Jeremiah 31:27-34; 2 Timothy 3:14-4:5; Luke 18:1-8 Ordinary 29C; Proper 24 The days are surely coming when God’s people will know God’s law by heart, when all that training in sacred writings and righteousness will be evident and persuasive, when even the unjust and corrupt leaders will do the right thing, even if for the wrong reasons. Patience, persistence, relentless faithfulness will bear fruit, eventually. Truth be told, I marvel at the widows of the world, the women like that woman in Luke 18, who refuse to give up on justice, no matter how often, or how violently, or how utterly injustice apparently wins. Their persistence belies all logic. Their tenacity humbles people like me who’ve given up when faced with fewer and lesser odds. I once worked with a woman who drove an ancient powder-blue station wagon that was forever breaking down. Frequently, I would come in to the office and she would tell me that her car was in the shop again. She would have walked to work or … [Read more...]

Jeremiah 29:1, 4-7; 2 Timothy 2:8-15; Luke 17:11-19 Ordinary 28C; Proper 23 God traverses all manner of boundaries this week, debunking human codified standards of behavior, long-held assumptions and previous religious rules. The exiled Israelites are to look to the welfare of their captors. Jesus gets close to lepers, a Samaritan leper no less. Timothy is reminded of the wild word of God that goes where it wills. Every text the lectionary offers this Sunday pushes us out of our comfort zone and into realms we would rather not traverse, let alone buy homes and settled in. There is a frenetic urgency to both Jeremiah and Luke, a piling on of instructions and events. Jeremiah tells those remaining in Babylon: build houses, live in them, plant gardens, eat what those gardens yield. Further, get married, have children, celebrate the marriages of your children and their children, too. Seek the welfare of the city where you find yourself but did not want to go. Pray for it as … [Read more...]

Ordinary 27C; Proper 22 World Communion Sunday Lamentations 1:1-6; 2 Timothy 1:1-14; Luke 17:5-10 We constantly want more. Yet, Jesus tells us time and time again that we have all we need and then some. Remember: This brief exchange in Luke follows Jesus’ discussion of forgiveness. Forgive seven times a day. Forgive the same person seven times a day if necessary. No wonder those listening –  disciples and apostles, those closest to Jesus and those close but not yet all in – ask for an increase in faith. How else does one forgive and forgive and forgive? Surely only through faith. Jesus’ listeners know enough about themselves to know that what he requires will not be fulfilled without divine intervention and ongoing holy assistance. So they ask, perhaps plead, maybe demand: Increase our faith. And Jesus tells them: If you had even a modicum of faith, an inkling of faith, a mustard-seed-sized amount of faith you could change the world, defy nature, upend human nature and … [Read more...]