Today's Scripture Readings
1 Kings 17:8-16 (NRSV)
Psalm 146 (BCP., p.803)
Hebrews 9:24-28 (NRSV)
Mark 12: 38-44 (NRSV)
Blog Reflection
If we are to get the whole picture of what is going on in our lectionary of readings today, we must have a momentary refresher course on the place of a widow in the times that both of these narratives were written about.
A widow was more or less understood to be on her own. Not only was she without her husband due to death, but she was also left to fend for herself. Women in the Bible were already second class citizens for the most part. They were portrayed as the "weaker" side of the human race. Before marriage a woman is considered the property of her father. After marriage she was the property of her husband. A woman who would have been married and now widowed, would have been property once owned, now abandoned. They were among the poorest socially and economically.
What we see happening in our readings today, is God reaching out the lowest of society and giving them hope and purpose within the Reign of God and their communities. Elijah asks the widow to feed him with what little she has and through her giving of what she had, she is given more than enough for her and her son. Her being a widow is not an opportunity for the Prophet to exploit or further demean her, but invites her to participate in the helping of another, and so receive from God all that she needs to sustain her life.
In the Gospel reading, we see almost the opposite. While those in the highest of political and religious stature seek public recognition for their outward piety, it is the poor widow who gives of all she has out of humility and thanksgiving to God. Not because she wishes to be noticed. The widow fulfills the first of the beatitudes in Matthew 5: 3. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God." The one who gives of themselves out of thanksgiving; while recognizing that God is the one who ultimately gives us all that we need, witnesses to a holy and unselfish love. A love that seeks union with God out of heartfelt desire and a total giving of self, forsaking prestige or power.
It is a dangerous thing to interpret this Gospel too literally. We are not being told here to empty all our bank accounts and dump all of our possessions, and if we don't, we are not living a life of commitment to God. Ee are being challenged to detach ourselves from all that keeps us from being thankful to God as the one who gives us all that we need All that we are fortunate enough to have is given to us by the Holy One, without whom, we would not even have the breath of air in our lungs. As God gives all things for our use and good stewardship, so God asks of us to give of ourselves for the sake of God and others around us, the very best of ourselves for the establishment of God's Reign in this world and the next.
As lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and queer people, who we are and those whom we love are not our sole property. Nor are they given to us for the purpose of wasting them, or letting them so rule our being that we do not use them out of love for God, neighbor and ourselves. While our sexuality has something to do with our identity and how we love others, it is not for the express purpose of doing what we please, with whomever we please. We still have to honor God, others and ourselves with a sense of self respect and a total willingness to give of ourselves for the good of others. Whether that be through our relationships with our spouses/partners, those in our own communities, work places and as best as we can, our own families. That healing and reconciliation can take place through our activism as we celebrate the many victories of this past week's election, by which marriage equality passed in three states, and a constitutional amendment in Minnesota was defeated. It can also happen as we try to reach across the isle even to those who continue to reject us and cause us much grief, to help us find a common group from which we can begin to heal our communities and families.
We will not be able to accomplish many of these things without time spent in prayer, seeking God's help. We will not be able to do miracles, per say, nor will we change people's minds over night. Nor does God expect us to. What we can do, is offer our whole selves to God out of thanksgiving for the tremendous gift we have, because of our sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression and from that point offer ourselves to the service of others who are different from ourselves. We can reach out to the poor and destitute, to share our time and resources to help bring about a better tomorrow for all of us. We can care about what is happening to not only LGBT people, but also immigrants, people of other races, economic conditions, health conditions, in other religions and so forth, to find some kind of path towards being a more inclusive society and Church.
Let us all pray for each other, that we may look for ways that we can give thanks to God with our whole heart and being. May we search for those opportunities to help bring about the Reign of God by looking to bring healing and reconciliation through our prayers, our concern and work on behalf of those who are marginalized and oppressed. God's Reign is one that welcomes everyone to give of themselves in some measure, and no one is rejected or excluded. This means us.
Amen.
Prayers
1 Kings 17:8-16 (NRSV)
The word of the LORD came to Elijah, saying, "Go now to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and live there; for I have commanded a widow there to feed you." So he set out and went to Zarephath. When he came to the gate of the town, a widow was there gathering sticks; he called to her and said, "Bring me a little water in a vessel, so that I may drink." As she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, "Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand." But she said, "As the LORD your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a jug; I am now gathering a couple of sticks, so that I may go home and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die." Elijah said to her, "Do not be afraid; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterwards make something for yourself and your son. For thus says the LORD the God of Israel: The jar of meal will not be emptied and the jug of oil will not fail until the day that the LORD sends rain on the earth." She went and did as Elijah said, so that she as well as he and her household ate for many days. The jar of meal was not emptied, neither did the jug of oil fail, according to the word of the LORD that he spoke by Elijah.
Psalm 146 (BCP., p.803)
Hebrews 9:24-28 (NRSV)
Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, a mere copy of the true one, but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year with blood that is not his own; for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself. And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgment, so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.
Mark 12: 38-44 (NRSV)
Teaching in the temple, Jesus said, "Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows' houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation."
He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, "Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on."
Blog Reflection
If we are to get the whole picture of what is going on in our lectionary of readings today, we must have a momentary refresher course on the place of a widow in the times that both of these narratives were written about.
A widow was more or less understood to be on her own. Not only was she without her husband due to death, but she was also left to fend for herself. Women in the Bible were already second class citizens for the most part. They were portrayed as the "weaker" side of the human race. Before marriage a woman is considered the property of her father. After marriage she was the property of her husband. A woman who would have been married and now widowed, would have been property once owned, now abandoned. They were among the poorest socially and economically.
What we see happening in our readings today, is God reaching out the lowest of society and giving them hope and purpose within the Reign of God and their communities. Elijah asks the widow to feed him with what little she has and through her giving of what she had, she is given more than enough for her and her son. Her being a widow is not an opportunity for the Prophet to exploit or further demean her, but invites her to participate in the helping of another, and so receive from God all that she needs to sustain her life.
In the Gospel reading, we see almost the opposite. While those in the highest of political and religious stature seek public recognition for their outward piety, it is the poor widow who gives of all she has out of humility and thanksgiving to God. Not because she wishes to be noticed. The widow fulfills the first of the beatitudes in Matthew 5: 3. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of God." The one who gives of themselves out of thanksgiving; while recognizing that God is the one who ultimately gives us all that we need, witnesses to a holy and unselfish love. A love that seeks union with God out of heartfelt desire and a total giving of self, forsaking prestige or power.
It is a dangerous thing to interpret this Gospel too literally. We are not being told here to empty all our bank accounts and dump all of our possessions, and if we don't, we are not living a life of commitment to God. Ee are being challenged to detach ourselves from all that keeps us from being thankful to God as the one who gives us all that we need All that we are fortunate enough to have is given to us by the Holy One, without whom, we would not even have the breath of air in our lungs. As God gives all things for our use and good stewardship, so God asks of us to give of ourselves for the sake of God and others around us, the very best of ourselves for the establishment of God's Reign in this world and the next.
As lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning and queer people, who we are and those whom we love are not our sole property. Nor are they given to us for the purpose of wasting them, or letting them so rule our being that we do not use them out of love for God, neighbor and ourselves. While our sexuality has something to do with our identity and how we love others, it is not for the express purpose of doing what we please, with whomever we please. We still have to honor God, others and ourselves with a sense of self respect and a total willingness to give of ourselves for the good of others. Whether that be through our relationships with our spouses/partners, those in our own communities, work places and as best as we can, our own families. That healing and reconciliation can take place through our activism as we celebrate the many victories of this past week's election, by which marriage equality passed in three states, and a constitutional amendment in Minnesota was defeated. It can also happen as we try to reach across the isle even to those who continue to reject us and cause us much grief, to help us find a common group from which we can begin to heal our communities and families.
We will not be able to accomplish many of these things without time spent in prayer, seeking God's help. We will not be able to do miracles, per say, nor will we change people's minds over night. Nor does God expect us to. What we can do, is offer our whole selves to God out of thanksgiving for the tremendous gift we have, because of our sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression and from that point offer ourselves to the service of others who are different from ourselves. We can reach out to the poor and destitute, to share our time and resources to help bring about a better tomorrow for all of us. We can care about what is happening to not only LGBT people, but also immigrants, people of other races, economic conditions, health conditions, in other religions and so forth, to find some kind of path towards being a more inclusive society and Church.
Let us all pray for each other, that we may look for ways that we can give thanks to God with our whole heart and being. May we search for those opportunities to help bring about the Reign of God by looking to bring healing and reconciliation through our prayers, our concern and work on behalf of those who are marginalized and oppressed. God's Reign is one that welcomes everyone to give of themselves in some measure, and no one is rejected or excluded. This means us.
Amen.
Prayers
O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might
destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God
and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may
purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again
with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his
eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. (Proper 27, Book of Common Prayer, p. 236).
Almighty and most merciful God, we remember before you
all poor and neglected persons whom it would be easy for us
to forget: the homeless and the destitute, the old and the sick,
and all who have none to care for them. Help us to heal those
who are broken in body or spirit, and to turn their sorrow
into joy. Grant this, Father, for the love of your Son, who for
our sake became poor, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the poor and neglected, Book of Common Prayer, p. 826).
Look with pity, O heavenly Father, upon the people in this
land who live with injustice, terror, disease, and death as
their constant companions. Have mercy upon us. Help us to
eliminate our cruelty to these our neighbors. Strengthen those
who spend their lives establishing equal protection of the law
and equal opportunities for all. And grant that every one of
us may enjoy a fair portion of the riches of this land; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. (Prayer for the Oppressed, Book of Common Prayer, p. 826).
No comments:
Post a Comment