February 23, 2014 - Epiphany 7A

Lectionary Readings

In the name of God- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

“You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy…Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” I was just hoping to make it through the day without thinking uncharitable thoughts towards others, but holiness and perfection? That’s a tall task. One of the aspects of Leviticus, and any of the Law-giving statements, that is often overlooked is their context. In this handful of verses from Leviticus, we find the refrain “I am the Lord your God” five times. What is easy to miss is that these passages about Law aren’t simply a “do” and “don’t” list. As I’ve said before, the Bible is not a book of directions, but instead is a book that provides direction. And most of these rules, if that’s how we read them, are fairly self-apparent: don’t lie, don’t cheat, don’t steal. Any godless society that is interested in having order could come up with a similar list of rules.

February 9, 2014 - Epiphany 5A

Lectionary Readings

In the name of God- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.

            Little giants, original copy, random order, crash landing. We all know oxymorons when we hear them. The word itself comes from a Greek phrase meaning “sharp dull.” We often use them as a way of expressing an illogical, but very real, contradiction. Sometimes, in the case of “military intelligence,” they are meant to poke fun. Other times they express the complexity of a situation, such as a “beautiful mess.” And still other oxymorons defy reason when two things that can’t possibly go together are, nevertheless, united- “virtual reality,” “sound of silence,” or “exact estimate.” Even though these phrases are funny and nonsense, we still know exactly what they mean when we hear them.