Sabbath – A Preacher’s Ponderings

Release

Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost; 21 August 2022; Proper 16C (RCL); Jeremiah 1:4-10; Psalm 71:1-6; Hebrews 12:18-29; Luke 13:10-17.

I cringe a little whenever we read a passage like this one from Luke’s Gospel. After Mark’s Gospel, Christian authors followed the standard trope of presenting “the Jews” (or some sect thereof, like the Scribes, and/or the Pharisees, etc.) as hypocritical rule-followers. For centuries, Christian biblical interpretation has reinforced this caricature. It behooves us to remember this rhetoric was developed in the midst of a life-and-death struggle between siblings, and we no longer share that context. Maintaining this trope has proved deadly.

Sabbath rest

Palm/Passion Sunday; 10 April 2022; Sunday of the Passion C (RCL); Luke 19:28-40; Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 31:9-6; Philippians 2:5-11; Luke 22:14 – 23:56.

The readings for Palm/Passion Sunday always present the preacher with a challenge. Each of the Gospel writers’ Passion narrative has its own theological emphases, and there is too much reading to preach on it all. In fact, one is often tempted just to let the passion preach itself, and to add nothing. However, these readings always need some unpacking, and the unique circumstances of each year require interpretation.