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. 18 In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures. 19 You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. 21 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. 22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. 23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; 24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. 25 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. 26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. 27 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.
Reflection
I've always had some problems with the book of James. James' notion of faith has always seemed so different than that which my Lutheran heritage taught me. (Martin Luther himself wasn't too keen on the book nor was my Literature of Old and New Testament prof.) I've always thought of James' faith as a work--a BIG no, no to Lutherans who understand God's grace as a gift which isn't something which is attainable rather something given by God alone in Christ alone. This week's reading, though, resonates quite well with the notion that because God gives grace, something compels us to do the same.
James tells us that we are the first fruits--God has created us and gifted us. James tells his readers, or hearers, to "understand" this. Verses 19-20: You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. Thinking back, there is probably something to that. God created humankind in God's own image--male and female! We know from verse 17 that God, according to James, is the bearer of good gifts, perfect and whole gifts. These are gifts without darkness and shadow. So, as images of God, as God's first-fruit--that is God's gift--we are supposed to listen before we speak, we are supposed to be slow to anger. We are supposed to know that our anger--towards ourselves or those different from us--does not make God's righteousness.
But, how then, do we act? How then, does God's righteousness come about?
Well, look into a mirror. What do you see? Do you look at yourself and see every flaw--every scar, blemish, crooked tooth? Do you see these and forget what you are like? Do you forget that you are fearfully and wonderfully made, created in the image of God? Do you walk away from the mirror and forget that God has created you and given you a world for which you can care?
23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; 24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like.
James preaches, not only the law which reminds us what we look like in the mirror, but also a law which sounds a little graceful. God creates us. God gives us to the world--to the orphans and widows or to whoever those marginalized in our current society might be. God doesn't require us to do things, but we are freed to do things for others. We are free because God has forgiven our every maliced glance in the mirror--through Jesus who erases our blemishes and restores us to what God created us to be--images of the divine, to be bearers of good gifts, to be beacons of light in the world. God in Jesus is what brings about righteousness.
25 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...27 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.
So, what? What does this "religion" tell us today? What does this tell the person who is looking for their place in the world? It tells you this: You have a place and that place is to hear the word that you are free because God loves you. It tells you this: You are free to look into the mirror and see that you have gifts, you are God's gift. It tells you this: You are surrounded by a world which will try to stain you, but care for those who are in the world anyway. It tells you this: Find the marginalized--those orphans and widows, those who are without food or family or the care of society--and care for them. To do this, you don't need to have the perfect job or any job, you don't need to have a bachelors or masters degree, you don't even need to have the right words to say. Remember, You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger...
My Prayer Today
Father of lights, giver of every good gift, thank you for freeing me to give. Help me to remember those who do not have what I have. Help me to hear their tribulations with mercy, not anger. Let all those who need a word a love become hearers and let all those who have heard become doers through the love of Christ and the work of your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Monday, August 27, 2012
Neither add nor take away...
Deuteronomy 4:1-9
So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. 2 You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.
3 You have seen for yourselves what the LORD did with regard to the Baal of Peor-- how the LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. 5 See, just as the LORD my God has charged me, I now teach you statutes and ordinances for you to observe in the land that you are about to enter and occupy.
6 You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" 7 For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? 8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today? 9 But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children.
Reflection
It is interesting (maybe upsetting) that the Revised Common Lectionary leaves out verses 3-5 when verse 2 told the Israelites to NOT take anything away from the commandments which the LORD was about to give through Moses (just, FYI, Moses is speaking these words to the Israelites). It seems that the verses following 2 just might pertain to those commandments and just might be worth reading. So, I copied 3-5 in italics, above. And, they are worth reading. Verse 5 tells us basic information: that the "statutes and ordinances," those are the laws Moses will be talking about, come from God, not Moses himself. It also says that these are for the Israelites to practice in the land that they will be going into and living.
Maybe more disconcerting and compelling are verses 3-4: 3 You have seen for yourselves what the LORD did with regard to the Baal of Peor-- how the LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. The lectionary took out the scary part, the part where God destroyed those who followed Baal. For a reference, some Israelites back in the day decided to "have relations" with Moabites. These relations led to Israelites making offerings and worshipping, Baal. This was a CLEAR violation of the first commandment, which is that God's people "should have no other gods."
There is some hope in this dark, depressing section, too: 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. There is something to be said of holding to the LORD, of trusting that the LORD God will bring the people (I venture to guess that all people are God's people) to the promised land. We, God's people, are told to neither add nor take away from that command to love and trust in God alone. The Israelites who worshiped Baal changed that command by putting their faith into another god. But, those who held fast, who trusted, were alive to hear this message Moses spoke. That message told the Israelites to take care of themselves by upholding the commandments which the LORD had given through Moses. In addition, the Israelites are told to remember what they have seen. This message isn't just about holding onto the promise of God's Word, but about remembering the experiences of faith.
What does this mean for us today? What about those of us who have spent years trying to figure out exactly what "land" God is leading us to? What about those of us who have observed heartache and felt left out of God's promise? What about those of us who cannot help but wonder if we ought to give into the temptation of following another god--maybe not the god Baal, but maybe a god that leads us away from doing what is right, something like a job that compromises our own ethics or a job that might hurt other people? What about us, who have kept as many commandments as we think we can but still have not been taken to our place in this land?
All I can say to those questions is that we are still here. In some way, we have held fast. Maybe others have held fast for us...actually, I'd say that the grace of God given in Christ Jesus has held us fast. I'd say that maybe there are other people, too, who helped keep us alive today by witnessing to that grace. Like the Israelites were commanded to make their story known to their children and children's children, people are here to make the story of God's love known to us. Things can be really crappy. We might be underpaid, unemployed, existing on ramen noodles and the generosity of friends/family, but we ARE here. We do have memories of faith--our own memories and those of generations past. When we are beyond desperation, when we are beyond hope of holding fast, we hear that constant message: "I am the Lord your God...you shall have no other gods." This means, as Martin Luther writes in the Small Catechism, "We are to fear, love, and trust God above anything else." Above all else--above all those fake job postings on Craig's List, above all those fruitless interviews, above all those things in the world of job-searching which get you down--above all that, trust that, "I am the Lord your God."
I can't say that you will find a job today or tomorrow. or that I will be extended a call next week or month or year. I can say that this text about Moses telling the Israelites to follow the commandments isn't just about law, it's about preserving that story that God chooses us and loves us.
Clearly, though we each likely falter and put faith and trust in things other than the LORD our God, our fate isn't that of the Israelites-turned-Baal-worshipers. We are still here. We remember our joys and sorrows regarding faith and the LORD our God. And, we remember that there is a long line of God's people who have passed down this story of God's love and they've done that for us. For those people who feed me with food and with that "great wisdom" of which Moses spoke, even in midst of those crappy things that get me down, I can't help but be thankful.
My Prayer Today
Lord, God of Moses and the Israelites, help me to hold fast to the story of your love. Give me the heart and mind to witness to that love in all I do. Guide me in this search for a job, for a vocation. Lead me to work in your name, for the sake of all your people. Thank you, today, for the memories of all those who have shared your love in the world. Amen.
So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. 2 You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.
3 You have seen for yourselves what the LORD did with regard to the Baal of Peor-- how the LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. 5 See, just as the LORD my God has charged me, I now teach you statutes and ordinances for you to observe in the land that you are about to enter and occupy.
6 You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" 7 For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? 8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today? 9 But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children.
Reflection
It is interesting (maybe upsetting) that the Revised Common Lectionary leaves out verses 3-5 when verse 2 told the Israelites to NOT take anything away from the commandments which the LORD was about to give through Moses (just, FYI, Moses is speaking these words to the Israelites). It seems that the verses following 2 just might pertain to those commandments and just might be worth reading. So, I copied 3-5 in italics, above. And, they are worth reading. Verse 5 tells us basic information: that the "statutes and ordinances," those are the laws Moses will be talking about, come from God, not Moses himself. It also says that these are for the Israelites to practice in the land that they will be going into and living.
Maybe more disconcerting and compelling are verses 3-4: 3 You have seen for yourselves what the LORD did with regard to the Baal of Peor-- how the LORD your God destroyed from among you everyone who followed the Baal of Peor, 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. The lectionary took out the scary part, the part where God destroyed those who followed Baal. For a reference, some Israelites back in the day decided to "have relations" with Moabites. These relations led to Israelites making offerings and worshipping, Baal. This was a CLEAR violation of the first commandment, which is that God's people "should have no other gods."
There is some hope in this dark, depressing section, too: 4 while those of you who held fast to the LORD your God are all alive today. There is something to be said of holding to the LORD, of trusting that the LORD God will bring the people (I venture to guess that all people are God's people) to the promised land. We, God's people, are told to neither add nor take away from that command to love and trust in God alone. The Israelites who worshiped Baal changed that command by putting their faith into another god. But, those who held fast, who trusted, were alive to hear this message Moses spoke. That message told the Israelites to take care of themselves by upholding the commandments which the LORD had given through Moses. In addition, the Israelites are told to remember what they have seen. This message isn't just about holding onto the promise of God's Word, but about remembering the experiences of faith.
What does this mean for us today? What about those of us who have spent years trying to figure out exactly what "land" God is leading us to? What about those of us who have observed heartache and felt left out of God's promise? What about those of us who cannot help but wonder if we ought to give into the temptation of following another god--maybe not the god Baal, but maybe a god that leads us away from doing what is right, something like a job that compromises our own ethics or a job that might hurt other people? What about us, who have kept as many commandments as we think we can but still have not been taken to our place in this land?
All I can say to those questions is that we are still here. In some way, we have held fast. Maybe others have held fast for us...actually, I'd say that the grace of God given in Christ Jesus has held us fast. I'd say that maybe there are other people, too, who helped keep us alive today by witnessing to that grace. Like the Israelites were commanded to make their story known to their children and children's children, people are here to make the story of God's love known to us. Things can be really crappy. We might be underpaid, unemployed, existing on ramen noodles and the generosity of friends/family, but we ARE here. We do have memories of faith--our own memories and those of generations past. When we are beyond desperation, when we are beyond hope of holding fast, we hear that constant message: "I am the Lord your God...you shall have no other gods." This means, as Martin Luther writes in the Small Catechism, "We are to fear, love, and trust God above anything else." Above all else--above all those fake job postings on Craig's List, above all those fruitless interviews, above all those things in the world of job-searching which get you down--above all that, trust that, "I am the Lord your God."
I can't say that you will find a job today or tomorrow. or that I will be extended a call next week or month or year. I can say that this text about Moses telling the Israelites to follow the commandments isn't just about law, it's about preserving that story that God chooses us and loves us.
Clearly, though we each likely falter and put faith and trust in things other than the LORD our God, our fate isn't that of the Israelites-turned-Baal-worshipers. We are still here. We remember our joys and sorrows regarding faith and the LORD our God. And, we remember that there is a long line of God's people who have passed down this story of God's love and they've done that for us. For those people who feed me with food and with that "great wisdom" of which Moses spoke, even in midst of those crappy things that get me down, I can't help but be thankful.
My Prayer Today
Lord, God of Moses and the Israelites, help me to hold fast to the story of your love. Give me the heart and mind to witness to that love in all I do. Guide me in this search for a job, for a vocation. Lead me to work in your name, for the sake of all your people. Thank you, today, for the memories of all those who have shared your love in the world. Amen.
Thursday, August 16, 2012
About This Blog
The title of this blog is "tous magous," which is Greek for, "the wisemen." I've always thought it sounded funny and I've spent a lot of time thinking about the magi. So, I called this blog, "tous magous." It has taken me years to figure out what this blog is about. This blog's purpose is to reflect on biblical passages (maybe some other things) in a devotional manner.
For some background, I'm a recent seminary graduate who is awaiting a call to a congregation (that's the church jargon for "a job as a pastor") in the ELCA (The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). I spent the past two and a half months looking for part-time work everywhere I could think of (from restaurants to churches of all denominations to dog-poop removal services). Every Sunday during those weeks, I agonized over not being able to preach. The texts for the week spoke differently to me as I was unemployed, no longer a student, homesick, and thinking about all of the loans I'd need to start paying back SOON. Then, it dawned on me: I could still work on the weekly readings that my seminary pals were preaching on and I could do it for people in circumstances similar to mine.
These reflections (hopefully, there will be three to four weekly reflections on the text for the following Sunday) are about and for those who are unemployed, underemployed,or discerning what the heck God is calling us to today.
For some background, I'm a recent seminary graduate who is awaiting a call to a congregation (that's the church jargon for "a job as a pastor") in the ELCA (The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America). I spent the past two and a half months looking for part-time work everywhere I could think of (from restaurants to churches of all denominations to dog-poop removal services). Every Sunday during those weeks, I agonized over not being able to preach. The texts for the week spoke differently to me as I was unemployed, no longer a student, homesick, and thinking about all of the loans I'd need to start paying back SOON. Then, it dawned on me: I could still work on the weekly readings that my seminary pals were preaching on and I could do it for people in circumstances similar to mine.
These reflections (hopefully, there will be three to four weekly reflections on the text for the following Sunday) are about and for those who are unemployed, underemployed,or discerning what the heck God is calling us to today.
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