Proper 15A (RCL) – A Preacher’s Ponderings

Who’s in and who’s out

Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost; 20 August 2023; Proper 15A (RCL); Genesis 45:1-15; Psalm 133; Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32; Matthew 15:10-28.

I wish we weren’t skipping over so much of the story of Joseph in the Track 1 readings. Last week, Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, and this week, everything is wonderful. The story of Joseph is really quite troubling. Joseph, acting for the Pharaoh, ends up buying his own people into slavery in exchange for grain. I suspect hidden in this story is some Northern Kingdom/Southern Kingdom antipathy, but that’s a story for another post.

Crumbs

20 August 2017
Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost
Proper 15A (RCL)
Genesis 45:1-15
Psalm 133
Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32
Matthew 15:10-28

The incident of Jesus confronted by the Gentile woman makes us uncomfortable: surely Jesus would never have been so rude, right? He essentially calls this woman a dog, a deep insult. Both Matthew and Mark include the event, so it is likely Matthew copied it from Mark. Both also include a double set of miracles of sea crossing and feeding in the wilderness. This miracle happens between the second sea crossing and feeding. Continue reading “Crumbs”