Scriptures and Reflection Questions for March 4

Scriptures and Reflection Questions
2nd Sunday in Lent, Year B
March 4, 2011
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Collect

O God, whose glory it is always to have mercy: Be gracious to all who have gone
 astray from your ways, and bring them again with penitent hearts and  steadfast
 faith to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your  Word, Jesus Christ
your Son; who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and  reigns, one God, for ever
and ever. Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary
Year B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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:
www.stpaulsfay.org/id272.html

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16
Psalm 22:22-30
Romans 4:13-25
Mark 8:31-38

Genesis 17:1-7, 15-16

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him,
"I am God Almighty; walk before me,  and be blameless. And I will make my covenant
between me and you, and  will make you exceedingly numerous." Then Abram fell on
 his face; and  God said to him, "As for me, this is my covenant with you: You shall
be  the ancestor of a multitude of nations. No longer shall your name be  Abram,
 but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you the ancestor  of a multitude
of nations. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; and I  will make nations of you,
and kings shall come from you. I will  establish my covenant between me and you,
 and your offspring after you  throughout their generations, for an everlasting
covenant, to be God to  you and to your offspring after you."

God said to Abraham, "As for Sarah your wife, you shall not call  her Sarai, but
 Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover I  will give you a son
by her. I will bless her, and she shall give rise  to nations; kings of peoples
shall come from her."

____________

Have you ever experienced a new possibility after you had given up any reasonable
hope?
____________________________________

Psalm 22:22-30

May all who fear you, O God, give praise; *
     may the offspring of Israel stand in awe,
     and all of Jacob's line give glory.

For you do not despise nor abhor the poor in their poverty,
neither do you hide your face from them, *
     but when they cry to you, you hear them.

My praise is of you in the great assembly; *
     I will perform my vows in the presence of those who worship you.

The poor shall eat and be satisfied,
and those who seek you shall praise you: *
     "May your heart live for ever!"

All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to you, *
     and all the families of the nations shall bow before you.

For yours is the royal power, O God; *
     you rule over the nations.

To you alone all who sleep in the earth bow down in worship; *
     all who go down to the dust fall before you.

My soul shall live for you;
my descendants shall serve you; *
     they shall be known as yours for ever.

                                           Saint Helena Psalter

____________

The psalmist connects the feeding of the poor with the power of God.
In what ways does our culture hide our face from the poor?
In what ways do we hear the cry of the poor?____________________________________

Romans 4:13-25

The promise that he would inherit the world did  not come to Abraham or to his descendants
through the law but through  the righteousness of faith. If it is the adherents
of the law who are to  be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. For
the law brings  wrath; but where there is no law, neither is there violation.
For this reason it depends on faith, in order that the promise may  rest on grace
and be guaranteed to all his descendants, not only to the  adherents of the law
but also to those who share the faith of Abraham  (for he is the father of all of
us, as it is written, "I have made you  the father of many nations") -- in the presence
of the God in whom he  believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence
the things  that do not exist. Hoping against hope, he believed that he would  become
"the father of many nations," according to what was said, "So  numerous shall your
descendants be." He did not weaken in faith when he  considered his own body, which
was already as good as dead (for he was  about a hundred years old), or when he
considered the barrenness of  Sarah's womb. No distrust made him waver concerning
the promise of God,  but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, being
fully  convinced that God was able to do what he had promised. Therefore his  faith
"was reckoned to him as righteousness." Now the words, "it was  reckoned to him,"
were written not for his sake alone, but for ours  also. It will be reckoned to
us who believe in him who raised Jesus our  Lord from the dead, who was handed over
to death for our trespasses and  was raised for our justification.
____________

Paul sees Abraham as the father of faith, because he trusted the message that he
 and Sarah would give birth late in life.
In what ways do you find yourself trusting in God?
In what ways is it difficult for you to trust God?____________________________________


Mark 8:31-38

Then Jesus began to teach his disciples that  the Son of Man must undergo great
suffering, and be rejected by the  elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and
be killed, and after  three days rise again. He said all this quite openly. And
Peter took him  aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and looking at his  disciples,
he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are  setting your mind
 not on divine things but on human things."

He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any  want to become
my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their  cross and follow me. For
those who want to save their life will lose it,  and those who lose their life for
my sake, and for the sake of the  gospel, will save it. For what will it profit
them to gain the whole  world and forfeit their life? Indeed, what can they give
 in return for  their life? Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this
 adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be  ashamed
when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
____________

Why did Jesus speak so sternly to Peter?
What does it mean to you to lose your life for Jesus sake and for the sake of the
gospel?~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this email list,
go to www.stpaulsfay.org/id137.html

On most weekdays I send a Morning Reflection to this same list, offering a thought
about the readings from the Daily Office.

Lowell
The Rev. Lowell Grisham
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Fayetteville, AR

The Mission of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
is to explore and celebrate
God's infinite grace, acceptance, and love.

Our Rule of Life:
  We aspire to...
     worship weekly
     pray daily
     learn constantly
     serve joyfully
     live generously.

Check our website: www.stpaulsfay.org

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for February 26

Scriptures and Reflection Questions
Fist Lent, Year B
February 26, 2011


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Collect

Almighty God, whose blessed Son was led by the Spirit to be tempted by Satan: Come quickly to help us who are assaulted by many temptations; and, as you know the weaknesses of each of us, let each one find you mighty to save; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary
Year B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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: 
www.stpaulsfay.org/id272.html

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Genesis 9:8-17
Psalm 25:1-9
1 Peter 3:18-22
Mark 1:9-15
_______________________________________________________________

Genesis 9:8-17

God said to Noah and to his sons with him, "As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth." God said, "This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth." God said to Noah, "This is the sign of the covenant that I have established between me and all flesh that is on the earth."

___________________

What does this covenant from God mean to you?  

________________________________________________________________ 

Psalm 25:1-9

To you, O God, I lift up my soul;

my God, I put my trust in you; *
    let me not be humiliated,
     nor let my enemies triumph over me.

Let none who look to you be put to shame; *
     let the treacherous be disappointed in their schemes.

Show me your ways, O God, *
     and teach me your paths.

Lead me in your truth and teach me, *
     for you are the God of my salvation;
     in you have I trusted all the day long.

Remember, O God, your compassion and love, *
     for they are from everlasting.

Remember not the sins of my youth and my transgressions; *
     remember me according to your love
and for the sake of your goodness, O God.

Gracious and upright are you; *
     therefore you teach sinners in your way.

You guide the humble in doing right *
     and teach your way to the lowly.

All your paths are love and faithfulness *
     to those who keep your covenant and your testimonies.
                                                                                      Saint Helena Psalter 

_________________

Here's a fun exercise with this marvelous psalm.  Rank the verses 1-9 in the order you would choose for yourself, from most significant to least.

___________________________________________________________ 

1 Peter 3:18-22

Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God. He was put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit, in which also he went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah, during the building of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were saved through water. And baptism, which this prefigured, now saves you -- not as a removal of dirt from the body, but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.

_________________

What does the resurrection of Christ mean for you?  

__________________________________________________________________

Mark 1:9-15

In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased."

And the Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. He was in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan; and he was with the wild beasts; and the angels waited on him.

Now after John was arrested, Jesus came to Galilee, proclaiming the good news of God, and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news."

_____________

How do you see a relationship between these three paragraphs -- baptism, temptation, ministry? 




_________________________________________________________________________

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this email list,
go to our Subscriptions page -- http://www.stpaulsfay.org/id137.html and follow the instructions.

On most weekdays I send a Morning Reflection  to this same list, offering a thought about the readings from the Daily Office.

Lowell

The Rev. Lowell Grisham
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Fayetteville, AR

The Mission of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
is to explore and celebrate
God's infinite grace, acceptance, and love.

Our Rule of Life:
We aspire to...
    worship weekly
    pray daily
    learn constantly
    serve joyfully 
    live generously. 

Check our website:  www.stpaulsfay.org

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for February 19

Scriptures and Reflection Questions
6th Sun. after the Epiphany, Year B
February 12th, 2011
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Collect

O God, who before the passion of your only-begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary
Year B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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: 
www.stpaulsfay.org/id272.html

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2 Kings 2:1-12

Psalm 50:1-6

2 Corinthians 4:3-6

Mark 9:2-9  

   

___________________________________________________

2 Kings 2:1-12

Now when the LORD was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, "Stay here; for the LORD has sent me as far as Bethel." But Elisha said, "As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they went down to Bethel. The company of prophets who were in Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, "Do you know that today the LORD will take your master away from you?" And he said, "Yes, I know; keep silent."

Elijah said to him, "Elisha, stay here; for the LORD has sent me to Jericho." But he said, "As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So they came to Jericho. The company of prophets who were at Jericho drew near to Elisha, and said to him, "Do you know that today the LORD will take your master away from you?" And he answered, "Yes, I know; be silent."

Then Elijah said to him, "Stay here; for the LORD has sent me to the Jordan." But he said, "As the LORD lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you." So the two of them went on. Fifty men of the company of prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, until the two of them crossed on dry ground.

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, "Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you." Elisha said, "Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit." He responded, "You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not." As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, "Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!" But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

_________________________________________________________

Elisha stays with Elijah until he receives the spiritual strength he desires.
How have you persevered in order to grow spiritually? 
What has happened to you in the process?    

_________________________________________________________

Psalm 50:1-6 

The God of gods has spoken; *

     God has called the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting.

Out of Zion, perfect in its beauty, *

     God is revealed in glory.

You, God, will come and will not keep silence; *

      before you there is a consuming flame,

      and round about you a raging storm.

You call the heavens and the earth from above *

     to witness the judgment of your people.

"Gather before me my loyal followers, *

     those who have made a covenant with me and sealed it with sacrifice."

Let the heavens declare the rightness of your cause, *

     for you alone are judge.

                                                                                 St. Helena Psalter

______________________________________________________________

When have you sensed God's presence in beauty or glory or in nature?      

_____________________________________________________________

2 Corinthians 4:3-6

Even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not proclaim ourselves; we proclaim Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

______________________________________________________________

Paul has seen light and knowledge in the face of Jesus, but that inspires him to live a life he happily characterizes "as a slave."  What does he mean?  How have you embraced both the divine vision and the mission of service?   

______________________________________________________________

Mark 9:2-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and led them up a high mountain apart, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus. Then Peter said to Jesus, "Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." He did not know what to say, for they were terrified. Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, "This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!" Suddenly when they looked around, they saw no one with them any more, but only Jesus.

As they were coming down the mountain, he ordered them to tell no one about what they had seen, until after the Son of Man had risen from the dead.

______________________________________________________________

Three disciples have a vision that gives them a glimpse of a deeper reality of Jesus than they have known before.
When have you had "transfiguration experiences"? -- when you sensed something deeper and truer than ordinary reality  

_______________________________________________________________

Scriptures and Reflection Questions for Feb. 12

Scriptures and Reflection Questions
6th Sun. after the Epiphany, Year B
February 12th, 2011
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Collect

O God, the strength of all who put their trust in you: Mercifully accept our prayers;
and because in our weakness we can do nothing good without you, give us the help
 of your grace, that in keeping your commandments we may please you both in will
 and deed; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the
Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary
Year B
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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:
www.stpaulsfay.org/id272.html

We use the Episcopal Revised Common Lectionary.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

2 Kings 5:1-14
Psalm 30
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Mark 1:40-45

___________________________________________________

2 Kings 5:1-14

Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor
with his master, because by him the LORD had given victory to Aram. The man, though
a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. Now the Arameans on one of their raids
had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman's
wife. She said to her mistress, "If only my lord were with the prophet who is in
 Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy." So Naaman went in and told his lord
 just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. And the king of Aram said,
 "Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel."


He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and
ten sets of garments. He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, "When
this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you
may cure him of his leprosy." When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his
clothes and said, "Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to
me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel
with me."

But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes,
he sent a message to the king, "Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to
me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel." So Naaman came with his
horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha's house. Elisha sent a
 messenger to him, saying, "Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall
be restored and you shall be clean." But Naaman became angry and went away, saying,
"I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name
of the LORD his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy!
Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of
 Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?" He turned and went away in a rage.
But his servants approached and said to him, "Father, if the prophet had commanded
you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all
he said to you was, `Wash, and be clean'?" So he went down and immersed himself
seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was
restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean.

_________________________________________________________

At a time when the Arameans dominated Israel as a subject state, a powerful general
comes to Elisha the prophet of Israel for healing from leprosy.
What issues of power and class are present in this story?

How might our powerful and dominating nation discover wisdom and power from nations
we might think as being backward or subject to us?_________________________________________________________

Psalm 30

I will exalt you, O God, because you have lifted me up *
     and have not let my enemies triumph over me.

O my God, I cried out to you, *
     and you restored me to health.

You brought me up, O God, from the dead; *
     you restored my life as I was going down to the grave.

May all your servants sing to you, O God, *
     and give thanks for the remembrance of your holiness.

For your wrath endures but the twinkling of an eye, *
     your favor for a lifetime.

Weeping may spend the night, *
     but joy comes in the morning.

While I felt secure, I said, "I shall never be disturbed. *
     You, O God, with your favor, made me as strong as the mountains."

Then you hid your face, *
     and I was filled with fear.

I cried to you, O God; *
     I pleaded with you, saying,

"What profit is there in my blood, if I go down to the Pit? *
     Will the dust praise you or declare your faithfulness?

Hear and have mercy upon me; *
     O God, be my helper."

You have turned my wailing into dancing; *
     you have put off my sack-cloth and clothed me with joy.

Therefore my heart sings to you without ceasing; *
     O my God, I will give you thanks for ever.

                                     St. Helena Psalter
______________________________________________________________

Does this psalm sound more like a plea for help or as thanksgiving for deliverance
already accomplished?  Or both?

How might this psalm be a prayer that you might express?
_____________________________________________________________


1 Corinthians 9:24-27

Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the
prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in
all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.
So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; but I punish
my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not
be disqualified.

______________________________________________________________

What disciplines help bring good order and health to your life?
What parts of your life might benefit from more discipline and practice?______________________________________________________________


Mark 1:40-45

A leper came to Jesus begging him, and kneeling he said to him, "If you choose,
you can make me clean." Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched
him, and said to him, "I do choose. Be made clean!" Immediately the leprosy left
 him, and he was made clean. After sternly warning him he sent him away at once,
 saying to him, "See that you say nothing to anyone; but go, show yourself to the
priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, as a testimony to them."
But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that
 Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and
 people came to him from every quarter.

_______________________________________________________________

Jesus violates the cleanliness mandates of the scripture and the tradition.  Out
 of compassion Jesus touches the unclean leper, and the leper is cleansed.  The
event causes such attention that Jesus must take new measures to protect his privacy.
Where do you see issues of cleanliness and tradition being in conflict with the
demands of compassion?  What are some of the costs that sometimes come with acts
 of compassion?
_______________________________________________________________
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Lowell

The Rev. Lowell Grisham
St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Fayetteville, AR

The Mission of St. Paul's Episcopal Church
is to explore and celebrate
God's infinite grace, acceptance, and love.

Our Rule of Life:
  We aspire to...
     worship weekly
     pray daily
     learn constantly
     serve joyfully
     live generously.

Check our website: www.stpaulsfay.org