Opposition
Jacob settled in the land
where his father had lived as an alien, the land of Canaan. This is the story
of the family of Jacob.
Joseph, being seventeen years old, was shepherding the flock with his brothers;
he was a helper to the sons of Bilhah and Zilpah, his father's wives; and
Joseph brought a bad report of them to their father. Now Israel loved Joseph
more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and
he had made him a long robe with sleeves. But when his brothers saw that their
father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not
speak peaceably to him.
Now his brothers went to pasture their father's flock near Shechem. And Israel
said to Joseph, "Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem?
Come, I will send you to them." He answered, "Here I am." So he
said to him, "Go now, see if it is well with your brothers and with the
flock; and bring word back to me." So he sent him from the valley of
Hebron.
He came to Shechem, and a man found him wandering in the fields; the man asked
him, "What are you seeking?" "I am seeking my brothers," he
said; "tell me, please, where they are pasturing the flock." The man
said, "They have gone away, for I heard them say, 'Let us go to
Dothan.'" So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan.
They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired
to kill him. They said to one another, "Here comes this dreamer. Come now,
let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a
wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his
dreams." But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands,
saying, "Let us not take his life." Reuben said to them, "Shed
no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on
him"—that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his
father. So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the
long robe with sleeves that he wore; and they took him and threw him into a
pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it.
Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites
coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying gum, balm, and resin, on their
way to carry it down to Egypt. Then Judah said to his brothers, "What
profit is there if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? Come, let us sell
him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother,
our own flesh." And his brothers agreed. When some Midianite traders
passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the
Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28
Joseph Sold into Slavery
Overbeck,
Johann Friedrich 1789 – 1869
1816
Alte
Nationalgalerie
Berlin,
Germany
The story of
Joseph has been at the heart of the Christian understanding of Christ's own
story of betrayal, rejection, and eventual ascent to the Godhead. Overbeck's
painting animatedly explores the betrayal in Joseph's story. On the left of the
canvas is a portrayal of the slaughtering of the ram, whose blood pours out,
staining Joseph's robe -- just as Christ's blood was spilled. The sale of
Joseph into slavery involves the transfer of coin, as did Judas's own betrayal
of Christ for 30 pieces of silver.
Is a dream a
lie if it don’t come true
Or is it
something worse?
Bruce
Springsteen *
A certain
amount of opposition is a great help to a man.
Kites rise
against, not with, the wind.
~ John Neal **
Vicki
treated me to a Happy Birthday dinner at 240 Union!
Key lime pie
with a macadamia nut crust!
(We split a
piece.)
Abstract
Delight:
Selections from
the Polly and Mark Addison Collection,
CU Art Museum, University of Colorado Boulder
Mark Addison
engaged us in an interesting conversation at the Center for the Arts
Evergreen.
The majority
of people who came to the lecture on abstract art were seniors.
Mark’s wife,
Polly, with another Polly, Polly Phillips.
Barbara
Sternberg with her keen observations
Carolyn
Seymour had some astute comments.
She is an
interesting and interested artist.
Planning a
wildflower hike (at Rotary) … but I can’t go that day.
Dee Miller
at the lake this morning.
The bamboo
which bends is stronger than the oak which resists.
~ Japanese Proverb
August 7, 2011 Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Previous
OPQs may be found at:
http://www.dotjack.com/opq.htm
* from “The River,” by Bruce Springsteen
** also attributed to others, but John Neal (1793-1876) lived before the others.
Immediately he made the
disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he
dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the
mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this
time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was
against them. And early in the morning he came walking towards them on the
lake. But when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified,
saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out in fear. But immediately
Jesus spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I; do not be
afraid."
Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the
water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started
walking on the water, and came towards Jesus. But when he noticed the strong
wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord,
save me!" Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to
him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the
boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshipped him, saying,
"Truly you are the Son of God."
Matthew 14:22-33
Agnus
Day, by James Wetzstein
Agnus
Day appears with the permission of www.agnusday.org
http://www.sermons4kids.com/walk_on_water.htm
Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28
Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45b
Romans 10:5-15
Matthew 14:22-33