JESUS, HOMEBOYS, LOAVES, AND FISHES

 Jesus Is My Homeboy - Loaves and Fishes - David LaChapelle

Homeboy: noun; Originally used among transplanted African-Americans with Southern roots to refer to and aid in the assimilation of someone who might have directly migrated from a common Southern home town or is otherwise well known to the person using the term.

The epitome of a friend. Somebody you kick it with. A person who always has your back. You can't go through life without a homeboy. It's hard to have more than one, because they're one in a million. (The Urban Dictionary)   The photo above is from the artist and photographer, David LaChapelle. Highly influenced by Michelangelo, as well as present-day artists, LaChapelle desires to make commentary on our interdependence with modern consumer society. His Homeboy series also includes a New York street scene of a prostitute's arrest with Jesus' intervention. Jesus in a tenement kitchen with a modern-dressed,  Mary Magdalene wiping Jesus' feet with her long blonde hair, a Sermon on the streets, Jesus showing the wounds of his hands to everyday persons in a bedroom scene and a Leo Da Vinci-esque Lords Supper with myriad persons of hip-hop culture gathered are other works which LaChapelle said in a 2008 interview for The Art Newspaper TV. " If Jesus were here today, he said, he would be hanging out with the street people and the marginalized:  the poor, the homeless, prostitutes, drug dealers, gangsters, and so on.  And more than that, these people would have been his closest and most faithful band of followers." In our lectionary lesson for this Sunday from the book of Matthew, verses 14:13-21, when the disciples say that the people of the crowd are hungry Jesus tells his disciples to feed them. What is their response?  In the light of a wealthy, consumer oriented society as exemplified in LaChapelle's rendition how does the miracle of the loaves and fishes speak to persons, Materially? Spiritually? How do we participate in the miracle today? Matthew 14:13-21 14:13 Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14:14 When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. 14:15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." 14:16 Jesus said to them, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." 14:17 They replied, "We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish." 14:18 And he said, "Bring them here to me." 14:19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 14:20 And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. 14:21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children. Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

THE ROAD TO WISDOM

 Like art, wisdom is hard to pin down, but people generally recognize it when they encounter it. Psychologists pretty much agree it involves an integration of knowledge, experience, and deep understanding that incorporates tolerance for the uncertainties of life as well as its ups and downs. There's an awareness of how things play out over time, and it confers a sense of balance.
Wise people generally share an optimism that life's problems can be solved and experience a certain amount of calm in facing difficult decisions. Intelligence—if only anyone could figure out exactly what it is—may be necessary for wisdom, but it definitely isn't sufficient; an ability to see the big picture, a sense of proportion, and considerable introspection also contribute to its development. (Psychology Today: http://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/wisdom).

Praying for Wisdom:
I don't necessarily know why, but as a child I chose to pray for wisdom more than any other request from God. Of course when I became a teen, I was praying about every thing, just trying to figure out my way. The problem in asking for the intangibles of character is you can't see them until they are applied in context. So just as when we ask for patience, God uses our experiences to flesh out its presence in our lives, so too, wisdom appears as one of those character traits that become evident only when the situation calls for its expression.

Distance Learning:
I have received wisdom by observing others in situations and crises. This was particularly true being much younger than my brother and sister. I was able to see how they handled problems. And then I could reflect on whether in like circumstance I might approach such in the same manner or different. Vicarious learning is great and convenient, someone else stumbles and you get to participate in distance learning

The Wisdom of Experience:
But the greatest way to build wisdom for me has been through the personally lived experiences that God has provided for me in my daily experience. God has given me plenty of opportunities where I might gain wisdom from my mistakes. More than I believe I really needed perhaps. Probably one of the most fundamental characteristics of wisdom for me has been the "agnostic" approach. I am not using this term in the sense of not knowing whether there is a God or not. But agnostic in its generic sense which means "I am not informed regarding something or someone." So the process of learning about life is not so much a gathering of facts and making "wise" decisions, but the ability to sometimes say, "I don't know." That's my first step on the road to Wisdom.

What was Solomon's first step?
What is yours?   


 1 Kings 3:5-12
3:5 At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, "Ask what I should give you."

3:6 And Solomon said, "You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant my father David, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you; and you have kept for him this great and steadfast love, and have given him a son to sit on his throne today.

3:7 And now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David, although I am only a little child; I do not know how to go out or come in.

3:8 And your servant is in the midst of the people whom you have chosen, a great people, so numerous they cannot be numbered or counted.

3:9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil; for who can govern this your great people?"

3:10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this.

3:11 God said to him, "Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches, or for the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right,

3:12 I now do according to your word. Indeed I give you a wise and discerning mind; no one like you has been before you and no one like you shall arise after you.

Walter MOrton for Journey Across the Line.

JACOB'S ZIGGURAT

Jacobs Ladder, Cameron Park, Waco, TX

Jacob's Ladder: When I was growing up in Waco, Texas, my friends and I often played in Cameron Park. This was an 1100 acre area of winding roads, trees, forest, riverbanks, and trails, with limestone cliffs rising hundreds of feet above the flowing Brazos River. It had been granted to the city of Waco years before by the Cameron family, a wealthy landowner from the early days in central Texas. It was truly an amazing place to adventure as a kid. One of the roads meandered up from the river through the wooded areas until it arrived at the top of the cliffs at a place called "lover's leap," where young lovers had once,  according to legend, plunged to the lime rock of the river below.

In one of the cliffs set back from the bank, steps had been laid, climbing steep and vertical from the riverbed skyward to the cliff top, each step was quite a stretch, especially for a kid. Stripped wood branches ascended along each side of the rough stairwell, known to all as "Jacob's Ladder." I cannot begin to recall how many times I traversed Jacob's but every time the story of Jacob's Ladder came up in Sunday school my mind was always reminded of that limestone ladder.

Escalara a la Luna / Georgia Okeeffe  1958

 Jacobs Dream: During the late 1950's in America there was a lot of dreaming about traveling into space or having aliens visit us, at least in films of the day. We eventually made it to the moon. But in 1958 it was still a dream, much like Georgia O'Keeffe'a rendering of "Escalara a la Luna." I appreciate the ladder which lingers above the earth but below the moon. Not quite connected to either. A vision of what may or can be in our lives, in our world.

Traditionally as I have thought about Jacob's dream I have thought about it in its metaphorical connection to reality. There are angels ascending and descending, those messengers of God and his will. We have always attempted to build some sort of bridge between the temporal and the eternal, in art, song, poem, and even as seen in the architecture of the ancient Mesopotamian plains.

US 82nd Airborne descends Ziggurat at Ur in modern Iraq

 

Home of the god: Ziggurats (Akkadian ziqqurat, "to build on a raised area") were massive structures built in the ancient Mesopotamian valley and western Iranian plateau, having the form of a terraced step pyramid of successively receding stories or levels. Built by the Sumerians, Babylonians, Elamites, Akkadians, and Assyrians  for local religions, each ziggurat was part of a temple complex which included other buildings.

The Mesopotamian ziggurats were not places for public worship or ceremonies. They were believed to be dwelling places for the gods and each city had its own patron god. Only priests were permitted on the ziggurat or in the rooms at its base, and it was their responsibility to care for the gods and attend to their needs. The priests were very powerful members of Sumerian society. The Mesopotamians believed that these pyramid temples connected heaven and earth. In fact, the ziggurat at Babylon was known as Etemenankia or "House of the Platform between Heaven and Earth". (Wikipedia)

In our lesson from the lectionary for today, we get a glimpse of heaven through the dream of Jacob at a place referred to as Luz. After his dream encounter, Jacob renames the place Bethel (place or house of God.) How does Jacob's encounter with the Holy change the relationship.between the patriarch and God in the context of his times? What does that mean for us today?

Genesis 28:10-19a
28:10 Jacob left Beer-sheba and went toward Haran.

28:11 He came to a certain place and stayed there for the night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place.

28:12 And he dreamed that there was a ladder set up on the earth, the top of it reaching to heaven; and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.

28:13 And the LORD stood beside him and said, "I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring;

28:14 and your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south; and all the families of the earth shall be blessed in you and in your offspring.

28:15 Know that I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

28:16 Then Jacob woke from his sleep and said, "Surely the LORD is in this place--and I did not know it!"

28:17 And he was afraid, and said, "How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven."

28:18 So Jacob rose early in the morning, and he took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it.

28:19a He called that place Bethel; but the name of the city was Luz at the first.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

 

SOWING THE WORLD ONE PERSON AT A TIME

Tree of Life

The early religious movement in Palestine that was the seed of the Christian faith, would face many trials. Not only from Roman and fellow Jewish antagonists, but also from internal struggles of the disciples themselves. There were times when the disciples fell away through their own fear and denial of what was to come. These two examples show how conflict and threat can come from both external and internal struggles.

Just as the early Christian faith struggled, we too. as individuals, struggle in our lives. The parable of the sower in today's lesson from Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23, illustrates Jesus' awareness of what living life is truly like."Listen, a sower went out to sow..." the story begins. Just as simply as that, like our own lives, we set about a task of living through simple deeds, we think. But it's the struggles that make them complicated. We come to find that the simple "nouns" of our lives need the addition of "adjectives" coming alongside to bolster our deeds. We are emotional creations and desire the use of adjectives to give our daily deeds Spiritual meaning.

Jesus speaks of soil, water, sun, thistles, roots, birds and other things that the seed needs or struggles against. Speaking for our own lives and its development, what do we need simply to grow and how do we handle the conflicts that are an inevitable part of the complexity of living the faith?  

Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23
13:1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea.

13:2 Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach.

13:3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: "Listen! A sower went out to sow.

13:4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up.

13:5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil.

13:6 But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away.

13:7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them.

13:8 Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.

13:9 Let anyone with ears listen!"

13:18 "Hear then the parable of the sower.

13:19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path.

13:20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy;

13:21 yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away.

13:22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing.

13:23 But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty."

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line 

FAITH OR CULT?

"Ram in Thicket" (Royal Death Pit, Ur of Chaldees) British Museum

This week we look at one of the most complex and loaded texts of the Jewish scriptures: The binding of Isaac in Genesis 22:1-14. Many interpretations have been postured by our Jewish, Christian, Muslim and Biblical critical traditions. Is it a test for Isaac, Abraham, or God himself?

I believe it may be the test of a new faith in its early stages of development and that just might have implications for our journey of faith today. How do we commit to leave behind what has become an impediment to our lives and our communities' future?

We'll begin looking at some oral tradition regarding Abraham's background and an integral symbol in the narrative text, the Ram caught in the thicket.

Biblical Archaeolgy:
The Ram in a Thicket is one of a pair of figures excavated in Ur, in southern Iraq, and which date from about 2600-2400 BC. One is currently exhibited in the British Museum in London.  the other is in the University of Pennsylvania Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. .
The pair of rams were discovered lying close together in the 'Great Death Pit', one of the graves in the Royal Cemetery at Ur, by archaeologist Leonard Woolley during the 1928-9 season. He named the figure the 'Ram in a Thicket' after the passage in Genesis 22 v.13, where God orders the Biblical Patriarch Abraham  to sacrifice his son Isaac.(from Wikipedia, Ram in the Thicket)

Biblical Literary Criticism:
 In Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature, the literary critic Erich Auerbach considers the Hebrew narrative of the Binding of Isaac, along with Homer's description of Odysseus's scar, as the two paradigmatic models for the representation of reality in literature. Auerbach contrasts Homer's attention to detail and foregrounding of the spatial, historical, as well as personal contexts for events to the Bible's sparse account, in which virtually all context is kept in the background or left outside of the narrative. As Auerbach observes, this narrative strategy virtually compels readers to add their own interpretations to the text. (from Wikipedia, Binding of Isaac)

Genesis 22:1-14
22:1 After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, "Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am."

22:2 He said, "Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains that I shall show you."

22:3 So Abraham rose early in the morning, saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and his son Isaac; he cut the wood for the burnt offering, and set out and went to the place in the distance that God had shown him.

22:4 On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place far away.

22:5 Then Abraham said to his young men, "Stay here with the donkey; the boy and I will go over there; we will worship, and then we will come back to you."

22:6 Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it on his son Isaac, and he himself carried the fire and the knife. So the two of them walked on together.

22:7 Isaac said to his father Abraham, "Father!" And he said, "Here I am, my son." He said, "The fire and the wood are here, but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?"

22:8 Abraham said, "God himself will provide the lamb for a burnt offering, my son." So the two of them walked on together.

22:9 When they came to the place that God had shown him, Abraham built an altar there and laid the wood in order. He bound his son Isaac, and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood.

22:10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to kill his son.

22:11 But the angel of the LORD called to him from heaven, and said, "Abraham, Abraham!" And he said, "Here I am."

22:12 He said, "Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me."

22:13 And Abraham looked up and saw a ram, caught in a thicket by its horns. Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son.

22:14 So Abraham called that place "The LORD will provide"; as it is said to this day, "On the mount of the LORD it shall be provided."

CREATION AND RECREATION

From Summer 2009

It's that time again. Time for re-creation in our lives. It's our celebration of the Sabbath, Father's Day, Trinity Sunday and, as well, Summer officially starts this week. Two Summers ago the Journey class spent time on the pond at the Dortch's (as the pictures attest)  and we're doing it again this Sunday 19 June, Lord permitting.

For our study, we will be looking at Psalm 8, that glorious passage that refers to God's majesty, creation, and our place and responsibility as part in it. What does it mean that God is mindful of us? And what does that say about our mindfulness of others? What role does the act of recreation play in these issues? 

Psalm 8
8:1 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.

8:2 Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger.

8:3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;

8:4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?

8:5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor.

8:6 You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet,

8:7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field,

8:8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

8:9 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

THE DNA OF OUR LIVES

An artist's rendition of a DNA strand

Just as our DNA has four elements, Guanine, Cytosine, Adenine and Thyamine, that determine being biologically human, our story for Pentecost today covers four elements, A little research on Prophecy, Pentecost, Shavuot and Grain Harvests from Wikipedia:

Prophecy is a process in which one or more messages that have been communicated to a true prophet are then communicated to others by this true prophet. Such messages typically involve divine inspiration, interpretation, or revelation of conditioned events to come as well as testimonies or repeated revelations that the world is divine. The process of prophecy especially involves reciprocal communication of the true prophet with the (divine) source of the messages. Mere claimants of foreknowledge of future events, like fortunetellers, oracles, seers, diviners or apocalyptic authors, are not considered true prophets


Pentecost (Ancient Greek) Πεντηκοστή [ἡμέρα], Pentēkostē [hēmera], "the Fiftieth [day]") is one of the prominent feasts in the Christian Liturgical Year commemorating the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples of Christ after the Resurrection as described in the New Testament Acts of the Apostles :2:1-31. For this reason, Pentecost is sometimes described as the "Birthday of the Church". Pentecost is celebrated seven weeks (50 days) after Easter Sunday, hence its name. Pentecost falls ten days after Ascension Thursday. Pentecost is historically and symbolically related to the Jewish harvest festival of  Shavuot which commemorates God giving the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai fifty days after the Exodus.

Shavuot is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan (late May or early June). Shavuot commemorates the anniversary of the day God gave the Torah to the entire Israelite nation assembled at Mount Sinai, although the association between the giving of the Torah (Matan Torah) and Shavuot is not explicit in the Biblical text. The holiday is one of the Shalosh Regalim, the three Biblical pilgrimage festivals. It marks the conclusion of the Counting of the Omer. The Torah mandates the seven-week Counting of the Omer, beginning on the second day of Passover and immediately followed by Shavuot. This counting of days and weeks is understood to express anticipation and desire for the Giving of the Torah. On Passover, the Jewish people were freed from their enslavement to Pharaoh, on Shavuot they were given the Torah and became a nation committed to serving God.  Since Shavuot occurs 50 days after Passover, Hellenistic Jews gave it the name Pentecost (πεντηκοστή, "fiftieth day").


Harvests: Besides its significance as the day on which the Torah was revealed by God to the Jewish nation at Mount Sinai (which includes the Ten Commandments), Shavuot is also connected to the season of the grain harvest in Israel. In ancient times, the grain harvest lasted seven weeks and was a season of gladness (Jer. 5:24, Deut. 16:9-11, Isa. 9:2). It began with the harvesting of the barley during Passover and ended with the harvesting of the wheat at Shavuot. Shavuot was thus the concluding festival of the grain harvest, just as the eighth day of Sukkot (Tabernacles) was the concluding festival of the fruit harvest. During the existence of the Temple in Jerusalem an offering of two loaves of bread from the wheat harvest was made on Shavuot.

Just as our DNA holds elements that are prophetic in the outcome of our being human, a lot of elements went into the building of Pentecost, all of them, in some sense, prophetic. In the stories presented in Numbers and in Acts, how does God speak to us through bread, law, spirit and prophecy? How do we fulfill the prophecy of our lives and maintain the presence of His abiding Spirit amongst us?.

Numbers 11:24-30
11:24 So Moses went out and told the people the words of the LORD; and he gathered seventy elders of the people, and placed them all around the tent.

11:25 Then the LORD came down in the cloud and spoke to him, and took some of the spirit that was on him and put it on the seventy elders; and when the spirit rested upon them, they prophesied. But they did not do so again.

11:26 Two men remained in the camp, one named Eldad, and the other named Medad, and the spirit rested on them; they were among those registered, but they had not gone out to the tent, and so they prophesied in the camp.

11:27 And a young man ran and told Moses, "Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp."

11:28 And Joshua son of Nun, the assistant of Moses, one of his chosen men, said, "My lord Moses, stop them!"

11:29 But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, and that the LORD would put his spirit on them!"

11:30 And Moses and the elders of Israel returned to the camp


Acts 2:1-21
2:1 When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place.

2:2 And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.

2:3 Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.

2:4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

2:5 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem.

2:6 And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each.

2:7 Amazed and astonished, they asked, "Are not all these who are speaking Galileans?

2:8 And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language?

2:9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,

2:10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

2:11 Cretans and Arabs--in our own languages we hear them speaking about God's deeds of power."

2:12 All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, "What does this mean?"

2:13 But others sneered and said, "They are filled with new wine."

2:14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them, "Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say.

2:15 Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning.

2:16 No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

2:17 'In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.

2:18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.

2:19 And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist.

2:20 The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood, before the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day.

2:21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'


Walter Morton  for Journey Across the Line

THE LAST FOOTPRINT

Dome of the Ascension in Jerusalem

On the Mount of Olives, Muslims, who recognize much of the Old Testament as holy scripture and venerate Jesus as a prophet, control a mosque marking the spot of his ascension; there’s even a footprint in stone said to be Jesus’ last. Nearby, Carmelite nuns operate a beautiful church dedicated to the teaching of the Lord’s Prayer, even though Jesus almost certainly taught this simple means of communicating with God up in Galilee.

 

Many of the faithful have yielded to the understandable human desire to apply Bible stories, events, and personalities at a next level, attempting to link their faith to a specific physical spot that can be experienced with the senses. This drive to connect to a place, to deepen faith by finding and venerating a specific piece of the planet where supernatural Biblical events occurred has produced some perplexing results. (Walking in the Footsteps of Jesus, wwwTravelpod.com)

 

How do we testify to the footprint or steps of Jesus in our lives today?

Acts 1:6-14
1:6 So when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?"

1:7 He replied, "It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

1:9 When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight.

1:10 While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them.

1:11 They said, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven."

1:12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day's journey away.

1:13 When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.

1:14 All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

Keep my Mitzvahs...

Mitzvah is the Jewish word for laws or commandments, particularly from God. A mitzvah is a command by which we are to direct our lives. Of course, as creatures endowed with God's spirit we also possess free will.

Laws were historically preceded by proverbs or wise sayings in the lands of Mesopotamia, Sumeria and Egypt. Proverbs are considered wisdom literature. They speak of ways of "right living" that reflect the mores of a society.  What we would call today, "the conventional wisdom." Of course life can demonstrate to us that following the proverbs does not necessarily guarantee a flawless experience. 


Cuineform, an early proto-form of writing developed in Sumeria was some of the first inscription to record actual laws on stone. Being more specific than a proverb, early lists or codices of laws were developed to meet individual circumstances: killing. stealing, abuse, denigrating a god's property. One of the most famous is the Code of Hammurabi: an attempt to set up a judicial system regarding conduct and resultant punishment if the code is not followed.

For the Ten Commandments , we often remember their opening phrase "Thou shalt not" more than the "Remember,"  and "Honor" phrases spoken of in two of the commandments. 


In Jesus' commandment to keep his commandments, how do "remember" and "honor' play a part in carrying out these elements in our daily lives. What are the commandments he wants us to keep? 
What happens if we don't keep them? How is this conventional wisdom for our time?

John 14:15-21
14:15 "If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

14:16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever.

14:17 This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.

14:18 "I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.

14:19 In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live.

14:20 On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you.

14:21 They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them."

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

DEATH BY STONING

A Somali man prays not to be stoned to death

Reportedly, Billy Graham once said, "There is nothing as bad as bad religion."

For today's lectionary choice, we are looking at the stoning of Stephen. Considered the first biblical martyr of Christianity, it was the same form of punishment used against the woman caught in adultery that Jesus rescued from punishment. The image shown is preparation for the stoning of a Somali man caught in adultery.

What are the important aspects of Stephen's story to you? What does Stephens ordeal say about his faith when Christianity was still in its early days as a "movement?"

On the other side of the issue: How do we compare this with two millennia of Christian tradition? How do we create a world that no longer desires to stone, burn or destroy that which is human? 


Acts 7:55-60
7:55 But filled with the Holy Spirit, he gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.

7:56 "Look," he said, "I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!"

7:57 But they covered their ears, and with a loud shout all rushed together against him.

7:58 Then they dragged him out of the city and began to stone him; and the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.

7:59 While they were stoning Stephen, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit."

7:60 Then he knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." When he had said this, he died.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

PSALM 23

Today from the lectionary, we will be looking at Psalm 23. Traditionally thought to be written by David, the Psalms are hymns, or what might be called music for the soul of man. The ability to calm and soothe the anxieties of our existence is no small task. One of the phrases the Psalm recounts is "he leads me beside still waters." On a planet two-thirds covered in water that's an important thing to know.

 In our class we will take a look at the 23rd Psalm as it comes from the Hebrew and the meanings that has for our lives. So read though the Psalm and see what is meaningful to you.

 Psalm 23
23:1 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

23:2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters;

23:3 he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name's sake.

23:4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff-- they comfort me.

23:5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.

23:6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD my whole life long.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

THE EMMAUS ROAD SHOW

The Emmaus Road Show

Today, we look at the narrative of  when Jesus shows himself to two on the road to Emmaus. It comes after his resurrection. He appears unrecognized at first and then becomes recognized as they journey forward. 

It appears that many times we do not recognize the value of persons, events or things in our lives until we have spent time with them. There is a popular weekly television program that goes by the name of The Antiques Road Show where persons bring in their items and heirlooms and are often surprised to find the value to be worth more than they ever thought. And with each item there is always, always a story that goes with it.

The image shown  here is a road of antiquity, thought to be part of the road to Emmaus. It is narrow, overgrown and in need of repair.

In the lesson today, from the gospel of Luke, we have the appearance of Jesus to two who are making a journey. How did Jesus show them that they were worth more than they ever thought? How does he widen their experience, give them growth and repair their road?

Luke 24:13-35
24:13 Now on that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem,

24:14 and talking with each other about all these things that had happened.

24:15 While they were talking and discussing, Jesus himself came near and went with them,

24:16 but their eyes were kept from recognizing him.

24:17 And he said to them, "What are you discussing with each other while you walk along?" They stood still, looking sad.

24:18 Then one of them, whose name was Cleopas, answered him, "Are you the only stranger in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have taken place there in these days?"

24:19 He asked them, "What things?" They replied, "The things about Jesus of Nazareth, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,

24:20 and how our chief priests and leaders handed him over to be condemned to death and crucified him.

24:21 But we had hoped that he was the one to redeem Israel. Yes, and besides all this, it is now the third day since these things took place.

24:22 Moreover, some women of our group astounded us. They were at the tomb early this morning,

24:23 and when they did not find his body there, they came back and told us that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who said that he was alive.

24:24 Some of those who were with us went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said; but they did not see him."

24:25 Then he said to them, "Oh, how foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have declared!

24:26 Was it not necessary that the Messiah should suffer these things and then enter into his glory?"

24:27 Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets, he interpreted to them the things about himself in all the scriptures.

24:28 As they came near the village to which they were going, he walked ahead as if he were going on.

24:29 But they urged him strongly, saying, "Stay with us, because it is almost evening and the day is now nearly over." So he went in to stay with them.

24:30 When he was at the table with them, he took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them.

24:31 Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; and he vanished from their sight.

24:32 They said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?"

24:33 That same hour they got up and returned to Jerusalem; and they found the eleven and their companions gathered together.

24:34 They were saying, "The Lord has risen indeed, and he has appeared to Simon!"

24:35 Then they told what had happened on the road, and how he had been made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

SEEING IS BELIEVING?

In our lesson from the lectionary for this May 1st, the first Sunday after Easter, we look at the appearance of Jesus to his followers. But it seems Thomas didn't get the email, so he wasn't there. Jesus appears again and this time he shows his hands so Thomas might believe.

Could the message on the hand in the image have been something that Jesus was attempting to also communicate to Thomas?


What does it mean to believe? Is it different than faith? If so, what are the differences?


Have you ever had a time in your life when it didn't seem to matter what you believed but rather if you had faith?


John 20:19-31
20:19 When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

20:20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

20:21 Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."

20:22 When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit.

20:23 If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

20:24 But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came.

20:25 So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe."

20:26 A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you."

20:27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe."

20:28 Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!"

20:29 Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe."

20:30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book.

20:31 But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION...

This is Easter, also known as resurrection Sunday. It is the culmination of both Passion week as well as the entire Cristian calendar. For Jesus it was the fulfillment of his ministry and calling from the Father.
He went willingly, of his own volition to crucifixion. His choice remained his even up to the last evening before in the garden of Gethsemane.

"Freedom of Expression" is the title of the lesson for today. I have chosen two images to illustrate this concept.. The first image on the left is an art piece by Andreas Serrano, an artist who as a child was reared as a strict Catholic. This expression was vandalized with a hammer just a week ago, this Palm Sunday, as it hung in a museum in Avignon, France. It has been a highly controversial freedom of expression since it was created in 1987 and has gained the name "Piss Christ."

The image on the right, found in a Google image search, is one that interested me for its juxtaposition of the nails and Jesus, but then so is the juxtaposition of the liquid media and Jesus in the Serrano image.

What do these images mean to us in the light of free expression?

How was Jesus on the cross an "Expression of Freedom?"

As Paul speaks in Colossians, how does that relate to our expression of Christ?

Colossians 3:1-4
3:1 So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

3:2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth,

3:3 for you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

3:4 When Christ who is your life is revealed, then you also will be revealed with him in glory.

THE PALM PARTY...

Hardy Palm Tree Farms

In the passages for today we look at the entering of Jesus into Jerusalem on what has become known as Palm Sunday.

The event is accompanied by a festive atmosphere. As Jesus enters Jerusalem,  everyone is crying "Hosanna in the Highest."

However, by the end of the week, it appears this same crowd was crying, "Crucify Him, Crucify Him." A lesson in how fickle the crowd can be. So Jesus finds his relationship with the crowd turned by week's end.

For the crowd, in the end, Jesus was most likely just "another messiah" entering Jerusalem. Possibly a somewhat routine event in the Holy City of David. So get a rent-a-donkey. Oh, and order some more palm trees from Hardy Farms, we're running low.

However, by Sunday, Jesus stands having followed and accomplished his calling before God. And the truth is that his actions were for the very people who populated the crowds of both popularity and condemnation. This week is known as Christ's Passion. His passion does not wane for the people or for his calling.

What about your passion? Have you ever had an experience that started out glorious but by the end of the week was a complete dilemma? Have you ever been through both the hallelujah and the dilemma and finally find yourself standing resurrected in accomplishment?


Where are you presently in your passion experience?


How does Jesus' passion instruct yours?



Matthew 21:1-11
21:1 When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples,

21:2 saying to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me.

21:3 If anyone says anything to you, just say this, 'The Lord needs them.' And he will send them immediately."

21:4 This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying,

21:5 "Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey."

21:6 The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them;

21:7 they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them.

21:8 A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road.

21:9 The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!"

21:10 When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, "Who is this?"

21:11 The crowds were saying, "This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee."

NOW HEAR THE WORD OF THE LORD...

"Put together dem bones,

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones.

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones.

Dem bones, dem bones, dem dry bones.

Now hear the word of the Lord.

Let's connect dem bones, dem dry bones.
Let's connect dem bones, dem dry bones.
Let's connect dem bones, dem dry bones.
Now hear the word of the Lord..."
(James Weldon Johnson 1871 - 1938)

The African American poet, James Weldon Johnson, wrote these words above to describe the occurrence from our lectionary script for this Sunday, April 10 found in Ezekiel chapter 37.

Traditionally, the scenario described in the 37th chapter of Ezekiel was describing the sustained concern of God for Israel during their exile in Babylon and to impart hope for their future.

What sustains us? What makes us dance? What gives us life? What makes our spirits thrive?
In the passages below, Ezekiel is told by God to prophesy to the bones, "O hear the word of the Lord." God then promises to breathe into these skeletons and "you shall live." In another poem by James Weldon Johnson, "The Creation," he ends in the last stanza with God breathing the breath of life into Adam and "man became a living soul. Amen." Pneumos is the Greek word for both wind/breath and spirit.

What is it that gives you life? What sustains you? Do you have hope for the future?

Ezekiel 37:1-14
37:1 The hand of the LORD came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the LORD and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones.

37:2 He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry.

37:3 He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord GOD, you know."

37:4 Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the LORD.

37:5 Thus says the Lord GOD to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.

37:6 I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the LORD."

37:7 So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone.

37:8 I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them.

37:9 Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord GOD: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live."

37:10 I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.

37:11 Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.'

37:12 Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord GOD: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel.

37:13 And you shall know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people.

37:14 I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the LORD, have spoken and will act," says the LORD.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

DAVID, A GOOD BET ?

In today's lectionary lesson from 1 Samuel 16:1-13, God sends Samuel to anoint a new King over Israel.

Samuel is hesitant at first for fear of his own life, but God gives him reason to go, making the journey one of sacrifice, sanctification and anointing. 

In the illustration, the chip is embellished with the Star of David. What is the traditional interpretation of the star? What does it have to say about the world and our relationships?


The way the game eventually plays out, was David a good bet to lead God's people? What does that have to say about our relationship to our God and others?


16:1 The LORD said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons."

16:2 Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me." And the LORD said, "Take a heifer with you, and say, 'I have come to sacrifice to the LORD.'

16:3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you."

16:4 Samuel did what the LORD commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, "Do you come peaceably?"

16:5 He said, "Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the LORD; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice.

16:6 When they came, he looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed is now before the LORD."

16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the LORD does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart."

16:8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. He said, "Neither has the LORD chosen this one."

16:9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, "Neither has the LORD chosen this one."

16:10 Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, "The LORD has not chosen any of these."

16:11 Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here."

16:12 He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome. The LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; for this is the one."

16:13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the LORD came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

WATER AS LIFE...

A woman waits for water

What would you say is the most valuable physical resource in the world today or for all time for that matter? 

It is a liquid but it's not oil. It covers the majority of the earth but replenishes only in its fresh form. It has made life possible in the temperate zones of our planet which is not possible on those worlds that orbit closest to us. 

In one of my favorite films of all time, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, an aged prospector who is leading two greenhorns in their first gold mining adventure in the mountains of central Mexico, warns when the two greenhorns splash water from canteens on rock streaked with pyrite, fool's gold, "let me know before you go splashing water around again, water can be precious, sometimes more than gold."


What is precious about the exchange that occurs between Jesus and the Woman at the Well? How does her Samaritan status influence the exchange? What does that tell us about our relationships with others in the world today? Water is a precious commodity of the earth we must share. How does that make us like our neighbor?


 John 4:5-42
4:5 So he came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph.

4:6 Jacob's well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.

4:7 A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, "Give me a drink."

4:8 (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.)

4:9 The Samaritan woman said to him, "How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?" (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.)

4:10 Jesus answered her, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, 'Give me a drink,' you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water."

4:11 The woman said to him, "Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?

4:12 Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?"

4:13 Jesus said to her, "Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,

4:14 but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life."

4:15 The woman said to him, "Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water."

4:16 Jesus said to her, "Go, call your husband, and come back."

4:17 The woman answered him, "I have no husband." Jesus said to her, "You are right in saying, 'I have no husband';

4:18 for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!"

4:19 The woman said to him, "Sir, I see that you are a prophet.

4:20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem."

4:21 Jesus said to her, "Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.

4:22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews.

4:23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him.

4:24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."

4:25 The woman said to him, "I know that Messiah is coming" (who is called Christ). "When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us."

4:26 Jesus said to her, "I am he, the one who is speaking to you."

4:27 Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, "What do you want?" or, "Why are you speaking with her?"

4:28 Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people,

4:29 "Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah, can he?"

4:30 They left the city and were on their way to him.

4:31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, "Rabbi, eat something."

4:32 But he said to them, "I have food to eat that you do not know about."

4:33 So the disciples said to one another, "Surely no one has brought him something to eat?"

4:34 Jesus said to them, "My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work.

4:35 Do you not say, 'Four months more, then comes the harvest'? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting.

4:36 The reaper is already receiving wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together.

4:37 For here the saying holds true, 'One sows and another reaps.'

4:38 I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor."

4:39 Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman's testimony, "He told me everything I have ever done."

4:40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days.

4:41 And many more believed because of his word.

4:42 They said to the woman, "It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world."

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

Born from above?

The Butterfly Nebula from the Hubble space scope

In classical Greek, the word "psyche" has two connotations. It can mean soul as in our spiritual self. But it is also the word for butterfly. The creature that metamorphoses from the earthbound caterpillar to the winged beauty of spring was for the ancient Greeks a symbol of our soul's development into its full potential and presence.
The ancient Greeks even had a story of the relationship between Eros and Psyche, and how Psyche gained eternal existence because her example of showing trust in another.
As we have been able to extend our gaze into the heavens, we have been both thrilled and awe struck as to what a vast universe there is beyond us. It is both above and beyond much of who we are in this earthbound abode.

In today's lectionary lesson from Matthew 3:1-17, Jesus speaks to Nicodemus, a very faith seeking and inquisitive man who wonders what it means to trust and what results from such a relationship. How do we look at being born from above? What does this have to say about our earthbound development and our expression of trust in others?


John 3:1-17
3:1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.

3:2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God."

3:3 Jesus answered him, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above."

3:4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother's womb and be born?"

3:5 Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.

3:6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.

3:7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.'

3:8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."

3:9 Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?"

3:10 Jesus answered him, "Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

3:11 "Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony.

3:12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?

3:13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.

3:14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,

3:15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

3:17 "Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

THE FORKS IN THE ROAD OF OUR LIVES

There are times in our lives when we make the choices of who we are, how we will relate to others and how we see ourselves spiritually. All of these aspects of our selves and relations are connected. Which direction to we take?
We make many of these decisions based upon assumptions about our role or duty in this life as it relates to others expectations about us. We want to be popular, powerful and prestigious in relation to others.
In the lectionary passage for today, Jesus is "tempted" to fulfill all the expectations of others in his call to live out his life.

How do the three temptaions relate to the telling of the gospel story itself? How do the three responses witness to Jesus' sense of his own self as a leader? How are the three temptations a lesson for our own living? 

Matthew 4:1-11


4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.

4:2 He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.

4:3 The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread."

4:4 But he answered, "It is written, 'One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.'"

4:5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple,

4:6 saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you,' and 'On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.'"

4:7 Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, 'Do not put the Lord your God to the test.'"

4:8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor;

4:9 and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me."

4:10 Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, 'Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.'"

4:11 Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

HOW ARE YOU BEING TRANSFIGURED?

A cubist interpretation by Alex M., 3rd grader. Inspired by Picasso.. 

According to the lectionary, March, 6, 2011 is considered Transfiguration Sunday. The scripture section from Matthew where Jesus takes Peter, James and John to Mt. Tabor and there he is transfigured in the company of Moses and Elijah is replete with possibilities for life interpretation.
One way of looking at the narrative is its ability to relate the passing-on of the baton from the traditions of Moses and Elijah to the work of God that would occur in the lives of Peter, James and John who would become spiritual  leaders among the Gentiles.The transfiguration then could be described as something indicative of their unique time, an occurrence that looks both back and forward at a precise moment.
The cubist art interpretation illustrated here by a 3rd grader, Alex M. has the quality of both looking forward and back at the same moment. Inspired by Picasso who attempted in cubism to bring an expression of depth to an ordinary flat canvas, cubism also assisted in expressing the fractured nature of our selves. While we are all human, we each live in our time in a unique way, much transfigured by our experiences.

How are you being transfigured? When was the last time you had a moment in which you sensed looking both back and forward at the same time? What did it mean for you?

In the passages given below, the narrative ends with Jesus asking the disciples not to mention this occurrence to anyone until after his death and resurrection. Why?

Matthew 17:1-9
17:1 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves.

17:2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white.

17:3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him.

17:4 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

17:5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!"

17:6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear.

17:7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up and do not be afraid."

17:8 And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.

17:9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, "Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead." 


Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line

What color is anxiety?

Yellow is the color evoked by light that stimulates both the L and M (long and medium wavelength) cone cells of the retina about equally, with no significant stimulation of the S (short-wavelength) cone cells. Light with a wavelength of 570–580 nm is yellow, as is light with a suitable mixture of red and green..(Wikipedia.)

Much of our lives are a mixture of red and green, wondering whether to stop or go in a given situation, we find our selves in that cautious area of yellow. An area that contributes greatly to our sense of anxiety, worry and human frustration.

In today's Journey lesson, we look at two choices from the lectionary, one from the Hebrew Scriptures and one from the Gospels. What do the scriptures say about our human expression of anxiety? How do the Hebrew and Christian accounts differ and relate? What can ultimately be said about our cautious situation?

Isaiah 49:8-16a
49:8 Thus says the LORD: In a time of favor I have answered you, on a day of salvation I have helped you; I have kept you and given you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages;

49:9 saying to the prisoners, "Come out," to those who are in darkness, "Show yourselves." They shall feed along the ways, on all the bare heights shall be their pasture;

49:10 they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them down, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them.

49:11 And I will turn all my mountains into a road, and my highways shall be raised up.

49:12 Lo, these shall come from far away, and lo, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene.

49:13 Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the LORD has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his suffering ones.

49:14 But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me."

49:15 Can a woman forget her nursing child, or show no compassion for the child of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you.

49:16a See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands.

Matthew 6:24-34
6:24 "No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.

6:25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

6:26 Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

6:27 And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life?

6:28 And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin,

6:29 yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these.

6:30 But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you--you of little faith?

6:31 Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?'

6:32 For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

6:33 But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

6:34 So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today."

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line 

Turning the cheek of violence to non-violence

 We are all aware of how violence can become contagious not only from cheek to cheek but also from generation to generation. What do we do about violence, especially when our own religious history has fostered such horrific examples?                                                         One of the practices that Jesus states in the passages for today is that we should turn the other cheek, go the extra mile. Does this actually work?                                                           Martin Luther King Jr wondereed this in 1958 while attempting to foster Civil Rights in our country. He questioned whether Jesus' words were meant for merely individual or societal ethical relational conduct?  What did turning the cheek and going the extra mile mean in Jesus' time? Does it relate to our world today or is it a relic from an old or outdated tradition of behavior.

Matthew 5:38-48

5:38 "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'

5:39 But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also;

5:40 and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well;

5:41 and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile.

5:42 Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.

5:43 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.'

5:44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

5:45 so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.

5:46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?

5:47 And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

5:48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Walter Morton for Journey Across the Line