8. You Shall Not Steal. (8th in a series on the 10 Commandments).
This one is pretty straightforward. It does not need much discussion, it seems. Do not steal. Plain and simple. Do not take anything that does not belong to you. Do not take anything by any means. Does that apply to the copying of music or books that others have written? Is it stealing to photocopy them if you did not buy them? How about making copies of CDs or records? Is that stealing? Is it stealing to copy a movie that someone loans you and you did not buy? Wow, the world of technology has opened up all kinds of avenues that we never considered before.
When I was a new pastor at Edom United Methodist Church in Edom, Texas, we concluded each worship service by singing a nice little song. It was set to the tune of "Edelweiss" from The Sound of Music. Each Sunday, we would sing, "May the Lord, mighty God, bless and keep you forever, grant you peace, perfect peace, courage in every endeavor, Lift you eyes and see his face, and his grace forever, May the Lord, mighty God, bless and keep you forever." I would walk down the aisle toward the back door and stand on the porch and shake hands with people as they passed out to go to their cars. I would have Edelweiss playing in my head as they left and it was very peaceful.
When I left that little church and went to the big, tall steeple church 18 miles to the east of there, I mentioned the song to the music director one day and said we should sing it sometimes and he quickly told me that the song is not to be used. He said that the family of Rogers and Hammerstein, who wrote The Sound of Music, had filed a lawsuit forbidding the use of the song unless someone paid a royalty for singing it. I laughed aloud when he told me that and said it was ridiculous. I guess Rogers and Hammerstein, or at least their families, are not laughing. They took it seriously that others, even churches, would use their creation and not pay them for its use so they tried to block it legally.
Now I can sing Edelweiss all I want--in the shower, in my car, while cooking dinner--and the music police will not come to my house and try to stop me, but if I give a concert and charge people money to hear me sing, and include Edelweiss in the repertoire, then I may be crossing a line if I don't pay a royalty to the writers or producers or printers of the music.
Life has become so complicated. While we used to know what it meant not to steal because we knew that anything that was not ours belonged to someone else and we were not to take it for ourselves, today things that can be stolen are not always things you can put your hands on literally. Sometimes they are things we may read on the internet or hear on the radio or see on our television. Enjoying them as we experience them is what they were created for but to profit from them opens a different can of worms that may be seen as breaking this commandment.
I remember that when I was in high school and learned to write research papers, we were taught to give credit to sources we used in our papers by making notations at the bottom of the pages and by using quotation marks to set aside words that belonged to someone else. In so doing, we were acknowledging that those words belonged to someone else and not to us. Today, there is a constant challenge for students who are in high school and college as they write papers for credit because there are many sources that will provide entire papers that someone else has written that are sold for a price. There are people who can be hired to write papers for others so that they do not have to do the work and will get credit for doing it. Plagiarism is another area in which stealing is a sneaky thing that happens even when one may not be doing it intentionally.
So, we thought we knew what this commandment meant when it was written and perhaps we do....do not steal, anything! Today, deciding what stealing is when it is not something that can be easily seen is a matter of interpretation at times. Maybe we need God's Spirit to give us wisdom and we need to prayer, "And lead us not into temptation" even more than usual.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
7. Wearing the Scarlet Letter
7. You shall not commit adultery. (The seventh is a series on the Ten Commandments.)
I remember reading the story "The Scarlet Letter" when I was in college. It is a book written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850. I believe it was made into a movie also. It is set in puritanical times in New England and involves a woman named Hester Prynne who was accused of adultery by the church leaders and required to wear a scarlet Letter A on her clothing as punishment so that everyone could see her and know that she had sinned. The church leaders try to get her to disclose who the father of her child is but she refused. The story progresses with many turns and twists until finally she reveals that the child's father is the minister of the church, Arthur Dimmesdale. The story has a tragic ending in which both Dimmesdale and Hester's husband, who had been believed to be lost at sea but who had returned and taken a false identity so he could plot revenge upon the person who was the father of Hester's child, died and left her enough money that she could start over in life in Europe. Whew! What a story!
In Puritanical times, sexual misconduct was considered to be the worst sin of all. Wearing a scarlet letter for the sin of adultery was thought to be a fitting and appropriate punishment. After all, it is one of the ten commandments specifically spelled out in Exodus. Adultery was the sin that was whispered about all through the ages up to modern times. What most people do not know about this commandment, however, is that adultery was not an equal opportunity sin when it was banished by this commandment. Only women were considered to commit adultery in the ancient world. Men did not commit adultery unless they sinned with a married woman. Men could have many kinds of relations with unmarried women and it was not considered to be wrong. Women, on the other hand, were considered to be sinners if they had any relation with any man outside of their marriage. So, the scale of justice did not tip evenly on this issue.
When Jesus addressed morality in the Gospels, he was more concerned about divorce than he was about adultery, although he merged the two issues in the text from Mark that talks about it. The Pharisees had asked him if it was okay for a man to divorce his wife (which again was one-sided since women could not divorce men). "But Jesus said to them, 'Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you...Whoever divorces his wife and married another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband (which could not happen) and marries another, she commits adultery." (Mark 10:5, 11-12) Divorce was considered to be wrong because it broke the unity that had been established by a couple when they married.
The 7th commandment is very blunt. Do not do it. It is in a list of other "Do Not Do's" Modern society today overlooks authority figures telling them what to do and this commandment seems to go by the wayside along with our tolerance of divorce, which rarely does anyone complain about or object to. Adultery was defined specifically as a married woman who acted outside her marriage OR a man who acted outside of his marriage with a married woman. The Mosaic law was written to try to bring harmony and unity in a world of chaos and having unity in the family unit as the basic unit of society was important.
So, should the Scarlet Letter be applied to all who stray outside of their marriages? Should judgment and condemnation be the rule for persons who may venture off where they should not? I really think that the law of love that Jesus taught urges compassion for all involved and healing and wholeness, restoration and forgiveness to happen rather than harshness. There are many reasons why people stray off the path of life that they should travel but getting them back on track seems to be the more important role of church and society rather than imposing punishment upon wrongdoers.
" I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13: 34-35)
I remember reading the story "The Scarlet Letter" when I was in college. It is a book written by Nathaniel Hawthorne in 1850. I believe it was made into a movie also. It is set in puritanical times in New England and involves a woman named Hester Prynne who was accused of adultery by the church leaders and required to wear a scarlet Letter A on her clothing as punishment so that everyone could see her and know that she had sinned. The church leaders try to get her to disclose who the father of her child is but she refused. The story progresses with many turns and twists until finally she reveals that the child's father is the minister of the church, Arthur Dimmesdale. The story has a tragic ending in which both Dimmesdale and Hester's husband, who had been believed to be lost at sea but who had returned and taken a false identity so he could plot revenge upon the person who was the father of Hester's child, died and left her enough money that she could start over in life in Europe. Whew! What a story!
In Puritanical times, sexual misconduct was considered to be the worst sin of all. Wearing a scarlet letter for the sin of adultery was thought to be a fitting and appropriate punishment. After all, it is one of the ten commandments specifically spelled out in Exodus. Adultery was the sin that was whispered about all through the ages up to modern times. What most people do not know about this commandment, however, is that adultery was not an equal opportunity sin when it was banished by this commandment. Only women were considered to commit adultery in the ancient world. Men did not commit adultery unless they sinned with a married woman. Men could have many kinds of relations with unmarried women and it was not considered to be wrong. Women, on the other hand, were considered to be sinners if they had any relation with any man outside of their marriage. So, the scale of justice did not tip evenly on this issue.
When Jesus addressed morality in the Gospels, he was more concerned about divorce than he was about adultery, although he merged the two issues in the text from Mark that talks about it. The Pharisees had asked him if it was okay for a man to divorce his wife (which again was one-sided since women could not divorce men). "But Jesus said to them, 'Because of your hardness of heart he wrote this commandment for you...Whoever divorces his wife and married another commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband (which could not happen) and marries another, she commits adultery." (Mark 10:5, 11-12) Divorce was considered to be wrong because it broke the unity that had been established by a couple when they married.
The 7th commandment is very blunt. Do not do it. It is in a list of other "Do Not Do's" Modern society today overlooks authority figures telling them what to do and this commandment seems to go by the wayside along with our tolerance of divorce, which rarely does anyone complain about or object to. Adultery was defined specifically as a married woman who acted outside her marriage OR a man who acted outside of his marriage with a married woman. The Mosaic law was written to try to bring harmony and unity in a world of chaos and having unity in the family unit as the basic unit of society was important.
So, should the Scarlet Letter be applied to all who stray outside of their marriages? Should judgment and condemnation be the rule for persons who may venture off where they should not? I really think that the law of love that Jesus taught urges compassion for all involved and healing and wholeness, restoration and forgiveness to happen rather than harshness. There are many reasons why people stray off the path of life that they should travel but getting them back on track seems to be the more important role of church and society rather than imposing punishment upon wrongdoers.
" I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13: 34-35)
Monday, April 1, 2013
6. You Shall Not Murder
The sixth in a series on the Ten Commandments:
"You Shall Not Murder" (Exodus 20:13) It sounds so plain, doesn't it? What is not to understand in this commandment? It says not to murder anyone. This is from the NRSV which uses the word "murder" in place of the word "kill" that had been in the KJV. The reason for the change is that the text in the original language did not prohibit killing such as if required in military action. Some who were conscientious objectors used the King James Bible as part of their reasoning for not serving in the military. This new language of the NRSV contains the commandment that prohibits non-military killing of other persons for any reason.
In the ancient world before the commandments were given, tribes of persons would take revenge upon others if a murder had been committed. A horde of warring tribesmen would descend upon a village and kill everyone there in retribution for the death of one of their own. Then, early Judaic law ordered that such a practice be contained to "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." In other words, tribes were forbidden from killing an entire village of people in exchange for the death of one of their own. Instead, one person's death would pay for the death of another. This also made it okay for someone to kill your ox if you accidentally killed their ox. This applied to other property as well that could be seized if you by some chance destroyed the property of another person. Equal vengeance under the law.
So, this commandment takes the law a bit more into the future by forbidding murder at all, even if someone has murdered your relative. No retribution is the rule now. Do not murder anyone. If everyone would follow the law, then there would be no need for justice to be done on behalf of one whose life has ended tragically. Society has never reached the place, however, when murder does not happen. Today, in America, murder is a commonplace event in every state in the union. A day hardly goes by when it is not reported in the news media that persons across the land have been murdered by others. Even law enforcement officers are at risk. It used to be that dangerous persons feared law enforcement officers but suddenly there has been a rash of killings of persons involved in law enforcement.
There was for a while a series of ads posted on billboards that had phrases that were attributed to God with the phrase, "What part of ______ do you not understand?" and signed by God Almighty. This commandment could easily fill in that blank. If the commandment says, "You Shall Not Murder" then why do people continue to murder unless they no longer care what the commandments say. I generally think that is the reason why it continues. Not only do some people no longer respect law enforcement officers but some people do not respect authority of any kind, even biblical authority. Perhaps the great experiment in personal liberty in America has yielded a harvest of violence that we do not know how to stop.
I have never broken this commandment. At last, one that I can easily and confidently say I have kept for my entire life. And I believe that just about everyone reading this can say the same thing. We would never think of murdering another person. It is far from anything we could ever contemplate. Yes, there are times when we become so angry that such an act could happen if we did not have enough self-control but thank God we restrain ourselves and do not go that far. Murder seems to most persons to be at the top of the list of sins that would be the most serious. To deny life to another person ranks up there as bad as you can get. Perhaps that is what makes us more human---when we realize that our humanity depends upon allowing others in the human race to be human in the way they desire and to bear with them and forgive them when they commit acts that make us wish they were somewhere else or nowhere else.
"You Shall Not Murder" (Exodus 20:13) It sounds so plain, doesn't it? What is not to understand in this commandment? It says not to murder anyone. This is from the NRSV which uses the word "murder" in place of the word "kill" that had been in the KJV. The reason for the change is that the text in the original language did not prohibit killing such as if required in military action. Some who were conscientious objectors used the King James Bible as part of their reasoning for not serving in the military. This new language of the NRSV contains the commandment that prohibits non-military killing of other persons for any reason.
In the ancient world before the commandments were given, tribes of persons would take revenge upon others if a murder had been committed. A horde of warring tribesmen would descend upon a village and kill everyone there in retribution for the death of one of their own. Then, early Judaic law ordered that such a practice be contained to "an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." In other words, tribes were forbidden from killing an entire village of people in exchange for the death of one of their own. Instead, one person's death would pay for the death of another. This also made it okay for someone to kill your ox if you accidentally killed their ox. This applied to other property as well that could be seized if you by some chance destroyed the property of another person. Equal vengeance under the law.
So, this commandment takes the law a bit more into the future by forbidding murder at all, even if someone has murdered your relative. No retribution is the rule now. Do not murder anyone. If everyone would follow the law, then there would be no need for justice to be done on behalf of one whose life has ended tragically. Society has never reached the place, however, when murder does not happen. Today, in America, murder is a commonplace event in every state in the union. A day hardly goes by when it is not reported in the news media that persons across the land have been murdered by others. Even law enforcement officers are at risk. It used to be that dangerous persons feared law enforcement officers but suddenly there has been a rash of killings of persons involved in law enforcement.
There was for a while a series of ads posted on billboards that had phrases that were attributed to God with the phrase, "What part of ______ do you not understand?" and signed by God Almighty. This commandment could easily fill in that blank. If the commandment says, "You Shall Not Murder" then why do people continue to murder unless they no longer care what the commandments say. I generally think that is the reason why it continues. Not only do some people no longer respect law enforcement officers but some people do not respect authority of any kind, even biblical authority. Perhaps the great experiment in personal liberty in America has yielded a harvest of violence that we do not know how to stop.
I have never broken this commandment. At last, one that I can easily and confidently say I have kept for my entire life. And I believe that just about everyone reading this can say the same thing. We would never think of murdering another person. It is far from anything we could ever contemplate. Yes, there are times when we become so angry that such an act could happen if we did not have enough self-control but thank God we restrain ourselves and do not go that far. Murder seems to most persons to be at the top of the list of sins that would be the most serious. To deny life to another person ranks up there as bad as you can get. Perhaps that is what makes us more human---when we realize that our humanity depends upon allowing others in the human race to be human in the way they desire and to bear with them and forgive them when they commit acts that make us wish they were somewhere else or nowhere else.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
5. Taking Care of Mom and Dad
The 5th in a series on the Ten Commandments: "Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you." (Exodus 20:12)
So, how long do you have to look out for your parents when they become old? When does your obligation end? What does it mean to "honor" a parent? It is just thinking fondly of them or does it require some action on your part?
I actually took a class in seminary one semester on the book of Exodus and when we got to this commandment, we discussed it at length. The professor told us that to honor a parent was to care for them when they were old and could not care for themselves any longer. He also said that this commandment not only applied to parents, but to all elderly persons. The reasoning for this is that there was no social security system in their day. There were no nursing homes. There were no home health care organizations. Caring for elderly persons became the responsibility of families. Extended families were the rule, not the exception.
This is illustrated in the book of Ruth when Ruth cares for Naomi and treats her as her own mother, even though she was her mother-in-law. When they returned to the land of Israel from the land of Moab, Ruth was a stranger there and Naomi actually belonged because of her ancestry, but the roles were reversed because of Naomi's age and Ruth became her caretaker. When the happy ending of the story arrives and Ruth and Boaz marry, Naomi lives with them and becomes the caretaker for their children. That story illustrates what the people of Israel considered the norm for caring for the elderly. They were part of the extended family and were cared for by a family member or by the entire family unit who teamed together to provide what was needed.
Today it is rare to find an older person living with a family. The situation is much more common that an older person wants to be independent as long as they can and live in his or her own home until they finally must have another arrangement and care facilities have sprung up to meet those needs. So, does one's obligation to a parent end when the parent is institutionalized and lives with other elderly persons? The commandment to honor a parent has no end to it. It exists as long as the parent is living.
I am aware of situations in which children abandon their parents. Some do it while they still are living by themselves and others do it when the elderly parent enters nursing care. Some grown children forget about their parents and neglect them in many ways. Some go so far as to stop communication with them, not even sending a card or Christmas gift, as it true in one case I know. Others reject the pleas of their parent to provide transportation for health care, making them rely upon community members even though they are capable of providing such a basic need to their parent. People who abandon their parents forget all the times in life when the parent provided the care they needed, in times of sickness and health, and become self-absorbed. They forget that their own needs were met by the very one whom they now neglect and turn away from.
Jesus told a parable in Matthew 25 that applies to all persons in need when he commanded his followers to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, and visit the ill and those who are in prison. Jesus said those who fulfilled that commandment to do this to "the least of these" would be welcomed into the kingdom that God had prepared for them. The term "least of these" means even those in society that one would consider to be beneath them in some way. Surely if one must do these things for the least in society, shouldn't one do that and more for one's own parents who now must rely upon them for health care and meeting their basic needs?
Caring for the elderly in a society marks it as a civilized society. Perhaps persons who care for the elderly, their own parents, are civilized persons and those who abandon their parents in their hour of need are uncivilized. Fulfilling this commandment seems to be a matter of decency and respect, something that we should offer to strangers and persons in prison, and even more so to our aged relatives.
So, how long do you have to look out for your parents when they become old? When does your obligation end? What does it mean to "honor" a parent? It is just thinking fondly of them or does it require some action on your part?
I actually took a class in seminary one semester on the book of Exodus and when we got to this commandment, we discussed it at length. The professor told us that to honor a parent was to care for them when they were old and could not care for themselves any longer. He also said that this commandment not only applied to parents, but to all elderly persons. The reasoning for this is that there was no social security system in their day. There were no nursing homes. There were no home health care organizations. Caring for elderly persons became the responsibility of families. Extended families were the rule, not the exception.
This is illustrated in the book of Ruth when Ruth cares for Naomi and treats her as her own mother, even though she was her mother-in-law. When they returned to the land of Israel from the land of Moab, Ruth was a stranger there and Naomi actually belonged because of her ancestry, but the roles were reversed because of Naomi's age and Ruth became her caretaker. When the happy ending of the story arrives and Ruth and Boaz marry, Naomi lives with them and becomes the caretaker for their children. That story illustrates what the people of Israel considered the norm for caring for the elderly. They were part of the extended family and were cared for by a family member or by the entire family unit who teamed together to provide what was needed.
Today it is rare to find an older person living with a family. The situation is much more common that an older person wants to be independent as long as they can and live in his or her own home until they finally must have another arrangement and care facilities have sprung up to meet those needs. So, does one's obligation to a parent end when the parent is institutionalized and lives with other elderly persons? The commandment to honor a parent has no end to it. It exists as long as the parent is living.
I am aware of situations in which children abandon their parents. Some do it while they still are living by themselves and others do it when the elderly parent enters nursing care. Some grown children forget about their parents and neglect them in many ways. Some go so far as to stop communication with them, not even sending a card or Christmas gift, as it true in one case I know. Others reject the pleas of their parent to provide transportation for health care, making them rely upon community members even though they are capable of providing such a basic need to their parent. People who abandon their parents forget all the times in life when the parent provided the care they needed, in times of sickness and health, and become self-absorbed. They forget that their own needs were met by the very one whom they now neglect and turn away from.
Jesus told a parable in Matthew 25 that applies to all persons in need when he commanded his followers to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger, clothe the naked, and visit the ill and those who are in prison. Jesus said those who fulfilled that commandment to do this to "the least of these" would be welcomed into the kingdom that God had prepared for them. The term "least of these" means even those in society that one would consider to be beneath them in some way. Surely if one must do these things for the least in society, shouldn't one do that and more for one's own parents who now must rely upon them for health care and meeting their basic needs?
Caring for the elderly in a society marks it as a civilized society. Perhaps persons who care for the elderly, their own parents, are civilized persons and those who abandon their parents in their hour of need are uncivilized. Fulfilling this commandment seems to be a matter of decency and respect, something that we should offer to strangers and persons in prison, and even more so to our aged relatives.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
The Hound of Heaven
What metaphor have you used to describe God? There are many that are very traditional--Heavenly Father is probably the most used and traditional of all the metaphors. God is also called Mother in more than one place in the Scriptures. God is called a Rock, a Fortress, a Hiding Place. The action of God on behalf of humans has led some to call God--Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer which are synonyms for the members of the Trinity.
One non-biblical author penned a poem called, "The Hound of Heaven" in which he compared God to a bloodhound that will track you down when you go astray. That metaphor is also valid because there are scriptural references that refer to God's omniscience and how humans cannot get away from God no matter how hard they try. Psalm 139 refers to this when it says, "Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I feel from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there..." (Psalm 139:7-8)
I had this metaphor for God come alive to me yesterday as I went for my daily morning walk. It was a beautiful sunny day with cooler temperatures, just perfect for walking around our town. So, I set out walking with my headphones on listening to music and walking about feeling energized and when I was about halfway finished, I came upon a beautiful black Labrador dog, most likely a large puppy. He was almost waist high to me and very energetic. I broke my rule that I have concerning stray dogs and talked to him and he came over to me immediately. He lay down on the ground and turned over on his back and I broke my other rule not to pet stray dogs and rubbed his tummy and told him he was a good boy. I started out on my way walking again when I learned that I had a new friend. This dog would not go away and would not leave me alone. He jumped playfully around me, putting his paws on my chest now and then, and he ran ahead of me and then back to me over and over again, as if he was checking for danger in my path and then coming back to assure me that there was none. He was a great dog and it was a shame that someone had let him out to run around because I feared for his safety as he ran out in front of automobiles a few times too.
As I turned the corner to head back to my house, I spotted another person walking, an elderly lady. My new friend took off toward her and I went in the opposite direction and walked even faster, hoping that he would take up with this woman and I could go home peacefully without him. No such luck! After he visited with this new human, he returned to escort me home. He walked with me all the way to my house and, as I went into my yard and closed the gate behind me, he stood at the gate and looked longingly at me, as if to ask me why I had not taken him to my house too. I went inside because the two dogs who live in my house were waiting for me. They would not take kindly to a new canine friend trying to horn in on the attention they get regularly from me. I gave the black lab a minute to disappear and then let them out into the yard.
That black lab reminded me of God. It did not matter how much I tried to get the dog to go on and leave me alone, he just kept on walking with me. I told him to go home, I waved my hand in the direction away from me to give him a signal, I even tried to lose him here and there when he wandered off to explore yards along the way. This dog would not give up. He just kept on returning to keep walking with me even though I did not want him to go with me.
God is like that, according to the psalmist. God keeps on hanging around us even when we try to lose him. God follows us and sniffs out our scent until finally we cannot stay lost any longer. God truly is like the Hound of Heaven that the poet describes. God just keeps on searching for us again and again until finally we cannot turn him away any longer. We may think we have outsmarted him, but he is there, around the corner just waiting to surprise us with his presence.
The holiest day of the Christian Year is getting close---Easter! God's revealed his biggest surprise in history on that day about 2000 years ago. Just when humans thought they had God's son boxed in, suddenly he was free! That is the reason for celebration on Easter Sunday! The Hound of Heaven is alive and looking for you, not just on Easter Sunday but every day that you live! Thank God!
One non-biblical author penned a poem called, "The Hound of Heaven" in which he compared God to a bloodhound that will track you down when you go astray. That metaphor is also valid because there are scriptural references that refer to God's omniscience and how humans cannot get away from God no matter how hard they try. Psalm 139 refers to this when it says, "Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I feel from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you are there; if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there..." (Psalm 139:7-8)
I had this metaphor for God come alive to me yesterday as I went for my daily morning walk. It was a beautiful sunny day with cooler temperatures, just perfect for walking around our town. So, I set out walking with my headphones on listening to music and walking about feeling energized and when I was about halfway finished, I came upon a beautiful black Labrador dog, most likely a large puppy. He was almost waist high to me and very energetic. I broke my rule that I have concerning stray dogs and talked to him and he came over to me immediately. He lay down on the ground and turned over on his back and I broke my other rule not to pet stray dogs and rubbed his tummy and told him he was a good boy. I started out on my way walking again when I learned that I had a new friend. This dog would not go away and would not leave me alone. He jumped playfully around me, putting his paws on my chest now and then, and he ran ahead of me and then back to me over and over again, as if he was checking for danger in my path and then coming back to assure me that there was none. He was a great dog and it was a shame that someone had let him out to run around because I feared for his safety as he ran out in front of automobiles a few times too.
As I turned the corner to head back to my house, I spotted another person walking, an elderly lady. My new friend took off toward her and I went in the opposite direction and walked even faster, hoping that he would take up with this woman and I could go home peacefully without him. No such luck! After he visited with this new human, he returned to escort me home. He walked with me all the way to my house and, as I went into my yard and closed the gate behind me, he stood at the gate and looked longingly at me, as if to ask me why I had not taken him to my house too. I went inside because the two dogs who live in my house were waiting for me. They would not take kindly to a new canine friend trying to horn in on the attention they get regularly from me. I gave the black lab a minute to disappear and then let them out into the yard.
That black lab reminded me of God. It did not matter how much I tried to get the dog to go on and leave me alone, he just kept on walking with me. I told him to go home, I waved my hand in the direction away from me to give him a signal, I even tried to lose him here and there when he wandered off to explore yards along the way. This dog would not give up. He just kept on returning to keep walking with me even though I did not want him to go with me.
God is like that, according to the psalmist. God keeps on hanging around us even when we try to lose him. God follows us and sniffs out our scent until finally we cannot stay lost any longer. God truly is like the Hound of Heaven that the poet describes. God just keeps on searching for us again and again until finally we cannot turn him away any longer. We may think we have outsmarted him, but he is there, around the corner just waiting to surprise us with his presence.
The holiest day of the Christian Year is getting close---Easter! God's revealed his biggest surprise in history on that day about 2000 years ago. Just when humans thought they had God's son boxed in, suddenly he was free! That is the reason for celebration on Easter Sunday! The Hound of Heaven is alive and looking for you, not just on Easter Sunday but every day that you live! Thank God!
Monday, March 18, 2013
4. Remember the Sabbath Day; and keep it holy.
The Fourth in a series on the Ten Commandments.
Sabbath....ah, the meaning of the word is "rest". Take time to rest. That is all it means, pure and simple. People get hung up on the word's true meaning in regard to when in the week it is to be observed. Is it Saturday or Sunday? What can you do on the Sabbath? What is work and what is not when it comes to observing the Sabbath?
For centuries, biblical scholars have argued over the meaning of the Sabbath. Some scholars have been literalists or purists-wanting to give their definition based upon what they interpreted from Scripture as the most precise answer to the questions about the Sabbath. Jewish scholars for centuries have attempted to pinpoint what could or could not be done on their Sabbath, which is Saturday, and went so far as to forbid the switching on or off of light switches or the traveling more than a certain distance from home on that day. The definition of "work" on the Sabbath was a complex thing that required rabbis to dissect the commandment so many times that it lay in pieces on the biblical cutting room floor and could hardly be put back together. So, people who think there is a strict, literal interpretation of the Sabbath law want others to know that they MUST obey their interpretation or they are guilty of breaking this commandment.
Then, there are those of us who are not literalists, but we are more inclined to see the meaning of the commandment contained in the purpose of it...to give people rest. The concept of "sabbath" literally means "rest" as in "After six days, God rested from his work (of creation)". If God needed to rest after being busy for six days, then shouldn't humans also rest from their labors after six days. So, after we have had a busy week, shouldn't we devote at least one day to resting and not doing much more than is necessary so that our bodies and minds can recover.
Different people rest in different ways. Some people literally "take to the bed." I sometimes like to do that, especially on a hot summer day. When the weather is really hot in the summer, I like to go to bed in the middle of the day, closing all the curtains, and turning on the fan, pretending that it is night-time and taking a great nap on a Sunday afternoon. I remove the phones from the bedroom and bar the door so that no animals can disturb my slumber. I awake rested and relaxed and a bit mellow. That often works for me to get much needed rest.
Other people have to escape their house and go somewhere so that no one can find them. They may have their phones with them but they silence them or ignore them or turn them off. They need to see different scenery for a short while. They may simply need to take a drive in the country (harkening back to the "Sunday drive" of the 1950s or so) to see the wildflowers or trees. They may need to find a lake or river to watch for a while and just rest their minds. I have done that too. I like drives in the country and I love lakes so driving to a lake to have a picnic is a great restful activity, unless the road is full of other drivers or the lake is full of swimmers, boaters, or cavorters who wreck the quiet of nature.
So, you see, the way you rest is up to you but the purpose of having a day of rest is to allow our bodies and minds to recover from life's daily grind. We need a break from daily living and the Sabbath helps us to find it.
Now, is the Sabbath Saturday or Sunday. Yes, it is. It is either or both, whichever you choose. Our Jewish friends and some Protestants who think they are a bit Jewish like to observe Saturday as the Sabbath. Most Protestants and Catholics use Sunday as the Sabbath claiming the "Lord's Day" of the Early Church as their Sabbath. I think that since there are two choices, then that proves that God is not that strict about which one you choose. After all, if most of the world's population uses one of those two then God must be flexible on this one.
Is it okay to work on Sunday? Sure, if your boss says you have to and you work in a business that is open on Sunday, they I guess you have to. I work on Sunday regularly, and the other days too regardless of what some of my church members may say. The Sabbath was made for humans, I believe Jesus said, so it is used as it is needed to be used. Just don't get so tired on the Sabbath that you need to rest up the next day or you have defeated the purpose of it.
Can I go to church on the Sabbath? Yes, and you should go to church on it if you are bodily able. Worshiping God on the Sabbath is an act of giving back to God some of the energy and life that God has loaned you. If God can give you 7 days of life, then surely you can give back 1 hour of your time and energy so that God can be praised.
So, that is the primer on the Sabbath. God loves you and wants you rested. Use the Sabbath to benefit you and others and take time to smell the roses and drive to the lake for a picnic. I may see you there.
Sabbath....ah, the meaning of the word is "rest". Take time to rest. That is all it means, pure and simple. People get hung up on the word's true meaning in regard to when in the week it is to be observed. Is it Saturday or Sunday? What can you do on the Sabbath? What is work and what is not when it comes to observing the Sabbath?
For centuries, biblical scholars have argued over the meaning of the Sabbath. Some scholars have been literalists or purists-wanting to give their definition based upon what they interpreted from Scripture as the most precise answer to the questions about the Sabbath. Jewish scholars for centuries have attempted to pinpoint what could or could not be done on their Sabbath, which is Saturday, and went so far as to forbid the switching on or off of light switches or the traveling more than a certain distance from home on that day. The definition of "work" on the Sabbath was a complex thing that required rabbis to dissect the commandment so many times that it lay in pieces on the biblical cutting room floor and could hardly be put back together. So, people who think there is a strict, literal interpretation of the Sabbath law want others to know that they MUST obey their interpretation or they are guilty of breaking this commandment.
Then, there are those of us who are not literalists, but we are more inclined to see the meaning of the commandment contained in the purpose of it...to give people rest. The concept of "sabbath" literally means "rest" as in "After six days, God rested from his work (of creation)". If God needed to rest after being busy for six days, then shouldn't humans also rest from their labors after six days. So, after we have had a busy week, shouldn't we devote at least one day to resting and not doing much more than is necessary so that our bodies and minds can recover.
Different people rest in different ways. Some people literally "take to the bed." I sometimes like to do that, especially on a hot summer day. When the weather is really hot in the summer, I like to go to bed in the middle of the day, closing all the curtains, and turning on the fan, pretending that it is night-time and taking a great nap on a Sunday afternoon. I remove the phones from the bedroom and bar the door so that no animals can disturb my slumber. I awake rested and relaxed and a bit mellow. That often works for me to get much needed rest.
Other people have to escape their house and go somewhere so that no one can find them. They may have their phones with them but they silence them or ignore them or turn them off. They need to see different scenery for a short while. They may simply need to take a drive in the country (harkening back to the "Sunday drive" of the 1950s or so) to see the wildflowers or trees. They may need to find a lake or river to watch for a while and just rest their minds. I have done that too. I like drives in the country and I love lakes so driving to a lake to have a picnic is a great restful activity, unless the road is full of other drivers or the lake is full of swimmers, boaters, or cavorters who wreck the quiet of nature.
So, you see, the way you rest is up to you but the purpose of having a day of rest is to allow our bodies and minds to recover from life's daily grind. We need a break from daily living and the Sabbath helps us to find it.
Now, is the Sabbath Saturday or Sunday. Yes, it is. It is either or both, whichever you choose. Our Jewish friends and some Protestants who think they are a bit Jewish like to observe Saturday as the Sabbath. Most Protestants and Catholics use Sunday as the Sabbath claiming the "Lord's Day" of the Early Church as their Sabbath. I think that since there are two choices, then that proves that God is not that strict about which one you choose. After all, if most of the world's population uses one of those two then God must be flexible on this one.
Is it okay to work on Sunday? Sure, if your boss says you have to and you work in a business that is open on Sunday, they I guess you have to. I work on Sunday regularly, and the other days too regardless of what some of my church members may say. The Sabbath was made for humans, I believe Jesus said, so it is used as it is needed to be used. Just don't get so tired on the Sabbath that you need to rest up the next day or you have defeated the purpose of it.
Can I go to church on the Sabbath? Yes, and you should go to church on it if you are bodily able. Worshiping God on the Sabbath is an act of giving back to God some of the energy and life that God has loaned you. If God can give you 7 days of life, then surely you can give back 1 hour of your time and energy so that God can be praised.
So, that is the primer on the Sabbath. God loves you and wants you rested. Use the Sabbath to benefit you and others and take time to smell the roses and drive to the lake for a picnic. I may see you there.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
3. Watch What You Say
The third in the series of the Ten Commandments--"You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name." (Exodus 20:7)
I really cringe when I hear someone use God's name in vain. I do not like movies that have the word GD used in them. Just hearing someone say "damn" is not like that to me. I occasionally even say that word myself, but when someone adds God's name to that expletive, suddenly it takes on new meaning. It makes me cringe, I suppose, because I was taught from the time that I was a child that saying that word was a major sin. It elevated cursing into a category equal to one using the F word (which I really do not want to hear either).
I suppose it has something to do with the idea of there being a separation between things which are considered holy and things which are ordinary. The Israelites' holiness code went to great lengths to define what was holy and what was not holy. Things that were considered to be holy were set apart and were treated in a respectful manner because of their holy nature. Holy things were protected and given special honor because they were considered to be holy. The Israelites built the Ark of the Covenant to carry holy items in as they went on journeys here and there. There was a list of specific things to be carried in the Ark of the Covenant which was itself so holy that no one could touch it. It had to be carried by 4 men who held long poles that ran through the bottom of it. There is a story in the Old Testament about a man who thought that the Ark was going to fall and he reached up to steady it and he fell dead. That story emphasized that the Ark was so holy that humans were not supposed to ever touch it.
So, things could be holy such as the Ark of the Covenant and its contents. Places could be holy also, such as where Moses stood when he encountered the Burning Bush and was told to take his shoes off because the place was "holy ground". Joshua had a similar encounter but this time it was with an angel and he was given the same command. Their shoes had to come off because the holiness of the place demanded that respect.
Setting apart God's name as holy is something that is still done in Jewish circles. Many Jewish people will not speak God's name and will not write it. They write G_d instead or use words such as Jehovah which was written using the same letters as in Yahweh but it was written by Germans for the German translations of the Bible so the Y became J and vowels were added since there are none in Hebrew. Judaism considers God's name to be as holy as an object one could hold and one is not to tread on the misuse of God's name in any way, setting it apart to be sacred.
I grew up in a family and church that also frowned on cursing and, of course, would never say GD or anything that may smack of it. I was not allowed to say what they called "by-words" which were words that sounded similar to curse words. I could not say "Gosh" because it sounds a lot like "God". I could not say "Gee" because it sounds similar to "Jesus". I could not say "Golly" because they said not to. I could not say "durn" because it sounded a lot like "damn". So, if I slipped and said one of those words, I was lectured or punished, depending on the mood of the one who heard me say it. One day I slipped up and said, "Gosh" and was reprimanded, and I said, "My gosh, I didn't say "Gosh durn" just "gosh"." I was severely punished for saying those words and for talking back.
I think the commandment forbids misuse of God's name because some things in life should be considered to be sacred, set apart, holy. Some things should not be ordinary. Some things should be valued or cherished. There are things in life that are special---days, such as birthdays and anniversaries and Sundays (that comes next in the line of commandments)--events, such as weddings, and baptisms, and funerals---places, such as the Grand Canyon and the Redwood Forest--buildings, such as churches and synagogues and historical ones. Setting things aside as special gives them special significance in life.
So, not saying God's name as a curse word recognizes that God is to be cherished and valued and honored and worshiped, and using God's name in the wrong way devalues our idea of what makes God holy. Our language does matter. When we use unacceptable language it has an effect on the kind of people we are perceived to be by others. We become less in the eyes of others because we have lowered ourselves to talk in such a way that some no longer respect us.
I really cringe when I hear someone use God's name in vain. I do not like movies that have the word GD used in them. Just hearing someone say "damn" is not like that to me. I occasionally even say that word myself, but when someone adds God's name to that expletive, suddenly it takes on new meaning. It makes me cringe, I suppose, because I was taught from the time that I was a child that saying that word was a major sin. It elevated cursing into a category equal to one using the F word (which I really do not want to hear either).
I suppose it has something to do with the idea of there being a separation between things which are considered holy and things which are ordinary. The Israelites' holiness code went to great lengths to define what was holy and what was not holy. Things that were considered to be holy were set apart and were treated in a respectful manner because of their holy nature. Holy things were protected and given special honor because they were considered to be holy. The Israelites built the Ark of the Covenant to carry holy items in as they went on journeys here and there. There was a list of specific things to be carried in the Ark of the Covenant which was itself so holy that no one could touch it. It had to be carried by 4 men who held long poles that ran through the bottom of it. There is a story in the Old Testament about a man who thought that the Ark was going to fall and he reached up to steady it and he fell dead. That story emphasized that the Ark was so holy that humans were not supposed to ever touch it.
So, things could be holy such as the Ark of the Covenant and its contents. Places could be holy also, such as where Moses stood when he encountered the Burning Bush and was told to take his shoes off because the place was "holy ground". Joshua had a similar encounter but this time it was with an angel and he was given the same command. Their shoes had to come off because the holiness of the place demanded that respect.
Setting apart God's name as holy is something that is still done in Jewish circles. Many Jewish people will not speak God's name and will not write it. They write G_d instead or use words such as Jehovah which was written using the same letters as in Yahweh but it was written by Germans for the German translations of the Bible so the Y became J and vowels were added since there are none in Hebrew. Judaism considers God's name to be as holy as an object one could hold and one is not to tread on the misuse of God's name in any way, setting it apart to be sacred.
I grew up in a family and church that also frowned on cursing and, of course, would never say GD or anything that may smack of it. I was not allowed to say what they called "by-words" which were words that sounded similar to curse words. I could not say "Gosh" because it sounds a lot like "God". I could not say "Gee" because it sounds similar to "Jesus". I could not say "Golly" because they said not to. I could not say "durn" because it sounded a lot like "damn". So, if I slipped and said one of those words, I was lectured or punished, depending on the mood of the one who heard me say it. One day I slipped up and said, "Gosh" and was reprimanded, and I said, "My gosh, I didn't say "Gosh durn" just "gosh"." I was severely punished for saying those words and for talking back.
I think the commandment forbids misuse of God's name because some things in life should be considered to be sacred, set apart, holy. Some things should not be ordinary. Some things should be valued or cherished. There are things in life that are special---days, such as birthdays and anniversaries and Sundays (that comes next in the line of commandments)--events, such as weddings, and baptisms, and funerals---places, such as the Grand Canyon and the Redwood Forest--buildings, such as churches and synagogues and historical ones. Setting things aside as special gives them special significance in life.
So, not saying God's name as a curse word recognizes that God is to be cherished and valued and honored and worshiped, and using God's name in the wrong way devalues our idea of what makes God holy. Our language does matter. When we use unacceptable language it has an effect on the kind of people we are perceived to be by others. We become less in the eyes of others because we have lowered ourselves to talk in such a way that some no longer respect us.
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