In the book of Matthew there is a story titled the “Massacre of the Innocents”. Please turn your Bibles to Matthew 2: 13-23.
In this story we see King Herod getting very angry because the Wise Men have returned from seeing Jesus, the new king. Herod doesn’t want to lose his crown so in a jealous rage he orders to have the boys in Israel ages 0-2 killed. An angel comes to warn Joseph and tells him to leave Israel and hid in Egypt so Jesus will be kept alive. After Herod dies, an angel appears to Joseph again to tell him his family could return back to Israel. They returned to Israel but found out that Archelaus, Herod’s son, was the new ruler of Judea. They decided it would be best if they moved somewhere else in Israel to protect Jesus, so they moved to Nazareth.
I want to talk about the scary part of the story. Herod has all of the boys aged 0-2 murdered because he is afraid someone will take his throne. It’s about power. In today’s society we are constantly killing our earth’s resources because of power. We want more power so we “have to make more” money, so we extract more oil. We want more money, so we cut down more trees to make way for more industry. We are “massacring innocents” when we exploit our earth. God put us in charge of creation and we have managed to hurt it. We have a responsibility to recycle, implement business practices that are healthy for our earth, and to waste less. It is up to us to try to improve our earth and to stop destroying innocent things.
Let’s make a covenant to take care of our earth.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
How Liberation Theology Would Interpret Matthew 15:21-31
God calls for humanity to live together in peace, love, respect, and justice. There is a story in the New Testament where Jesus is trying to take a break from his ministry and Gentile woman asks for his help. Since he was a Jew and came to save the Jews, he was resistant to help her. He isn’t living up to those expectations. He is refusing to help someone because she had a different religious background. Let’s see what ends up happening in the story. Open your Bibles to Matthew 15:21-31 (NRSV).
What does Jesus end up doing? He helps the Gentile woman.
We see Jesus say he was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and that he won’t take away the children’s food and give it to the dogs. Here he is speaking in a metaphor. He is saying that he won’t be taking away from the Jews just to help the Gentiles.
What does she say? That even the dogs get the crumbs left under the table.
Correct. She says, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” She is so clever! She teaches Jesus a lesson in this story. All people are God’s creation and all should have the opportunity to be in the presence of the love of God. Jesus learns this lesson from her clever words. No one is better than anyone else is God’s eyes. We will all be freed from oppression.
What does Jesus end up doing? He helps the Gentile woman.
We see Jesus say he was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and that he won’t take away the children’s food and give it to the dogs. Here he is speaking in a metaphor. He is saying that he won’t be taking away from the Jews just to help the Gentiles.
What does she say? That even the dogs get the crumbs left under the table.
Correct. She says, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” She is so clever! She teaches Jesus a lesson in this story. All people are God’s creation and all should have the opportunity to be in the presence of the love of God. Jesus learns this lesson from her clever words. No one is better than anyone else is God’s eyes. We will all be freed from oppression.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Feminists Theology: Genesis 2-3
Genesis 2-3 is known as “The Fall Story.” It is called this because historically it has been seen as humanities fall from God’s grace. It has been used to show “when” human sin began. In this story God creates Adam and decides he needs a partner and creates Eve from Adam’s rib. In the end of this story, after they eat a piece of fruit of the tree of wisdom, God bans Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden. God also punishes the man by forcing him to till his own land and giving the woman pain during child birth, and punishes the serpent by cursing him to travel on his belly and be wacked by the woman. We have all heard this story. We all know that Eve is this awful woman and since her time women have been seen as the evil bearers of her unfaithfulness. I have a different theory.
Let’s spend some time writing down words that we usually think of when we think of Eve.
(Evil, Sin, Seductive, Bad… etc.)
Let’s review the creation story in Genesis 2. What is going on in this story?
I would like to call attention to when God said not to eat from the tree of knowledge. Who was God speaking to? Was God speaking to Adam AND Eve? No. God was talking to Adam alone. God had not yet made Eve in this story.
I would also like to talk about why God chose to make Eve out of Adam’s rib. Where is the rib located on the body? The side. God specifically chose a part from the side of Adam’s body. God did not choose something from Adam’s head. God did not choose something from Adam’s foot. God is saying that Eve is not above you, Eve is not below you. Eve is equal with you. You two will be partners, side by side in everything you do. God does not punish Adam because he didn’t take care of his property. God punished Adam because he played a part in the disobedience. They are partners in crime.
I would also like to call attention to verse 3:6. “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.” (NRSV) Eve was not alone here. Adam was there with her. She did not force him to eat. She handed it to him and he ate. If we see that Eve is not a temptress herself and her husband had a part in this whole story, how does that change our perception of her?
If our perceptions of Eve change, how does our perception of all women change?
Women are no longer seen as subservient to men. They are equal players in their relationships.
Let’s spend some time writing down words that we usually think of when we think of Eve.
(Evil, Sin, Seductive, Bad… etc.)
Let’s review the creation story in Genesis 2. What is going on in this story?
I would like to call attention to when God said not to eat from the tree of knowledge. Who was God speaking to? Was God speaking to Adam AND Eve? No. God was talking to Adam alone. God had not yet made Eve in this story.
I would also like to talk about why God chose to make Eve out of Adam’s rib. Where is the rib located on the body? The side. God specifically chose a part from the side of Adam’s body. God did not choose something from Adam’s head. God did not choose something from Adam’s foot. God is saying that Eve is not above you, Eve is not below you. Eve is equal with you. You two will be partners, side by side in everything you do. God does not punish Adam because he didn’t take care of his property. God punished Adam because he played a part in the disobedience. They are partners in crime.
I would also like to call attention to verse 3:6. “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and he ate.” (NRSV) Eve was not alone here. Adam was there with her. She did not force him to eat. She handed it to him and he ate. If we see that Eve is not a temptress herself and her husband had a part in this whole story, how does that change our perception of her?
If our perceptions of Eve change, how does our perception of all women change?
Women are no longer seen as subservient to men. They are equal players in their relationships.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
Sharing Jesus’ Stories
Here is a lesson I have put together for the Sunday after Easter about the travelers on the road to Emmaus.
“He is not here; for he has been raised’ as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.” Matthew 28:6
Call to Worship
(Sing to Frere Jacques)
Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen!
Sing a song of praise! Sing a song of praise!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen!
Joys and Concerns
Have the children share a few joys and concerns they have and follow with a prayer thanking God for our joys and asking God to be with us in our concerns.
Sharing
Ask: What can you remember from the Easter story about Jesus?
(New life, Jesus was raised up, etc.)
Listening
Say: I have another story about after Jesus was given new life by God. On Easter Sunday, two friends walked home from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were sad. Their friend Jesus had died on Friday. As they walked along, a stranger caught up with them and asked what they were talking about.
“Are you the only person in Jerusalem who has not heard about Jesus?” asked on of the travelers.
“What about Jesus?” the stranger asked.
So the travelers told the stranger all about Jesus. They told how Jesus had been born. They told how kind and good he had been. They told him some of the wonderful stories Jesus had told them and some of the important things Jesus had taught them. They told about the way Jesus healed sick people and made friends with lonely people. They told about the last supper with Jesus, when he took a loaf of bread, broke it and gave it to his friends, asking they to share bread to remember him. They told how Jesus had died on a cross and buried in a cave. The stranger listened. Somehow the travelers knew the stranger understood.
Soon it was dinner time. The travelers invited the stranger to have dinner with them, and he did. As they sat down to supper, the stranger picked up the bread and said the blessing. Then he broke the bread and gave it to them. Suddenly the travelers recognized the stranger. He wasn’t a stranger at all! He was Jesus! Jesus was not dead! He was alive! He was with the- or he had bee, As soon as they recognized him, Jesus disappeared. The surprised travelers were amazed and happy and excited. They hurried all the way back to Jerusalem to tell the others, “Jesus is alive! We have seen him. He gave us bread to eat. We are not alone anymore.”
Exploring
Have the children sit in a circle. Give them each a piece of Hawaiian bread. While they are sharing the bread ask them what stories they know about God and Jesus.
Benediction
Say: God, what wonderful news we have heard this morning! Christ has risen and lives forever! Alleluia! Amen!
“He is not here; for he has been raised’ as he said. Come, see the place where he lay.” Matthew 28:6
Call to Worship
(Sing to Frere Jacques)
Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen!
Sing a song of praise! Sing a song of praise!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen!
Joys and Concerns
Have the children share a few joys and concerns they have and follow with a prayer thanking God for our joys and asking God to be with us in our concerns.
Sharing
Ask: What can you remember from the Easter story about Jesus?
(New life, Jesus was raised up, etc.)
Listening
Say: I have another story about after Jesus was given new life by God. On Easter Sunday, two friends walked home from Jerusalem to Emmaus. They were sad. Their friend Jesus had died on Friday. As they walked along, a stranger caught up with them and asked what they were talking about.
“Are you the only person in Jerusalem who has not heard about Jesus?” asked on of the travelers.
“What about Jesus?” the stranger asked.
So the travelers told the stranger all about Jesus. They told how Jesus had been born. They told how kind and good he had been. They told him some of the wonderful stories Jesus had told them and some of the important things Jesus had taught them. They told about the way Jesus healed sick people and made friends with lonely people. They told about the last supper with Jesus, when he took a loaf of bread, broke it and gave it to his friends, asking they to share bread to remember him. They told how Jesus had died on a cross and buried in a cave. The stranger listened. Somehow the travelers knew the stranger understood.
Soon it was dinner time. The travelers invited the stranger to have dinner with them, and he did. As they sat down to supper, the stranger picked up the bread and said the blessing. Then he broke the bread and gave it to them. Suddenly the travelers recognized the stranger. He wasn’t a stranger at all! He was Jesus! Jesus was not dead! He was alive! He was with the- or he had bee, As soon as they recognized him, Jesus disappeared. The surprised travelers were amazed and happy and excited. They hurried all the way back to Jerusalem to tell the others, “Jesus is alive! We have seen him. He gave us bread to eat. We are not alone anymore.”
Exploring
Have the children sit in a circle. Give them each a piece of Hawaiian bread. While they are sharing the bread ask them what stories they know about God and Jesus.
Benediction
Say: God, what wonderful news we have heard this morning! Christ has risen and lives forever! Alleluia! Amen!
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Bible Study in Mutual Correlation Theology
Today we are going to be reading Matthew 2:13-23. They call these verses the story of “The Massacre of the Innocents.”
Read Matthew 2:13-23
In this story we see King Herod getting very angry because the Wise Men have returned from seeing Jesus, the new king. Herod doesn’t want to lose his crown so in a jealous rage he orders to have the boys in Israel ages 0-2 killed. An angel comes to warn Joseph and tells him to leave Israel and hid in Egypt so Jesus will be kept alive. After Herod dies, an angel appears to Joseph again to tell him his family could return back to Israel. They returned to Israel but found out that Archelaus, Herod’s son, was the new ruler of Judea. They decided it would be best if they moved somewhere else in Israel to protect Jesus, so they moved to Nazareth.
Are any of you the best at something? How would you feel if someone new moved into your school who was better than you at that thing? I would be jealous. My feelings would be hurt. Now obviously that feeling of jealousy does not make it ok to hurt someone else, but do you feel what Herod felt? He was so mad that someone was coming in and going to be a king.
What do you all think about this story?
I have set up stations around the room that you all can choose from. There is a drawing station, a sand station, a journaling station, and a prayer station. You all should take this time to reflect on the meaning this story has for you.
Now that all of you are finished with your reflections, does anyone want to share?
Let’s close in prayer.
Dear God,
Thank you so much for being with us here now like you were back in the days of the story we read today. Thank you for always loving us and for allowing us to find you.
Amen.
Read Matthew 2:13-23
In this story we see King Herod getting very angry because the Wise Men have returned from seeing Jesus, the new king. Herod doesn’t want to lose his crown so in a jealous rage he orders to have the boys in Israel ages 0-2 killed. An angel comes to warn Joseph and tells him to leave Israel and hid in Egypt so Jesus will be kept alive. After Herod dies, an angel appears to Joseph again to tell him his family could return back to Israel. They returned to Israel but found out that Archelaus, Herod’s son, was the new ruler of Judea. They decided it would be best if they moved somewhere else in Israel to protect Jesus, so they moved to Nazareth.
Are any of you the best at something? How would you feel if someone new moved into your school who was better than you at that thing? I would be jealous. My feelings would be hurt. Now obviously that feeling of jealousy does not make it ok to hurt someone else, but do you feel what Herod felt? He was so mad that someone was coming in and going to be a king.
What do you all think about this story?
I have set up stations around the room that you all can choose from. There is a drawing station, a sand station, a journaling station, and a prayer station. You all should take this time to reflect on the meaning this story has for you.
Now that all of you are finished with your reflections, does anyone want to share?
Let’s close in prayer.
Dear God,
Thank you so much for being with us here now like you were back in the days of the story we read today. Thank you for always loving us and for allowing us to find you.
Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
