The
story of God’s saving revelation is at the heart of the lectionary readings [this
week]. The Decalogue [Ten Commandments] in Exodus lifts up God’s gift of the
law of Moses, through which Jews found righteousness. The psalm heralds God’s
law: perfect, enlightening, and life-giving. But Paul tells the churches at
Corinth that while the Jews still look to the law, the fullness of God’s
salvation is revealed in the gospel. In John, Jesus’ action and prophecy in the
temple courtyard underscores the notion that, with Christ, we have the fullness
and successor to the law.
Third Sunday in Lent
1Then
God spoke all these words:
2I am the LORD your God, who
brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 3you shall have no other gods before me.
4You shall not make for
yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or
that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. 5You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD
your God am a jealous God, punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to
the third and the fourth generation of those who reject me, 6but showing steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those
who love me and keep my commandments.
7You shall not make wrongful
use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who
misuses his name.
8Remember the sabbath day, and
keep it holy. 9For six days you shall labor
and do all your work. 10But the seventh day is a
sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work — you, your son or your
daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the alien resident in
your towns. 11For in six days the LORD made
heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but rested the seventh day;
therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and consecrated it.
12Honor your father and your
mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is
giving you.
13You shall not murder.
14You shall not commit
adultery.
15You shall not steal.
16You shall not bear false
witness against your neighbor.
17You shall not covet your neighbor’s
house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or male or female slave, or
ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.
Exodus 20:1-17
Singing Windows
J
.& R. Lamb Studios
1932
Stained
Glass
University
Chapel
Tuskegee,
Alabama
United
States
Notes: |
In 1932, artist Katherine Lamb Tait was commissioned to design a
window using as a design motif, 11 songs most often described as Negro
spirituals. In 1957, the chapel was destroyed by fire. Lamb’s designs had
been preserved and were used to recreate the Singing Window when a new chapel
was built between 1967-1969. |
More: The Singing Window
of Tuskegee
We’re
fated to live in a world
with
competing and incommensurate values.
-
Nicholas Kristoff
Those that are most slow in making a promise
are the most faithful
in the performance of it.
~
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Perseverance on Mars
“Dare Mighty Things”
Ian Clark, a systems engineer for the Perseverance mission,
used a simple binary code to spell out the phrase Dare Mighty Things
– made famous by President Theodore Roosevelt – among the colored strips. The code also included
the GPS coordinates for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in
California. The exact spot is 10 feet (3 meters) from the entrance to JPL’s
visitor center.
Another
Dutch Oven yummy creation.
Chew and Chat
Sondra
Kellogg, Carolyn Alexander, Karla Byrd
(Next
time, we shall meet in person!)
Thank
you, Cindy Sahli.
(You
will notice that one was already missing.)
This
was quite an interesting hour and a half … AND … it was very good to hear
and see how nicely
Kali
Fajardo-Anstine (young Colorado author) interviewed Isabel Allende.
If fifty million people say a foolish thing,
it is still a foolish thing.
~
Anatole France
March 7, 2021 Third Sunday in
Lent Year B
13The
Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves,
and the money changers seated at their tables. 15Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple,
both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money
changers and overturned their tables. 16He told those who were
selling the doves, “Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s
house a marketplace!” 17His disciples remembered that
it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume me.” 18The Jews then said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing
this?” 19Jesus answered them, “Destroy
this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20The Jews then said, “This temple has been under construction for
forty-six years, and will you raise it up in three days?” 21But he was speaking of the temple of his body. 22After he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that
he had said this; and they believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had
spoken.
John 2:13-22
Agnus
Day, by James Wetzstein
Agnus
Day appears with the permission of www.agnusday.org
REMEMBERING
Jeanne Marie Gibbard
May
29, 1944 ~ March 2, 2021
Exodus 20:1–17
Psalm 19
1 Corinthians 1:18–25
John 2:13–22
First Reading Exodus 20:1-17
1Then God spoke all these words:
2I am the
LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of
slavery; 3you shall
have no other gods before me.
4You shall
not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in
heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under
the earth. 5You shall
not bow down to them or worship them; for I the LORD your God am a jealous God,
punishing children for the iniquity of parents, to the third and the fourth
generation of those who reject me, 6but showing
steadfast love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my
commandments.
7You shall
not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not
acquit anyone who misuses his name.
8Remember the
sabbath day, and keep it holy. 9For six days
you shall labor and do all your work. 10But the
seventh day is a sabbath to the LORD your God; you shall not do any work — you,
your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your livestock, or the
alien resident in your towns. 11For in six
days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but
rested the seventh day; therefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day and
consecrated it.
12Honor your
father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD
your God is giving you.
13You shall
not murder.
14You shall
not commit adultery.
15You shall
not steal.
16You shall
not bear false witness against your neighbor.
17You shall
not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or
male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your
neighbor.
1 The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament
proclaims his handiwork.
2 Day to day pours forth speech,
and night to night
declares knowledge.
3 There is no speech, nor are there words;
their voice is not
heard;
4 yet their voice goes out through all the
earth,
and their words to
the end of the world.
In
the heavens he has set a tent for the sun,
5 which comes out like a bridegroom from his
wedding canopy,
and like a strong
man runs its course with joy.
6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to
the end of them;
and nothing is
hidden from its heat.
7 The law of the LORD is perfect,
reviving the soul;
the decrees of the LORD are sure,
making wise the simple;
8 the precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the
heart;
the commandment of the LORD is clear,
enlightening the
eyes;
9 the fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring for ever;
the ordinances of the LORD are true
and righteous
altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
even much fine
gold;
sweeter also than honey,
and drippings of
the honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them is your servant warned;
in keeping them
there is great reward.
12 But who can detect their errors?
Clear me from
hidden faults.
13 Keep back your servant also from the insolent;
do not let them
have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
and innocent of
great transgression.
14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my
heart
be acceptable to
you,
O LORD, my rock and
my redeemer.
Second Reading 1 Corinthians 1:18-25
18For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are
perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. 19For it is written,
“I will destroy the wisdom of the wise,
and the discernment
of the discerning I will thwart.”
20Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the
debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? 21For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God
through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to
save those who believe. 22For Jews demand signs and
Greeks desire wisdom, 23but we proclaim Christ
crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ
the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25For God’s foolishness is
wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.
13The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to
Jerusalem. 14In the
temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers
seated at their tables. 15Making a
whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the
cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their
tables. 16He told
those who were selling the doves, “Take these things out of here! Stop making
my Father’s house a marketplace!” 17His
disciples remembered that it was written, “Zeal for your house will consume
me.” 18The Jews
then said to him, “What sign can you show us for doing this?” 19Jesus answered them, “Destroy this
temple, and in three days I will raise it up.” 20The Jews
then said, “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years, and
will you raise it up in three days?” 21But he was
speaking of the temple of his body. 22After he was
raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this; and they
believed the scripture and the word that Jesus had spoken.