Exodus | Hungry people, heaven’s bread

The whole congregation of the Israelites complained, saying, “If only we had died by God’s hand in Egypt, where we sat by the stew pots and ate our fill of bread; but you have brought us out into this wilderness to kill the whole assembly with hunger.” (Exodus 16:2-3)

Once upon a time, there was a pastor who was beginning to feel stagnant, and stale, and trapped. She waited and waited for God to open the door of a small inner-city church; but at last, and to her shock, God called her to serve a regional crowd instead. “Who am I to do this?” she asked as she doubted and wrestled and argued with God. Finally, however, she obeyed; and she moved and began working among the people there. But after a year or so of people gathering and growing, and miracles abounding, she began to grumble. Continue reading “Exodus | Hungry people, heaven’s bread” →

Matthew, Exodus | Seventy-seven leads to hell or heaven

What causes suffering when we do not forgive? (Listen.)

Let me start by admitting that, on first reading, tonight’s texts terrify me. From the Hebrew Bible we heard that the Lord threw the Egyptian army into panic. They decided to flee, but before they could get away, the Lord ordered Moses to stretch out his hand over the sea so that the waters would return; and then ‘the Lord tossed the Egyptians into the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and chariot drivers, the entire army of Pharaoh … not one of them remained’ and the Israelites saw the dead wash up on the shore (Ex. 14:26-30). Continue reading “Matthew, Exodus | Seventy-seven leads to hell or heaven” →

Matthew | Go and point out the fault. But how?

If another member of the faith community sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. (Matthew 18:15)

I hate conflict, but I know I am not alone. And while it’s all very well for Jesus to tell us to point out faults, the question we’re left with is … how? That is, how do we approach someone without damaging relationship further? Continue reading “Matthew | Go and point out the fault. But how?” →

Matthew | The rigours and joys of love

Turning towards one another inevitably leads to conflict, and that means work. (Listen.)

When I was in my mid-twenties, I returned to the church. It wasn’t exactly a return to paradise. Instead, I found myself in conflict after conflict after conflict. I’d use the wrong word and someone would give me the silent treatment. I’d be unable to stand up to someone else, and feel trampled and angry. I’d bear the brunt of a third person’s rage, or be enraged myself at their all-too-obvious hypocrisy or rejection of gospel living. Quite frankly, there were times when I hated them all. And I hated them because I had absolutely no tools to deal with minor hurts or aggressions or conflicts. Continue reading “Matthew | The rigours and joys of love” →

Psalms | Slow reading | At dawn I plead

Why did God wait hundreds of years to free Israel? And why weren’t my urgent prayers answered? If Jesus was God incarnate why did he cry out in forsakenness? Wasn’t God with him on the cross? In fact, wasn’t it God on the cross What does it mean for us to be made in God’s image and filled with God’s breath? Is this God’s presence within us and among us? In times of suffering, is the divine spark all we ever get?
Continue reading “Psalms | Slow reading | At dawn I plead” →

Exodus | The God of freedom

The God of freedom calls us to shape the future through our collective choices. (Listen.)

At the burning bush, Moses asks God’s name. God replies, “Ehyeh asher Ehyeh.” Thanks to a long history of translation, from Hebrew to Greek to Latin to English, and thanks to the Greek philosophical tradition which has shaped our language and worldview, this is usually translated as “I am who I am.” We come away with an idea of God as a timeless, unchangeable essence, as far from the mess of human life as possible. Continue reading “Exodus | The God of freedom” →

Exodus | Agents of joyful rebellion

The story of exodus points to the joy-filled possibilities of civil disobedience. (Listen.)

Have you heard of the Singing Revolution? Day after day, Estonians gathered to raise their outlawed flag, sing their national songs, and peacefully protest Russia’s violent occupation. After five years, a million people were regularly gathering and singing, such a vast, joy-filled experience I can barely imagine it: and eventually, the Russians left. Continue reading “Exodus | Agents of joyful rebellion” →

Matthew | Aiming for ripeness

Be mature, therefore, as your heavenly Father is mature. Beware of practising your piety before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward. (Matthew 5:48-6:1)

Perfection is a Greek concept, evoking the Platonic ideal. It suggests something unreachable, unattainable, unchanging, and removed from the mess of life. “Be ye perfect,” says Jesus, and when I hear this a little something within me dies. Perfectionism, self-flagellation and hypercriticism run deep in my family story, and so I wasted years worrying that I am not good enough, or doing enough, for God. Continue reading “Matthew | Aiming for ripeness” →

Matthew | Redeeming Joshua

In his encounter with the Canaanite woman, Jesus repeats then repents of Joshua’s policy of no mercy. (Listen.)

Good to know: Jesus’ name is the English rendition of the Greek version of a Hebrew name which in English is rendered Joshua! Yeshua – Iesous – Jesus – Joshua: they’re all the same name.

‘I’m from one of the oldest families,’ he said. ‘We’ve been here since the beginning.’ And with that he effectively erased 60,000 years of continuous living culture, just as his Irish ancestors had tried to erase the people from the land. He’s a lovely guy, straightforward and well-meaning, and totally oblivious to what he had just done. Continue reading “Matthew | Redeeming Joshua” →

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