Acts of the Apostles 10: 34-43 This excerpt is a confession of faith by first witnesses to the announcements of the resurrection of Jesus who feel compelled to testify to what they have heard and seen. OR Jeremiah 31: 1-6 … Continue reading →

THE LITURGY OF THE PALMS Matthew 21: 1-11 Jesus arrives in Jerusalem for the climax of his public ministry.  As Matthew reports the event, ancient expectations are fulfilled in very specific details.  Only Matthew’s narrative says that these details fulfill … Continue reading →

Ezekiel 37: 1-14 A poet prone to visions, Ezekiel finds himself in a valley littered with the bones of fallen fighters for Israel.  He lives in a time when the humiliated, defeated King and most of the people of Israel … Continue reading →

I Samuel 16: 1-13 Certain themes are under continuous re-telling and re-interpretation in the Hebrew scriptures.  In what is now called I Samuel, the editor re-tells the founding actions of God, compiling varying accounts with innovative variations.  In this episode, … Continue reading →

Exodus 17: 1-7 The memory of God’s miraculous deliverance from slavery in Egypt has evaporated in the heat and desolation of the desert.  At “Rephidim” God’s people demand water.  Moses takes their demand as an affront to his leadership and … Continue reading →

Genesis 12: 1-4a Crisp, direct phrases tell a story with far-reaching meanings: one man’s and one woman’s personal response have consequences for all of human history.  The Lord said to Abram and Sara “Go!”  And on a promise of future … Continue reading →

Genesis 2: 15-17; 3: 1-7 One task religions undertake is to explain human evil.  Borrowing from neighboring cultures and religions, this writer (“J”) tells a story of a time of original innocence between God and humankind.  But then divine prohibition, … Continue reading →

Exodus 24: 12-18 In the narrative of the Book of Exodus, the story of the Lord’s interaction with humankind reaches a highpoint.  The event is shrouded in “glory.”  A chosen leader, Moses, is the mediator and the designated recipient.  The … Continue reading →

Deuteronomy 30: 15-20 Robert Alter writes that in this thirtieth chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy, “the mythological and heroic era [which valued secret, esoteric knowledge from another world]…is at an end, for God’s word, inscribed in a book, has … Continue reading →

Isaiah 58: 1-9a, (9b-12) The text of the Book of Isaiah turns to a scathing indictment of the perversion (“rebellion”) of the purported faithfulness of God’s people.  The self-serving, self-aggrandizing religious customs and practices that humankind chooses “will not make your … Continue reading →