“Is the Lord among us or not?” Exodus 17.7

 Words for me this week drawn from reflecting on the lectionary passages for Sunday:

You shall know that among you is the living God, the Lord of all the earth. Joshua 3:10-11 Joshua was at a very different place than I am today, but I still need to know that the living God, Lord of all the earth is among people of faith.

"The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted." (Matthew 23:11-12) This countercultural reality permeated Jesus' life and teaching and strikes me as relevant today as ever.

I think the juxtaposition is significant. Only in humility can I recognize God among us, I dare not presume to claim God for myself.

Cautionary Tale of Power Politics

I perceive a cautionary tale in the contrasting Supreme Court nominations of Merrick Garland and Amy Coney Barrett, not about the hypocrisy of the Senate’s confirmation procedures nor of the jurists’ contrasting legal approaches. Rather, I observe raw power at work. The Democrats didn’t have the power to get Merrick Garland even a hearing, and the Republicans had the power to fast track Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation on the threshold of a volatile presidential election. One of the great hazards of such exercises of power, is that they can turn around and hurt those who play such power games. For that reason, I would not suggest that the Democrats pursue court packing should they gain such power in the coming election. It was damaging when Franklin Roosevelt tried it to push through New Deal measures that were his plan for addressing the Great Depression. What I am suggesting has nothing to do with my political preferences, only recognizing the breadth of the principle that those who live by the sword, die by the sword. (Matthew 26:52)

 

Pre-election Wisdom from Psalm 146 Speaks for Itself without My Comment

Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help. When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.

Happy are those whose help is the God … who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets the prisoners free; the Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow.

 

 

 

Prayers in Pandemic

 With the momentum of the third wave of the 2020 pandemic seeming to be accelerating, I found Psalm 116 helped me articulate from my heart to God and silently rest in God’s responses.

 Even those who have not been infected and those who have recovered feel that the snares of death have encompassed us and the pangs of Sheol have laid hold on us. Few of us have been spared knowing someone loved and precious who has died.

Who of us has not cried out, “O Lord, save the lives of my neighbors, my friends, my relatives, even my own life!”?

Yet, the Psalm prompts praise and thanksgiving for the Lord who has dealt bountifully with us, before whom we continue to walk in the land of the living, lifting up the cup of salvation.

I recommend taking some time with the whole Psalm up against your own experience and responses to the pandemic, but I found these lines particularly evocative for me.

The snares of death encompassed me; the pangs of Sheol laid hold on me; I suffered distress and anguish. Then I called on the name of the Lord: “O Lord, I pray, save my life!” You have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling. I walk before the Lord in the land of the living. I kept my faith, even when I said, “I am greatly afflicted.” What shall I return to the Lord for all his bounty to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful ones. I will offer to you a thanksgiving sacrifice and call on the name of the Lord.

 

Not With This Picture

After seeing the picture of Joe Biden kissing his granddaughter on the top of the head at his son’s funeral used as “evidence” of his impropriety, I had to compose a response, even if I never share it beyond my Writing Workshop blog.

I do have concerns that Joe Biden has a reputation for being “touchy-feely” and seems not to always respect personal boundaries. I refuse to get into playing “your guy is worse than my guy” as that says more to me about the depth of the moral morass of our society than any of the “guys.” More importantly, it is a distraction from the point that I feel compelled to make, which I will illustrate with an experience from my pastoral career.

One congregation I served held a funeral for a young person (who had grown up in and still had family active in the church) who had committed suicide after killing an acquaintance and a police officer called to the scene. TV stations sent camera crews who wanted to record the service and reporters who wanted to conduct interviews. We told them they could not record video or audio or conduct interviews on church property. They set up across the street seemingly to record those who were coming and the procession at the end of the service. Since it was not a “private” service, a couple of reporters may have come in with the mourners and taken some notes. None of that indicates any approval of the young person’s tragic behavior, but I continue to believe protecting the privacy of a grieving family, community, and congregation was not only right but imperative.

When one enters public life (entertainment, sports, politics, etc.) a certain amount of privacy is lost. However, regardless of political persuasion, I believe that invading the Biden family’s privacy in this way in their time of grief is highly inappropriate. Regardless of other personal boundary miscues Joe Biden may be called to answer for, using this as “evidence” is reprehensible and unacceptable.

My Prayer for Responding to the Vicious Political Ridicule, Mockery, Insults, Cruel Caricatures, Spiteful Satire that Is Spewing with Greater and Greater Intensity as Voting Has Begun and the Election Approaches

Most churchgoers are aware that Jesus prayed Psalm 22:1 from the cross. Other Psalms echoed in Jesus words as he hung dying. We recognize the prayer from Psalm 31:5 even if we are not aware of its source. Today my Psalm prayers brought me to Psalm 69, which is not often alluded to in preaching and teaching about Jesus’ crucifixion, but when held up against the Gospel Passion Narratives, it sheds incisive light on Jesus’ praying through his suffering.

 I often find verse 6 instructive as I deal with the challenges that come with difficult relationships. Today it prompted me to examine how I respond to some of the political expressions that seem to be multiplying exponentially. Some folk pass on extremely demeaning political expressions along with pleas for courtesy and balance (presumably from those who disagree), seeming to be unaware of the incongruity.

 I do have political opinions that are not secret, but I endeavor to articulate them in a way that prompts thinking rather than argument (though I know I am not always successful). I aspire to have my political opinions shaped by Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7) and Solomon’s Prayer for the King (Psalm 72) rather than being squeezed into the mold of the world’s political parties and categories. (Romans 12:2 – Phillips) I offer this from Psalm 69:6 not so much as instructive for those who proclaim their political opinions with or without malice as a prayer for God to infuse my responses in these turbulent, divisive times.

 

Psalm 69:6

Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me, O Lord God of hosts;

do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me.

Looking for the Face of God

 

Today my lectio divina and Psalm prayers collided. I am pondering the space between these paradoxical contradictions.

 

In the lectionary for Sunday from the Hebrew Scriptures in Exodus 33:12-23, Moses asks to see the Lord’s glory, to which the Lord replied (vv. 20, 23).

“You cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live. … Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.”

 

In the anthropomorphic imagery in this account, God almost seems to be a giant supernatural being who hides Moses behind an oversize hand until he can turn away and let Moses see his backside, almost a cosmic mooning.

 

After contemplating this, I came to Psalm 17 in my Psalm prayer rotation to find this in verse 15.

“As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake I shall be satisfied, beholding your likeness.”

 

A number of Psalms speak of looking at the face of God, but this juxtaposition today prompted me to probe my contemplative yearning for a glimpse of God. I am not seeking a logical explanation to make rational sense of the paradox. Rather I am gazing into the space between for something more mysterious.

God's Voice Roaring Today

I think of my monthly journey through the Psalms as prayer in the sense that they prompt my conversation with God. Many of the Psalms are cast directly as prayer but many might also be considered to be pondering of the Psalmists' side of these conversations with God. Only occasionally do the Psalms record God speaking directly.

However, this morning when I came to Psalm 75 (as I do the 15th of each month) God's words stood out as addressing our present realities in which we are living not only with the most expansive pandemic of our lifetimes but considerable contentiousness about how to respond to it, with reenergized pursuit of racial justice and an increasingly vocal pushback against it, catastrophic climatological crises from hurricanes to wild fires, all in what seems to me to be the most vicious political season of my lifetime. Against this backdrop, God's words in vv. 2-5 roared.

At the set time that I appoint I will judge with equity. When the earth totters, with all its inhabitants, it is I who keep its pillars steady. I say to the boastful, “Do not boast,” and to the wicked, “Do not lift up your horn; do not lift up your horn on high, or speak with insolent neck.”

Justice and Peace Kiss

 With the recent renewal of pursuing racial justice, I am reminded of this from the civil rights and peace movements of the ‘60s and’70s.

            No Justice – No Peace

            Know Justice – Know Peace

It is commonly understood as an appeal for justice to achieve the goal of peace, but I believe it also expresses a profound reality of human nature, human society that is evident in all cultures through history.

 

This hope is marvelously expressed in Psalm 85:10. “Righteousness and peace will kiss each other.” I am no Hebrew scholar, so I looked up the word tsdeq which can be translated both as “righteousness” and as “justice.” This is not unique to Hebrew. I know, for example, that in Spanish the word for both righteousness and justice is justicia. Nicholas Wolterstorff explored this in his 1981 book Until Justice and Peace Embrace. So the connection could legitimately be expressed as justice and peace will kiss each other.

 

One of the hazards of our hyper-individualistic culture is that we think of righteousness in terms of personal, individual moral rectitude and miss out on the communal dimensions of righteous living that are embodied in justice. Nothing wrong with personal, individual moral rectitude, but it is only one part of biblical righteousness. Justice is essential too.

Covid-19 and the Trumps

Other than a few affirmations of some gracious responses of some friends (who have openly taken exception to Donald Trump) to the news that the Trumps have tested positive (and seem to be showing some so far mild symptoms), I have purposely refrained from commenting too quickly. However, that doesn’t mean I don’t have thoughts, which also does not mean that they contribute anything unique to anyone. Nevertheless, I feel a certain moral responsibility to be clear about my response.

 

Have you ever had an experience so miserable it prompted you to say, “I wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy”? For those who have dissented from Donald Trump’s words and actions, especially around the response to the coronavirus pandemic, I’m sure the temptation to gloat is alluring. I am thankful I have not seen that in my circle of those who have publically expressed their disagreements. I am also thankful that I have not seen scolding from those who have been Trump’s defenders.

 

That “worst enemy” sentiment reminds me of Jesus expectation for those who follow him to love their enemies. (Matthew 5:43-48; Luke 6:27-35, which is affirmed by Paul in Romans 12:17-21) Pretty typically, when I ponder this, I recognize an inclination to deny that I have any enemies, even among those with whom I have serious political, theological, and ethical disagreements. In my years of pastoral ministry, I did not consider those who seemed to be complainers and trouble makers to be my enemies. I tried to recognize that their concerns helped identify things that needed attention, even if not the approach they were proposing. Perhaps some of them may have regarded me as an enemy, but I sought God’s help in loving them with respect.

 

I am sure Donald Trump has no idea who I am. Might he consider me to be an enemy if he knew about my convictions? I am not going to presume that. So how do I love him in all of the turmoil of this time? Certainly not by endorsing policies with which I cannot agree. Praying? Certainly! I have written about how Psalm 72 guides my praying for all in positions of public leadership and responsibility. When it comes to praying for the sick, I don’t think James 5:14-16 is relevant (unless the Trumps wanted to call on those they might to consider to be elders of the church). As a pastor I regularly prayed for church members and others who were sick. I didn’t consider that I was telling God what to do, as though my prayers compelled God to heal. I did (and still do) express to God my love and concern for those who are ill, believing God can and does heal, but not that I have some magic power.

 

Especially when people are facing long-term, life altering healthy challenges (such as my mother’s rheumatoid arthritis) or when people are coming to the end of their lives, I invoke Psalm 31:5 to commend them into God’s hands in faith. I think that gives me a clue about how I can be praying with love for the Trumps without political contamination. Especially knowing that what happens with them affects the whole country, I can relinquish them into God’s hands trusting that God can handle this better than I can.