We took a look through our Bibles. Among our observations: --It is a "book of books," one of our class members said. --66 books in all, containing the stories of God and God's people. --The catalogue is separated into two sections or testaments. --The Hebrew Scriptures, comprising 39 of the books, are often referred to as 'The Old Testament." --The Christian Scriptures, comprising 27 books, are often referred to as "The New Testament." --Much of the Bible was first shared orally: the stories and teachings were told and learned and passed from generation to generation. --The Bible is a story book, with rich narratives and an overarching story. --Although Genesis is the first book in our Bibles, it was not the first one in written form (the Book of Amos was). --Exodus is a freedom story. --The Psalms (150 in all) are hymns, poems, and liturgies used in worship. --The Prophets are people sent by God to u at different times to speak Go...
Last week we revisited the two Gospel stories, in Luke 1:26-38 and Matthew 1:18-25, where the angel of God comes to speak to Mary and Joseph about God's plan. In Mary's case, the angel reveals that young Mary will be the bearer of God's new life for the world, carrying and giving birth to the Son of God. In Joseph's case, the angel intervenes when Joseph is temtped to quietly abandon Mary and the unborn child. Joseph is en-couraged, and the two humble (and initially overwhelmed) people dedicate their lives in a remarkable faithfulness that can encourage us and stimulate our imaginations. The renderings of the angel and Mary are from Collier, DaVinci, Nesterov, and Caravaggio. The one of the angel and Jospeh is unattributed. Are there any of them that really engage your attention?
"Prayer is acknowledging that we are always in the presence of God." -- Desmond Tutu "Prayer is the language of Christian community." --Henri Nouwen "Prayer is yearning, beseeching, beholding." -- Julian of Norwich "Attention, taken to its highest degree, is the same thing as prayer. It presupposes faith and love. Absolutely unmixed attention is prayer." --Simone Weil
My favorite are the last two. The second to last takes place in a cave and not a manger, and the last one is more abstract and surreal than the rest.
ReplyDelete