"The 1619 Project" a Reaction

  The 1619 Project

Nikole Hannah-Jones

It has been said, “History is written by the winners”.  Having studied and taught  World and US History, Political Science, and International Affairs for longer than I care to admit, I would edit that to read, History is written, edited, taught, mythologized and internalized by the winners. It becomes our national imaginaries, how we see ourselves and, therefore, very hard to change or maybe even question. This book is evidence, however, that the losers also have a history that is carried with them, a way that they too see themselves and their country. I believe that when the winners ignore the history of others, they do so to their own detriment. For good or bad the losers’ history percolates beneath the surface. It may emerge in bits or break through in the established culture, sometimes subtly and unnoticed - sometimes aggressively challenging the status quo. 

The marginalized have always “written” their history. In the past it had been easier for the winners  to control it, either burying it or absorbing useful bits into the popular imaginary. In our technological era, though, most anyone can be heard. The history of the marginalized can be shared globally before it is buried, reworked or conveniently absorbed. It sets there for all to see as an alternative account of what has transpired, as a contrast to the history written by the winners.

What do we do with this history of the marginalized, the history that may conflict with the myth we have created? It can no longer be ignored. Do we,

-Label it a lie?

-Call it a distortion of the truth?

-Acknowledge it but suggest that it will be too problematic to teach it or create public

  policy to positively address it?

-Treat it with as much validity as the history written by the winners and attempt to deal

  positively with it?

I used to teach my students that everyone has a national imaginary about their country. It has developed from the history they were taught and experienced as they grew and gained greater experiences. It drives individuals’ attitudes and level of public participation whether that be in civic matters, ideas about culture, community involvement, global attitudes, attitudes about the natural world, or economic perspectives., possibly even in religion. It is not infrequent that we encounter others who face a dissonance between their personal imaginary, history and that created by winners. How we respond to those who have another history to tell will, I think, play a large role in how successfully we increase or decrease the well-being of ourselves, and our fellow citizens, both in our own country and in the world.

A Righteous Branch

 Jeremiah 23: 1-6

A Reading for Christ the King Sunday

“A righteous branch … will deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land …The Lord is our righteousness.”

Jeremiah preaches against the people of Israel and Judah in images of human connections; unfaithful spouses, unfaithful children, cheating neighbors, as well as worship of personal idols. We can get lost in the weeds of specific (pet) sins that we find particularly bad, but I don’t think that is the point here. Jeremiah reveals a “core” problem which is reflected in the way people were treating not just God, but each other; how they (we) treated, or ignored, the marginalized and how they (we) tried to take advantage of each other for personal gain. 

The issue is self-interest, me first living. The specific sin is different for each person, but the core problem is the same; tension between God and tension among ourselves created by our self-interest (sin). The problems this kind of living causes are clear throughout the Bible. 

Into this, Jeremiah is moved to proclaim hope. Hope that one will emerge who will be righteous (God-interested and other-interested) One who will not deal with the people (us) in a self-interested way; rather, whose core will be God-interested and other-interested. The righteousness of that one will become our righteousness. A new Adam appears; Christ is our righteousness, our righteous branch.

This Sunday is Christ the King Sunday. We celebrate that we have one who would transform us to people who are God-interested, people who live justice for others and for God’s creation. 

Aside:

I have come to use the term self-interest as synonymous with the term sin because today society doesn’t really think in terms of “sin”, but self-interest is something we all get. It is the bedrock (the idol?) of modern culture; the self-made man, the individual, personal responsibly, personal rights… It is the language of our economics, our politics, our personal relationships. But, self-interest as one’s only or primary guide can lead to all sorts of things, some not so positive. It seemed only logical, then, to continue that motif when talking about our relationship to God, or maybe God’s will for a relationship with us. I have often been heard to comment that Jesus boiled down God’s law to; Love God - Love others. Thus, you will hear me refer to God-interest - Other-interest. I started thinking about this several years ago as a result of a discussion in my Issues in Economics class. We were discussing the concept of self-interest in economics, and a young lady asked the question, “ Would you say that the original sin (Adam and Eve) was self-interest?” Wow, from the mouths of children. I have found this a useful way to look at my life and with which to understand Scripture. I hope you can get some use out of it as well. 

Some thoughts on Justice

 

What is Justice?

The devotion I read this morning was based on Amos 5 which has some pretty strong accusations against a culture that is both successful and religious, a culture which sounds a bit like ours with its flourishing economy, recreational life-style and nods to public religiosity. Lately, I have been playing with the idea of God’s justice and what it means to be righteous, so several passages in this and surrounding chapters jumped out at me.

    “Ah, you that turn justice to wormwood, and bring righteousness to the ground!”

     “...who afflict the righteous, take bribes and push aside the needy in the gate” 

    “Seek good and not evil,...establish justice in the gate.”

    “...,I despise your festivals,...the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals I will not look upon.”

    “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” 

    “But you have turned justice into poison and the fruit of righteousness into wormwood”

It seems to me that we often expect (want?) God to mete out justice on the “unrighteous”, assuming that we are the righteous and others are the ones who deserve God’s justice, the ones who have sinned in ways that we find to be particularly egregious. But, as I read scripture, I find two ways of seeing God’s justice. One is a reference to judgement, but the other and possibly the one that pops up more is something quite different. In this second way of seeing justice, God’s people (and creation?) get what is needed, protection, shelter, necessitates of life, and it appears that God expects those who have been blessed with greater abundance to carry it out- make sure that it happens. Is this, then, a glimpse of what it means to be righteous, to be just; applying our blessings to the welfare of others, not taking advantage of the weak, rather helping the weak, caring about the marginalized?

In Amos, the writer charges the people with turning this idea of justice on its head. Those who had power seem to have considered it justice to take advantage of those not as well off, and to mock those who would act righteously. Are they presenting their wealth and power as evidence of their righteousness? (And possibly the others lack of it as their just desert?) The writer declares that God doesn’t want these “offerings of well-being” Rather, God wants people to live justly with each other as their worship - their sacrifice.

“Let justice roll down like water and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”

Shout Above the Din, Matthew 20:29-34

 Matthew 20: 29-34

Shouting Above the Din

This is the account of Jesus healing the two blind men who were along the roadside near Jericho. Our initial attention is drawn to the miracle or to the faith for healing displayed by the two men. Something else, or in addition, drew my attention this morning. It must have been fairly loud for the men to have had to shout out to Jesus, and then they were possibly drowned out by the stern warning of others who wanted Jesus’ attention. They shouted even louder though in order to be able to "see". Jesus responded to them and then they acted as well. They followed him.

We too are surrounded by shouting, and often we are among those adding to the din, but are our shouts calls to Jesus to enable us to “see”? Do we, as the blind men did, shout over the other concerns and worries to call on Jesus to give us sight, or understanding? When I am granted that sight, do I respond and recommit to God’s way as these men did, or do I respond by thinking, well, that’s just too hard for me, or that’s not the way I want life to be? 

Most of us are not physically blind, but we all at times are spiritually blind, and that blindness always has its beginnings in ourselves. Do we really want to “see”?  we willing to shout over the din and the warnings of others to be quiet in order to see what God’s way is really about? And, when we do persist and hear the answer to our shouts, are we ready to daily follow Jesus?

Luther advises us to daily remember out baptism, to drown the old Adam so that each day a new man comes forth. Sometimes the cares, worries, and anger surrounding us mean that we have to shout above the din or our own making as those blind men did to see how that new man can walk (follow) in Jesus way. 

Psalm 146

 Psalm 146

Praise God who loves the marginalized; one of which is me!

The psalm appointed for this coming Sunday is very straight forward. 

Praise God who:

-executes justice for the oppressed

-gives food to the hungry

-sets prisoners free

-opens the eyes of the blind

-lifts those who are bowed down

-loves the righteous

-watches over strangers

-upholds the widow and the orphan

I have been blessed in such a way that I haven’t found myself in many of the above categories, at least not physically. But from a spiritual aspect, I find myself often in a number of them. God deals with us on both levels. 

In Matthew 22, Jesus said that the law of God boils down to two things; love God + love others. When God loves others, this psalm shows us what that looks like. What does it look like when I (you) love the other, the marginalized, the hard to love? 

All In, Additional Thoughts

 All In, 2

Mark12: 41-44

“…they contributed out of their abundance.”

“…she put in everything she had” 

I have been thinking about stewardship lately as I am preparing some thoughts to share at church about stewardship and education. When I came across this text for this morning’s devotion, I couldn’t help but see some implications. Earlier this year I ran across this account in Luke so I’m drawing on some of what I wrote at that time. When we think about stewardship, we think about giving, especially in terms of money, but also in terms of time and talent, It is so easy to sit down, with all good intentions, and look at our budgets, our calendars, take talent and interest inventories…. However, I think we all know that it begins with our hearts. Some might call it a mind set, but I think that it’s deeper than that. I also think that many, at least this is true for me, assume that since we are looking at ways to improve our stewardship, then our hearts are “in the right place”. But, what about stewardship of my heart, of my relationship to God and God’s community? How can I develop that more completely.

And here we have the example of the poor widow; she had developed stewardship of her heart of her very being. Notice in the account that Jesus doesn’t necessarily look down on those who had given larger sums of money. Rather, he points out a difference in motivation, maybe self-perception of where one stands in that individual’s relationship with God and God’s community. And it begs the question, with how much of my self-interest am I willing to trust God? Jesus said, “love God; love others” intimating that the rest will take care of itself. 

In my earlier thoughts on this account, I had written that the poor widow was “all in” in her understanding, her perception of her relationship with God. Her contribution was not an act of religious obligation she had planned and was now fulfilling. It was a natural extension of who she was, a natural response to being in a relationship. There were no boxes to tick off for her; tithed, check; went to church so many times, check; participated in x number of service events, check…

So, try beginning to think about stewardship with this question. With how much of my self-interest am I ready to trust God? The answer to that could leave us feeling rather low. But the good news is that God in Christ meets us, self-interest and all, where we are, and God’s Spirit guides us to growth. Jesus did not look down on the contributions of the more wealthy, yet he directed us to the attitude of the poor widow that prompted her contribution. Let’s strive to be “all in” in our relationship with God and God’s community and the rest will flow. 

Two Gems

 Today, I was reminded of two gems that my church has given me, actually to all.  One, is the use of the Lectionary, coordinated weekly and daily readings from Scripture, and two, Dr. Luther's teachings on baptism. Boring stuff right? But not necessarily, and how do they go together? 

The devotion I read this morning was based on Luke 18:18-39 chosen to go with last Sunday's assigned lesson from Luke 14. The title is "Riches Reimagined" The recent Sunday lessons have shown us a Sabbath attitude, honoring God by honoring, loving our neighbor, as how our lives look when we are committed to Christ - to the community of God. Then in this past Sunday's lesson Jesus talked about the cost of being committed. You might think he would talk about how others will treat his committed followers, but here he says something quite different. He said I should give up my self-interest, the attitude of possessing; owning/controlling people, things, ideas... But he also talked about benefits and I like the way the writer of this devotion put it,

"He wasn't promising worldly riches, but the boundless wealth of true community in the kingdom of God. Finding that depth of community can entirely rewrite our priorities."

But, daily, I sin and fall back into my self-interests; me, me, me... Enter Dr. Luther who encourages us to daily call on the grace of our baptism. "... that (daily) the Old Adam... be drowned and die ... and that a new man should daily emerge and arise..."

I don't know that I would have stumbled on these readings as a continued thought without the help of the lectionary, and when I acknowledge that I daily fall into living for self, I have Dr. Luther's reminder to daily call on God's grace in my baptism. 

Encouragement In A Time Of Tension

 Thoughts on the week’s readings 8/16/22

It is Friday, and it has been another week of heightened tensions fueled by our ever-present narrow self-interest. Reading this morning’s devotion, 1Peter 4: 7 - 11, I thought back over several of the readings that I have encountered this week and I was both chastised and heartened. The tensions we experience in our world and in our personal lives never are generated from God. Think about it; at some level they are all connected to people, including ourselves,  thinking about themselves, their prestige, power, position in society, wants, perceived needs, money, time, fairness, the list can go on. We disagree, we get ugly, we fight over how we think our self-interests should be met or protected. At best, it gets tiring and at worst, it gets destructive. 

And all the time, there is God willing us to be at peace to be in harmony within the very existence of God. Jesus put it so simply, “love God; love others”. So here is some encouragement and a little chastisement that I gleaned out of several of my readings this week, paraphrased just a bit in places.

Proverbs 25: 6-7

Don’t think more highly of yourself than you should.

Psalm 112;

Happy are those who honor the Lord… they are like a light, they are generous, merciful,…they deal generously… they have distributed freely.

BUT

The wicked watch this and are angered by their actions.

Hebrews 13:1-8, 15,16

Let mutual love continue…show hospitality to strangers…keep free from the love of money…share what you have. This way of living is what God intends for us.

Luke 14: 1, 8-14

Take the lowest, most humble place among others…don’t give special notice to those who can repay you or from whom you will benefit. Instead, pay attention to the marginalized in society. 

1 Peter 4: 7-11

Maintain constant love for others…be hospitable without complaining,…serve one another with whatever gift you have been given

SO THAT

God, in Jesus, is glorified in all things.

The chastisement? It’s not about me!

The good news? It’s not about me, it’s about God 

All In!

Based on Luke 21:1-4 (and following verses)

The Widow’s offering

I somehow picked the wrong readings for the week from the lectionary, I’ll blame it on bifocals. But I went with them and I got a new, at least for me, insight on a well known account of Jesus. In this account, all kinds of people were at the temple to give their offerings, yet Jesus points out this woman who had just a small gift. He then compares her giving to that of the others who,  “… gave out of their abundance, but she gave out of her poverty”. And, we get the lesson that we should respond to God out of gratitude, or some form of that. At least that is the lesson I have been exposed to in past readings. 

I got thinking about this story through the lens of God-interest/other-interest as opposed to self-interest. The story isn’t really about making an offering, maybe not even about responding to God, rather it’s about who I am. By standards of wealth, the widow had nothing, and the amount that she gave was insignificant in terms of helping raise funds. She gave because it was a reflection of who she was, a participant in God’s community; I have, so I give to others, to God. It didn’t seem to be a question. She was, all in, her life in harmony with God. She didn’t keep a ledger of how much she should do or keep for herself. She gave all.

The others gave as well, and given that Jesus follows this illustration with comments about the temple, the physical representation of the church at that time, the institution, all of the ceremonies and rules, I would assume that they were tithing. The “rules” would have indicated that in order to be a good follower of God, you were required to give, so much, or perform this act… I would guess that they believed they were doing what was expected some, I’m sure, with grateful hearts. 

I don’t think that Jesus was trying to denigrate their offerings. Rather, could he have been directing us to think about practicing a religion in which we institutionalize God, putting God in a manageable box so we can tick off our requirements of God-interest while reserving other areas for self-interest, versus living within the realm of God where God-interest and other-interest (the two tables of the Law) permeate our entire lives? Maybe this account is not about giving or attitudes about giving, but rather about how we live in relationship with God. 

The others “practiced” their religion following what they accepted as the required acts, possibly with sincerity. The widow, on the other hand, was “all in” living in harmony with God within the existence that is God. What a world it could be if we all were all in within the realm of God. 

Living Clamorously Foolish?

 Thoughts on Psalm 148

Today is the 5th Sunday of Easter and the appointed Psalm is 148.

This is a familiar praise psalm, one of the ones in which the writer calls on all of nature both animate and inanimate to praise God. It is a fairly straight forward message, so looking to understand it a bit more, I looked up what Hebrew word was used for praise. I’m not at all familiar with Hebrew, but this is what I found. The word used for praise was  hallal and it could have several intentions; to boast, to shine, to celebrate are a few. We simply use the word praise which brings to mind participating in some type of corporate worship. I think that this can create in us a sense of compartmentalizing our relationship to God. But, hallal , for me anyway, broadens what that means. Look at the psalm, the writer urges all of God’s creation to praise, to shine (reflect God?) to celebrate, to boast, I think to reflect the joy and the goodness of God. This is not confined to a corporate worship moment, but it strikes me as a way of existing in God. Our lives are not compartmentalized into secular and spirit; we exist either living (joyfully) within the realm of God or living in tension with God within the realm of God. That tension is always rooted in my self-interest, putting my interests for my well-being before God and before others. 

In Psalm 148 the writer invites us let down our self-interest guard, to let go of the tension and exist in the realm of God in joy. One use of hallal that I found interesting is “to be clamorously foolish”. I think that would be what people would think of us if we lived lives of joyful God-interest and other-interest; joyfully putting the interests of others before my own interests. In Romans 12 Paul describes characteristics of living as Christians and the section revolves around love. I like one particular passage in that section in which he says “Outdo one another in showing honor (love).”  What a world that would be! What a world it is as we shine within the realm of God living clamorously foolish lives.

From Fishermen to Shepherds

 From Fishermen to Shepherds

John 21: 1-19

This past Sunday was the Third Sunday of Easter and for some the Gospel Lesson was from John 21. This is the account of Jesus meeting the disciples on the shore after they have gone back to fishing and his subsequent conversation with Peter. I have always liked this account, a natural meeting of friends along a beach in the early morning. I have previously looked at this as one more example of Jesus revealing himself after death, and or course, the significant “Do you love me” conversation with Peter. This morning, though, something else struck me. Something “hidden in plain sight” as it were. 

In the absence of Jesus and his immediate teaching and actions, in the absence of a sense of where they should go from here, the disciples returned to what they knew, to what gave them purpose prior to meeting Jesus. They went fishing. Using their talents to provide for themselves was what they (we) were trained to do. It was how one survived and provided for personal and family well-being. Re-enter Jesus, providing an abundance of fish and a breakfast of bread and fish. Then comes the conversation with Peter (with each of us), and Jesus refocuses Peter(us) from fisherman to shepherd; from ones who gather, produce, create to get what we need for our own well-being to ones who receive from God’s abundance what we need as we feed,  tend, care for others (and God’s creation). 

This line of thinking can lead us into self-examination. How do I use the resources with which I have been blessed? Am I fishing to provide for self or am I shepherding to help others? What kind of existence do I lead when I take my focus off of Jesus and revert to “what I know”, to self-interest, forgetting that God’s abundance is enough for me, forgetting that my focus should be first on God and then on others? 

Here’s the good news, Every time I fall into this fishing focus on life, there is Jesus, standing on the shore with breakfast prepared in abundance to sustain me for the work of shepherding, of feeding and tending his creation and for life in God’s community.

How will you shepherd today?

Self Interest doesn't have the Last Word! Good Friday Reflections

 Thoughts on a Good Friday

Good Friday Reflections on Luke 23

This a long introduction, but stay with me.

One of the courses I used to teach was Issues in Economics. This was an upper level seminar style class in which we learned about the basics of economics and then played with various social, political, and moral issues which are impacted by economic theories, practices, and policies. It was always a small group of motivated students and our discussions were usually quite interesting. One young lady’s comment and our ensuing discussion has since stayed with me and become a kind of lense through which I often look at Scripture and my life. 

Without going into great detail, our economic system is based to a great degree on self-interest, the idea that an individual will try to maximize actions to his or her advantage and achieve a greater level of well-being. The theory, roughly, goes that when individuals practice self-interest, other’s well-being will also be enhanced.  The problem comes in when conflicts occur between individual’s self-interests, or when individuals or groups advance their self-interests at the expense of others or the environment. I think you get the idea. But, here is what struck me about this particular discussion. We were getting into the possible pros and cons of this topic when one young lady came out with this. “So, could we say that narrow self-interest was the original sin?” The economics class, just turned into a religion class. (This was a Lutheran high school), and the ensuing discussion became one of the lenses through which I have since read scripture and practice self-examination. 

Enter Good Friday, 2022 and my reading of Luke 23. Here I was struck by the people’s accusations, and the way in which they reflected self-interest. Their argument was that Jesus was disrupting the status quo. His teachings were threatening their sense of how things should be done so that they could maximize their own well-being. The solution? Get rid of this person, misrepresent what he had actually taught.  Do violence to the one who would threaten their self-interest, their power, their comfort, their plans for changing the regime. Look at their accusations and the record ,though.

Accusation: We found this man perverting the nation!

Jesus: (Luke 6:27ff)

Love your enemies - do good to those who hate you - bless those who curse

you - pray for those who abuse you - do good and lend expecting nothing in 

return- be merciful as your Father is merciful.

Accusation: He forbids us to pay taxes to the emperor!

Jesus: (Luke 20:20ff)

Give to the emperor, things that are the emperor’s and to God the things that 

are God’s.

Accusation: He stirs up the people by his teaching!

Jesus: (Matt. 5:9)

Blessed are the peacemakers.

(Luke 10:36ff)

Which of them was neighbor?…’The one who showed mercy.’ Go and do

likewise. 

Instead of asking for a man of peace, a man who was living according to God’s way, showing what life in God’s community is like, and in order to protect their self-interests, the people not only called for Jesus death, they also chose Barabas, an insurrectionist, to be freed, reinforcing their desire to promote and protect their interests. 

Jesus’ life showed us how it is to live in the realm of God, to be within God’s community, and he did it perfectly because we aren’t able. But, his life also showed us what to expect not only from those around us but even from ourselves when we engage in thinking and living in God’s way. God, in Jesus, calls us to live God-interested (First table of the Law) and other-interested (Second table of the Law). How often have we marginalized others or gifts of God in order to justify, protect or advance our own narrow self-interest? How have we thought about or treated others who by their words or examples have exposed our concern for self and our lack of care and concern for others? Jesus’ death shows us the result of our self-interest. Thank God that our self-interest doesn’t have the last word!

Live exultantly!

 Thoughts on gratitude 

Psalm 9:1-2

I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High.

The author of a devotion I recently read talked about the personal benefit of gratitude. The age old aphorism, God doesn’t need my gratitude. I need to give it, is the basic theme. So, I got to thinking how that might play out. Here are some of my random ruminations about that.  If God is all, and in all, and I am part of that existence of God, God’s community, God’s realm of existence, then it is not I alone that benefits, but other people and things in God’s realm benefit as well from my gratitude. 

In my experience, gratitude requires a humble heart. A humble heart approaches the rest of God’s realm differently than a proud or indifferent heart. A humble heart helps me understand that it’s not all about me. All of God’s realm can’t help but be symbiotic, to be built and to build upon one another.

When we give thanks with our whole heart, our gratitude isn’t confined to a “thank you” or even a song of praise. It is reflected in our way of thinking and in the ways we live among others. It impacts how we perceive the world around us. It comes from our core. Our gratitude is found not only in the words and thoughts expressed to God, but in the ways we think about and act towards others and the world around us (both physical and manufactured)

 “I will exult in you” An older definition of exult included the idea of jumping for joy, a rather radical notion for today. What if our gratitude included a life of active joy, jumping for joy through lives lived with concern and actions toward others and all of God’s creation? 

Live exultantly. Live joyfully!

Living Gratefully in Change (I'm still learning from my sainted mother)

 Living Gratefully in Change (I’m still learning from my sainted mother)

The devotion I read this morning was by Ellie Roscher, Gratitude at Home, Shepherd Me O God, 2022 based on Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. She drew on the ideas of change in this passage, and began her thoughts with this statement. “Part of gratitude is being at peace with what is, instead of longing for what isn’t.”  This isn’t to suggest that we shouldn’t work to make positive changes in ourselves or for others; rather, it’s about our approach to day-to-day life. It’s about being grateful to God first, not only for what we have but also for what opportunities lie before us.  She asked this question. “How can we dwell in the moment without trying to manipulate it? How can we find a home in the season we find ourselves?” 

Segway to lunch at a local restaurant after church yesterday. My wife and I had just been seated and were looking at our menus when a gentleman came up to our table. Having recently returned to my hometown after being away for almost 50 years, we have come to expect to run into people who knew either me, my sister, or someone in my family. This gentleman had been my parents pastor many years ago. We chatted, and he left us with this short story about my mother. He reminded me that my mother always wrote notes to people who were ill and always included a clipping of a cartoon from the newspaper that she thought would make them smile. On one occasion a family member of his had just had surgery and when they went through the mail, upon seeing the card from my mother, he said not to open it just yet because he knew it would make him laugh too hard. Then this retired pastor told us of visiting my mother on a cancer wing of a hospital just before her death. As he asked the nurses for directions to her room, the nurse responded, “Oh we love having Irene on the floor. She brightens everyone’s day.” I’m sure that being that ill was not what my mother had planned for her life, but her example of living gratefully in the moment and being other-interested instead of self-interested gave her a peace, and still teaches me a valuable lesson. 

Roshcer ended the devotion with this.

Gratitude is wanting what is right in front of you. It is seeing this tiny, ordinary moment

quaking with holiness. Gratitude, embodied, is to find a home within. With gratitude we

hold the key to feeling at home no matter where we are…  When we are grateful for 

what is right in front of us, the present moment becomes home. Be where your feet are.

Thank God in all things. Living gratefully not only gives you peace, but it can impact others as well.

Thoughts on Corporate Confession

 Thoughts on Corporate Confession

This morning’s devotion was about the act of confession. I must confess (see what I did there?) that it is a part of Christian practice to which  I haven’t given an overly large amount of thought over the years. I would guess that this may be the case for many. We tend to often fall into going through the motions in our worship services and increasingly my experience has been that many services either omit a corporate confession (and absolution) or the wording has been changed from the traditional so that, although it is there, while the worshiper is “on auto pilot” it may be missed. In recent years, I have been finding more and more meaning in the familiar rhythms of the liturgy, probably something to do with getting older, although I’d hate to admit that, and corporate confession and absolution has become one of the more meaningful things.

Over the past month, this devotion marks the third time I have encountered the topic. I am helping a granddaughter work through the catechism, and we recently covered confession. Then, our pastor asked me to help out for a week with confirmation class and the topic to be covered, confession. Then, today, came this devotion. 

In the formal act of corporate confession, we are often confronted with acknowledging not only those things we have done but also those things that we have left undone, and it is this category that the devotion dealt with. The act of confession shows us the importance of acknowledging our sin. It is easier to identify the things that we have done wrong, but sometimes we tend to gloss over the things that we have omitted to do. The author of the devotion put it this way. “…the act of confessing it puts a box [ ] next to all of the things we’ve left undone”. It forces us to be honest about ourselves. I think that it is this honesty, and including myself right along with all the others as a sinner, that enables the individual, me, to actually then “hear” the words of forgiveness in the absolution (something we don’t hear spoken in our private confession to God) and experience what the author calls “that moment of grace”. It encourages us and gives us confidence as we ,”enter the next moment, the next week” in our work of living for God and for others.