Faith, Grace, and Hope

The appointed gospel reading for 12/28: Matthew 2:13-18 13 Now after  [ the wise men ]  had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.”  14 Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt,  15 and remained there until the death of Herod. This was to fulfill what had been spoken by the Lord through the prophet, “Out of Egypt I have called my son.”    16 When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated, and he sent and killed all the children in and around Bethlehem who were two years old or under, according to the time that he had learned from the wise men.  17 Then was fulfilled what had been spoken through the prophet Jeremiah:   18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,   wailing and loud lamentation,  Rachel weeping for her children;   she refused to be console

The Narrative Lectionary reading for this week is:  Ezra 1:1-4; 3:1-4, 10-13 These thoughts were written for the 10W podcast for the week of 12/13. Please find this podcast here .            In this space, those of us who record this podcast usually offer a very short homily- some theological thoughts. I beg your indulgence to let me offer some personal thoughts this time. The book of Ezra is very difficult for me to read in one short bit, as in today’s reading.             It is a deeply emotional and theological book. The beginning of the book details the return from the exile of the people of Judah. This return, however, is one of deeply mixed emotions. There are people who were left behind in Jerusalem who do not know those who are returning. There are Jews who remained in Babylon, not remembering or having a relationship with Judah- the land or the people. There are non-Jews, Gentiles, who now also reside in Jerusalem or who have taken ownership and care of t

Cross-posted at RevGalBlogPals as a Friday Prayer. The truncated tree of Leah, Tamar, Rahab, and Ruth shall sprout, New growth shall come from their roots. The spirit of the Lord shall rest on the One who comes,     the spirit of discernment and patience,     the spirit of thoughtfulness and strength,     the spirit of deep awareness of the power of the Lord. The One will find joy in the awe-inspiring work of the Lord. The Messiah shall not judge by what eyes see,     or decide by what ears hear; but the poor will be seen through honest lenses,     and decisions for equity will be made for the humble of heart and spirit; The words of the Savior will cut through the bullshit of worldly powers,     Those who oppose his goodness will be slain by grace. The torso of the One who is to come will be garbed in justice,     With decency and commitment as a lower garment. The Black Lives Matter activists shall be welcomed by the police unions,     t