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Between — Back to the Birth
To better understand the birth of Jesus in Matthew, we have to go back to the genealogy. A messy, cool bit of surprise and wonder.
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Between — From Prophet to Pessimist
The story of John the Baptist gives us a new lens of skepticism as he sits in prison totally unaware of the work Jesus is really up to.
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Between: Skipping past the birth of Jesus before he’s born
Just because the lectionary has us reading the beginning of Matthew in the wrong order doesn’t mean we shouldn’t get it straight.
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Firing the anti-gay teacher was the right call
The people are starting to realize just how gross and ugly bigotry is. And this story shows how easy it is to respond to the needs of students.
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Between: Jumping past the passion to the crucifixion
The way we talk about the passion and crucifixion of Jesus leaves out half of the story. The half of the story that has the most meaning.
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between: some suddenly friendly scribes and a dead widow
Some scribes judge Jesus as speaking rightly — after trying to trap him. And why Jesus takes his criticism of them to the next level.
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Why does Jesus tell the disciples to buy swords?
Does Jesus really suggest we bear arms in Luke 22:35-38? The answer is no. But that doesn’t make the passage any less confusing.
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Between: From Authentic Disciples to Confronting the Lying Liars
A look at the gaps in the lectionary. This week: the gap between Proper 26C and Proper 27C. The text: Luke 19:11-20:26. For those who may have transferred All Saints to Sunday, the story from Proper 26C is Luke 19:1-10—the one in which Zacchaeus climbs a tree. For the congregation, this is a capstone on…