Intertwined - faith, community, ecology: Recent Episodes
Kevin Long
Intertwined is a faith community in the Harrisburg (PA) area. We explore Christian scripture through the lens of ecology.
Why does Matthew mention weeping and gnashing of teeth? What happens when we die? What gives you hope about the afterlife?
"What’s all the weeping and gnashing about?" is based on Matthew 13:41-50.
The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and reburied; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Works Referenced
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Duke, Rodney K. “The Idiom of ‘Weeping and Gnashing of Teeth’ in the Gospels: A Funerary Formula.” Perspectives in Religious Studies, Vol. 47, No. 3, Fall 2020:283-298.
Erdey, Zoltan L. and Kevin G. Smith. “The Function of ‘Weeping and Gnashing of Teeth’ in Matthew’s Gospel.” Acta Theologica, Vol. 32, No. 1, 2012: 26-45.
Newsom, Carol A. “The Book of Job.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume III. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Snodgrass, Klyne R. Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.
Sweet, Thomas A. Whose Love Knows No End: A Christian’s Life with the Psalms. Harrisburg, Pennsylvania: LionScape Publishing, 2026.
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Why did Jesus speak in code? What was special about those who could understand his parables? What’s in a seed?
"What's in a seed?" is based on Matthew 13:1-23 & Isaiah 6
Works Referenced
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Dawson, Julie, Kiki Hubbard, and Paulina Jenney. “Everyone Pays the Cost for Seed Patents.” In Lancaster Farming. June 27, 2026, A8.
Kim, Hyun Chul Paul. Reading Isaiah: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Macon, Georgia: Smyth & Helwys, 2010. Kindle edition.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Snodgrass, Klyne R. Stories with Intent: A Comprehensive Guide to the Parables of Jesus. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2008.
Sommer, Benjamin D. “Isaiah.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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Why didn't Moses enter the Promised Land? What crossing over won't we see? Should faith be a verb?
"A crossing over we won't see" is based on Deuteronomy 34.
Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the LORD showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain—that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees—as far as Zoar. The LORD said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants.’ I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.” Then Moses, the servant of the LORD, died there in the land of Moab, at the LORD’s command. He buried him in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Beth-peor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired, and his vigor had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.
Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him, and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the LORD had commanded Moses.
Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the LORD knew face to face. He was unequaled for all the signs and wonders that the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel.
Works Referenced
Bass, Diana Butler. Christianity After Religion. New York: HarperCollins, 2012.
Brueggemann, Walter. Deuteronomy. (Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 2001.
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Clements, Ronald E. “Deuteronomy.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Levinson, Bernard M. “Deuteronomy.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Thompson, Deanna A. Deuteronomy (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2014.
Tickle, Phyllis. The Great Emergence. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Publishing Group, 2008.
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Did John the Baptist ever express doubt? Do you ever struggle with doubt? Does the desire for comfort ever keep you from taking a more fulfilling path?
"Soft robes aren't always good" is based on Matthew 11:7-19
As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? What, then, did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. What, then, did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. This is the one about whom it is written,
‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you,
who will prepare your way before you.’
“Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist, yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and violent people take it by force. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John came, and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. Let anyone with ears listen!
“But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another,
‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance;
we wailed, and you did not mourn.’
“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
Works Referenced
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
McGoldrick, Gillian. "These Pennsylvanians walked 63 miles to get lawmakers to stop taking gifts — and unlimited campaign contributions." The Philadelphia Inquirer. May 6, 2026. https://www.inquirer.com/politics/pennsylvania/march-on-harrisburg-protest-gift-ban-20260506.html
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
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What change does God make in our hearts? What does it mean to hear the voice of Jesus? What helps us hear his voice better?
"That time you hoped God was using a metaphor" is based on Deuteronomy 10:12-22 and John 10:1-10
“So now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God require of you? Only to fear the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the LORD and his decrees that I am commanding you today, for your own well-being. Although heaven and the heaven of heavens belong to the LORD your God, the earth with all that is in it, yet the LORD set his heart in love on your ancestors alone and chose you, their descendants after them, out of all the peoples, as it is today. Circumcise, then, the foreskin of your heart, and do not be stubborn any longer. For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who is not partial and takes no bribe, who executes justice for the orphan and the widow, and who loves the strangers, providing them food and clothing. You shall also love the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. You shall fear the LORD your God; him you shall serve; to him you shall hold fast; and by his name you shall swear. He is your praise; he is your God who has done for you these great and awesome things that your own eyes have seen. Your ancestors went down to Egypt seventy persons, and now the LORD your God has made you as numerous as the stars in heaven.
Works Referenced
Blair, Thom, general editor. Published in association with The German Bible Society and Logos Bible Software. The Hebrew-English Interlinear ESV Old Testament: Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2014.
Brueggemann, Walter. Deuteronomy. (Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 2001.
Clements, Ronald E. “Deuteronomy.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Cole, John. “Trump, Shapiro, McCormick applaud decision keeping two Pa. coal plants running.” The Bradford Era. April 23, 2026. https://www.bradfordera.com/2026/04/23/trump-shapiro-mccormick-applaud-decision-keeping-two-pa-coal-plants-running/
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020. Kindle edition.
Levinson, Bernard M. “Deuteronomy.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Meye Thompson, Marianne. John: A Commentary (The New Testament Library). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015.
Thompson, Deanna A. Deuteronomy (Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2014.
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What were the instructions Jesus gave his disciples when he sent them to share the news of the kingdom of heaven? What did he warn them about? Are his instructions to us the same?
"Why the disciples never checked their bags" is based on Matthew 10:5-25
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Do not take a road leading to gentiles, and do not enter a Samaritan town, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’, Cure the sick; raise the dead; cleanse those with a skin disease; cast out demons. You received without payment; give without payment. Take no gold, or silver, or copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, or two tunics, or sandals, or a staff, for laborers deserve their food. Whatever town or village you enter, find out who in it is worthy, and stay there until you leave. As you enter the house, greet it. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it, but if it is not worthy, let your peace return to you. If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet as you leave that house or town. Truly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah on the day of judgment than for that town.
“I am sending you out like sheep into the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. Beware of them, for they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues, and you will be dragged before governors and kings because of me, as a testimony to them and the gentiles. When they hand you over, do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you at that time, for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Sibling will betray sibling to death and a father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all because of my name. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in this town, flee to the next, for truly I tell you, you will not have finished going through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
“A disciple is not above the teacher nor a slave above the master; it is enough for the disciple to be like the teacher and the slave like the master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household!
Works Referenced
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Burge, Ryan. Graphs about Religion. https://www.graphsaboutreligion.com
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Douthat, Ross, host and Andrea Betanzos, producer. “No, Young Men Are Not Returning to Church.” Interesting Times podcast. January 22, 2026. https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/22/opinion/interesting-times-ryan-burge.html
Frost, Michael and Alan Hirsch. The Shaping of Things to Come: Innovation and Ministry for the 21st Century. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Books, 2013.
Poglitsch, Tyler. "Young men driving church attendance shift." Fox 43. April 6, 2026. https://www.fox43.com/article/news/local/young-men-church-attendance-shift-pa
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
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In which Bible story does an animal talk? How do you maintain your principles in the face of powerful influence? When should a people be cursed?
"How do you decide who to curse?" is based on Numbers 23:1-12
Then Balaam said to Balak, “Build me seven altars here, and prepare seven bulls and seven rams for me.” Balak did as Balaam had said and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. Then Balaam said to Balak, “Stay here beside your burnt offerings while I go aside. Perhaps the LORD will come to meet me. Whatever he shows me I will tell you.” And he went to a bare height.
Then God met Balaam, and Balaam said to him, “I have arranged the seven altars and have offered a bull and a ram on each altar.” The LORD put a word in Balaam’s mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and this is what you must say.” So he returned to Balak, who was standing beside his burnt offerings with all the officials of Moab. Then Balaam uttered his oracle, saying,
“Balak has brought me from Aram,
the king of Moab from the eastern mountains:
‘Come, curse Jacob for me.
Come, denounce Israel!’
How can I curse whom God has not cursed?
How can I denounce those whom the LORD has not denounced?
For from the top of the crags I see him;
from the hills I behold him.
Here is a people living alone
and not reckoning itself among the nations!
Who can count the dust of Jacob
or number the dust cloud of Israel?
Let me die the death of the upright,
and let my end be like his!”
Then Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? I brought you to curse my enemies, but now you have done nothing but bless them.” He answered, “Must I not take care to say what the LORD puts into my mouth?"
Works Referenced
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Aziz, Omer. “When the demon takes over.” The Christian Century Vol. 143, No. 4 (April 2026): 66-71.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “Numbers.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume III. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “Numbers.” In The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, 5th ed., edited by Michael D. Coogan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
Fox, Nili S. “Numbers.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Jacobson, Karl N. “Numbers.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Jenkins, Jack. “At Doug Wilson’s DC Church Plant, ‘Worship Is Warfare.’” Religion News Service. July 15, 2025. https://www.christianitytoday.com/2025/07/christ-church-dc-doug-wilson-pete-hegseth/
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When did Jesus cast out demons? Do demons make us do bad things? Why would you want demons to be real?
"I want demons to be real" is based on Matthew 8:28-34
When he came to the other side, to the region of the Gadarenes, two men possessed by demons came out of the tombs and met him. They were so fierce that no one could pass that way. Suddenly they shouted, “What have you to do with us, Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” Now a large herd of swine was feeding at some distance from them. The demons begged him, “If you cast us out, send us into the herd of swine.” And he said to them, “Go!” So they came out and entered the swine, and suddenly, the whole herd stampeded down the steep bank into the sea and drowned in the water. The swineherds ran off, and, going into the town, they told the whole story about what had happened to the men possessed by demons. Then the whole town came out to meet Jesus, and when they saw him they begged him to leave their region.
Works Referenced
Allam, Hannah. "The U.S. Built a Blueprint to Avoid Civilian War Casualties. Trump Officials Scrapped It." ProPublica. March 10, 2026. https://www.propublica.org/article/trump-defense-department-iran-hegseth-civilian-casualties
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Britannica. “How many people died in the Vietnam War?” Accessed March 11, 2026. https://www.britannica.com/question/How-many-people-died-in-the-Vietnam-War
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Cremer, Benjamin. "There is no 'battle of Armageddon' in the book of Revelation." Into the gray. March 5, 2026. https://benjamin-cremer.kit.com/posts/there-is-no-battle-of-armageddon-in-the-book-of-revelation
Gonzalez, Justo L. Luke: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle Edition.
The Guardian. "Civilian deaths in Iran pass 700 amid fear of bombs and regime clampdown." March 2, 2026. https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2026/mar/02/civilian-deaths-in-iran-pass-200-amid-fear-of-bombs-and-regime-clampdown
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs, Brown University. “Costs of War.” September 1, 2021. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/figures/2021/WarDeathToll.
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What happened when Moses sent spies into Canaan? What might our promised land look like? What keeps us from reaching it?
"This is why we can't have nice things" is based on Numbers 14:13-24
But Moses said to the LORD, “Then the Egyptians will hear of it, for in your might you brought up this people from among them, and they will tell the inhabitants of this land. They have heard that you, O LORD, are in the midst of this people, for you, O LORD, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them and you go in front of them, in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. Now if you kill this people as one, then the nations who have heard about you will say, ‘It is because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land he swore to give them that he has slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ And now, therefore, let the power of the LORD be great in the way that you promised when you spoke, saying,
‘The LORD is slow to anger
and abounding in steadfast love,
forgiving iniquity and transgression,
but by no means clearing the guilty,
visiting the iniquity of the parents
upon the children
to the third and the fourth generation.’
“Forgive the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of your steadfast love, just as you have pardoned this people, from Egypt even until now.”
Then the LORD said, “I do forgive, just as you have asked; nevertheless, as I live and as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD, none of the people who have seen my glory and the signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness and yet have tested me these ten times and have not obeyed my voice shall see the land that I swore to give to their ancestors; none of those who despised me shall see it. But my servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit and has followed me wholeheartedly, I will bring into the land into which he went, and his descendants shall possess it.
Works Referenced
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “The Book of Numbers.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Fox, Nili S. “Numbers.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Green, Miranda. “Inside the Largest Deregulatory Action in US History.” The Understory. February 18, 2026. https://atmos.earth/political-landscapes/inside-the-largest-deregulatory-action-in-us-history
Middle East Eye. “US and Israeli attack on Iran: At least 85 girls killed in strike on school.” February 28, 2026. https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/least-24-girls-killed-us-strike-elementary-school-southern-iran
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Who did Jesus heal? How do we decide who to help? When do we need to reach out?
"Save the whales or save the seeds?" is based on Matthew 8:1-17
When Jesus had come down from the mountain, great crowds followed him, and there was a man with a skin disease who came to him and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I am willing. Be made clean!” Immediately his skin disease was cleansed. Then Jesus said to him, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.”
When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, appealing to him and saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, in terrible distress.” And he said to him, “I will come and cure him.” The centurion answered, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only speak the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my slave, ‘Do this,’ and the slave does it.” When Jesus heard him, he was amazed and said to those who followed him, “Truly I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I tell you, many will come from east and west and will take their places at the banquet with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, while the heirs of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” And Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; let it be done for you according to your faith.” And the servant was healed in that hour.
When Jesus entered Peter’s house, he saw his mother-in-law lying in bed with a fever; he touched her hand, and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. That evening they brought to him many who were possessed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and cured all who were sick. This was to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah, “He took our infirmities and bore our diseases.”
Works Referenced
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Layne, Tawnya. “Healing & Restoration.” Daily Ripple. February 12, 2026. https://dailyripple.substack.com/p/healing-and-restoration
McConaghy, Charlotte. Wild Dark Shore. New York City: Flatiron Books, 2025. Kindle edition
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
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What does it mean to be humbled? What's good about being humble? Why is humility sometimes elusive?
"Being humbled or being humble?" is based on Numbers 12
While they were at Hazeroth, Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married (for he had indeed married a Cushite woman), and they said, “Has the LORD spoken only through Moses? Has he not spoken through us also?” And the LORD heard it. Now the man Moses was very humble, more so than anyone else on the face of the earth. Suddenly the LORD said to Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, “Come out, you three, to the tent of meeting.” So the three of them came out. Then the LORD came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent and called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward. And he said, “Hear my words:
When there are prophets among you,
I the LORD make myself known to them in visions;
I speak to them in dreams.
Not so with my servant Moses;
he is faithful in all my house.
With him I speak face to face—clearly, not in riddles,
and he beholds the form of the LORD.
“Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and he departed.
When the cloud went away from over the tent, Miriam’s skin had become diseased, as white as snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam and saw that she was diseased. Then Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, do not punish us for a sin that we have so foolishly committed. Do not let her be like one stillborn, whose flesh is half consumed when it comes out of its mother’s womb.” And Moses cried to the LORD, saying, “O God, please heal her.” But the LORD said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, would she not bear her shame for seven days? Let her be shut out of the camp for seven days, and after that she may be brought in again.” So Miriam was shut out of the camp for seven days, and the people did not set out on the march until Miriam had been brought in again. After that the people set out from Hazeroth and camped in the wilderness of Paran.
Works Referenced
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Dor, Yonina. “From the Well in Midian to the Ba‘al of Peor.” In Leviticus and Numbers (Texts @ Contexts), edited by Athalya Brenner and Nicole Wilkinson Duran. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Fortress Press, 2013.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “The Book of Numbers.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Fox, Nili S. “Numbers.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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Did Jesus sometimes talk like a comedian? What happens when we judge? What is the "Golden Rule?"
"Did Jesus sound like Jerry Seinfeld?" is based on Matthew 7:1-14
Works Referenced
Atkin, Emily. "Air pollution denial is now EPA policy." Heated. January 13, 2026. https://heated.world/p/air-pollution-denial-is-now-epa-policy
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Castle, Cerise. "Off-Duty ICE Agent Killed a Black Man in Los Angeles. Why No Arrest?" Word in Black. January 9, 2026. https://wordinblack.com/2026/01/ice-agent-killed-black-man-los-angeles-why-no-arrest/
“Conservatives Say Renée Good Was Brainwashed By Bible Into Loving Thy Neighbor.” The Onion. January 15, 2026. https://theonion.com/conservatives-say-renee-good-was-brainwashed-by-bible-into-loving-thy-neighbor/
Dorgan, Michael. "Renee Good was shot 4 times, including in the head, fire report shows." Fox News. January 16, 2026. https://www.foxnews.com/us/renee-good-shot-four-times-including-head-fire-report-shows
Kaur, Harmeet. “Word of the Week: Who gets called an ‘agitator’?” CNN. January 14, 2026. https://www.cnn.com/2026/01/14/us/word-of-week-agitator-cec
Olmsted, Edith. “ICE Attacks Car Full of Kids, Leaving 6-Month-Old Baby Unconscious.” The New Republic. January 16, 2026. https://newrepublic.com/post/205376/ice-attack-car-kids-six-month-old-unconscious
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
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Is our society fair? What would make it fair? What is a jubilee year?
"Will 2026 offer you a reset?" is based on Leviticus 25:1-12
The LORD spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When you enter the land that I am giving you, the land shall observe a Sabbath for the LORD. Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in their yield, but in the seventh year there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest for the land, a Sabbath for the LORD: you shall not sow your field or prune your vineyard. You shall not reap the aftergrowth of your harvest or gather the grapes of your unpruned vine: it shall be a year of complete rest for the land. You may eat what the land yields during its Sabbath—you, your male and female slaves, your hired and your bound laborers who live with you, for your livestock also, and for the wild animals in your land all its yield shall be for food.
“You shall count off seven weeks of years, seven times seven years, so that the period of seven weeks of years gives forty-nine years. Then you shall have the trumpet sounded loud; on the tenth day of the seventh month—on the Day of Atonement—you shall have the trumpet sounded throughout all your land. And you shall hallow the fiftieth year, and you shall proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a Jubilee for you: you shall return, every one of you, to your property and every one of you to your family. That fiftieth year shall be a Jubilee for you: you shall not sow or reap the aftergrowth or harvest the unpruned vines. For it is a Jubilee; it shall be holy to you: you shall eat only what the field itself produces.
Works Referenced
Gustine, Adam L. and José Humphreys. Ecosystems of Jubilee: economic ethics for the neighborhood. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan, 2023.
Kaiser, Walter C., Jr. “The Book of Leviticus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Schwartz, Baruch J. “Leviticus.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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Why talk about the teachings of Jesus at Christmastime? How do his teachings create stories? What stories are Jesus-followers writing in our community?
"No manger? No problem." is based on Matthew 6:14-24
“For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
“And whenever you fast, do not look somber, like the hypocrites, for they mark their faces to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
“The eye is the lamp of the body. So if your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light, but if your eye is unhealthy, your whole body will be full of darkness. If, then, the light in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!
“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.
Works Referenced
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Cooper, Elissa. "Better than Santa: what do we know about the real St. Nicholas?" Christianity Today, Vol. 56, No. 11 (December 2012): 69.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Smedes, Louis B. Quoted on BrainyQuote.com. Accessed December 19, 2025. https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/lewis-b-smedes-quotes
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. (n.d). 3126 mamonás: Mammon, wealth, riches. In Bible Hub.com. Retrieved December 19, 2025, from https://biblehub.com/hebrew/3126.htm
Zoba, Wendy Murray. "Reclaiming Santa." Christianity Today, Vol 44, No. 14 (December 4, 2000): 42-46.
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Is everything in the Bible equally relevant? Should we want to be holy? What does that mean?
"O Holy..." is based on Leviticus 19:1-19
The LORD spoke to Moses, saying:
“Speak to all the congregation of the Israelites and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy. You shall each revere your mother and father, and you shall keep my Sabbaths: I am the LORD your God. Do not turn to idols or make cast images for yourselves: I am the LORD your God.
“When you offer a sacrifice of well-being to the LORD, offer it in such a way that it is acceptable on your behalf. It shall be eaten on the same day you offer it or on the next day, and anything left over until the third day shall be consumed in fire. If any of it is eaten on the third day, it is an abomination; it will not be acceptable. All who eat it shall be subject to punishment, because they have profaned what is holy to the LORD, and any such person shall be cut off from the people.
“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the LORD your God.
“You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; and you shall not lie to one another. And you shall not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God: I am the LORD.
“You shall not defraud your neighbor; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a laborer until morning. You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind; you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.
“You shall not render an unjust judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbor. You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand idly by when the blood of your neighbor is at stake: I am the LORD.
“You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.
“You shall keep my statutes. You shall not let your animals breed with a different kind; you shall not sow your field with two kinds of seed; nor shall you put on a garment made of two different materials.
Works Referenced
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. Decision Magazine. November 2025. https://billygraham.org/decision-magazine/issues/november-2025
Kaiser, Walter C., Jr. “The Book of Leviticus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Schwartz, Baruch J. “Leviticus.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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What makes you trust someone? How should you react to someone abusing their authority? Is nonviolence more powerful than violence?
"That time Jesus said not to swear" is based on Matthew 5:1-16
Works Referenced
Beelman, Maud. “U.S. contractors reap the windfalls of post-war reconstruction.” International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. May 7, 2012. https://www.icij.org/investigations/windfalls-war/us-contractors-reap-windfalls-post-war-reconstruction-0/
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Comstock, Lori. “Why are flags at half-staff today? Here's why flags remain lowered until Nov. 20 in PA, DE.” Delaware Online. November 18, 2025. https://www.delawareonline.com/story/news/2025/11/18/why-are-flags-at-half-mast-today-american-flags-half-staff-dick-cheney-funeral-shapiro-meyer-trump/87334166007/
Constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Article I Section 27. May 18, 1972. https://www.legis.state.pa.us/WU01/LI/LI/CT/HTM/00/00.001..HTM
“Dick Cheney.” Wikipedia. Accessed November 20, 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Cheney
Goodman, Amy. “‘The Dark Side’: Dick Cheney’s Legacy from Iraq Invasion to U.S. Torture Program.” Democracy Now! November 4, 2025. https://www.democracynow.org/2025/11/4/dick_cheney
Levine, Amy-Jill and Mark Zvi Brettler, editors. The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. Kindle Edition.
March on Harrisburg. “Declaration of Democracy.” November 17, 2025.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle edition.
Saturday Night Live,season 12, episode 9. “The Honest Man.” Aired January 24, 1987 on NBC. (YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEtrT3E4vb8&t=20s)
Smith, CK. “Faith under attack: More clergy arrested at ICE facility protest.” Salon. November 16, 2025. https://www.salon.com/2025/11/16/faith-under-attack-more-clergy-arrested-at-ice-facility-protest/
Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs, Brown University. “Costs of War.” September 1, 2021. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/figures/2021/WarDeathToll.
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What makes something sacred? What is a worship space for? How do you encounter the divine?
"Creating a sacred space together" is based on Exodus 35:30-36:7
Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah; he has filled him with a divine spirit, with ability, intelligence, and knowledge, and with every kind of skill, to devise artistic designs, to work in gold, silver, and bronze, in cutting stones for setting, and in carving wood, in every kind of artistic craft. And he has inspired him to teach, both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. He has filled them with skill to do every kind of work done by an artisan or by a designer or by an embroiderer in blue, purple, and crimson yarns and in fine linen or by a weaver—by any sort of skilled worker or designer.
“Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD has given skill and understanding to know how to do any work in the construction of the sanctuary shall work in accordance with all that the LORD has commanded.”
Moses then called Bezalel and Oholiab and every skilled person to whom the LORD had given skill, everyone whose heart was stirred to come to do the work, and they received from Moses all the offerings that the Israelites had brought for the work of constructing the sanctuary. They still kept bringing him freewill offerings every morning, so that all the skilled workers who were doing every sort of task on the sanctuary came, each from the task being performed, and said to Moses, “The people are bringing much more than enough for doing the work that the LORD has commanded us to do.” So Moses gave command, and word was proclaimed throughout the camp: “No man or woman is to make anything else as an offering for the sanctuary.” So the people were restrained from bringing, for what they had already brought was more than enough to do all the work.
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “Exodus.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
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What was the Sermon on the Mount? Are the Beatitudes commandments? Who was Jesus speaking to when he shared them?
"Jesus climbed a mountain, and you won't believe what happened next" is based on Matthew 5:1-16
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he began to speak and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
“Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
“Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
“Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
“You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how can its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything but is thrown out and trampled under foot.
“You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. People do not light a lamp and put it under the bushel basket; rather, they put it on the lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.
Works Referenced
Black, David (@rev.davidblack). Instagram post. October 24, 2025. https://www.instagram.com/p/DQNDw3zCd1f/
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle Edition.
Guess, Josina. “The Chicago Pastor Who Confronted ICE in a Viral Photo.” Sojourners. October 23, 2025. https://sojo.net/articles/interview/chicago-pastor-who-confronted-ice-viral-photo
Jones, Terry. Monty Python’s Life of Brian. Handmade Films, 1979.
Kanno-Youngs, Zolan, Tim Balk, and Erica L. Green. "Bishop Asks Trump to ‘Have Mercy’ on Immigrants and Gay Children." The New York Times. January 21, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/21/us/politics/trump-bishop.html
Levine, Amy-Jill and Mark Zvi Brettler, editors. The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. Kindle Edition.
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle Edition.
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How many commandments are there in the Bible? Are the Ten Commandments more important than the others? What did Jesus say about the Ten Commandments?
"More than ten commandments" is based on Exodus 20:3-11.
You shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above or that is on the earth beneath or that is in the water under the earth. You shall not bow down to them or serve them, for I the LORD your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents to the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.
“You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name.
“Remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. Six days you shall labor and do all your work. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in your towns. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and consecrated it.
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
Hecht, Mendy. “The 613 Commandments (Mitzvot).” Chabad.org. Accessed October 9, 2025. https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/756399/jewish/The-613-Commandments-Mitzvot.htm
Tigay, Jeffrey H. “Exodus.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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What did John the Baptist mean when he called people to repent? What is the rapture? What is the chaff that will be burned in "unquenchable fire?" Should we repent? If so, how?
"What does repentance look like?" is based on Matthew 3:1-12
In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said,
“The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
‘Prepare the way of the Lord;
make his paths straight.’ ”
Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey. Then Jerusalem and all Judea and all the region around the Jordan were going out to him, and they were baptized by him in the River Jordan, confessing their sins.
But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Therefore, bear fruit worthy of repentance, and do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor,’ for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
“I baptize you with water for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is more powerful than I, and I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, and he will clear his threshing floor and will gather his wheat into the granary, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.”
References
Barber, William J, II, and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. “The Danger of Retribution in God’s Name. Our Moral Moment w/ Bishop William Barber & Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove. September 24, 2025. https://ourmoralmoment.substack.com/p/the-danger-of-retribution-in-gods
Boring, M. Eugene. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle Edition.
Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: Third Edition. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018. Kindle edition.
Greyman-Kennard, Danielle. “Why is the Rapture trending right now? - explainer.” The Jerusalem Post. September 24, 2025. https://www.jpost.com/christianworld/article-868475
Powell, Mark Allen. Matthew (Interpretation Bible Commentary). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2025. Kindle Edition.
Schlimm, Matthew. “Noah gets drunk. Then he curses Ham.” Christian Century Vol. 142, No. 9 (September 2025: 72-76.
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. “3340. metanoeó.” In Bible Hub.com. Accessed September 23, 2025. https://biblehub.com/greek/3340.htm
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How did the Israelites escape slavery in Egypt? What can we learn from violent scripture passages? When is it time to walk away from a harmful system?
"Taking a step toward dry ground" is based on Exodus 14:19-31
The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them, and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night.
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and turned the sea into dry land, and the waters were divided. The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued and went into the sea after them, all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and chariot drivers. At the morning watch the LORD, in the pillar of fire and cloud, looked down on the Egyptian army and threw the Egyptian army into a panic. He clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. The Egyptians said, “Let us flee from the Israelites, for the LORD is fighting for them against Egypt.”
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots and chariot drivers.” So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at dawn the sea returned to its normal depth. As the Egyptians fled before it, the LORD tossed the Egyptians into the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the chariot drivers, the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not one of them remained. But the Israelites walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.
Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great work that the LORD did against the Egyptians. So the people feared the LORD and believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses.
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
Dozeman, Thomas B. “Exodus.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Tigay, Jeffrey H. “Exodus.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Yoo, Philip. “Historical Context: The Red Sea?” In The SBL Study Bible. New York City: HarperOne, 2023.
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Why was there a riot in Ephesus when Paul was there? What systems does the gospel threaten? Why is it hard to break out of societal and personal patterns?
"Imagining something else" - based on Acts 19:21-41
Now after these things had been accomplished, Paul resolved in the Spirit to go through Macedonia and Achaia and then to go on to Jerusalem. He said, “After I have gone there, I must also see Rome.” So he sent two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he himself stayed for some time longer in Asia.
About that time no little disturbance broke out concerning the Way. A man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought no little business to the artisans. These he gathered together, with the workers of the same trade, and said, “Men, you know that we get our wealth from this business. You also see and hear that not only in Ephesus but in almost the whole of Asia this Paul has persuaded and drawn away a considerable number of people by saying that gods made with hands are not gods. And there is danger not only that this trade of ours may come into disrepute but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be scorned, and she will be deprived of her majesty that brought all Asia and the world to worship her.”
When they heard this, they were enraged and shouted, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” The city was filled with the confusion, and people rushed together to the theater, dragging with them Gaius and Aristarchus, Macedonians who were Paul’s travel companions. Paul wished to go into the crowd, but the disciples would not let him; even some officials of the province of Asia who were friendly to him sent him a message urging him not to venture into the theater. Meanwhile, some were shouting one thing, some another, for the assembly was in confusion, and most of them did not know why they had come together. Some of the crowd gave instructions to Alexander, whom the Jews had pushed forward. And Alexander motioned for silence and tried to make a defense before the people. But when they recognized that he was a Jew, for about two hours all of them shouted in unison, “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!” But when the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, “Citizens of Ephesus, who is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is the temple keeper of the great Artemis and of the statue that fell from heaven? Since these things cannot be denied, you ought to be quiet and do nothing rash. You have brought these men here who are neither temple robbers nor blasphemers of our goddess. If therefore Demetrius and the artisans with him have a complaint against anyone, the courts are open, and there are proconsuls; let them bring charges there against one another. If there is anything further you want to know, it must be settled in the regular assembly. For we are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause that we can give to justify this commotion.” When he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.
Works Referenced
Jennings, Willie James. Acts. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017.
Matthews, Christopher R. “The Acts of the Apostles.” In The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, 5th ed., edited by Michael D. Coogan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
“School Shootings This Year: How Many and Wher
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What is the sabbath for? What does it look like when we recover the posture we were created to occupy? What breaches are we called to repair?
"Repairing and preparing" is based on Luke 13:10-17
Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, “Woman, you are set free from your ailment.” When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, “There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured and not on the Sabbath day.” But the Lord answered him and said, “You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger and lead it to water? And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?” When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame, and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things being done by him.
Works Referenced
Gonzalez, Justo L. Luke: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle Edition.
Jeffrey, David Lyle. Luke (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Publishing Group, 2012. Kindle Edition.
Kim, Hyun Chul Paul. Reading Isaiah: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Macon, Georgia: Smyth & Helwys, 2010. Kindle edition.
Muller, Wayne. Sabbath: Finding Rest, Renewal, and Delight in Our Busy Lives. New York: Bantam Books, 1999. Kindle Edition
Perrin, Nicholas. Luke: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries Book 3). Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2022. Kindle Edition.
Repairers of the Breach. “About Us.” Repairers of the Breach web site. Accessed August 14, 2025. https://breachrepairers.org/about-us/our-mission/
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Did Aaron's staff turn into a serpent or a sea monster? Why did God turn the Nile River to blood? What happens when powerful people claim God's creation as a resource to be exploited?
"Sages, sorcerers, and sea monsters" is based on Exodus 7:8-25
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
The Carbon Almanac. “A Lottery For A Visa Due To Climate Change.” The Daily Difference. July 31, 2025. https://thecarbonalmanac.org/a-lottery-for-a-visa-due-to-climate-change
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
McLaren, Brian. Life After Doom: Wisdom and Courage for a World Falling Apart. New York: St. Martin’s Essentials, 2024.
Orlando, Alex. “What Animals Are Going Extinct?” Discover. March 30, 2023. https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/what-animals-are-going-extinct
Pearce, Fred. “Global Extinction Rates: Why Do Estimates Vary So Wildly?” Yale Environment 360. August 17, 2015. https://e360.yale.edu/features/global_extinction_rates_why_do_estimates_vary_so_wildly
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Why did Paul cast a spirit from a fortune teller? Why were he and Silas thrown in prison? What is the connection between the Pennsylvania Energy and Innovation Summit and the flooding in Texas? When is it time to speak up?
"Now is the exact right time to talk about this" is based on Acts 16:16-40
Works Referenced
Atkin, Emily. “He helped Microsoft build AI to help the climate. Then Microsoft sold it to Big Oil.” Heated. July 17, 2025. https://heated.world/p/he-helped-microsoft-build-ai-to-help
Cann, Harrison. “Report: Pennsylvania ranked fourth nationally in greenhouse gas emissions in 2020.” Pennsylvania Capital-Star. May 10, 2o23. https://penncapital-star.com/energy-environment/report-pennsylvania-ranked-fourth-nationally-in-greenhouse-gas-emissions-in-2020/
Jennings, Willie James. Acts. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017.
Owens, Dennis and Hayden Sherry. “Sen. McCormick, President Trump announce $90 billion investments in Pennsylvania energy.” ABC 27. July 15, 2025. https://www.abc27.com/news/top-stories/sen-mccormick-president-trump-announce-90-billion-investments-in-pennsylvania-energy/
Sanders, Emily. “Abbott says megafloods are ‘just part of nature.’ The fossil fuel industry disagrees.” Heated. July 10, 2025. https://heated.world/p/abbott-says-megafloods-are-just-part
Wall, Robert W. “The Acts of the Apostles.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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Why did God choose Moses to lead the Israelites from slavery? Was Moses a solid choice? What religion was Moses before the burning bush? By what name did the LORD choose to be called?
"An unlikely choice" is based on Exodus 3:1-15
Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness and came to Mount Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. Then Moses said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight and see why the bush is not burned up.” When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” Then he said, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.” He said further, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.
Then the LORD said, “I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. Now go, I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt.” But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?” He said, “I will be with you, and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall serve God on this mountain.”
But Moses said to God, “If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” He said further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’ ” God also said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you’:
This is my name forever,
and this my title for all generations.
Works Referenced
Brettler, Marc; Newsom, Carol; Perkins, Pheme. “The Nile Delta and the Sinai Peninsula,” in The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, 5th ed., edited by Michael D. Coogan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
Fricks, Elle Grover. “Exodus Chapter 3 Part I: Backside of the Desert.” Text in Us podcast. March 31, 2023.
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How was James the disciple killed? Why was Peter arrested by Herod? How should we decide where we place our loyalty?
"Be wary of who you serve" is based on Acts 12:1-19
About that time King Herod laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the church. He had James, the brother of John, killed with the sword. After he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. (This was during the Festival of Unleavened Bread.) When he had seized him, he put him in prison and handed him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. While Peter was kept in prison, the church prayed fervently to God for him.
The very night before Herod was going to bring him out, Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while guards in front of the door were keeping watch over the prison. Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared, and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his wrists. The angel said to him, “Fasten your belt and put on your sandals.” He did so. Then he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” Peter went out and followed him; he did not realize that what was happening with the angel’s help was real; he thought he was seeing a vision. After they had passed the first and the second guard, they came before the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them of its own accord, and they went outside and walked along a lane, when suddenly the angel left him. Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I am sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from the hands of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”
As soon as he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose other name was Mark, where many had gathered and were praying. When he knocked at the outer gate, a maid named Rhoda came to answer. On recognizing Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that, instead of opening the gate, she ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the gate. They said to her, “You are out of your mind!” But she insisted that it was so. They said, “It is his angel.” Meanwhile Peter continued knocking, and when they opened the gate they saw him and were amazed. He motioned to them with his hand to be silent and described for them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he added, “Tell this to James and to the brothers and sisters.” Then he left and went to another place.
When morning came, there was no small commotion among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. When Herod had searched for him and could not find him, he examined the guards and ordered them to be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.
Works Referenced
Bosman, Julie. “Minnesota, Known for Political Civility, Reels After Shooting.” The New York Times. June 14, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/14/us/politics/minnesota-politics-lawmakers-shooting.html
Jennings, Willie James. Acts. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017.
Matthews, Christopher R. “The Acts of the Apostles.” in The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, 5th ed., ed. Michael D. Coogan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
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How did the pharaoh "other" the Israelites? Who stopped the Hebrew babies from being killed? When is it okay to lie?
"An exodus from violence" is based on Exodus 1:8-22.
Now a new king arose over Egypt who did not know Joseph. He said to his people, “Look, the Israelite people are more numerous and more powerful than we. Come, let us deal shrewdly with them, or they will increase and, in the event of war, join our enemies and fight against us and escape from the land.” Therefore they set taskmasters over them to oppress them with forced labor. They built supply cities, Pithom and Rameses, for Pharaoh. But the more they were oppressed, the more they multiplied and spread, so that the Egyptians came to dread the Israelites. The Egyptians subjected the Israelites to hard servitude and made their lives bitter with hard servitude in mortar and bricks and in every kind of field labor. They were ruthless in all the tasks that they imposed on them.
The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, “When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live. So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this and allowed the boys to live?” The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” So God dealt well with the midwives, and the people multiplied and became very strong. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. Then Pharaoh commanded all his people, “Every son that is born to the Hebrews you shall throw into the Nile, but you shall let every daughter live.”
Works Referenced
Al Jazeera. "Israel’s war on Gaza has killed 50,000 Palestinians since October 2023." March 23, 2025. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2025/3/23/israeli-offensive-in-gaza-has-killed-50000-palestinians-since-october-2023
Brown University Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs. “Costs of War.” Accessed June 5, 2025. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/costs/human/civilians
Dozeman, Thomas B. Exodus. (Eerdmans Critical Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.
FBI. “9/11 Investigation.” Accessed June 5, 2025. https://www.fbi.gov/history/famous-cases/911-investigation
Keene, Louis. “Capital Jewish Museum shooting suspect killed 2 ‘for Gaza.’ His victims were peace advocates.” Forward. May 22, 2025. https://forward.com/fast-forward/722425/israeli-embassy-shooting-yaron-lischinsky-sarah-milgrim/
Little, Becky. "How the Nazis Were Inspired by Jim Crow." History. Accessed June 5, 2025. https://www.history.com/articles/how-the-nazis-were-inspired-by-jim-crow
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What were the economics of early Christians? Is anyone smited in the New Testament? What does it mean to hold things in common?
"Ideal Economics" is based on Acts 4:32-5:11
Works Referenced
Armas, Kat. "JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others." National Catholic Reporter. February 1, 2025. https://www.ncronline.org/opinion/guest-voices/jd-vance-wrong-jesus-doesnt-ask-us-rank-our-love-others
Jenkins, Jack. "Shane Claiborne, Four Other Faith Activists Arrested While Protesting GOP Budget Bill." The Roys Report. May 6, 2025. https://julieroys.com/shane-claiborne-four-other-faith-activists-arrested-protesting-gop-budget-bill/
Jennings, Willie James. Acts. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017.
Peterson, Eugene H. Traveling Light: Reflections on the Free Life. Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 1982.
Walaskay, Paul W. Acts: Westminster Bible Companion. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998.
Wilson-Hartgrove, Jonathan. “The Prayer That God Hears.” Our Moral Movement. May 4, 2025. https://ourmoralmoment.substack.com/p/the-prayer-that-god-hears
Yilek, Caitlin and and Kaia Hubbard. “House passes Trump's ‘big, beautiful bill’ in razor-thin vote after dramatic all-night session.” CBS News. May 22, 2025. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/house-vote-trump-tax-bill/
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Who was Koheleth? Why did Ecclesiastes almost not make it into the Bible? How does Ecclesiastes address life's big questions?
"Koheleth and kairos" is based on Ecclesiastes 3:9-22
What gain have the workers from their toil? I have seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover, he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. I know that there is nothing better for them than to be happy and enjoy themselves as long as they live; moreover, it is God’s gift that all should eat and drink and take pleasure in all their toil. I know that whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it nor anything taken from it; God has done this so that all should stand in awe before him. That which is already has been, that which is to be already is, and God seeks out what has gone by.
Moreover, I saw under the sun that, in the place of justice, wickedness was there, and in the place of righteousness, wickedness was there as well. I said to myself, “God will judge the righteous and the wicked, for he has appointed a time for every matter and for every work.” I said to myself with regard to humans that God is testing them to show that they are but animals. For the fate of humans and the fate of animals is the same; as one dies, so dies the other. They all have the same breath, and humans have no advantage over the animals, for all is vanity. All go to one place, all are from the dust, and all turn to dust again. Who knows whether the human spirit goes upward and the spirit of animals goes downward to the earth? So I saw that there is nothing better than that all should enjoy their work, for that is their lot; who can bring them to see what will be after them?
Works Referenced
Douglas, Kelly Brown. “What does it mean to be a Christian in these times?” Christian Century Vol. 142, No. 2 (February 2025): 29.
The Kairos Center for Religions, Rights, and Social Justice. “About Us.” Accessed May 8, 2025. https://kairoscenter.org/about-us/
Machinist, Peter. “Ecclesiastes.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Pauw, Amy Plantinga. Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Towner, W. Sibley. “Ecclesiastes.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume III. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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When did Jesus make breakfast for his disciples? Does John's gospel have two endings? What was Jesus' last miracle? What is your call?
"Called to abundance" is based on John 21:1-14.
After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing.
Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off.
When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead.
Works Referenced
Cardenal, Ernesto. The Gospel in Solentiname, Volume 4. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 1979.
Lyons, George and T. Scott Daniels. John 13-21: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020. Kindle edition.
O’Day, Gail. “John.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Woods, Candace. “To Vision and Dream.” Daily Ripple. April 18, 2025. https://dailyripple.substack.com/p/to-vision-and-dream
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What is a proverb? Does wisdom change with time? Where does wisdom come from? Is wisdom more important than intelligence?
"A case for natural wisdom" is based on Proverbs 1
Wisdom cries out in the street;
in the squares she raises her voice.
At the busiest corner she cries out;
at the entrance of the city gates she speaks:
“How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple?
How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing
and fools hate knowledge?
Give heed to my reproof;
I will pour out my thoughts to you;
I will make my words known to you.
Because I have called and you refused,
have stretched out my hand and no one heeded,
and because you have ignored all my counsel
and would have none of my reproof,
I also will laugh at your calamity;
I will mock when panic strikes you,
when panic strikes you like a storm
and your calamity comes like a whirlwind,
when distress and anguish come upon you.
Then they will call upon me, but I will not answer;
they will seek me diligently but will not find me.
Because they hated knowledge
and did not choose the fear of the LORD,
would have none of my counsel
and despised all my reproof,
therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way
and be sated with their own devices.
For waywardness kills the simple,
and the complacency of fools destroys them;
but those who listen to me will be secure
and will live at ease without dread of disaster.”
Works Referenced
Atkin, Emily. “Predicting climate chaos, Morgan Stanley touts air conditioning profit potential.” Heated. April 10, 2025. https://heated.world/p/predicting-climate-chaos-morgan-stanley
Clifford, Richard J. “Introduction to Wisdom Literature.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume III. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Dubner, Stephen J. “Ten Myths About the U.S. Tax System.” [Interview with Jessica Riedl.] Freakonomics podcast. March 14, 2025. https://overcast.fm/+AAWaLHnJsy4
Fox, Michael V. “Proverbs.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Guo, Jeff, Latif Nasser, Pat Walters, Soren Wheeler, Alex Goldmark, and Jess Jiang. “PM x Radiolab: Can the economy grow forever?” Planet Money/Radiolab podcast. March 28, 2025. https://www.npr.org/2025/03/28/1241388988/radiolab-economic-growth-resources-gdp
Oduyoye, Amba Oduyoye. Beads and Strands: Reflections of an African Woman in Christianity in Africa. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 2004.
Pauw, Amy Plantinga. Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle edition.
Perplexity.ai, response to "What are the main themes of the Book of Proverbs," Perplexity.ai, April 10, 2025.
Zi, Lao. Dao De Jing. (Classical Pocket Book Series of China). Translated by Lin Yutang.
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Who is our Advocate? When should we go outside? What were Jesus' final words to his disciples? Did he ever stay inside?
"But sometimes we stay inside" is a reflection on John 14:15-31
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever. 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.
“I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you. In a little while the world will no longer see me, but you will see me; because I live, you also will live. On that day you will know that I am in my Father, and you in me, and I in you. 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.” Judas (not Iscariot) said to him, “Lord, how is it that you will reveal yourself to us and not to the world?” Jesus answered him, “Those who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words, and the word that you hear is not mine but is from the Father who sent me.
“I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than I. And now I have told you this before it occurs, so that when it does occur you may believe. I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me, but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us be on our way.
Works Referenced
Culpepper, R. Alan. The Gospel and Letters of John (Interpreting Biblical Texts). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1998.
Lyons, George and T. Scott Daniels. John 13-21: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020. Kindle edition.
O’Day, Gail. “John.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Propaganda. Crooked. Humble Beast Studios, 2017.
Propaganda. Hood Politics with Prop. Cool Zone Media. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hood-politics-with-prop/id1493858530
Propaganda. “You Wasn’t Outside.” Hood Politics with Prop. Cool Zone Media. June 15, 2021. https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-hood-politics-with-prop-81527703/episode/you-wasnt-outside-83752559/
Reinhartz, Adele. “John.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
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Who was Jacob? What happens when two master tricksters face off? Are relationships more important than being right? Where are you unwilling to compromise?
"White sticks, speckled sheep, and a pile of rocks" is a reflection based on Genesis 30:25-43.
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. Genesis. (Interpretation: a Bible commentary for teaching and preaching). Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1982.
De La Torre, Miguel A. Genesis. BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011. Kindle edition.
Fretheim, Terence E. “Genesis.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Levenson, Jon D. “Genesis.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Sadler, Jr., Rodney S. “Genesis.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
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What did Jesus write on the ground when some men were determined to stone a woman to death? What truth did Jesus want the people to know? What is the Enneagram? How does a Jesus follower stay committed in the face of discouragement?
"Why I rearrange the dishwasher (and when I shouldn’t)" is a reflection based on John 8.
John 8:31-38
Then Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, ‘You will be made free’?”
Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are descendants of Abraham, yet you look for an opportunity to kill me because there is no place in you for my word. I declare what I have seen in the Father’s presence; as for you, you should do what you have heard from the Father.”
References
Cardenal, Ernesto. The Gospel in Solentiname, Volume 3. Maryknoll, New York: Orbis Books, 1979.
Cron, Ian Morgan and Suzanne Stabile. The Road Back to You: An Enneagram Journey to Self-Discovery. Downers Grove, Illinois: IVP Books, 2016.
Douglas, Kelly Brown. “What does it mean to be a Christian in these times?” Christian Century Vol. 142, No. 2 (February 2025): 29.
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020. Kindle edition.
Miller, Susan. “John’s Gospel.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
Reinhartz, Adele. “John.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Vigil, José Ignacio López and María López Vigil. Just Jesus, Volume II: The Message of a Better World. New York City: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 2000.
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How old is the concept of hospitality? When should we offer hospitality and to whom? Why were Sodom and Gomorrah destroyed? Who was Abraham?
"Father Abraham had seven sons . . . and a lot of issues" is based on Genesis 18:17-21.
The LORD said, “Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do, seeing that Abraham shall become a great and mighty nation, and all the nations of the earth shall be blessed in him? No, for I have chosen him, that he may charge his children and his household after him to keep the way of the LORD by doing righteousness and justice, so that the LORD may bring about for Abraham what he has promised him.” Then the LORD said, “How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me, and if not, I will know.”
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. Genesis. (Interpretation: a Bible commentary for teaching and preaching). Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1982.
Carey, Greg. BI100: Biblical Interpretation (class lecture, Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, PA, October 27, 2018).
De La Torre, Miguel A. Genesis. BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011. Kindle edition.
Mennonite Church USA v. U.S. Department of Homeland Security Complaint. Case 1:25-cv-00403, filed February 11, 2025.
Quote Investigator. “Quote Origin: Be Kind; Everyone You Meet is Fighting a Hard Battle.” June 29, 2010. https://quoteinvestigator.com/2010/06/29/be-kind/
Uitti, Jacob. "Who Wrote the Traditional Campfire Song 'Father Abraham'" American Songwriter. March 13, 2023. https://americansongwriter.com/who-wrote-the-traditional-campfire-song-father-abraham/
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What is mercy? Why would someone have a problem with it? What happens when you invite Jesus to join you for a conversation?
"The problem with mercy" is a reflection on John 3:19-21.
And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.
Works Referenced
BibleHub. “1656.eleos.” Accessed February 1, 2025. https://biblehub.com/greek/1656.htm
Budde, Mariann Edgar. “Homily: A Service of Prayer for the Nation.” Washington National Cathedral. January 25, 2025. https://cathedral.org/sermons/homily-a-service-of-prayer-for-the-nation/
Culpepper, R. Alan. The Gospel and Letters of John (Interpreting Biblical Texts). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1998.
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020. Kindle edition.
Kanno-Youngs, Zolan, Tim Balk, and Erica L. Green. "Bishop Asks Trump to ‘Have Mercy’ on Immigrants and Gay Children." The New York Times. January 21, 2025. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/01/21/us/politics/trump-bishop.html
Powell, Mark Allan. Introducing the New Testament: A Historical, Literary, and Theological Survey. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2018. Kindle edition.
Silva, Pedro. “The Way Shower.” Daily Ripple, January 31, 2025. https://dailyripple.substack.com/p/the-way-shower
U.S. House of Representatives, 119th Congress. “House Resolution 59.” https://trackbill.com/bill/us-congress-house-resolution-59-expressing-the-sense-of-the-house-of-representatives-that-the-sermon-given-by-the-right-reverend-mariann-edgar-budde-at-the-national-prayer-service-on-january-21st-2025-at-the-national-cathedral-was-a-display-of-political-activism-and-condemning-its-distorted-message/2629579/
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Which creation account came first? What is your creation story? What is our purpose in being here? How should we relate to God, to one another, and to the rest of creation?
"What if Genesis 2 came first?" is based on Genesis 2:4b-9.
In the day that the LORD God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant of the field was yet in the earth and no vegetation of the field had yet sprung up—for the LORD God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no one to till the ground, but a stream would rise from the earth and water the whole face of the ground— then the LORD God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good for food, the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil.
Works Referenced
Brueggemann, Walter. Genesis. (Interpretation: a Bible commentary for teaching and preaching). Atlanta, Georgia: John Knox Press, 1982.
De La Torre, Miguel A. Genesis. BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011. Kindle edition.
Hiebert, Theodore. “Genesis.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
Robinson, Kim Stanley. The Ministry for the Future. United States: Orbit, 2020.
U.S. Energy Information Administration. “Federal Financial Interventions and Subsidies in Energy in Fiscal Years 2016-2022.” August 1, 2023. https://www.eia.gov/analysis/requests/subsidy/
USAFacts Team. “Federal farm subsidies: What the data says.” USAFACTS. October 5, 2023. https://usafacts.org/articles/federal-farm-subsidies-what-data-says/
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How is Jesus the Word? How long has he been around? How much God could fit into the human body of Jesus? How much of God’s knowledge could Jesus hold in his human brain?
"How much God could Jesus hold?" is based on John 1:1-18.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overtake it.
There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.
He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John testified to him and cried out, “This was he of whom I said, ‘He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ ”) From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son, himself God, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.
Works Referenced
Culpepper, R. Alan. The Gospel and Letters of John (Interpreting Biblical Texts). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1998.
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020, Kindle edition.
Levine, Amy-Jill and Mark Zvi Brettler, editors. The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. Kindle Edition.
Miller, Susan. “John’s Gospel.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
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Are we in a period of challenges? What makes you feel safe? Was the prophet Micah talking about Jesus? Do you see reason for hope, peace, joy, and love this season?
"Peace, security, and shalom" is based on Micah 5:2-5a.
But you, O Bethlehem of Ephrathah,
who are one of the little clans of Judah,
from you shall come forth for me
one who is to rule in Israel,
whose origin is from of old,
from ancient days.
Therefore he shall give them up until the time
when she who is in labor has brought forth;
then the rest of his kindred shall return
to the people of Israel.
And he shall stand and feed his flock in the strength of the LORD,
in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God.
And they shall live secure, for now he shall be great
to the ends of the earth,
and he shall be the one of peace.
Works Referenced
Ben Zvi, Ehud. “Micah.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Coomber, Matthew, J.M.. “Micah.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Kessler, Rainer. “Micah.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Minor Prophets, edited by Julia M. O’Brien. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2021.
Simundson, Daniel J. “Micah.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume V. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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Who among us sit in darkness? Against what backdrop do we live our lives? Why does cryptocurrency matter? How do we find our way to peace in this holiday season?
"Peace against a dark backdrop" is based on Luke 1:68-79
“Blessed be the Lord God of Israel,
for he has looked favorably on his people and redeemed them.
He has raised up a mighty savior for us
in the house of his child David,
as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors
and has remembered his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
in his presence all our days.
And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his ways,
to give his people knowledge of salvation
by the forgiveness of their sins.
Because of the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way of peace.”
Works Referenced
CoinDesk. Bitcoin performance. Accessed December 6, 2024. https://www.coindesk.com/price/bitcoin
Evans, Rachel Held. Inspired: Slaying Giants, Walking on Water, and Loving the Bible Again. Nashville, Tennessee: Nelson Books, 2018.
Gonzalez, Justo L. Luke: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle Edition.
Hinsdale, Jeremy. “Cryptocurrency’s Dirty Secret: Energy Consumption.” State of the Planet, Columbia Climate School. May 4, 2022. https://news.climate.columbia.edu/2022/05/04/cryptocurrency-energy/
Reed, Jon. “How Much Power Does Crypto Use? The Government Wants to Know.” CNET. February 1, 2024. https://www.cnet.com/home/energy-and-utilities/how-much-power-does-crypto-use-the-government-wants-to-know/
Tannehill, Robert C. Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: Luke. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996.
U.S Energy Information Administration. “Tracking electricity consumption from U.S. cryptocurrency mining operations.” Accessed December 6, 2024. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=61364
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How do people in crisis find a way forward? What is an apocalypse? In what direction is the world headed? Does justice win in the end?
"Envisioning a path forward . . . for all times" is based on Daniel 7 & Revelation 1
Works Referenced
Carey, Greg. “Revelation.” NT100: Introduction to the New Testament (class lecture, Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, PA, February 7, 2020).
Carey, Greg. Ultimate Things: An Introduction to Jewish and Christian Apocalyptic Literature. St. Louis, Missouri: Chalice Press, 2005.
Corey, Benjamin L. “Could American Evangelicals Spot the Antichrist? Here Are the Biblical Predictions.” Formerly Fundie. Accessed November 23, 2024. https://www.benjaminlcorey.com/could-american-evangelicals-spot-the-antichrist-heres-the-biblical-predictions/
González, Catherine Gunsalus and Justo L. González. Revelation. (Westminster Bible Companion). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1997.
Gowan, Donald E. Daniel. (Abingdon Old Testament Commentaries). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 2001.
Rowland, Christopher C. “Revelation.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume X. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Smith-Christopher, Daniel L. “Daniel.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VI. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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What did Jesus say about the widow who gave her last two coins? What did Jesus say about the scribes? Where should we focus our efforts toward positive change? How are people feeling about the presidential election?
"Giving all you have . . . to live on" is based on Mark 12:38-44.
As he taught, he 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.”
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Juel, Donald H. A Master of Surprise: Mark Interpreted. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Fortress Press, 1994.
Placher, William C. Mark. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle edition.
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What or who do you think of when you hear the word "priest"? Who were the high priests? Do we have a high priest? How should the role of pastor evolve today?
"Leveling (up) the priesthood" is based on Hebrews 7:23-28.
Furthermore, the former priests were many in number because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, but he holds his priesthood permanently because he continues forever. Consequently, he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
For it was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. Unlike the other high priests, he has no need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins and then for those of the people; this he did once for all when he offered himself. For the law appoints as high priests humans, who are subject to weakness, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made perfect forever.
Works Referenced
Craddock, Fred B. “Hebrews.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume X. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Lamp, Jeffrey S. Hebrews: An Earth Bible Commentary: A City That Cannot Be Shaken. London: t&t clark, 2020. Kindle edition.
Long, D. Stephen. Hebrews. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2011. Kindle edition.
Pfitzner, Victor C. Hebrews. (Abingdon New Testament Commentaries). Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1997.
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"The thing that’s just within your reach" is based on Amos 5:6-7, 10-15 & Mark 10:17-31
As he was setting out on a journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone. You know the commandments: ‘You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness. You shall not defraud. Honor your father and mother.’ ” He said to him, “Teacher, I have kept all these since my youth.” Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he was shocked and went away grieving, for he had many possessions.
Then Jesus looked around and said to his disciples, “How hard it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of God!” And the disciples were perplexed at these words. But Jesus said to them again, “Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.” They were greatly astounded and said to one another, “Then who can be saved?” Jesus looked at them and said, “For mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.”
Peter began to say to him, “Look, we have left everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields for my sake and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in this age—houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with persecutions—and in the age to come eternal life. But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Jeremias, Jörg. The Book of Amos. Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 1998.
National Homelessness Law Center. “Johnson v. Grants Pass.” Accessed October 10, 2024. https://johnsonvgrantspass.com.
Placher, William C. Mark. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle edition.
R., M. Daniel Carroll. “Amos.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
“Subprime mortgage crisis.” Wikipedia. Accessed October 8, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subprime_mortgage_crisis.
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When is it okay to kill a lot of people? How do the stories we tell ourselves sometimes lead to violence? How can we work within broken systems to promote survival?
"The stories that help us kill" is based on Esther 7:1-10; 9:20-22.
References
Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: Third Edition (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018), Kindle edition.
Death Penalty Information Center. “Facts about the Death Penalty.” Accessed September 25, 2024. https://dpic-cdn.org/production/documents/pdf/FactSheet.pdf.
Fentress-Williams, Judy. “Esther.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Murphy, Sean. “There are 5 executions set over a week’s span in the US. That’s the most in decades.” AP News. Accessed September 24, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/executions-oklahoma-alabama-missouri-texas-south-carolina-d77a31bea7a4839424afc8889c7d8755.
Rahman, Khaleda. “US Reaches Executions Milestone Amid Declining Support for Death Penalty.” Newsweek. Accessed September 26, 2024. https://www.newsweek.com/us-reaches-execution-milestone-death-penalty-1959124
Von Quednow, Cindy and Holly Yan. “Missouri executes Marcellus Williams despite prosecutors and the victim’s family asking that he be spared.” CNN. Accessed September 24, 2024. https://www.cnn.com/2024/09/24/us/marcellus-williams-scheduled-execution-date/index.html.
Wallace-Wells, David. The Uninhabitable Earth: Life After Warming. New York: Tim Duggan Books, 2019.
Watson Institute for International & Public Affairs, Brown University. “Costs of War.” Accessed September 25, 2024. https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/figures/2021/WarDeathToll.
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Was Jesus a manly man? Does that matter? Is there a temptation to make Jesus who we want him to be? What does it mean to be ashamed of Jesus?
"Ashamed of Jesus?" is based on Mark 8:27-38
Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi, and on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” And they answered him, “John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.” He asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Messiah.”, And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
Then he began to teach them 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 wish to come after me, 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.”
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Conway, Colleen M. “Was Jesus a Manly Man? On Reading Masculinity in the New Testament.” Word & World Vol. 36, No. 1 (Winter 2016): 15-23.
Partridge, Dale. “The Masculinity of Christ in the Face of Effeminate Christianity.” Relearn. March 21, 2022. Accessed September 13, 2024. https://relearn.org/the-masculinity-of-christ-in-the-face-of-effeminate-christianity/
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Where does generosity come from? Is there enough for everyone? Did James barely make it into the Bible? What do we know that Paul didn't?
"What James gets right and Paul gets wrong" is based on James 1:17-27.
Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave birth to us by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
You must understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger, for human anger does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
But be doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing.
If any think they are religious and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
Works Referenced
Johnson, Luke Timothy. “The Letter of James.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume X. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
“Martin Luther.” Wikipedia. Accessed August 29, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Martin_Luther
Moore-Keish, Martha L. James. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2019.
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What gift did King Solomon have? Was he a perfect king? What is wisdom? Which Bible verses are most important?
"Oh, by the way..." is based on 1 Kings 2 & 3
Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem. So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established.
Solomon loved the LORD, walking in the statutes of his father David; only, he sacrificed and offered incense at the high places. The king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the principal high place; Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. At Gibeon the LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God said, “Ask what I should give you.” 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. 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. 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. 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?”
It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 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, 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. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor all your life; no other king shall compare with you. If you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your life.”
References
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Legends of Avantris and Glenn Carreau. “How to Roll Stats: Best Ways to Generate Ability Scores in D&D 5e.” WikiHow, accessed August 17, 2024. https://www.wikihow.com/Roll-for-Stats-5e.
Seow, Choon-Leong. “The First and Second Books of Kings.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume II. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Zevit, Ziony. “1 Kings.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
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What is the bread of heaven? Do we need to chase what truly sustains us? How can we be misled into adopting a way of living that harms our neighbors and ourselves?
"Chasing sustenance" is based on Exodus 16 & John 6
Works Referenced
“1993 World Trade Center bombing.” Wikipedia. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1993_World_Trade_Center_bombing
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Brueggemann, Walter. “Exodus.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume I. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020, Kindle edition.
March on Harrisburg (@endpacorruption). Instagram post. July 31, 2024. https://www.instagram.com/p/C-GtlbGJoWu/.
“Waco siege.” Wikipedia. Accessed July 30, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waco_siege
Yahoo Finance. “Veolia Environnement SA (VEOEY) Financials.” Accessed August 1, 2024. https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/VEOEY/financials/.
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When is political violence okay? Should we only look at the scripture passages we like? What does justice, kindness, and humility look like in our culture? How should a person of faith act during a contentious election season?
"Picking cherries" is based on Micah 6:6-16
Works Referenced
Ben Zvi, Ehud. “Micah.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Bridgeman, Valeria. “Womanist Approaches to the Prophets.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Prophets, edited by Carolyn J. Sharp. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
Castillo, Amaris. “Trump shooting fuels reflection for journalists who covered Gabby Giffords shooting.” Poynter. Accessed July 19, 2024. https://www.poynter.org/ethics-trust/2024/gabby-giffords-trump-shooting-reflection/
Davidson, Steed Vernyl. “Postcolonial Readings of the Prophets.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Prophets, edited by Carolyn J. Sharp. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
Davis, Stacy. “War Violence in Hosea, Amos, and Nahum.” In The Cambridge Companion to The Hebrew Bible and Ethics, edited by C.L. Crouch. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2021.
“January 6 United States Capitol attack.” Wikipedia. Accessed July 19, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_6_United_States_Capitol_attack
Kessler, Rainer. “Micah.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Minor Prophets, edited by Julia M. O’Brien. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2021.
O’Brien, Julia M. “The Prophets and Social Justice: Amos and Micah.” Class lecture, Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, Pennsylvania. July 8-12, 2024. https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/07/18/corey-comperatore-victim-trump-assassination-attempt-vigil/
Paquette, Danielle. “Hundreds gather to honor Corey Comperatore, killed in Trump rally shooting.” The Washington Post, July 18, 2024.
Simundson, Daniel J. “Micah.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume V. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
“Unite the Right rally.” Wikipedia. Accessed July 19, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unite_the_Right_rally
Yee, Gale A. “Materialist Analysis of the Prophets.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Prophets, edited by Carolyn J. Sharp. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2016.
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What was Paul's thorn? How did Paul find strength in weakness? Are there super apostles today? Is Christian Nationalism Christian?
"Thorny reminders" is based on 2 Corinthians 12:2-10.
I know a person in Christ who fourteen years ago was caught up to the third heaven—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows. And I know that such a person—whether in the body or out of the body I do not know; God knows— was caught up into paradise and heard things that are not to be told, that no mortal is permitted to repeat. On behalf of such a one I will boast, but on my own behalf I will not boast, except of my weaknesses. But if I wish to boast, I will not be a fool, for I will be speaking the truth. But I refrain from it, so that no one may think better of me than what is seen in me or heard from me, even considering the exceptional character of the revelations. Therefore, to keep me from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities for the sake of Christ, for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.
Works Referenced
Brown, Alexandra R. “The Second Letter of Paul to the Colossians.” In The New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with the Apocrypha, 5th ed., edited by Michael D. Coogan. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2018.
Faithful America. “A Preacher’s Toolkit for Confronting Christian Nationalism.” Accessed July 6, 2024. https://act.faithfulamerica.org/signup/preachers-toolkit-christian-nationalism/.
Fredrickson, David E. “2 Corinthians.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Moss, Candida R. “Christly Possession and Weekend Bodies: Reconsideration of the Function of Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh (2 Cor. 12:7-10.” Journal of Religion, Disability & Health 16 (2012): 319-333.
Powery, Luke A. “Between Text and Sermon: 2 Corinthians 12:2-10.” Interpretation: A Journal of Bible and Theology Vol. 77, No. 2 (2023): 184-186.
Sampley, J. Paul. “The Second Letter to the Corinthians.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Stone, Matt and Trey Parker, writers. South Park. Season 2, episode 4, “You Will Respect My Authoritah!” Aired May 20, 1998.
Thomas, Johnn Christopher. “‘An Angel from Satan’: Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh (2 Corinthians 12.7-10).” Journal of Pentecostal Theology 9 (1996): 39-52.
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Why does God permit pain and suffering? Why do bad things happen to good people? What happened to Job? Does the book of Job tell us why evil exists?
"Words fall short" is a reflection based on Job 38:1-11.
Then the LORD answered Job out of the whirlwind:
“Who is this that darkens counsel by words without knowledge?
Gird up your loins like a man;
I will question you, and you shall declare to me.
“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements—surely you know!
Or who stretched the line upon it?
On what were its bases sunk,
or who laid its cornerstone
when the morning stars sang together
and all the heavenly beings shouted for joy?
“Or who shut in the sea with doors
when it burst out from the womb,
when I made the clouds its garment
and thick darkness its swaddling band,
and prescribed bounds for it,
and set bars and doors,
and said, ‘Thus far shall you come and no farther,
and here shall your proud waves be stopped’?
Works Referenced
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Greenstein, Edward L. “Job.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Newsom, Carol A. “Job.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume III. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
O’Brien, Julia. “Wisdom/Poetic literature.” OT100: Introduction to the Old Testament (class lecture, Lancaster Theological Seminary, Lancaster, PA, April 13, 2019).
Text generated by ChatGPT, OpenAI, June 13, 2024, https://openai.com/chatgpt/
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Why was Jesus accused of conspiring with the ruler of the demons? What was his response to those accusations? What "strong man" did he plunder? Who are the strong men in our midst? Who was part of Jesus' family?
"Jesus the Plunderer" is based on Mark 3:20-35.
Then he went home, and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, “He has gone out of his mind.” And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, “He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.” And he called them to him and spoke to them in parables, “How can Satan cast out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered.
“Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter, but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness but is guilty of an eternal sin”— for they had said, “He has an unclean spirit.”
Then his mother and his brothers came, and standing outside they sent to him and called him. A crowd was sitting around him, and they said to him, “Your mother and your brothers are outside asking for you.” And he replied, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” And looking at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.”
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Gorman, Amanda and Christian Robinson. Something, Someday. New York City: Viking, 2023.
Lettsome, Raquel S. "Mark." In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Pennsylvania Policy Center. “People’s Budget 101 Presentation.” Accessed June 6, 2024. https://pennpolicy.org/budget-101/
Placher, William C. Mark (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010.
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What is prophecy? When did Isaiah prophecy? What happened when Jesus talked to Nicodemus? What does prophecy look like today? When should we prophesy?
“A word that no one wants to hear” is based on Isaiah 6:1-8 & John 3:1-17
Isaiah 6:1-8
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew.
And one called to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said: “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”
Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!”
Works Referenced
Ben Zvi, Ehud. “Amos.” In The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition, edited by Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Collins, John J. Introduction to the Hebrew Bible: Third Edition. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2018, Kindle edition.
Henderlite, Rachel. “Charge by Rachel Henderlite to Louise H. Farrior on her Ordination.” July 30, 1967.
Holmes, Laura Sweat and George Lyons. John 1-12: A Commentary in the Western Tradition (New Beacon Bible Commentary). Kansas City, Missouri: Beacon Hill Press, 2020, Kindle edition.
Kim, Hyun Chul Paul. Reading Isaiah: A Literary and Theological Commentary. Macon, Georgia: Smyth & Helwys, 2010. Kindle edition.
Office of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). “The Second Helvetic Confession.” The Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Part I: Book of Confessions. Louisville, Kentucky: Office of the General Assembly, 2016.
“Rachel Henderlite.” Wikipedia, accessed May 21, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rachel_Henderlite
Reinhartz, Adele. “John.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Sweeney, Marvin A. “Isaiah 1-39.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
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Who is the Holy Spirit? How does the Holy Spirit work in the world? How do you experience the Holy Spirt? What does witness look like?
"Your Holy Spirit" is based on Acts 1:1-11.
In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus began to do and teach until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. While staying with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait there for the promise of the Father. “This,” he said, “is what you have heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” He replied, “It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 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.” When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. 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.”
Works Referenced
“Costs of War,” Brown University Watson Institute of International & Public Affairs, accessed May 11, 2024, https://watson.brown.edu/costsofwar/.
Jennings, Willie James. Acts. (BELIEF: A Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2017.
Office of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). The Constitution of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Part I: Book of Confessions. Louisville, Kentucky: Office of the General Assembly, 2016.
Wall, Robert W. “The Acts of the Apostles.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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What did the author of John say about love? What is agape? What does agape look like in our time? What does the opposite of love look like? How does this relate to the climate catastrophe?
"Love and its opposite" is a reflection based on 1 John 4:7-21
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us.
By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. So we have known and believe the love that God has for us.
God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because he first loved us. Those who say, “I love God,” and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.
Works Referenced
Bennett, Thomas Andrew. 1-3 John (The Two Horizons New Testament Commentary). Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2021.
Jones, Peter Rhea. 1, 2, & 3 John (Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary). Macon, Georgia: Smyth & Helwys Publishing, Inc., 2009.
Kruse, Colin G. The Letters of John. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2000.
Nadella, Raj. “What Stories Define the Church.” Sojourners Vol. 53, No. 3 (April 2024): 48-49.
Yarbrough, Robert W. 1-3 John (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2008.
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What happened when Jesus gathered with his disciples after his resurrection? What did he say would happen next? How do you realize resurrection? How do we become empowered to fulfill our purpose?
"Realizing Resurrection" is based on Luke 24:36b-48.
Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see, for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. Yet for all their joy they were still disbelieving and wondering, and he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence.
Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you—that everything written about me in the law of Moses, the prophets, and the psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And see, I am sending upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high.”
Works Referenced
Gonzalez, Justo L. Luke: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle Edition.
Jeffrey, David Lyle. Luke (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible). Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Publishing Group, 2012. Kindle Edition.
Perrin, Nicholas. Luke: An Introduction and Commentary (Tyndale New Testament Commentaries Book 3). Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2022. Kindle Edition.
Scott, Josh. “In the Lectionary.” The Christian Century Vol. 141, No. 4 (April 2024): 25.
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What was the resurrection of Jesus? Why is Mark's resurrection story so short? What might resurrection look like in our time? What can we learn from the resurrection?
"Reading Resurrection" is a reflection based on Mark 16:1-8.
When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.
Works Referenced
Adkins-Jones, Timothy. “In the Lectionary.” Christian Century Vol. 141, No. 3 (March 2024): 31.
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Placher, William C. Mark: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010. Kindle Edition.
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Why did Jesus compare himself to a grain of wheat? What does it mean to love your life? What does it mean to hate your life on earth? Who was Melchizedek? Why did Jesus have to die? What is eternal life?
"Looking Beyond" is a reflection on John 12:20-33.
Now among those who went up to worship at the festival were some Greeks.
They came to Philip, who was from Bethsaida in Galilee, and said to him, “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.”
Philip went and told Andrew, then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus.
Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.
Very truly, I tell you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains just a single grain, but if it dies it bears much fruit.
Those who love their life lose it, and those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there will my servant be also. Whoever serves me, the Father will honor.
“Now my soul is troubled. And what should I say: ‘Father, save me from this hour’? No, it is for this reason that I have come to this hour.
Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven, “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.”
The crowd standing there heard it and said that it was thunder. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.”
Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not for mine.
Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out.
And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”
He said this to indicate the kind of death he was to die.
Hebrews 5:5-10
So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming a high priest but was appointed by the one who said to him, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you”;
as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, according to the order of Melchizedek.”
In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.
Although he was a Son, he learned obedience through what he suffered,
and having been made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him,
having been designated by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.
Works Referenced
Alexander, T. Desmond. (Genesis notes). ESV Study Bible. Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2008, Kindle Edition.
Blair, Merryl. “The 'Order of Melchizedek': Hebrews 7 as a Model for Thinking Ecumenically about Priesthood.” Journal of Ecumenical Studies Vol. 53, No. 1 (Winter 2018): 95-110.
Coloe, Mary L. John 11-21 (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 44B). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2021.
Milne, Bruce. The Message of John (The Bible Speaks Today). Downers Grove, Illinois: InterVarsity Press, 2020.
Moloney, Francis J. The Gospel of John (Sacra Pagina Series, Volume 4). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 1998.
O’Day, Gail R. “The Gospel of John.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Ramirez, Felipe Fruto. “MELCHIZEDEK: A Minor Character of Great Importance to Biblical Theology.” Landas Vol. 33, No. 1 (2019): 17-36.
Stuckenbruck, Loren T. “Melchizedek in Jewish Apocalyptic Literature.” Journal for the Study of the New Testament Vol. 41, No. 1 (2018): 124-138.
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Is the gospel foolish? Did the wise recognize Jesus? What does foolishness look like today? Does the church need to have a rummage sale?
“Foolishness” is a reflection based on 1 Corinthians 1:18-25.
For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.”
Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
Works Referenced
Nasrallah, Laura S. “1 Corinthians.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Sampley, J. Paul. “The First Letter to the Corinthians.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Tickle, Phyllis. The Great Emergence: How Christianity is Changing and Why. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Publishing Group, 2008.
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What happened after Jesus' baptism? Why was he tempted in the wilderness? Who tempted him? What does temptation look like today?
"A human condition" is a reflection based on 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.”
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Felicetti, Elizabeth. “In the Lectionary.” Christian Century Vol. 141, No. 2 (February 2024): 28.
Lettsome, Raquel S. “Mark.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Nadella, Raj. “Living the Word: Good News for Whom?.” Sojourners Vol. 53, No. 2 (Feb/Mar 2024): 47.
Ottati, Douglas F. A Theology for the Twenty-First Century. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2020.
Perkins, Pheme. “Mark.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Wills, Lawrence M., annotator. “The Gospel According to Mark.” In The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Second Edition, edited by Amy-Jill Levine and Mark Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. Kindle Edition.
Vena, Osvaldo D. “The Marian Construction of Jesus as Disciple of the Kingdom.” In Mark (Texts @ Contexts), edited by Nicole Wilkinson Duran, Teresa Okure, and Daniel Patte. Minneapolis, Minnesota, Fortress Press, 2011.
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Did Jesus perform exorcisms? What demons existed in his time? Do demons still exist now? If so, in what form? Can an entire culture be possessed?
“'Demons,' and other words that matter" is a reflection based on Mark 1:29-39.
As soon as they left the synagogue, they entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told him about her at once. He came and took her by the hand and lifted her up. Then the fever left her, and she began to serve them.
That evening, at sunset, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed by demons. And the whole city was gathered around the door. And he cured many who were sick with various diseases and cast out many demons, and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.
In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed. And Simon and his companions hunted for him. When they found him, they said to him, “Everyone is searching for you.” He answered, “Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also, for that is what I came out to do.” And he went throughout all Galilee, proclaiming the message in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Works Referenced
Carter, Warren. Mark (Wisdom Commentary Series Book 42). Collegeville, Minnesota: Liturgical Press, 2019. Kindle Edition.
Chandler, Kim and Sean Murphy. “Will other states replicate Alabama’s nitrogen execution?” AP News. Accessed February 2, 2024. https://apnews.com/article/nitrogen-execution-alabama-oklahoma-lethal-injection-c088b01aeb581da7bfb73e52aa6caf3f
Duran, Nicole Wilkinson. “Other People’s Demons: Reading Mark’s Demons in the Disbelieving West.” In Mark (Texts @ Contexts), edited by Nicole Wilkinson Duran, Teresa Okure, and Daniel Patte. Minneapolis, Minnesota, Fortress Press, 2011.
Equal Justice Initiative. “Criminal Justice Reform.” Accessed February 2, 2024. https://eji.org/criminal-justice-reform/
Juel, Donald H. A Master of Surprise: Mark Interpreted. Minneapolis, Minnesota: Fortress Press, 1994.
Lettsome, Raquel S. “Mark.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Perkins, Pheme. “Mark.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Wikipedia. “Capital punishment by country.” Accessed February 2, 2024. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_by_country
Wise, Jenna. “Family wants to know why man had hypothermia when he died in county prison.” PennLive. Accessed February 2, 2024. https://www.pennlive.com/news/2022/02/man-who-died-at-dauphin-county-prison-had-hypothermia-in-62-degree-cell-da.html
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What did Paul mean when he wrote "the present form of this world is passing away"? What might that look like? What structures need to change? How can we change them? Did Jesus say the world is going to end?
"Changing Structures" is a reflection based on 1 Corinthians 7:29-31.
I mean, brothers and sisters, the appointed time has grown short; from now on, let even those who have wives be as though they had none, and those who mourn as though they were not mourning, and those who rejoice as though they were not rejoicing, and those who buy as though they had no possessions, and those who deal with the world as though they had no dealings with it. For the present form of this world is passing away.
References
Congressional Research Service. “Poverty in the United States in 2020.” Accessed January 18, 2024. https://crsreports.congress.gov/product/pdf/R/R47030
Rowland, Christopher. “Ecology and Eschatology in the Second Temple Period.” In The Oxford Handbook of The Bible and Ecology, edited by Hilary Marlow and Mark Harris. New York City: Oxford University Press, 2022.
Sampley, J. Paul. “I Corinthians.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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Who were the wise men? Why is their part of the Christmas story important? What does their story tell us about worldly power? How does Herod compare to powerful people in our context? How will we champion truth in 2024?
"The search for truth in '24" is a reflection based on Matthew 2:1-12.
In the time of King Herod, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, wise men from the East came to Jerusalem, asking, “Where is the child who has been born king of the Jews? For we observed his star at its rising, and have come to pay him homage.” When King Herod heard this, he was frightened, and all Jerusalem with him; and calling together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born. They told him, “In Bethlehem of Judea; for so it has been written by the prophet:
‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for from you shall come a ruler
who is to shepherd my people Israel.’ ”
Then Herod secretly called for the wise men and learned from them the exact time when the star had appeared. Then he sent them to Bethlehem, saying, “Go and search diligently for the child; and when you have found him, bring me word so that I may also go and pay him homage.” When they had heard the king, they set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they left for their own country by another road.
Works Referenced
Case-Winters, Anna. Matthew: A Theological Commentary on the Bible (Belief: a Theological Commentary on the Bible). Louisville, Kentucky: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Kindle Edition.
Carter, Warren. “Matthew.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
Gale, Aaron M. “The Gospel According to Matthew Introduction and Annotations.” In The Jewish Annotated New Testament, Second Edition, edited by Amy-Jill Levine and Mark Zvi Brettler. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2017. Kindle Edition.
Ottati, Douglas F. A Theology for the Twenty-First Century. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2020.
Tannehill, Robert C. “The Gospel of Matthew.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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How often do you think about the Roman Empire? How does that relate to the New Testament? How does the Roman Empire compare to our context? Do you feel overwhelmed at Christmastime? How do you win at Christmas? What does it mean to "just believe?" In what do you believe?
"Winning Christmas" is a reflection based on Romans 16:25-27.
Now to God who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever! Amen.
Works Referenced
Adams, Simon, contributor. Exploring History: An Illustrated Encyclopedia. New York City: Backpack Books, 2005.
Germbish, Nadiyka, Joel Bengbeng, Cláudio Carvalhaes, & Sidwell Mokgothu. Light from Afar: An Advent Devotional from Around the World. Nashville, Tennessee: Upper Room Books, 2023.
Nanos, Mark D. The Mystery of Romans: The Jewish Context of Paul’s Letter. Minneapolis: Fortress, Press, 1996.
Wright, N.T. “The Letter to the Romans.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IX. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
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What can the book of Isaiah tell us about Christmas? How is prophecy sometimes misused? When is certainty a bad thing? When is certainty a good thing? Does the Bible tell us to celebrate Christmas?
"A less-certain Christmas" is based on Isaiah 40:1-11.
“Comfort, oh comfort my people,”
says your God.
“Speak softly and tenderly to Jerusalem,
but also make it very clear
That she has served her sentence,
that her sin is taken care of—forgiven!
She’s been punished enough and more than enough,
and now it’s over and done with.”
Thunder in the desert!
“Prepare for GOD’s arrival!
Make the road straight and smooth,
a highway fit for our God.
Fill in the valleys,
level off the hills,
Smooth out the ruts,
clear out the rocks.
Then GOD’s bright glory will shine
and everyone will see it.
Yes. Just as GOD has said.”
A voice says, “Shout!”
I said, “What shall I shout?”
“These people are nothing but grass,
their love fragile as wildflowers.
The grass withers, the wildflowers fade,
if GOD so much as puffs on them.
Aren’t these people just so much grass?
True, the grass withers and the wildflowers fade,
but our God’s Word stands firm and forever.”
Climb a high mountain, Zion.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Raise your voice. Make it good and loud, Jerusalem.
You’re the preacher of good news.
Speak loud and clear. Don’t be timid!
Tell the cities of Judah,
“Look! Your God!”
Look at him! GOD, the Master, comes in power,
ready to go into action.
He is going to pay back his enemies
and reward those who have loved him.
Like a shepherd, he will care for his flock,
gathering the lambs in his arms,
Hugging them as he carries them,
leading the nursing ewes to good pasture.
Works Referenced
Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary. New York City: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc, 2019, Kindle edition.
Berlin, Adele and Marc Zvi Brettler, eds. The Jewish Study Bible: Second Edition. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014.
Bills, Melissa. "In the Lectionary: December 10." The Christian Century 140, no. 12 (December 2023): 25.
Mayfield, Tyler D. Unto Us a Child Is Born Isaiah, Advent, and Our Jewish Neighbors. Grand Rapids, Michigan: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2020.
Seitz, Christopher R. “Isaiah 40-66.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume IV. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Tull, Patricia K. Isaiah 1-39, Smyth & Helwys Bible Commentary. Macon, GA: Smyth & Helwys Publishing, 2010.
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What is Christ the King Sunday? Why might we be resistant to language about monarchy? What is the right way to grieve? Is it okay to grieve small things when there is so much tragedy in the world?
"The sorrows of the universe and a tiny green bird" is a reflection based on Hebrews 1:1-9. Read it at https://intertwinedfc.medium.com.
Many times and in many ways God spoke to our mothers and fathers through the prophets, female and male. In these last days God has spoken to us by a Son, whom God appointed heir of all there is, and through whom God created the worlds. The Son is the brilliance of God's glory and reproduction of God's very being, and the Son undergirds all there is by his word of power. When the Son had made purification for sins, he sat down the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much greater than the angels as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs.
For to which of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Child; today I have begotten you"?
Or this,
"I will be their Parent, and they will be my Child"?
Then again, when God brings the firstborn into the world, God says,
"Let all the angels of God worship him."
On the hand of the angels God says,
“God makes winds into celestial messengers,
and flames of fire into God’s ministers.”
But of the Son God says,
"Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
and the righteous scepter is the scepter of your realm.
You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions."
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Why did Jesus become angry when he saw the vendors in the temple? What did his actions in the temple mean? What do our temples look like? Should churches own buildings? If so, what should that look like? Can you have a faith community without a building?
"No building? No problem." - a reflection based on John 2:14-22.
In the temple Jesus found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. Making a whip of cords, he drove them out of the temple, [including] the sheep and the cattle. Jesus also poured out the coins of the money changers and threw over their tables. He told those who were selling the doves, "Take these out of here! Stop making the house of my Abba a house of commerce!" His disciples remembered that it was written, "Zeal for your house will consume me."
Then the other Jews said to him, "What sign can you show us for doing this?" Jesus answered them, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up." They then said, "For forty-six years this temple has been under construction, and will you raise it up in three days?" But Jesus was speaking of the temple of his body. After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.
Works Referenced
Croy, N. Clayton. “The Messianic Whippersnapper: Did Jesus Use a Whip on People in the Temple (John 2:15)?” Journal of Biblical Leadership Vol. 128, No. 9 (2009): 555-568.
Culpepper, R. Alan. The Gospel and Letters of John. Nashville, Tennessee: Abingdon Press, 1998.
Gafney, Wilda C. A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year W. New York City: Church Publishing, 2021.
Klay, Phil. “A Whip of Cords.” Commonweal Vol. 149, Issue 5 (May 2022): 16-21.
O’Day, Gail R. “The Gospel of John.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Reinhartz, Adele. “John.” In Fortress Commentary on the Bible: The Old Testament and Apocrypha, edited by Gale A. Yee, Hugh R. Page, Jr., Matthew J. M. Coomber. Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2014. Kindle edition.
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When is certainty a bad thing? What consequences can result from certainty? What does certainty look like in faith communities? Of what should we be certain? What are our core beliefs? What should a faith gathering look like?
"For sure?" is a reflection based on John 7:37-44.
On the last, the great day, of the festival of Booths, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, "If anyone thirsts, woman or man, come to me and drink. The one who believes in me, as the scripture has said, 'From their belly shall flow rivers of living water." Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
When the crowd heard these words, some said, "This is truly the prophet." Others said, "This is the Messiah." But some said, "Indeed, the Messiah does not come from Galilee, true? Does not the scripture say that the Messiah comes from the line of David and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?" So there was a division in the crowd because of him. Some wanted to arrest him, but no one laid their hands on him.
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What's it like to grow up in a small town? Was Jesus from a small town? What were his experiences like there? Why did the people from Nazareth not have faith in him? What role does faith play now? In what should we have faith?
"It can't happen here?" is a reflection based on Mark 6:1-6.
Now Jesus left that place and came to his hometown, and his disciples followed him. On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many women and men who heard him were astounded, saying, "Where did this man learn this?" And "What wisdom has been given him?" And "Such deeds of power work done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?" And they were offended over him. Then Jesus said to them, "Prophets are not without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house." And he could do no deed of power there, except on a few sick people laying hands and curing them. And Jesus was amazed at their unbelief. Then, he went about among the villages teaching.
Works Referenced
Carvalhaes, Cláudio. Ritual at World’s End: Essays on Eco-Liturgical Liberation Theology. York, Pennsylvania: Barber’s Son Press, 2021.
Gafney, Wilda C. A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year W. New York City: Church Publishing, 2021.
Perkins, Pheme. “The Gospel of Mark.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Smith, Mitzi J. & Yung Suk Kim. Toward Decentering the New Testament: A Reintroduction. Eugene, Oregon: Cascade Books, 2018, Kindle edition.
Springsteen, Bruce. 1985. “My Hometown.” Track 7 on Born in the U.S.A., the Hit Factory.
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What doubts do people of faith face? What temptations might lead us astray? Should we adhere to the mainstream? What does it mean to follow Jesus?
"Why bother(?)" is a reflection based on 2 Peter 3:1-13.
Now this, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you all; in them I am trying to arouse your genuine understanding by reminding you all that you should remember the words spoken in the past by the holy women and men who prophesied and the commandment of the Redeemer and Savior spoken through your apostles. First of all know this, that in the last days will come scoffers scoffing and chasing after their own lusts and saying,
"Where is the promise of his coming? For, ever since our ancestors died, everything continues as from the beginning of creation!"
...
But this one thing, do not ignore beloved, that with the Most High one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like one day." The Most High is not slow about God's promise, as some think of slowness, but is patient with you all, not wanting anyone to perish, rather all to come to repentance.
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Have you ever been crushed, or filled with despair? Where did you turn when you felt that way? What did Paul mean when he said he was crushed and feared and internal sentence of death? Where did he look for hope? Where do you look for hope when facing struggles? Where do you find community?
I explore these questions in "Crushing Despair," a reflection based on 2 Corinthians 1:8-11.
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"Recognition, Regret, Repentance, Reconciliation," a reflection based on Luke 19:1-10.
Who was Zacchaeus? Why did Jesus spend time with him? What does it mean to repent? Should people feel guilty? Is repentance something that we do as individuals, or collectively? Why does repentance get a bad rap? Is repentance a step on the path to reconciliation?
Luke 19:1-10
Now Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it. There was a person named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector and was rich. Zacchaeus was seeking to see who Jesus was, but was not able to on account of the crowd, being short in stature. So Zacchaeus ran ahead and climbed a sycamore to see Jesus, who was going to pass that way. Now when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, "Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today." So Zacchaeus hurried down and welcomed Jesus, rejoicing. All who saw it began to grumble and said, "To a sinner has he gone to be a guest." Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Messiah, "Look, half of my possessions, Anointed One, to the poor will I give, and if have defrauded anyone, I will pay back four times as much." Then Jesus said to Zacchaeus, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a child of Abraham. For the Son of Woman came to seek out and to save the lost."
Works Referenced
Culpepper, R. Alan. “The Gospel of Luke.” In New Interpreter’s Bible, Volume VIII. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2015.
Gafney, Wilda C. A Women’s Lectionary for the Whole Church, Year W. New York City: Church Publishing, 2021.
Kinunda, Quinbert. “Listening to Rural Voices in Tanzania: the Zacchaeus Episode, Luke 19:1-10.” Journal of Theology for Southern Africa No. 165 (November 2019): 50-64.
Poettcker, Grant. “Socrates, Nicodemus, and Zacchaeus: Kierkegaard and Halík on conversion and offense.” International Journal of Philosophy and Theology Vol. 80 Nos. 4-5: 482-494.
Tannehill, Robert C. Abingdon New Testament Commentaries: Luke. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996.
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"Making Way," a reflection based on 1 Samuel 17:55-18:9
When is it time to make way for someone else to step into a position of authority? When is it time for you to step into a new role? How does is the story of Saul, David, and Jonathan relevant to our lives? What role does jealousy and pride play in our perceptions?
1 Samuel 17:55-18:9
When Saul saw David go out to meet the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, "Whose son is this boy, Abner?" Abner said, "By the soul of the king, if I knew . . . ? Then the king said, "You ask whose son the stripling is." As David returned from smiting the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, "Whose son are you boy?" And David answered, "I am the son of your slave Jesse the Bethlehemite."
Now it happened by the time David finished speaking to Saul, the soul of Jonathan was bound to the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul. And Saul took David that day and would not permit him to return to the house of his father. Then Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as his own soul. So Jonathan stripped off the robe that was on him and gave it to David, and his armor and even his sword, and his bow, and also his belt. David went out and in all to which Saul sent him was successful; then Saul placed him over the warriors. And it was good in the eyes of all the people, even in the eyes of the slaves of Saul.
And it was as they were coming back, when David returned from smiting the Philistine, the women came out of all the towns of Israel to sing with the dances to meet King Saul with hand drums, with rejoicing, and with musical instruments. And the women sang in response to each another as they reveled, "Saul has killed his thousands, and David his ten thousands."
"And Saul raged, hot; this saying was evil in his eyes. And he said, "They gave to David ten thousands and to me they gave thousands. There is only the throne left for him!" So it was that Saul eyed David from that day on.
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"The Path to Truth," a reflection based on Mark 6:14-29.
Who was John the Baptist? How did he prepare a path for Jesus? Is the Bible true? How do you find truth?
Mark 6:14-29
Now King Herod heard of [the teaching of Jesus], for Jesus's name had become known and some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead and that is why these powers work through him." Yet others said, "It is Elijah" while others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets [of old]." But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."
For Herod himself had sent men who seized John and bound him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, for Herod had married her. For John had told Herod, "It is not right for you to have your brother's wife." Now Herodias had a grudge against him and she wanted to kill him. But she could not. This was because Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous man and a holy man and he protected him and listened to him, though greatly perplexed; yet it pleased him to listen to him.
Now an opportune time came on Herod's birthday when he gave a banquet for his courtiers and commanders and for the leaders of Galilee. And Herod's daughter Herodias came in and danced, pleasing Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you." And he swore to her repeatedly, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." And she went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." Immediately she returned to the king with haste and asked, saying, "I want immediately for you to give me on a platter the head of John the baptizer" The king was deeply sorry, yet because of his oaths and the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier under orders to bring John's head. And he went and beheaded him in the prison. And he brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl and the girl gave it to her mother. When John's disciples heard, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
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"The Path to Truth," a reflection based on Mark 6:14-29.
Who was John the Baptist? How did he prepare a path for Jesus? Is the Bible true? How do you find truth?
Mark 6:14-29
Now King Herod heard of [the teaching of Jesus], for Jesus's name had become known and some were saying, "John the baptizer has been raised from the dead and that is why these powers work through him." Yet others said, "It is Elijah" while others said, "It is a prophet, like one of the prophets [of old]." But when Herod heard of it, he said, "John, whom I beheaded, has been raised."
For Herod himself had sent men who seized John and bound him in prison because of Herodias, the wife of his brother Philip, for Herod had married her. For John had told Herod, "It is not right for you to have your brother's wife." Now Herodias had a grudge against him and she wanted to kill him. But she could not. This was because Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous man and a holy man and he protected him and listened to him, though greatly perplexed; yet it pleased him to listen to him.
Now an opportune time came on Herod's birthday when he gave a banquet for his courtiers and commanders and for the leaders of Galilee. And Herod's daughter Herodias came in and danced, pleasing Herod and his dinner guests. The king said to the girl, "Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you." And he swore to her repeatedly, "Whatever you ask me, I will give you, even half of my kingdom." And she went out and said to her mother, "What should I ask?" She replied, "The head of John the baptizer." Immediately she returned to the king with haste and asked, saying, "I want immediately for you to give me on a platter the head of John the baptizer" The king was deeply sorry, yet because of his oaths and the guests, he did not want to refuse her. Immediately the king sent a soldier under orders to bring John's head. And he went and beheaded him in the prison. And he brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl and the girl gave it to her mother. When John's disciples heard, they came and took his body, and laid it in a tomb.
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"Making Kings," a reflection based on 1 Samuel 8:1, 4-18
Why did Israel want a king? What consequences did that bring? Do we have kings now? What does it mean to make something a king? Does referring to God as a king resonate for you? What other names are there for God?
Now it was that when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel.
Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, "Look here! You—you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways; now then, set up for us a ruler to judge us, like all the heathen nations." But the thing was evil in Samuel's sight when they said, "Give us a ruler to judge us." Then Samuel prayed to the HOLY ONE OF OLD.
And the HOLY ONE said to Samuel, "Hearken to the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for it is not you they have rejected, but it is me they have rejected from ruling over them. Like everything else they have done to me, from the day I brought them up out of Egypt to this very day, forsaking me and serving other gods; they are doing the same to you.
Now then, hearken to their voice; but—you shall testify against them, and show them the judgment of the ruler who shall rule over them."
So Samuel relayed all the words of the HOLY ONE to the people who were asking him for a ruler. Samuel said, "This will be the judgment of the ruler who will rule over you all: your sons he will take and set them aside for himself in his chariots and in his cavalry, and to run before his chariots. And he will set aside for himself commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and some to plow his plowing and to reap his reaping, and to make his furnishings of war and the furnishings of his chariots. Your daughters he will take to be apothecaries and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive orchards; he will take and give to those who serve him. One-tenth of your grain and of your vineyards he will take and give to his eunuchs and those he enslaves. Your male slaves and your female slaves, and the best of your cattle and donkeys, he will take and put them to his work. Your flocks he will tithe . . . and you all, you shall be his slaves. And you all will cry out on that day in the face of your sovereign, whom you have chosen for yourselves; and GOD WHOSE NAME IS HOLY will not answer you all on that day"
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"Maybe it’s not complicated," a reflection on Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30.
Why didn't the people recognize John the Baptist or Jesus? Why don't we solve problems like hunger, homelessness, and poverty? What would it take to decrease the effect of the climate catastrophe? Is following Jesus complicated? How can a burden be light?
"But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.'
For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon'; the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
At that time Jesus said, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.
All things have been handed over to me by my Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.
"Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."
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"Life in Common," a reflection based on Acts 2:43-47.
What did the early Christian church look like? What does it mean to hold things in common? How did the early church care for those in need? How does the Holy Spirit influence us? How can we care for others within an unjust system?
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"From Quite Constructed to Reconstructing," a reflection based on Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26 and Hosea 5:15-6:6.
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"Suffering Suffering," a reflection based on John 11:28-44.
How did Jesus respond to the death of his friend Lazarus and the grief of his followers? What questions emerge from the story of the resurrection of Lazarus? What does this story tell us about Jesus? How does this story relate to the death and resurrection of Jesus? What was the response of church officials to the raising of Lazarus? Who and what causes suffering today? What should our response be to suffering?
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"Extreme Religion," a reflection based on Acts 17:22-31.
What idols exist in our society? What practices and rituals do we adopt, and what is the motivation behind them? Where can we find fulfillment? How does idolatry threaten true abundance? And what's up with subscription car washes?
Acts 17:22-31
Then Paul stood in front of the Areopagus and said, “Athenians, I see how extremely religious you are in every way. For as I went through the city and looked carefully at the objects of your worship, I found among them an altar with the inscription, ‘To an unknown god.’ What therefore you worship as unknown, this I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and everything in it, he who is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in shrines made by human hands, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mortals life and breath and all things. From one ancestor he made all nations to inhabit the whole earth, and he allotted the times of their existence and the boundaries of the places where they would live, so that they would search for God and perhaps grope for him and find him—though indeed he is not far from each one of us.
For ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said,
Since we are God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the deity is like gold, or silver, or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of mortals. While God has overlooked the times of human ignorance, now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will have the world judged in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.”
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"Kin-dom Logic," a reflection based on Luke 7:18-20.
How is health care distributed in the Kin-dom of God? Who deserves to be sick? Who deserves to be in pain? How does the health care system in our country work? What was important to Jesus?
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"The Eternal, Elusive, Unexpected Spirit," a reflection based on Acts 1:3-14.
What is the Holy Spirit? How long has the Holy Spirit been around? How is the Holy Spirit different from Jesus and our Creator or Heavenly Parent? What does it look like when the Holy Spirit acts? What does the Holy Spirit have to do with justice?
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"A Response to Empire," a reflection based on Matthew 21:1-11.
What was Palm Sunday about? What else was going on in Jerusalem at that time? Who was Pilate? How was Jesus's entry to Jerusalem a response to the Roman empire? What does Palm Sunday and the message of Jesus mean to us now?
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"Drawing Lines," a reflection based on 1 John 4:7-12.
Where does love come from? What is love in the Christian sense? What does it mean to "other" someone or a group? What is the Christian church about? What is social justice? What does social justice have to do with the church? How is justice related to the church? What is the mission of the Christian church? When and where should a faith community draw the line on controversial issues?
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"Once and Done," a reflection based on Ephesians 2:4-10.
What is conversion? What does it mean to convert to Christianity? What is evangelism? How do you accept Jesus as your savior? Who goes to hell? Who goes to heaven? What is hell? What does it mean to live in Christ?
Now God, who is rich in mercy, loving us with a great love when we were dead through our trespasses, brought us to life together with Christ—by grace have you all been saved. And God raised us up together with Christ and seated us all together in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. This, that God might show in the ages to come, the abundant riches of God's grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace have you all
been saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves; it is the gift of God. It is not the result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are what God has crafted, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our path.
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"I Need Ash Wednesday," a reflection based on Joel 2:1, 12-17, 21-22.
What was Joel's prophecy about? What threat faced God's people? What threats face us today? How do Joel's words apply to us today? What does it mean to return to God? What does it mean to hold things in tension? What is Ash Wednesday about?
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"'Biblical' Marriage and other BS," a reflection on Song of Songs 4:9-15.
What is a "Biblical" marriage? What does the Bible have to say about marriage, bodies, and sex? What can we learn about relationships from the Song of Songs? What harmful messages has the church promoted around sex, relationships, and bodies? Which Biblical marriages can serve as an example to us?
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"Seeing Jesus," a reflection on Luke 2:41-52.
What was Jesus like as a teenager? Was his family Jewish? Did he ever get in trouble with his parents? What can we learn from Mary about being a parent? What does it mean to see Jesus?
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"Wisdom, Word, and Wonder," a reflection on John 1:1-14 & Luke 2:15-21.
What does it mean for God to come live among us? Why was Jesus born where and when he was? How long has Jesus been around? What does Jesus have to do with Wisdom? What does it mean when John says Jesus was The Word. How is Jesus God and God’s son? What happens when we run out of words to articulate the divine?
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A reflection based on Luke 1:46-55. What did Mary know when she was pregnant with Jesus, and what do we know about her? Was she quiet and passive, or bold and prophetic? What would people think of the ideas from her Magnificat today?
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"Waiting (and Acting) with Eager Longing," a message based on Romans 8:18-25.
Who are we really? Who are we meant to be? Why is there still suffering in the world? For what are we waiting? What does a letter written by Paul to the Romans have to do with the Advent season and our preparations for Christmas?
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"Christ Our Kin," a message for Intertwined based on Colossians 1:11-20.
Who wrote Colossians, and why? What was it like being a Christian in the first century? Who is Jesus to us? Who is Douglas Ottati and why does Kevin like him so much? What is a liturgical year? What is Christ the King Sunday?
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"Isaiah, through the best and worst of times," a reflection for the Intertwined faith community based on Isaiah 65:17-25.
Who wrote the book of Isaiah, and what was going at the time it was written? What did Isaiah's prophecy mean? What will the new heaven and new earth look like? What does Isaiah's prophecy mean to us? What does Isaiah teach us about being Jesus-followers?
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"Overcoming the Narrative," a reflection on Luke 20:27-38 for the Intertwined faith community.
What did Jesus say about the afterlife? Who challenged Jesus, and why? How long have religious turf wars been around? Is what you believe the most important part of Christianity?
Luke 20:27-38:
There came to him some Sadducees, those who deny that there is a resurrection, and they asked him a question, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us that if a man’s brother dies, having a wife but no children, the manf must take the widow and raise up offspring for his brother. Now there were seven brothers. The first took a wife, and died without children. And the second and the third took her, and likewise all seven left no children and died. Afterward the woman also died.In the resurrection, therefore, whose wife will the woman be? For the seven had her as wife.”
And Jesus said to them, “The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage, but those who are considered worthy to attain to that age and to the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore, because they are equal to angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection. But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the passage about the bush, where he calls the Lord the God of Abraham and the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob. Now he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for all live to him.”
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"Prayer, from ACTS to Wow," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Psalm 65 & Luke 18:9-14.
What should you say when you pray? Who decides the right way to pray? What feelings can disrupt your connection to God and one another? How does our society disconnect us from the rest of creation?
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"Fortunes Flowing for the Future," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Amos 5 and Psalm 126.
Who was the prophet Amos, and what made him different from other prophets? How is his message relevant for people of faith today? What fortunes do we want to see restored, and what things are better left in the past? What is 1001 New Worshiping Communities?
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"Good Trouble for the Coming Age," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Luke 16:1-13 & Amos 8:4-7.
Is Jesus saying it's okay to be dishonest in The Parable of the Dishonest Manager? What can the children of light learn from the children of this age? What does "good trouble" look like in our time?
"Potters, Prophecy, and Perspective," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Jeremiah 18:1-11 and Psalm 139.
"Potters, Prophecy, and Perspective," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Jeremiah 18:1-11 and Psalm 139.
How big is God? How long have humans been around compared to the earth? How big is the earth in the known universe? What perspective do we get when we consider our life spans and neighborhoods in the greater picture? What does Jeremiah 18 mean when we think about countries (including our own), the church, and humankind? What difference do we make, individually and collectively?
"Defying Custom," a sermon based on Ruth 1 for the Intertwined faith community.
This message explores the story of Naomi and Ruth, their journey from famine, the challenges of defying custom, and how our actions can create refugee situations like the one in Ruth 1.
"Riffing on Sabbath," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Isaiah 58 and Luke 13.
Does sabbath mean more than resting on Sunday? What other considerations should be involved in sabbath according to Isaiah and Jesus? How do we find time to observe sabbath, and what does that look like? What part does energy play in pursuing justice?
"A Pentateuchal Pause," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Deuteronomy 4:1-9 & James 1:17-27.
What is Deuteronomy about? Why should I read Deuteronomy? Why was Deuteronomy important to people in Biblical times? What lessons can I learn from Deuteronomy? What was it like to do a research paper in 1989? What lesson can I learn from the book of James?
"Misconceptions," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on 1 Kings 8:22-43 & Ephesians 6:10-20.
Why did the author of Ephesians talk about armor, and how is that language mis-applied by Christians today? Did it play a role in the January 6 insurrection? Which Contemporary Christian Music band claimed to be the analog to Whitesnake in the 1980s? How can people of faith replace our military metaphors? What does the book of Kings have to do with Deuteronomy? When was the American Christian church "just right"?
"Echoes," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on 2 Kings 4:42-44 & John 6:5-14.
Who was Elisha the prophet and why are we talking about him centuries after his life? What was the feeding of the one hundred? Why did Jesus remind the Jewish people of the prophets? Why does that matter today? And why are echoes sometime louder than their source?
"Ohhhhhhhhhhhhh," a message for the Intertwined faith community based on Job 38:1-11 & Mark 4:35-41. This message explores what it must have been like for the disciples of Jesus when asked to accompany him on a stormy boat ride, the difference between God's prosperity and "Disney prosperity" (aka the prosperity gospel), what to say to someone who is grieving, and what we'll all say when the questions God asked Job are answered.
"Who Will You Invite?," a message for the Intertwined community based on Acts 8:26-35. This message explores the interaction of Philip with the Egyptian eunuch and applies it to our culture. Isaiah 56 is also included in the discussion, as is our status as outsiders among most of our Christian siblings.
This message was modified from a sermon originally preached on May 30, 2021 for Christ Presbyterian Church in Camp Hill, PA.
"A Third Way from a Third Wheel," a message for the Intertwined faith community. Based on Luke 24:13-35, this message explores the encounter between Jesus and two travelers on the road to Emmaus. It includes discussion of the many distractions in our lives, how to pursue more intentional quiet, which Van Halen frontman was best, and how Jesus was able to find a third way in the face of false dichotomies.
"Trusting Other Voices," a sermon first preached at Wrightsville Presbyterian Church in Pennsylvania on July 3, 2022. Scripture text: 2 Kings 5:1-14 and Luke 10:1-20.
In this message we'll explore scripture passages about Elijah, Naaman, and an enslaved girl's wisdom, and also about Jesus sending pairs of his followers to begin spreading his message in nearby villages. Whose voices are we not listening to that we should?
This message explores Isaiah 24 and the relationship to current events, including the climate catastrophe, the invasion of Ukraine, and inflation.