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Tag: Lectionary

Speaking of God in Suffering—Job 42:1-6, 10-17

In the Book of Job, the question of how we speak of God in the midst of suffering is at the forefront, which is where its significance for liberation theology is particularly found.

God’s Wisdom Through the Whirlwind—Job 38:1-7, 34-41

Human rulers like Job might imitate the rule of God, but God’s power goes beyond what they are capable of enacting.

Justice Silenced—Amos 5:6-7, 10-15

In evil days, justice can be stifled and the voice of the prudent can be silenced.

Discovering Integrity in the Son of Man—Job 1:1, 2:1-10; Psalm 26; Psalm 8; Hebrews 1:1-4, 2:5-12

Integrity is what we demand from others, aspire to in ourselves, and often fall short of. We fall short, but will find wholeness in the Son of Man.

The Book of Esther as Resistance to Ethnic Nationalism—Esther 7:1-6, 9-10; 9:20-22

The book of Esther deals with resisting ethnic violence in its ancient context and offers us tools for resisting white ethnic nationalism today.

Receiving the Kingdom as a Little Child—Mark 9:30-37

When we stop clinging to what we know and what we are, we can go out into the world without fear, insecurity, resentment, and judgment, as true Children of God. The image of a playing child helps us see alternatives to our childish attitudes.

The Politics of Victimhood and Shame—Mark 8:27-38 and Isaiah 50:4-9a

“Victimhood culture” has swept our nation in recent years where victimhood has become an identity to be ashamed of. However, Jesus teaches his followers to bear their victimhood without shame, just as he bore his own without shame.

Healing the Broken Social Body—Proverbs 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23; James 2:1-10, 14-17; Isaiah 35:4-7a; Mark 7:24-37

How is the riven social body, with its divisions between poor and rich, to be healed?

It’s Not About the Cake—Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23

The Pharisees were not wrong to question Jesus, but as much as we might want to empathize with them, to agree that there are simply certain things good people do not do, Jesus rejects human propriety as an orienting standard. Jesus is talking about the human heart, something Christians today also must consider.

The Land is Not Silent—Joshua 24:1-18

The witness of the land cannot be escaped. Whether in its memorials of divine faithfulness, or its testimony to our sins, it will not be silent.

Wisdom Over Folly—Ephesians 5:15-20

Sometimes politics is less about the leaders and more about whether communities choose to live together in wisdom or folly.

Pyrrhic Victories and the Bread of Life—2 Samuel 18:5-9, 15, 31-33; Psalm 130; Psalm 34:1-8; John 1:43-51

Victories can be devastating when they come at bitter cost. Yet both our losses and our costly victories are put into a new perspective when we take refuge in and receive the bread of God.