Category Archives: lectionary reflection

Easter 2024

We believe, without the benefit of angels or appearances, that he rose from the dead, that the Roman Empire, greatest superpower in history, could do their worst to kill him, but that they could not destroy him. 
We believe that in the midst of trouble, in the midst of unrest and unease, in the midst of our lives, there is no grave that can hold God hostage. We believe that Jesus is risen, and hope has been unleashed. Continue reading

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And what of the colt?

It knew, as animals do, more than the crowd, felt beneath its hooves the blood of the branches, stones slickened with sap, the vibrations of voices hungry for release; heard the heartbeat of the man astride its back, how it … Continue reading

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Lazarus campaigns against the death penalty

This is a #preparingforSundaywithpoetry prologue post. At last evening’s Bible study, we noticed the “Lazarus framework“ to John’s Palm Sunday story (if you’re using Mark, another poem from the pov of the colt is coming). No wonder, we said, authorities … Continue reading

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Lest a seed fall

Jesus has no love for death. He will defeat death, trampling it under his discarded grave clothes on Easter morning, and harrowing hell to rescue his saints from its power. Jesus has already said that he came that we might have life, and have life abundantly (John 10:10). The question he poses here is, what kind of life? Continue reading

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Unless a seed

The risk for the seed – consumed by birds, razed by the sun, drowned by hail and fire falling like rain – the risk of being broken open, swallowed by the earth, digested and transformed into new generations is a … Continue reading

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All these words

Then God spoke all these words.
God spoke all these words because God knew, God knows, that we, we humans, have been known to be foolish, and foolhardy, and even malicious in our misuse of God, creation, and one another. We need these warning labels, all of these words, because God knows what we are capable of, left to our own devices. Continue reading

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Dove

Once upon a time,so long ago that time itself was barely begun,a thing with wings brooded over deep waters,moving the surface aside to revealcreation. A long time later,but so long ago that history was still in the future,the waters had … Continue reading

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Take up your cross

I am not strong to carry your cross or mine. I stagger beneath the weight of your command yet knowing all the time that you have called your burden easy. Your hands and feet tell another story, unwashed yet from … Continue reading

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Tell no one

On the mountain top, a conspiracy: Elijah, Moses, and Yeshua plotting to overthrow sin and save the world. Below the cloud line all is clear. In the valley, people die, live, love, and hate without once looking up. Here on … Continue reading

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Which story do we tell?

A fever could be, can be deadly. It is debilitating. It wrings the humanity out of one. She couldn’t tell how long she had lain there, hovering between earth and heaven, but when Jesus came, and took her hand, heaven and earth came together as one, and she felt that new kingdom flowing through her veins, and her heart stopped only long enough to miss a beat as she leapt for joy, and in gratitude ran through the house to celebrate with cakes and oil and wine, to serve and celebrate him who had healed her. Continue reading

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