As I read this passage, I felt extreme guilt. I haven't loved my neighbor, and my lord has commanded it. I ended up walking out of my study and down the street. All the while I was praying for God to show me how I can love my neighbor.
About 4 or 5 blocks from the church I ran into a young man who was just walking into his house. I know his family because they are members of the church I serve. Danny was released from prison within this past year. Shortly after that he was diagnosed with MS and his father's job was transferred to China. Danny has a drug problem, and this may be contributing to what I saw yesterday.
When I walked into his apartment, it was cold. The furnace was running, but 6 windows were open wide.
Danny said he had an appointment with a neurologist to try to get his medicine straightened out, but he was nervous about going. I asked why, but he didn't know.
I asked him if he had been in church anywhere lately. He said he went to a Christian Church nearby this past Sunday evening, but all he could hear was his own voice saying, "Demon... Demon."
I asked why. He said because he has sinned so much and done so many things that
God didn't want him to. He knew that was the problem. Most everything else he
said was incoherent.
His mother took him to the Dr. appointment. The Dr. checked him into Barnes
Hospital Psychiatric ward in St. Louis, (about 3 hours from here), with the
diagnosis of bipolar disorder with schizophrenic tendencies.
I can't help wondering how much of this is drug induced psychosis, and how much
of if could possibly be what Danny recognized himself.
I am not the kind of person who finds a demon under every rock, but I am aware
that the powers of darkness have the ability to delude and blind the minds of
people. And that their goal is to keep as many people as far from the love of
God as they can.
This experience was a real eye-opener to me as to how much love my neighbors
really need, and that was just the beginning of the day.
I plan to recommend to everyone in the congregation that they do what I did. Ask
God to show you how you can love your neighbor. He will, and you will be amazed
at how much they need it.
GC in IL
How does the readings from Deuteronomy and Matthew come together without making them fit?
Could one say, now that we are at the end of Moses life, that his life was filled with purpose and dedication to those that God gave him to lead out of Egypt. Could we say that even though Moses did not always like the people God gave him that he loved them to end, that he did not give up on them, he did not wash his hands and say I have had enough I am going to go off and eat, drink, and be merry!
Or do these readings somehow find their meaning in the term "prophet"?
The whole issue around the meaning of "messiah" muddys the waters - I don't know how that could be brought into the reflection.
You are thoughts are invited.
tom in ga
The Reading about Moses emphasizes who he was - "There has never been a prophet in Israel like Moses: the Lord spoke with him face to face". The second half of the Matthew reading is about who Jesus was: he was greater than David. Moses spoke with God face to face (bit of exaggeration there, but never mind!). Jesus sat at the right hand of God - assuming "the Lord said to my Lord" means "The Lord" = God, "my Lord" = Jesus. So is there a linkage between these passages which is somewhere along the lines of Jesus is greater than Moses (the greatest of the prophets) and David (the greatest of the kings)?
Maybe then we can link back to the first half of the Matthew reading by asking, what is the nature of this Jesus? - and maybe answering that he is the embodiment of love, which is the nature of God. And how is this Jesus revealed? - by love of God and of neighbour.
What do others think?
Peter B, Lancaster, England
A church on my last charge had printed on every bulletin, "The perfect church for imperfect people." As their pastor, I was more loved and taken care of than any place I have been yet. When my adult son (who lived with me) got in trouble, these people came to my house and prayed with me! They went to see him in jail, they sent him cards and they prayed for him all the time! When I left there, they gave me the most wonderful dinner, had my picture taken with each family, gave me a scrapbook of what I had done for them, each person wrote in it, a letter of tribute was written for me and on and on. They gave me a picture with the words to "Thank you, for giving to the Lord," on it. Did I deserve all this, no. But they did it for me because I was their neighbor and they loved me because Jesus told them to! Oh yes, they loved the Lord first, that is why they could love me so well!
I am telling you this because we pastors are most often doing the loving and the reaching out to our neighbors. This church loves the Lord enough to reach out "to the least of these". Sometimes the only thing we have as pastors to remember our Call. This church really loves Jesus and all God has given them. Oh yes, this church loves well in all ways, they visit, they are a tithing church, a praying church, they annoint and are annointed, a studying church, faithful to Sunday School and Worship, and anything else going on. Altar call? Always!They were my 10 o'clock service, but we switched them to the 11 o'clock because it was never over "on time" but on God's time. I could go on, they sing with gusto! They testify, even the young. When prayer requests are given, they have pencil and paper in hand to write them down (they taught me to do that, too). They say if they are asked to pray, they MUST do so. Again, even the youth write them down.
Do I miss them, YES! But they taught me well and I am more able to follow the New Commandment because they taught me so well! I hope this does not sound too corny. I have tears of love in my eyes as I write this.
I have not been back. They still call and check on me, they email me, but now they are fully committed to their new pastor and I am fully committed to my new charge. They don't call me to do weddings, although I am invited, or funerals, but they do let me know when someone passes on, they know I would want to know, and I sometimes go to the funeral, as I would a very dear friend. They do not depend on the Minister for their Christianity, they depend on Jesus! Shoot, I don't know if all this is making sense or not. It is like some sermons, it is rambling, but there is a point--it is just up to you to find it!! :-D
Does this sound like a perfect church? No, it is the perfect church for imperfect people (and imperfect pastors!). Toni in WV
I have a general question related to the lectionary. Is it correct that the developers of the lectionary had not intended the scriptures in this "Ordinary time" to relate to each other?
If the answer is yes, then why do many find it necessary to force a relationship that ends up being contrived at best?
I don't mean this as an accusation of those who do this. Instead, maybe it is a challenge to free yourself from the struggle to make them work together.
RevIsrael
When one thinks of the Promised Land, one big thought that comes to mind is a land where holy and just people live--a people who are loving and compassionate toward each other. When Moses dies, Joshua is appointed to continue to teach the people about what God requires of them to live in such a land. The Matthew text is another reminder to us, the inhabitants of the Promised Land, what is required of us. Revloril in Montana.
Good start to the week, This was pastor appreciation week. I was honored to be honored. To love is to love without condition. It can be love that forces another to accept responsibility for their own actions. We are called to love God, with every thing, (In Packer country that does mean God over the Packer, but if I were not United Methodist I would bet more prayers were said for Brett's knee on
Sunday than for world peace.) I do like the promised land connection. What I get from the history is God's
continuous love despite what humanity does. Just a bit of rambling...
Nancy-Wi
Pastor Buzz, GC in IL, and Pastor in Iowa,
I can relate to the depressed young man, my son (a college freshman) called and talked to his brother tonight... says he wants to quit school, he hates it. I just tried to call him, no answer, I too am concerned.
I too am concerned for our young people... for our world.
Prayers for peace, in the world and in my life,
Pastor in ND
What I do not want to do with this is to add another burden ... YOU MUST LOVE GOD MORE AND LOVE OTHER PEOPLE MORE. In the
Luke passage where Luke has Jesus summarizing the law, it all seems to hinge on our attitude to those whom we would normally call 'enemy'. That then reminds me of what it says about God ... it was while we were still hid enemies that Christ died for us.
If we wanted to focus on the love of neighbour, perhaps we should replace neighbour with enemy, and look first at the sacrifice that God made in Christ.
Rev in Bev UK
Rev Israel,
For me, at least, it is not an attempt to force a fit of pericopes. Rather, it is looking at all selections of the Love Letter God has left for us. When my husband and I were courting, his letters of love covered many topics. The first few paragraphs didn't necessarily "fit" the last few - but I read each one over and over and over. They fit together because they were all expressions of his love for me, his wish (will) for our lives together, his care for me.
God's Love Letter has at least a few more paragraphs than my husband's, all of which speak of even greater love, will, and care. When Deut. is read along with a Psalm, 1 Thess. and Matthew; I feel a heart desire to share all of that with those who have gathered to worship and grow. It is my response to God's word.
At times the connection is clear, other times it is much more subtle - with the only apparent connection being that the words were given to us by the same God. And so it is put out that way. This is what works for me, it may not work for someone else, but I have to answer what God tells me - which may be different from what God tells you or anyone else. I find nothing on this page that is "contrived" as you say. Instead I see a bunch of imperfect pastors trying to share what they find in this week's lessons and encourage one another along the way.
peace
katinPA
RevIsrael....My understanding is that the first and third reading tie together in the design of the lectionary. Many wanted only two readings but those who wanted 3 wished to expose the faithful to more scripture at the liturgy. The second readings are semi-continuous if you note where they leave off one week, they pick up the next. Hope that helps you with your question.....Pax!
At some point, we preachers are going to have to talk about the sniper .... what is this terror in our backyard ... which is killing our people? How might such a horror be reflected in these readings.
How do we comfort our people? I realize most of us don't live in the
mid-Atlantic states, so we are not directly affected, yet at the same time these
are our brothers and sisters being gunned down
revloril in montana
The sniper as our neighbor ....
I have always thought of our neighbor as the "one next to us" or "the one in need" How do we begin to place the sniper "along side us" At the moment he is a phantom, he doesn't exist, only his actions speak.
The terrorist can only become my neighbor once he/she comes out of hiding. For I cannot love that which is not there.
I don't think it is so much the question of this terrorist being our neighbor, as the fact that those who are suffering, those who are frightened, those who live daily with anxiety are ourselves. Where is God, and his love for his world, in the midst of daily murder? Where are we, the church, other than hiding behind our computers, when such fear begins to rise and terror stalks our streets? How do we provide comfort and give courage in times like this?
These are just a few thoughts on this day following another shooting in Maryland.
tom in ga
tom in ga,
I have always struggled with the question of who are our neighbors. Jesus commanded us to love our enemies...so, would he consider our neighbors as our enemies as well as fellow believers and the disenfranchised? Kierkegaard would ask, "How can we presuppose the love of people who hated us so much that they were willing to immolate themselves in order to deliver a blow against the U.S.?" Does Christian love require us to ask what causes this boundless rage in terrorists and snipers who are also God's creation? It seems that Kierkegaard would remind us--that yes, even after 911 and even during the the sniper attacks in the mid-Atlantic, that to love is to presuppose love. I'm not sure I can do that--but, what does Scripture teach us--isn't the love Jesus is calling us to a universal love?? I wonder...revloril in Montana
Quote from the Yahoo site about Sean Penn's letter ...
Those actions and "your administration's deconstruction of civil liberties all contradict the very core of the patriotism you claim," wrote Penn, who is married to actress Robin Wright Penn, and was formerly married to pop star Madonna.
so why was it necessary to mention who his spouses are/were? This kind of thing always irritates me. I'll leave it alone now ...
Sally in GA
