Scriptures and Reflection Questions for August 1

We are transferring the Feast of the Transfiguration (August 6) to Sunday, August 1.

How to use this page:

Print this and read a different passage each day and think about it.  Some questions are offered to help stimulate your reflection.  You'll find your experience of worship on Sunday will be intensified.
For a method to read and pray with the scriptures you might try to use the ancient practice of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading).  We've written some instructions on how to use Lectio with the Sunday Scriptures at the following link: Using Lectio Divina to pray the lections

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.

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The Collect

O God, who on the holy mount revealed to chosen witnesses your well-beloved Son, wonderfully transfigured, in raiment white and glistening: Mercifully grant that we, being delivered from the disquietude of this world, may by faith behold the King in his beauty; who with you, O Father, and you, O Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

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The Lessons

 

Exodus 34:29-35
Psalm 99
2 Peter 1:13-21
Luke 9:28-36 ________________________

 

Exodus 34:29-35Moses came down from Mount Sinai. As he came down from the mountain with the two tablets of the covenant in his hand, Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because he had been talking with God. When Aaron and all the Israelites saw Moses, the skin of his face was shining, and they were afraid to come near him. But Moses called to them; and Aaron and all the leaders of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke with them. Afterward all the Israelites came near, and he gave them in commandment all that the LORD had spoken with him on Mount Sinai. When Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face; but whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with him, he would take the veil off, until he came out; and when he came out, and told the Israelites what he had been commanded, the Israelites would see the face of Moses, that the skin of his face was shining; and Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with him.
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Have you known someone whom you might describe as "radiant"?  What is it about them that gives them this quality?  Have you ever felt radiant after a spiritual experience?

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Psalm 99   

God reigns; let the people tremble; *
     God is enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth shake.

God is great in Zion *
     and is high above all peoples.

Let them confess God's Name, which is great and awesome; *
     God is the Holy One.

"O mighty Ruler, lover of justice, you have established equity; *
     you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob."

We proclaim your greatness, O God, and fall down before your footstool; *
     you are the Holy One.

Moses and Aaron among your priests,
and Samuel among those who call upon your Name, *
     they called upon you, and you answered them.

You spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud; *
     they kept your testimonies and the decree that you gave them.

"O Holy God, you answered them indeed; *
     you were a God who forgave them,
     yet punished them for their evil deeds."

Proclaim the greatness of our God and worship on God's holy hill, *
     for our God is the Holy One.
 

St. Helena Psalter

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How do you praise God and express God's glory in your life?
What is the relationship between justice and equity? (vs. 4)

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2 Peter 1:13-21 

I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to refresh your memory, since I know that my death will come soon, as indeed our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.

For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, "This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased." We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.

So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one's own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

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How might you articulate your own eyewitness of Christ?
Have you ever sensed yourself to be moved by the Holy Spirit to speak?  What did you say?

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Luke 9:28-36

About eight days after Jesus had foretold his death and resurrection, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah"--not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen._______________

Think about some of these images:  mountain, transfigured appearance, Moses & Elijah, sleeping & waking, cloud, voice, silence.  What does this story evoke in you?  

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for July 25

Scriptures and Reflection Questions 

9th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 12

July 25, 2010 

 

How to use this page:

Print this and read a different passage each day and think about it.  Some questions are offered to help stimulate your reflection.  You'll find your experience of worship on Sunday will be intensified.
For a method to read and pray with the scriptures you might try to use the ancient practice of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading).  We've written some instructions on how to use Lectio with the Sunday Scriptures at the following link: Using Lectio Divina to pray the lections

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.

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O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

__________________________

The Lessons

Hosea 1:2-10
Psalm 85
Colossians 2:6-15, (16-19)
Luke 11:1-13

 

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Hosea 1:2-10
When the LORD first spoke through Hosea, the LORD said to Hosea, "Go, take for yourself a wife of whoredom and have children of whoredom, for the land commits great whoredom by forsaking the LORD." So he went and took Gomer daughter of Diblaim, and she conceived and bore him a son.

And the LORD said to him, "Name him Jezreel; for in a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. On that day I will break the bow of Israel in the valley of Jezreel."

She conceived again and bore a daughter. Then the LORD said to him, "Name her Lo-ruhamah, for I will no longer have pity on the house of Israel or forgive them. But I will have pity on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the LORD their God; I will not save them by bow, or by sword, or by war, or by horses, or by horsemen."

When she had weaned Lo-ruhamah, she conceived and bore a son. Then the LORD said, "Name him Lo-ammi, for you are not my people and I am not your God."

Yet the number of the people of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which can be neither measured nor numbered; and in the place where it was said to them, "You are not my people," it shall be said to them, "Children of the living God."
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Note:  "Lo-ruhamah" means "Not pitied," and "Lo-ammi" means "Not my people."  Hosea prophesies the end of the king's dynasty -- Jeroboam was the fourth king in Juhu's line.  Yet he promises a future hope.  How might today's prophets speak to us and to our leaders?

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Psalm 85   

You have been gracious to your land, O God, *
     you have restored the good fortune of Jacob.

You have forgiven the iniquity of your people *
     and blotted out all their sins.

You have withdrawn all your fury *
     and turned yourself from your wrathful indignation.

Restore us then, O God our Savior; *
     let your anger depart from us.

Will you be displeased with us for ever; *
     will you prolong your anger from age to age?

Will you not give us life again, *
     that your people may rejoice in you?

Show us your mercy, O God, *
     and grant us your salvation.

I will listen to what you are saying, *
     for you are speaking peace to your faithful people and to those who turn their hearts to you.

Truly, your salvation is very near to those who fear you, *
     that your glory may dwell in our land.

Mercy and truth have met together; *
     righteousness and peace have kissed each other.

Truth shall spring up from the earth, *
    and righteousness shall look down from heaven.

You, O God, will indeed grant prosperity, *
    and our land will yield its increase.

Righteousness shall go before you, *
    and peace shall be a pathway for your feet.
 

St. Helena Psalter

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 How might these words become a prayer for our time?

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Colossians 2:6-15

As you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.

See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have come to fullness in him, who is the head of every ruler and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a spiritual circumcision, by putting off the body of the flesh in the circumcision of Christ; when you were buried with him in baptism, you were also raised with him through faith in the power of God, who raised him from the dead. And when you were dead in trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made you alive together with him, when he forgave us all our trespasses, erasing the record that stood against us with its legal demands. He set this aside, nailing it to the cross. He disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it.

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The writer offers a high theology of Christ as one in whom "the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily."  We are joined into Christ through the death and resurrection of baptism.  We share his triumph in the cross.  What part of this theology has strong meaning for you?  Is there anything here that bothers you or seems had to understand?

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Luke 11:1-13 

Jesus was praying in a certain place, and after he had finished, one of his disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples." He said to them, "When you pray, say:

Father, hallowed be your name.
Your kingdom come.
Give us each day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sins,
for we ourselves forgive everyone indebted to us.
And do not bring us to the time of trial."

And he said to them, "Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, `Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.' And he answers from within, `Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.' I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.

"So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for a fish, will give a snake instead of a fish? Or if the child asks for an egg, will give a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!"_______________

Note the differences between Luke's version of the Lord's Prayer and Matthew's version (Mt. 6:9).  What do you make of the differences?
How do you reconcile this passage with the problem of unanswered prayer?

 

 

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for July 18

Scriptures and Reflection Questions 

8th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 11
 July 18, 2010

 

How to use this page:

Print this and read a different passage each day and think about it.  Some questions are offered to help stimulate your reflection.  You'll find your experience of worship on Sunday will be intensified.
For a method to read and pray with the scriptures you might try to use the ancient practice of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading).  We've written some instructions on how to use Lectio with the Sunday Scriptures at the following link: Using Lectio Divina to pray the lections

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.

The Collect:

Almighty God, the fountain of all wisdom, you know our necessities before we ask and our ignorance in asking: Have compassion on our weakness, and mercifully give us those things which for our unworthiness we dare not, and for our blindness we cannot ask; through the worthiness of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

 

The Lessons

Amos 8:1-12
Psalm 52     
Colossians 1:15-28
Luke 10:38-42

 

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Amos 8:1-12
This is what the Lord GOD showed me-- a basket of summer fruit. He said, "Amos, what do you see?" And I said, "A basket of summer fruit." Then the LORD said to me,
     "The end has come upon my people Israel;
          I will never again pass them by.
     The songs of the temple shall become wailings in that day,"
     says the Lord GOD;
     "the dead bodies shall be many,
          cast out in every place. Be silent!"
Hear this, you that trample on the needy,
     and bring to ruin the poor of the land,
saying, "When will the new moon be over
     so that we may sell grain;
and the sabbath,
     so that we may offer wheat for sale?
We will make the ephah small and the shekel great,
     and practice deceit with false balances,
buying the poor for silver
     and the needy for a pair of sandals,
     and selling the sweepings of the wheat."
The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob:
Surely I will never forget any of their deeds.
Shall not the land tremble on this account,
     and everyone mourn who lives in it,
and all of it rise like the Nile,
     and be tossed about and sink again, like the Nile of Egypt?
On that day, says the Lord GOD,
     I will make the sun go down at noon,
     and darken the earth in broad daylight.
I will turn your feasts into mourning,
     and all your songs into lamentation;
I will bring sackcloth on all loins,
     and baldness on every head;
I will make it like the mourning for an only son,
     and the end of it like a bitter day.
The time is surely coming, says the Lord GOD,
     when I will send a famine on the land;
not a famine of bread, or a thirst for water,
     but of hearing the words of the LORD.
They shall wander from sea to sea,
     and from north to east;
they shall run to and fro, seeking the word of the LORD,
     but they shall not find it.
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What are the economic abuses that Amos complains of?
What might he say to our culture?

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Psalm 52   

You tyrant, why do you boast of wickedness *
     against the godly all day long?

You plot ruin; your tongue is like a sharpened razor, *
     O worker of deception.

You love evil more than good *
     and lying more than speaking the truth.

You love all words that hurt, *
     O you deceitful tongue.

Oh, that God would demolish you utterly, *
     topple you, and snatch you from your dwelling,
     and root you out of the land of the living!

The righteous shall see and tremble, *
     and they shall laugh at the tyrant, saying,

"This is the one who did not take God for a refuge, *
     but trusted in great wealth
     and relied upon wickedness."

But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; *
     I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever.

I will give you thanks for what you have done *
     and declare the goodness of your Name in the presence of the godly.
 

St. Helena Psalter

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What sort of person is the psalmist complaining about?

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Colossians 1:15-28 

Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or powers -- all things have been created through him and for him. He himself is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that he might come to have first place in everything. For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him God was pleased to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, by making peace through the blood of his cross.

And you who were once estranged and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, he has now reconciled in his fleshly body through death, so as to present you holy and blameless and irreproachable before him-- provided that you continue securely established and steadfast in the faith, without shifting from the hope promised by the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven. I, Paul, became a servant of this gospel.

I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church. I became its servant according to God's commission that was given to me for you, to make the word of God fully known, the mystery that has been hidden throughout the ages and generations but has now been revealed to his saints. To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. It is he whom we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone in all wisdom, so that we may present everyone mature in Christ.

 

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What is personally meaningful to you in this rich passage?

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Luke 10:38-42 

As Jesus and his disciples went on their way, Jesus entered a certain village, where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks; so she came to him and asked, "Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to do all the work by myself? Tell her then to help me." But the Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her."_______________

Are you more like Martha or Mary?
Why do you think Jesus told Martha that Mary had chosen the better part? 

 

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for July 11

Scriptures and Reflection Questions

7th Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 10
 July 11, 2010

 

How to use this page:

Print this and read a different passage each day and think about it.  Some questions are offered to help stimulate your reflection.  You'll find your experience of worship on Sunday will be intensified.
For a method to read and pray with the scriptures you might try to use the ancient practice of Lectio Divina (Divine Reading).  We've written some instructions on how to use Lectio with the Sunday Scriptures at the following link: Using Lectio Divina to pray the lections

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.

______

Collect

O Lord, mercifully receive the prayers of your people who call upon you, and grant that they may know and understand what things they ought to do, and also may have grace and power faithfully to accomplish them; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

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The Lessons

Amos 7:7-17
Psalm 82
Colossians 1:1-14
Luke 10:25-37

 

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Amos 7:7-17
This is what the Lord God showed me: the Lord was standing beside a wall built with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the LORD said to me, "Amos, what do you see?" And I said, "A plumb line." Then the Lord said,

"See, I am setting a plumb line in the midst of my people Israel; I will never again pass them by;
the high places of Isaac shall be made desolate,
and the sanctuaries of Israel shall be laid waste,
and I will rise against the house of Jeroboam with the sword."
Then Amaziah, the priest of Bethel, sent to King Jeroboam of Israel, saying, "Amos has conspired against you in the very center of the house of Israel; the land is not able to bear all his words. For thus Amos has said,

`Jeroboam shall die by the sword,
and Israel must go into exile
away from his land.'"

And Amaziah said to Amos, "O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, earn your bread there, and prophesy there; but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king's sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom."

Then Amos answered Amaziah, "I am no prophet, nor a prophet's son; but I am a herdsman, and a dresser of sycamore trees, and the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, `Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'

"Now therefore hear the word of the LORD.
You say, `Do not prophesy against Israel,
and do not preach against the house of Isaac.'
Therefore thus says the LORD:
`Your wife shall become a prostitute in the city,
and your sons and your daughters shall fall by the sword,
and your land shall be parceled out by line;
you yourself shall die in an unclean land,
and Israel shall surely go into exile away from its land.'"
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Amos challenges the King of Israel and speaks prophesy against the nation.  His words could be interpreted as treason, punishable by death.  His words have been preserved as prophesy by God.

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Psalm 82   

God takes a stand in the council of heaven *
     and gives judgment in the midst of the gods:

"How long will you judge unjustly, *
     and show favor to the wicked?

Save the weak and the orphan; *
     defend the humble and needy;

Rescue the weak and the poor; *
     deliver them from the power of the wicked.

They do not know, neither do they understand; they go about in darkness; *
     all the foundations of the earth are shaken.

Now I say to you, 'You are gods, *
     and all of you children of the Most High;

Nevertheless, you shall die like mortals, *
     and fall like any ruler.' "

Arise, O God, and rule the earth, *
     for you shall take all nations for your own.
 

St. Helena Psalter

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God speaks from heaven and announces God's agenda to the earthly leaders.  How might our government and leaders measure up to God's expectations? 

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Colossians 1:1-14 

Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

To the saints and faithful brothers and sisters in Christ in Colossae:

Grace to you and peace from God our Father.

In our prayers for you we always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for we have heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God. This you learned from Epaphras, our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf, and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit.

For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God's will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. May you be made strong with all the strength that comes from his glorious power, and may you be prepared to endure everything with patience, while joyfully giving thanks to the Father, who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light. He has rescued us from the power of darkness and transferred us into the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

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 Let this expression of prayer be for you.  Read it as if it is your prayer.

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Luke 10:25-37 

Just then a lawyer stood up to test Jesus. "Teacher," he said, "what must I do to inherit eternal life?" He said to him, "What is written in the law? What do you read there?" He answered, "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself." And he said to him, "You have given the right answer; do this, and you will live."

But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, "And who is my neighbor?" Jesus replied, "A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell into the hands of robbers, who stripped him, beat him, and went away, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan while traveling came near him; and when he saw him, he was moved with pity. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, having poured oil and wine on them. Then he put him on his own animal, brought him to an inn, and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii, gave them to the innkeeper, and said, `Take care of him; and when I come back, I will repay you whatever more you spend.' Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?" He said, "The one who showed him mercy." Jesus said to him, "Go and do likewise."