too, know your presentness in the beauty of creation.
We also remember, Creating God,
that your care for this earth and your people can be denied;
for your goodness was abused
and the Human One betrayed.
On the night of his arrest, so our tradition reminds us,
Jesus shared a meal with his disciples.
Bread taken, blessed, broken in silence
Wine taken, poured out in silence
Through grain and grape, bread and wine,
he spoke of his coming death and new life,
asking his disciples to remember him.
Blessing
Be present with us now, Enfolding God, as we share this sacrament.
Let your Holy Spirit brood among us...
and upon and through this bread and wine.
Bless us with a desire to praise in song and story and poetry.
Bless us with a sharpened awareness of your presence.
Bless us with deep compassion.
Bless us with the patience and daring of the mystics.
All Abide with us always.
Abide with us in our daily work.
Abide with us when we rest.
Abide with us in our journeying.
Abide with us at all times and through eternity.
Communion
After communion
Generous Giver of life, you supply us with all good things.
May this bread and wine be the nourishment we seek, and may it transform us
into disciples who serve in your creation.
The peace
This is a house of God. A place of peace.
A place where we befriend one another.
Let us then greet another as a sign of God's peace.
The peace of God is here... to stay.
All Thanks be to God.
You are invited to share the peace with your neighbours.
Some of the resources used in shaping this liturgy:
Abbott, M. 2001. Sparks of the cosmos. Rituals for seasonal use. SA: Unley. MediaCom Education.
Iona Community. 2001. Iona abbey worship book. Scotland: Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications.
Jones, Robert V. 2005. Liturgy: The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. In private circulation from the author.
Mitchell, R. C; G. A. Ricciuti. 1992. Birthings and blessings. Liberating worship services for the inclusive church. NY: New York. Crossroads.
Morely, J. 1992. All desires known. Expanded edition. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Morwood, M. 2003. Praying a new story. VIC: Richmond. Spectrum Publications.
Prewer, B. D. 1983. Australian prayers. SA: Adelaide. OpenBook Publishers.
Seaburg, C. (ed). 1993. The communion book. MA: Boston. UUMA.
Uniting in Worship. Leader’s Book. 1988. VIC: Melbourne. Uniting Church Press.
Withrow, L. 1995. Seasons of prayer. Resources for worship. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Web sites:
UUA Worship Web. MA: Boston. UUA.
Revd Rex A E Hunt
eMail: rexae@optusnet.com.au
Web site: www.rexaehuntprogressive.com
CELEBRATING COMMUNITY: SACRAMENT OF HOLY COMMUNION...
Invitation
O God, true source of humanity, mother and father of us all.
You renew us so we may grow like you.
All We gather together.
Thanksgiving
May God be with you.
All And also with you.
Lift up your hearts.
All We lift them up to the Holy One.
Let us give thanks
All It is right to give our thanks and praise.
God of the summer’s day and the (holiday) season,
All Praise and wonder be.
God of the lingering sunset and early dawn,
All Praise and wonder be.
God of the hot north wind and the refreshing shower,
God of the shady tree and the cool water bag,
God of the ripening harvest and sparkling sea,
All Praise and wonder be.
All creation blesses the Source of Energy and Life.
For all things bright and beautiful.
For all things dark and mysterious and lovely.
For all things green and growing and strong.
For all things weak and struggling to push life up through rocky earth.
For all human faces, hearts, minds, and hands which surround us.
And for all non human minds and hearts, paws and claws, fins and wings... (G A Ricciuti/bb)
All Praise and wonder be.
So we join our praise with all your people across the generations, saying
All Holy, holy, holy, Celebrating God,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the one who comes in the name of God.
All Hosanna in the highest.
In our praise and thanksgiving we also remember the ways of Jesus
who walked the dusty roads of Galilee,
who taught from seashore and mountainside,
who told stories of the sower and the seed,
the lilies of the field, and the birds of the air.
May we, too, know your presentness in the beauty of creation.
We also remember, Creating God,
that your care for this earth and your people can be denied;
for your goodness was abused
and the Human One betrayed.
On the night of his arrest, so our tradition reminds us,
Jesus shared a meal with his disciples.
Bread taken, blessed, broken in silence
Wine taken, poured out in silence
Through grain and grape, bread and wine,
he spoke of his coming death and new life,
asking his disciples to remember him.
Blessing
Be present with us now, Enfolding God, as we share this sacrament.
Let your Holy Spirit brood among us...
and upon and through this bread and wine.
Bless us with a desire to praise in song and story and poetry.
Bless us with a sharpened awareness of your presence.
Bless us with deep compassion.
Bless us with the patience and daring of the mystics.
All Abide with us always.
Abide with us in our daily work.
Abide with us when we rest.
Abide with us in our journeying.
Abide with us at all times and through eternity.
Communion
After communion
Generous Giver of life, you supply us with all good things.
May this bread and wine be the nourishment we seek, and may it transform us
into disciples who serve in your creation.
The peace
This is a house of God. A place of peace.
A place where we befriend one another.
Let us then greet another as a sign of God's peace.
The peace of God is here... to stay.
All Thanks be to God.
You are invited to share the peace with your neighbours.
Some of the resources used in shaping this liturgy:
Abbott, M. 2001. Sparks of the cosmos. Rituals for seasonal use. SA: Unley. MediaCom Education.
Iona Community. 2001. Iona abbey worship book. Scotland: Glasgow. Wild Goose Publications.
Jones, Robert V. 2005. Liturgy: The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper. In private circulation from the author.
Mitchell, R. C; G. A. Ricciuti. 1992. Birthings and blessings. Liberating worship services for the inclusive church. NY: New York. Crossroads.
Morely, J. 1992. All desires known. Expanded edition. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Morwood, M. 2003. Praying a new story. VIC: Richmond. Spectrum Publications.
Prewer, B. D. 1983. Australian prayers. SA: Adelaide. OpenBook Publishers.
Seaburg, C. (ed). 1993. The communion book. MA: Boston. UUMA.
Uniting in Worship. Leader’s Book. 1988. VIC: Melbourne. Uniting Church Press.
Withrow, L. 1995. Seasons of prayer. Resources for worship. Gt. Britain: London. SPCK.
Web sites:
UUA Worship Web. MA: Boston. UUA.
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
"Living on the Fringe" poem written by LCUMC during August 4, 2008, service
"Living on the Fringe"
A Poem by Lockerbie Central United Methodist Church
August 4, 2008
Living and acting on the edge,
on that thin sliver of creative thought
that sparkes the flame of humanity.
Not conforming to traditional ways of being
or what others expect you to be.
Desperate creativity.
Isolation,
aloneness,
but also following my own path.
Caring about people I barely know.
Outside
Lonely
Frustrating
Without a voice
Genuine
Stereotypes
Unashamed
Secondary
Fuzzy
Disconnected--
Or partially connected--
Confusing
Unfamiliar
Uneven
On the edge
Being marginalized by society.
Risking my comfort zone
so that others can possibly have
a comfort zone for the first time.
Giving up things so others will experience less
war,
hunger,
poverty.
Being on the outside looking in.
Seeing what others have
and you don't.
Feeling powerless.
Scrambling each day to find what you need,
trying to keep hope.
And with a scandalous grace,
we actively love.
A tangible expression...
connecting our hearts
with the hearts of others.
Is your identity in Jesus
or the fringe?
A Poem by Lockerbie Central United Methodist Church
August 4, 2008
Living and acting on the edge,
on that thin sliver of creative thought
that sparkes the flame of humanity.
Not conforming to traditional ways of being
or what others expect you to be.
Desperate creativity.
Isolation,
aloneness,
but also following my own path.
Caring about people I barely know.
Outside
Lonely
Frustrating
Without a voice
Genuine
Stereotypes
Unashamed
Secondary
Fuzzy
Disconnected--
Or partially connected--
Confusing
Unfamiliar
Uneven
On the edge
Being marginalized by society.
Risking my comfort zone
so that others can possibly have
a comfort zone for the first time.
Giving up things so others will experience less
war,
hunger,
poverty.
Being on the outside looking in.
Seeing what others have
and you don't.
Feeling powerless.
Scrambling each day to find what you need,
trying to keep hope.
And with a scandalous grace,
we actively love.
A tangible expression...
connecting our hearts
with the hearts of others.
Is your identity in Jesus
or the fringe?
Tuesday, August 5, 2008
August 10th Worship Service Planning
Let's use this post to comment on what we would like to try in this week's service. There are lots of posts started, so let's continue to comment on those as desired and use this post to volunteer for parts of the service. Maybe you volunteer to read, maybe you specify what you volunteer to read. Then others can comment. Maybe you volunteer to play music. Then we can blog back and forth about who is helping where, who needs what help, etc. I'll get us started...
Remaining Lectionary for August: August 31, 2008 Lectionary (Labor Day Weekend)
Exodus 3:1-15
3:1 Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
3:2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
3:3 Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up."
3:4 When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
3:5 Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."
3:6 He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
3:7 Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings,
3:8 and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
3:9 The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them.
3:10 So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
3:11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
3:12 He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
3:13 But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
3:14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"
3:15 God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.
Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26
105:1 O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name, make known his deeds among the peoples.
105:2 Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works.
105:3 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.
105:4 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually.
105:5 Remember the wonderful works he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,
105:6 O offspring of his servant Abraham, children of Jacob, his chosen ones.
105:23 Then Israel came to Egypt; Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham.
105:24 And the LORD made his people very fruitful, and made them stronger than their foes,
105:25 whose hearts he then turned to hate his people, to deal craftily with his servants.
105:26 He sent his servant Moses, and Aaron whom he had chosen.
Romans 12:9-21
12:9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good;
12:10 Love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
12:11 Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord.
12:12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.
12:13 Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.
12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
12:16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.
12:17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.
12:18 If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
12:19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord."
12:20 No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads."
12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Matthew 16:21-28
16:21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
16:22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you."
16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
16:24 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
16:25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
16:26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?
16:27 "For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.
16:28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
3:1 Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.
3:2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.
3:3 Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up."
3:4 When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."
3:5 Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."
3:6 He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
3:7 Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings,
3:8 and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
3:9 The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them.
3:10 So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt."
3:11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
3:12 He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."
3:13 But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, 'The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, 'What is his name?' what shall I say to them?"
3:14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"
3:15 God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, 'The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you': This is my name forever, and this my title for all generations.
Psalm 105:1-6, 23-26
105:1 O give thanks to the LORD, call on his name, make known his deeds among the peoples.
105:2 Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wonderful works.
105:3 Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.
105:4 Seek the LORD and his strength; seek his presence continually.
105:5 Remember the wonderful works he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he uttered,
105:6 O offspring of his servant Abraham, children of Jacob, his chosen ones.
105:23 Then Israel came to Egypt; Jacob lived as an alien in the land of Ham.
105:24 And the LORD made his people very fruitful, and made them stronger than their foes,
105:25 whose hearts he then turned to hate his people, to deal craftily with his servants.
105:26 He sent his servant Moses, and Aaron whom he had chosen.
Romans 12:9-21
12:9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good;
12:10 Love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
12:11 Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord.
12:12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer.
12:13 Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.
12:14 Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.
12:15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.
12:16 Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.
12:17 Do not repay anyone evil for evil, but take thought for what is noble in the sight of all.
12:18 If it is possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
12:19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave room for the wrath of God; for it is written, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord."
12:20 No, "if your enemies are hungry, feed them; if they are thirsty, give them something to drink; for by doing this you will heap burning coals on their heads."
12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
Matthew 16:21-28
16:21 From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.
16:22 And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, "God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you."
16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
16:24 Then Jesus told his disciples, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
16:25 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.
16:26 For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life?
16:27 "For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done.
16:28 Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom."
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
Remaing Lectionary for August: August 24 2008
Exodus 1:8 - 2:10
1:8 Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
1:9 He said to his people, "Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we.
1:10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land."
1:11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh.
1:12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites.
1:13 The Egyptians became ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites,
1:14 and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
1:15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah,
1:16 "When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live."
1:17 But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live.
1:18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?"
1:19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them."
1:20 So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong.
1:21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
1:22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, "Every boy that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile, but you shall let every girl live."
2:1 Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman.
2:2 The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him three months.
2:3 When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river.
2:4 His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him.
2:5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it.
2:6 When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him, "This must be one of the Hebrews' children," she said.
2:7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?"
2:8 Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Yes." So the girl went and called the child's mother.
2:9 Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed it.
2:10 When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses, "because," she said, "I drew him out of the water."
Psalm 124
124:1 If it had not been the LORD who was on our side—let Israel now say—
124:2 if it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when our enemies attacked us,
124:3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us;
124:4 then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us;
124:5 then over us would have gone the raging waters.
124:6 Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
124:7 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped.
124:8 Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
Romans 12:1-8
12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
12:4 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function,
12:5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.
12:6 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith;
12:7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching;
12:8 the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
Matthew 16:13-20
16:13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
16:14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
16:15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16:16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."
16:17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.
16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
16:20 Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
1:8 Now a new king arose over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.
1:9 He said to his people, "Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we.
1:10 Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land."
1:11 Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh.
1:12 But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites.
1:13 The Egyptians became ruthless in imposing tasks on the Israelites,
1:14 and made their lives bitter with hard service in mortar and brick and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
1:15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah,
1:16 "When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live."
1:17 But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live.
1:18 So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, "Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?"
1:19 The midwives said to Pharaoh, "Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them."
1:20 So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong.
1:21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.
1:22 Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, "Every boy that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile, but you shall let every girl live."
2:1 Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman.
2:2 The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him three months.
2:3 When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river.
2:4 His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him.
2:5 The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it.
2:6 When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him, "This must be one of the Hebrews' children," she said.
2:7 Then his sister said to Pharaoh's daughter, "Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?"
2:8 Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Yes." So the girl went and called the child's mother.
2:9 Pharaoh's daughter said to her, "Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages." So the woman took the child and nursed it.
2:10 When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh's daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses, "because," she said, "I drew him out of the water."
Psalm 124
124:1 If it had not been the LORD who was on our side—let Israel now say—
124:2 if it had not been the LORD who was on our side, when our enemies attacked us,
124:3 then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their anger was kindled against us;
124:4 then the flood would have swept us away, the torrent would have gone over us;
124:5 then over us would have gone the raging waters.
124:6 Blessed be the LORD, who has not given us as prey to their teeth.
124:7 We have escaped like a bird from the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped.
124:8 Our help is in the name of the LORD, who made heaven and earth.
Romans 12:1-8
12:1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.
12:2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
12:3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
12:4 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function,
12:5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.
12:6 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith;
12:7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching;
12:8 the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
Matthew 16:13-20
16:13 Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?"
16:14 And they said, "Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
16:15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16:16 Simon Peter answered, "You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God."
16:17 And Jesus answered him, "Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven.
16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.
16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
16:20 Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
Remaining Lectionary for August: August 17 2008
Genesis 45:1-15
45:1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, "Send everyone away from me." So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers.
45:2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it.
45:3 Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?" But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.
45:4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come closer to me." And they came closer. He said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.
45:5 And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.
45:6 For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.
45:7 God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.
45:8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
45:9 Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.
45:10 You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have.
45:11 I will provide for you there—since there are five more years of famine to come—so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.
45:12 And now your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see that it is my own mouth that speaks to you.
45:13 You must tell my father how greatly I am honored in Egypt, and all that you have seen. Hurry and bring my father down here."
45:14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, while Benjamin wept upon his neck.
45:15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.
Psalm 133
133:1 How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!
133:2 It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes.
133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD ordained his blessing, life forevermore.
Romans 11:1-2, 29-32
11:1 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
11:2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?
11:29 ...For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
11:30 Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience,
11:31 so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy.
11:32 For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.
Matthew 15:10-28
15:10 Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand:
15:11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles."
15:12 Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?"
15:13 He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.
15:14 Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit."
15:15 But Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us."
15:16 Then he said, "Are you also still without understanding?
15:17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?
15:18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles.
15:19 For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.
15:20 These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
15:21 Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
15:22 Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon."
15:23 But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us."
15:24 He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
15:25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me."
15:26 He answered, "It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."
15:27 She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."
15:28 Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed instantly.
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
45:1 Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, "Send everyone away from me." So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers.
45:2 And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it.
45:3 Joseph said to his brothers, "I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?" But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.
45:4 Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come closer to me." And they came closer. He said, "I am your brother, Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt.
45:5 And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life.
45:6 For the famine has been in the land these two years; and there are five more years in which there will be neither plowing nor harvest.
45:7 God sent me before you to preserve for you a remnant on earth, and to keep alive for you many survivors.
45:8 So it was not you who sent me here, but God; he has made me a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt.
45:9 Hurry and go up to my father and say to him, 'Thus says your son Joseph, God has made me lord of all Egypt; come down to me, do not delay.
45:10 You shall settle in the land of Goshen, and you shall be near me, you and your children and your children's children, as well as your flocks, your herds, and all that you have.
45:11 I will provide for you there—since there are five more years of famine to come—so that you and your household, and all that you have, will not come to poverty.
45:12 And now your eyes and the eyes of my brother Benjamin see that it is my own mouth that speaks to you.
45:13 You must tell my father how greatly I am honored in Egypt, and all that you have seen. Hurry and bring my father down here."
45:14 Then he fell upon his brother Benjamin's neck and wept, while Benjamin wept upon his neck.
45:15 And he kissed all his brothers and wept upon them; and after that his brothers talked with him.
Psalm 133
133:1 How very good and pleasant it is when kindred live together in unity!
133:2 It is like the precious oil on the head, running down upon the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down over the collar of his robes.
133:3 It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion. For there the LORD ordained his blessing, life forevermore.
Romans 11:1-2, 29-32
11:1 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin.
11:2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel?
11:29 ...For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.
11:30 Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience,
11:31 so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy.
11:32 For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.
Matthew 15:10-28
15:10 Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand:
15:11 it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles."
15:12 Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?"
15:13 He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted.
15:14 Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit."
15:15 But Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us."
15:16 Then he said, "Are you also still without understanding?
15:17 Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer?
15:18 But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles.
15:19 For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander.
15:20 These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
15:21 Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon.
15:22 Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon."
15:23 But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us."
15:24 He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel."
15:25 But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me."
15:26 He answered, "It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."
15:27 She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table."
15:28 Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed instantly.
All passages quoted from the New Revised Standard Version.
9/11 in Three Verses
What I think is most fascinating about 9/11 is that there are three very important events on this date.
1. United States. 9/11/2001: The attack on the World Trade Centers
2. Chille. 9/11/ 1973: On the morning of Tuesday 11 September 1973, two jets launched a deadly attack on the Presidential Palace of La Moneda in the heart of Santiago, Chile. A military coup led by Augusto Pinochet ousted the presidency of Salvador Allende, the world's first democratically-elected Marxist head of state.
3. South Africa 9/11/1906: 3,000 people, mostly Indians, packed the old Empire Theater in Johannesburg, South Africa. They came to protest a draft of the Asiatic Law Amendment Ordinance that would require that every Indian over the age of 8 be fingerprinted and carry a registration card. Moreover, the law stipulated that the police could enter the home of any Indian at their discretion and fine, imprison or even deport those found without proper identification. This date marks the birth of Ghandi's nonviolence movement.
This service could be very interesting....
1. United States. 9/11/2001: The attack on the World Trade Centers
2. Chille. 9/11/ 1973: On the morning of Tuesday 11 September 1973, two jets launched a deadly attack on the Presidential Palace of La Moneda in the heart of Santiago, Chile. A military coup led by Augusto Pinochet ousted the presidency of Salvador Allende, the world's first democratically-elected Marxist head of state.
3. South Africa 9/11/1906: 3,000 people, mostly Indians, packed the old Empire Theater in Johannesburg, South Africa. They came to protest a draft of the Asiatic Law Amendment Ordinance that would require that every Indian over the age of 8 be fingerprinted and carry a registration card. Moreover, the law stipulated that the police could enter the home of any Indian at their discretion and fine, imprison or even deport those found without proper identification. This date marks the birth of Ghandi's nonviolence movement.
This service could be very interesting....
August 10, 2008 lectionary
Revised Common Lectionary Readings for the Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost -- August 10, 2008 (Green)
(See the texts online at the Vanderbilt Divinity Library. )
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28: Sibling rivalry moves from murderous intent to economic gain as Joseph's brothers sell him into slavery.
Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22,45b: See The United Methodist Hymnal, 828 for verses 1-11. This Psalm continues the Joseph story beyond the first lesson. For this Sunday, you will need to print the Psalm portion to get the verses specified. The hymnal Psalter is based on the former Common Lectionary (1986), but this fuller selection comes from the Revised Common Lectionary our church adopted in 1992. See "Psalms for Singing" for another alternative.
Romans 10:5-15: The connections between hearing, believing, confessing and calling upon the name of Jesus as Lord for salvation.
Matthew 14:22-33: Jesus frightens the disciples when he walks toward them on the stormy sea. He tells them not to be afraid. Peter walks toward him and sinks, only to be lifted by Jesus. The disciples declare Jesus to be the Son of God.
(See the texts online at the Vanderbilt Divinity Library. )
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28: Sibling rivalry moves from murderous intent to economic gain as Joseph's brothers sell him into slavery.
Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22,45b: See The United Methodist Hymnal, 828 for verses 1-11. This Psalm continues the Joseph story beyond the first lesson. For this Sunday, you will need to print the Psalm portion to get the verses specified. The hymnal Psalter is based on the former Common Lectionary (1986), but this fuller selection comes from the Revised Common Lectionary our church adopted in 1992. See "Psalms for Singing" for another alternative.
Romans 10:5-15: The connections between hearing, believing, confessing and calling upon the name of Jesus as Lord for salvation.
Matthew 14:22-33: Jesus frightens the disciples when he walks toward them on the stormy sea. He tells them not to be afraid. Peter walks toward him and sinks, only to be lifted by Jesus. The disciples declare Jesus to be the Son of God.
The Virgin Mary of Nagasaki; 8500 Christs
8500 CHRISTS by Taki Yuriko
So you see,
It was the Christian enclave,
Nagasaki's Uragami district,
Upon which the atomic bomb fell.
"It came because Kokura, the first target, was
clouded over."
"It came to beat the Soviet Union's entrance into the
war."
No, these are wrong. They are excuses.
The bomb was heavenly punishment,
And those killed were criminals, sinners.
So thought the wartime Japanese.
For 350 years,
The blood of martyrs had flowed.
Christian believers were all criminals,
Had always been traitors.
Until August 15, 1945,
Japan's god was by law
The One and Only Emperor.
So the Christians -
Praying continually for "World Peace"
Even after WW II had begun -
Were lawbreakers, evildoers.
These Christians believers,
Who even refused military service,
Were the traitors.
Uragami Catholic Church,
Japan's sole Christian holy place,
And the Far East's largest Catholic Church.
6000 at once could
Pray together inside.
8500, inside and outside, were
Praying for peace
When the bomb fell.
"It's because there were no taller building around"
No, no. Another excuse.
Those who died were
Criminals,sinners,
Chosen to die.
We pray to them who burned instantly
In that purgatorial fire,
The 8500 Christs
Who atoned for sins against humanity
Through their deaths.
We pray to a radioactive "Angel Bell"
We pray to a blasted Virgin Mary;
"May Uragami be earth's last atomic blast site".
"The very last", we pray.
The Story of Sadako
Before we move on with our planning, I just want to post two more things about our worship service from August 3rd. Here is the story of Sadako:
From Wikipedia:
Sadako and the paper cranes
From Wikipedia:
Sadako and the paper cranes
Every day more cranes arrive at the memorial from children all over the world in the hope for peace. On August 3, 1955, Chizuko Hamamoto — Sadako's best friend — came to the hospital to visit and cut a golden piece of paper into a square and folded it into a paper crane. At first Sadako didn't understand why Chizuko was doing this but then Chizuko retold the story about the paper cranes. Inspired by the crane, she started folding them herself, spurred on by the Japanese saying that one who folded 1,000 cranes was granted a wish. A popular version of the story is that she fell short of her goal of folding 1,000 cranes, having folded only 644 before her death, and that her friends completed the 1,000 and buried them all with her. This comes from the book Sadako Sasaki and the Thousand Paper Cranes. An exhibit which appeared in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum stated that by the end of August, 1955, Sadako had achieved her goal and continued to fold more cranes.
Though she had plenty of free time during her days in the hospital to fold the cranes, she lacked paper. She would use medicine wrappings and whatever else she could scrounge up. This included going to other patients' rooms to ask to use the paper from their get-well presents. Chizuko would bring paper from school for Sadako to use. During her time in hospital her condition progressively worsened. Around mid-October her left leg became swollen and turned purple. After her family urged her to eat something, Sadako requested tea on rice and remarked "It's good." Those were her last words. With her family around her, Sadako died on the morning of
October 25, 1955
After her death, Sadako's friends and schoolmates published a collection of letters in order to raise funds to build a memorial to her and all of the children who had died from the effects of the atomic bomb. In 1958, a statue of Sadako holding a golden crane was unveiled in the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, also called the Genbaku Dome. At the foot of the statue is a plaque that reads, This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace in the world.
There is also a statue of her in the Seattle Peace Park. Sadako has become a leading symbol of the impact of a nuclear war. Sadako is also a heroine for many girls in Japan. Her story is told in some Japanese schools on the anniversary of the Hiroshima bombing. Dedicated to her, people all over Japan celebrate August 15 as the annual peace and love day.
Sadako's story has become familiar to many schoolchildren around the world through the novels The Day of the Bomb (1961, in German, Sadako will leben) by the Austrian writer Karl Bruckner and Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr, first published in 1977. Sadako is also briefly mentioned in Children of the Ashes, Robert Jungk's historical account of the lives of Hiroshima victims and survivors. Her story continues to inspire millions to hope for lasting peace in the world.
In 1969, the Dagestani national poet Rasul Gamzatov may have been inspired by Sadako's story to write his most famous poem, "Zhuravli". (Gamzatov may, however, have taken his inspiration from Soviet soldiers who died in the battle for Stalingrad. Associating cranes with World War II victims already appears, for example, in 1957 Soviet movie Letyat Zhuravli.) The jazz fusion band Hiroshima wrote a song called "Thousand Cranes" inspired by Sadako's story and as a tribute to the band's namesake city. Toward the end of the song, children's laughter can be heard. Another song inspired by Sadako's story is Fred Small's "Cranes Over Hiroshima".
Friday, August 1, 2008
Blogging about Hiroshima and Nagasaki
I have come across two interesting blogs about the use of nukes by Christians.
The first one is a review in a Christianity Today/Leadership blog about Rob Bell's new book. Here is what the bogger said:
Here is a better take on the Christian Response to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It appeared in the Gaurdian in 2006. The author is a Quaker Chaplain.
No surprise then, that the incineration of Hiroshima raised no American Christian protest. It might, after all, have ended a terrible war, for hardly anyone then knew that Japan had already made moves to surrender. But Nagasaki three days later? This time there was no excuse. The relentless logic of war was enough reason to kill another hundred thousand.
Also, here is a sojourners magazine article from 1985 that deals with the aftermath of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
“At the end of World War II, America dropped two nuclear bombs that killed tens of thousands of innocent people. And we didn’t have to. The Japanese were already defeated.”
Again, this view is not without basis, but the decision of President Truman to drop the bombs has been hotly debated for over 60 years. Bell and Golden make it sound like the verdict is in and the issue is settled. Even the attached endnote sheds no additional light on the complexity of the issue which, I thought, is what an endnote was for.
Here is a better take on the Christian Response to Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It appeared in the Gaurdian in 2006. The author is a Quaker Chaplain.
No surprise then, that the incineration of Hiroshima raised no American Christian protest. It might, after all, have ended a terrible war, for hardly anyone then knew that Japan had already made moves to surrender. But Nagasaki three days later? This time there was no excuse. The relentless logic of war was enough reason to kill another hundred thousand.
Also, here is a sojourners magazine article from 1985 that deals with the aftermath of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
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