It's Dangerous to Go Alone! Take This.

A few weeks ago while searching for books on worship and spirituality on Amazon, I decided to check out the related titles at the bottom of the page. The first few were in a similar vein, but then came not one, but two, players guides to the Legend of Zelda games. Now, I think the Zelda games were loads of fun (well except maybe Zelda 2 on the NES) and I have enjoyed playing them well into adulthood. But unless I missed something significant, they had nothing to do with worship or spirituality.

When I said something about this on Facebook, a friend noted that "It's dangerous to go alone! Take this." is probably a good summation of the book of Acts. At which point I realized three things. One, she was right. Two, it is especially fitting for Pentecost. And three, I was scheduled to preach on Pentecost.

So I offered my reflections on Jesus recognizing the danger of the disciples trying to go it alone and offering them something to help them on the way.

Wormtail or Snape? A Different Take on Judas

We hear a lot about certain disciples. Simon Peter is the rock given the task of feeding Jesus' followers. There are the sons of Zebedee who want to sit at Jesus' right and left hand in the coming kingdom. Paul, late to the party but afforded a full serving of grace. And, of course, Mary Magdalene, one of the most widely attested and most historically ignored by the Church of those closest to Jesus.

Another frequently if narrowly discussed disciple is Judas. Judas the betrayer. The keeper of the purse who turned Jesus over to the temple leaders. The one who betrayed Jesus with a kiss.

It reminds me of the song by the Killers, Mr. Brightside (well, at least parts of the song):

It started out with a kiss

How did it end up like this

It was only a kiss, it was only a kiss

April Fool's

After the events of the last few days, Sunday morning must have really caught Jesus' friends off guard. First they came into town greeted by shouts of joy. People were waving at Jesus and calling on God in praise. But then it all started to go down hill.

Jesus went to the temple and started to drive out the money lenders and merchants who were profiting off others in the courtyard. Judas started acting a bit cagey. Jesus' stories and teachings got even more long winded, like he was in a rush for some reason. Then Jesus gets taken by a mob that Judas led to them in the garden. Peter followed them for a time, but he ran off when he got worried they would take him too. Jesus was taken first to the chief priests and then handed over to the governor and accused of sedition. Beaten, he was bound to a tree to die.

And then he did.

From Celebration to Devastation

As I read the scripture passages for this week, my first thought was that I really wanted to do something with the naked man. This is my favorite text of the arrest of Jesus in the garden because of his appearance. I really wanted to do something about us being laid bare before God or maybe even something about the beginnings of the return to Eden.

But then I thought maybe I should do something about being an ass for Jesus. I really got caught up on the donkey that Jesus rides into town on Palm Sunday in certain Gospel stories. What does it mean to take a lowly place in the story to glorify God? On the other hand, why do so many of those who claim to serve God act like an ass?

But as I worked on an idea for the service this week, I was struck yet again by the flow of this particular Sunday. In many churches, this is not just Palm Sunday but Palm/Passion Sunday. We go from the triumphant entry into Jerusalem straight through Gethsemane and into the arrest, the trial, and the Crucifixion. There is a lot packed into this service.

Disruptive Discords: On Leave Taking and Transitions

It has been a while since I have posted here. A sudden move across the country and an extended period of liminality have left me somewhat bereft of words. As this initial year of transition draws to a close, I finally find myself with things to say.

I moved to Evanston, IL, in September 2001 to attend Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary. I had never visited campus, never even been to the Chicago-area. But for most of the past 16+ years, Garrett-Evangelical has been my home. It was the first place I truly considered home after moving out of the home I grew up in.

I entered seminary knowing I was called by God to, well, something other than what I had been doing. But I was also fairly certain I could never be like the "preachers" I was familiar with from growing up in the church in the South. As I began my classes and began to reflect on what it meant to be called, two things happened. I began to recognize the echoes of that call in my own life going back at least into high school and to understand the ways in which the stories and rhythms of Jesus' life were woven into my own. And I began to see different models for ministry beyond those I was familiar with.