Lectionary Ruminations 2.5 is a further revision and refinement
of my Lectionary Ruminations and Lectionary
Ruminations 2.0. Focusing on The Revised Common Lectionary Readings
for the upcoming Sunday from New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible, Lectionary Ruminations 2.5 draws on over thirty years of pastoral
experience. Believing that the questions we ask are often more important
than any answers we find, without over reliance on commentaries, I intend with
sometimes pointed and sometimes snarky comments and Socratic like questions, to
encourage reflection and rumination for readers preparing to lead a Bible
study, draft liturgy, preach, or hear the Word. Reader comments are invited and
encouraged.
PREFACE:
There
are several options regarding the Readings. If you use the Jeremiah 31:1-6
Reading then you would usually use the Acts 10:34 Reading rather than the
Colossians 3:1-4 Reading. You may choose either John 20:1-18 or Matthew 28:1-10
as the Gospel Reading.
ACTS 10:34-43
10:34 What is the context of
this passage? To whom is Peter speaking? What would it mean if God did show
partiality?
10:35 What does “nation”
refer to? Does it refer to political realities or ethnic groups? What does it
mean to “fear” God? Is Peter referring to “God fearers?”
10:36-39 This reads like a brief
synopsis of the life and ministry of Jesus.
10:36 What is this message?
10:37 This message began in
Galilee. Where might it end?
10:38 What does it mean to be
anointed with the Holy Spirit? What is the difference between being anointed
with oil and being anointed with the Holy Spirit and power? Is not the Holy
Spirit the same thing as power?
10:39 Why is Judea
distinguished from Jerusalem? Why does Peter say Jesus was hung un a tree
rather than a cross?
10:40 The Easter
Proclamation! Note that God raised Jesus. Jesus did not rise by his
own power. How do you understand “allowed”?
10:41 What is the
significance of eating and drinking with the resurrected Christ? How does this
inform our practice and understanding of the Eucharist?
10:42 Who commanded “us”?
What is the difference, if any, between preaching and testifying?
10:43 What “prophets” is
Peter referring to?
JEREMIAH 31:1-6
31:1 At what time? How many
families of Israel will there be “at that time”?
31:2 What sword and what
wilderness? Is this a reference to the Exodus or something else?
31:3 Who is “him”? Who
is “you”? It your Bible provides them, be sure to check the textural
footnotes/apparatus.
31:4 How is Israel virgin? I
would like to see this dance of the merrymakers.
31:4-5 Is something silently
being contrasted here? Why all the “again”s? Samaria?
31:6 What do you know about
the hill country of Ephraim? Sentinels usually watch for
invaders. Why would sentinels call for a pilgrimage to Jerusalem?
31:1-6 I
am struggling to determine why anyone would choose this reading over Acts 10:34-43.
PSALM 118:1-2, 19-29
118:1-2 We have a call and
response here that could easily be used or adapted as a Call to Worship.
118:14 How shall Christians
read “salvation” in the Hebrew Scriptures?
118:15 Is the Psalmist quoting
a glad song of victory? Does our congregational singing sound like glad songs
or more like funeral dirges?
118:15-16
Why do we never read about the left hand of the LORD?
118:17 What are the deeds of
the LORD and how do we recount them?
118:18 What do you think was
the nature of the Psalmist’s punishment? Can some punishments be worse than
death?
118:19 What are, and where
are, the gates of righteousness? Note that “gates” is plural, not singular!
118:20 I would love to know
how you interpret this verse in light of verse 19. If there are many gates of
the righteous, why is there only one gate of the LORD?
118:21 Note the shift from
speaking of the LORD in the third person to speaking to the LORD in direct address.
118:22 Where and when will
Christians hear this verse again?
118:23 What is the LORD’s
doing? Why am I thinking of Billy Crystal?
118:24 What is the day the
LORD has made? How can we be glad in it? Like the first two verses,
this verse could be used or adapted as a Call to Worship, perhaps combined with
118:1-2, such as:
One:
O Give thanks to the LORD, for the LORD is good;
All: the
LORD’s steadfast love endures forever!
One: Let Israel say,
All: God’s
steadfast love endures forever.
One: This is the day that the LORD has made;
All: let
us rejoice and be glad in it.
One: Let us worship the LORD our God!
COLOSSIANS 3:1-4
3:1 Why the “So”? Why an
“if/then” statement even though the “then” is implicit? Is this raising a
reference to baptism or the final resurrection? What are the things
that are above? Regarding the right hand of God, see Psalm
118:15-16.
3:2 Does it make any
difference that the admonition refers to the mind rather than the heart? What
does it mean to “Set your mind”? What things are above and what things are on
the earth? How do we read this in light of a round earth?
3:3 How have we died? What
does it mean that your life is hidden?
3:4 I thought Christ has
already been revealed in the life and ministry of Jesus. Must this,
by necessity, refer to the final resurrection at the end of the age?
JOHN 20:1-18
20:1 What is the first day
of the week? What does it mean that it was still dark? How
did Mary see that the stone had been removed from the tomb if was still dark?
20:2 Let’s speculate about
the identity of the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. From
the context, I think we can rule out Peter. Whom might Mary have
meant by “they”? Why does Mary say, “we do not know”? If
she was not alone, who was with her?
20:3 Do we ever set out and
head toward the tomb?
20:4 Poor Peter the
slowpoke, slow to run, quick to speak. Maybe he was not a faster runner because
he was always sticking his foot in his mouth.
20:5 Why did the other
disciple not go in?
20:6 Peter might be slow but
he is not hesitant.
20:7 What is the
significance to the wrapping from the head being folded and not with the other
wrappings? Why mention it if it is not significant?
20:8 I find it interesting
that in reference to Peter, there is no mention of him believing. In
this passage, it is this “other disciple” that is the first to “believe,” but
what did he believe?
20:9 Did the other disciple
believe that Jesus had been raised, that the tomb was indeed empty, or that
someone (they of verse 2) had taken the Lord out of the tomb? What is the
difference between knowing and understanding the scripture? What scripture is
being referred to?
20:10 This is a pretty
anticlimactic verse. I am glad the story does not end here.
20:11 Why did the disciples
abandon Mary, leaving her all alone? Were they simply being typical men? Why
did Mary remain rather than departing with the two disciples? Why did Mary
apparently not look into the tomb until the disciples had left? Note
that both Mary and the other disciple (John 20:5) had to bend over to look into
the tomb?
20:12 How shall we moderns,
or post-moderns, deal with angels when we encounter them in Scripture? Why had
Peter and the other disciple not seen any angels?
20:13 Did the angels speak in
unison? Apparently Mary is still convinced that someone has taken and moved the
body of Jesus to another location.
20:14 How could, and why
would, Mary not recognize Jesus?
20:15 Both Jesus and the Angels
(John 20:13) address Mary in the same way and ask the same question, but Jesus
asks even more than the angels asked. Where else, when else, and who
else has Jesus addressed as “Woman”? How could Mary confuse the risen Christ for
the gardener?
20:16 After having first
addressed her as “Woman”, Jesus now address Mary by name and she calls him
“Rabbouni” rather than “gardener”. Does the risen Christ ever address us by
name?
20:17 Why would Jesus say
this? Was Mary attempting to grab hold of him or had she already done
so? What do you make of Jesus talking about not yet having ascended? What
is the meaning of “brothers”? Why “I am ascending” rather than “I
will ascend”? Must this have been written from a post ascension perspective?
20:18 Does this make Mary the
first post resurrection witness? Preacher? Evangelist? Perhaps, in recognition
of the role played by Mary, the first words of any Easter liturgy ought to be
spoken by a woman!
MATTHEW 28:1-10
28:1 What is different in
this account compared to John’s account? How do we account for the
differences? Do the differences matter? Who was “the other Mary”?
28:2 I will repeat the same
question as above. Does the rolling away of the stone “cause” the
earthquake? Might the earthquake be symbolic of something else? Did
the two Mary actually see the stone being rolled away?
28:3 What do we usually
associate lightning and snow with?
28:4 Are there any other
occurrences in Scripture where an angel caused so much fear that people acted
dead?
28:5 When and where else
have we heard an angel say “Do not be afraid”? Did the angel want the guards to
be afraid?
28:6 Does seeing an empty
tomb prove that Jesus was raised? If your Bible provides it, not the textual
variant.
28:7 Why were the women not
permitted to see the resurrected Jesus at the tomb? Why did the
disciples have to go to Galilee to see the resurrected Jesus? Why did the angel
send this message through the Mary’s rather than also appearing before the
disciples?
28:8 How often in your
experience has fear been accompanied by great joy? Why are the two Mary fearful
when the angel told them not to be afraid?
28:9 Note that here, unlike in
John 20:17, the women are allowed to take hold of Jesus. What is so
special about “feet”? Had anyone in the Gospel, prior to this point, worshiped
Jesus? Had anyone in this Gospel, prior to this, taken hold of Jesus’ feet?
28:10 Note that this time it
is Jesus, not an angel, who says “Do not be afraid”? What are we
afraid of when it comes to Easter, Jesus, and the resurrection?
ADDENDUM
I am a Minister Member of Upper Ohio Valley Presbytery of the
Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and am serving as the Interim Pastor of the
Richmond United Presbyterian Church, Richmond, Ohio. Sunday Worship at Richmond
begins at 11:00 AM. Some of my other blog posts have appeared on PRESBYTERIAN BLOGGERS and The
Trek.
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