So many fish stories

There are so many fish stories in the Bible. This morning, I was looking for some details about the fish that figures in the miracles in the book of Tobit. I came across again the wisdom the father Tobit gives to his son Tobias as he sets out for the journey with the angel Raphael (although he doesn't know he's an angel). 

"Revere the Lord all your days, my son, and refuse to sin or to transgress his commandments. Live uprightly all the days of your life, and do not walk in the ways of wrongdoing; for those who act in accordance with truth will prosper in all their activities. To all those who practice righteousness give alms from your possessions, and do not let your eye begrudge the gift when you make it. Do not turn your face away from anyone who is poor, and the face of God will not be turned away from you. If you have many possessions, make your gift from them in proportion; if few, do not be afraid to give according to the little you have. So you will be laying up a good treasure for yourself against the day of necessity. For almsgiving delivers from death and keeps you from going into the Darkness. Indeed, almsgiving, for all who practice it, is an excellent offering in the presence of the Most High." Tobit 4:5-11 

Because Tobit, who is blind, thinks he is dying (there is a prayer about that), this advice to his son Tobias is followed by instructions on marriage, treatment of others and seeking advice. We readers know that his future daughter-in-law, Sarah, who is depressed and wants to die, is also praying. 

Great story.

Beautiful hymn of praise in the book of Tobit

This morning I've been reading the story of Tobit, Anna, Tobiah and Sarah. Such an interesting cast of characters including a demon named Asmodeus and an angel named Raphael. Such beautiful hymns of praise and promise. It's a shame we Protestants don't use it. You don't need to read it as either fact or fiction, just enjoy it for God's amazing works and the praise offered to him.

I really identified with the husband/wife conversation between Tobit and his wife Anna, that is still being repeated to this day.

Backstory: Tobit was a wealthy, successful man who became blind and lost his wealth. His wife had to support the family so Tobit sent son Tobias off to recover money he had in another land. Anna is not happy! It goes sort of like this as they are awaiting his return.

Tobit chapter 10. Now his father Tobit was counting each day, and when the days for the journey had expired and they did not arrive . . .

Tobit: “Is it possible that he has been detained? Or is it possible that Gab′ael [kinsman] has died and there is no one to give him the money?” And he was greatly distressed.

Anna: “The lad has perished; his long delay proves it.” Then she began to mourn for him, and said, “Am I not distressed, my child, that I let you go, you who are the light of my eyes?” She begins to weep and wail.

Tobit: “Be still and stop worrying; he is well, my love, he is safe. They probably had unexpected business, the man traveling with him is trustworthy and is one of our own kinsmen. Do not worry.” [Women just love to be told not to worry and awfulize.]

Anna: “Oh stop it! Be still and stop deceiving me; my child has perished.” And she went out every day to the road by which they had left; she ate nothing in the daytime, and throughout the nights she never stopped mourning for her son Tobi′as, getting no sleep at all."

Now, doesn't that sound familiar?

P.S. It all turns out and God is praised--see Chapter 13 for Tobit's song of praise. Raphael the angel when he reveals his true identity tells Tobit, "A king's secret is prudent to keep, but the works of God are to be made known with due honor."

Ahab and Jezebel. Who’s the better comparison?

Hillary Clinton at the Cummings memorial on Friday compared our president and FLOTUS to Jezebel and Ahab, another power couple of the ancient Jewish scriptures. They've been used in the past to describe Bill and Hillary Clinton--perhaps she was aware of that book.

"Throughout his 2017 best-seller “The Paradigm: The Ancient Blueprint That Holds the Mystery of Our Times,” Jonathan Cahn explains how ancient paradigms have predicted political outcomes like Donald Trump’s presidential victory and Hillary Clinton’s defeat years before they happened.

Clinton said, "Like the prophet, our Elijah [Cummings] could call down fire from heaven, but he also prayed and worked for healing." "He weathered storms and earthquakes but never lost his faith. Like that Old Testament prophet, he stood against corrupt leadership of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel."

In "The Paradigm," Cahn made several parallels to both Hillary and Bill Clinton in relation to Queen Jezebel and King Ahab.

Queen Jezebel was raised under the worship of the goddess Ashtoreth and thus was an advocate of female power. She also championed Baal Worship involving the offering of children. Hillary Clinton has been considered a lifelong advocate of feminism for quite some time and was voted the chief advocate of abortion by Planned Parenthood – a lifelong issue for her.

Queen Jezebel worked with her husband Ahab to overturn traditional conservative values. King Ahab reigned in government and on the public stage for a period spanning 22 years. Hillary Clinton has been working with her husband Bill to overturn traditional conservative values for years. Bill Clinton also presided in government and on the public stage for 22 years from 1979 to 2001.

Finally, the reign of Ahab and Jezebel was marked by personal scandals. Specifically, the fall of Ahab was linked to the tribe of Levi. Similarly, the reign of Bill and Hillary Clinton was also marked by the Whitewater controversy and the Lewinsky scandal. The fall of Bill Clinton was linked to the Lewinsky – translated to ‘Levi’ in Hebrew – scandal."

No, I'm no O.T. scholar. This showed up in my e-mail from Cahn's PR company. I just thought it interesting that Bill and Hillary are a much closer match for Ahab and Jezebel as a power couple, than Donald and Melania.

Guardian angels

Friday morning I was reviewing Bible and extra-biblical writing on guardian angels. We certainly are calling on them today. We know Phil has one –I  remember about 7-8 years ago his car explosion and he had jumped out of the car after someone in a white vehicle pulled up behind him and yelled, “ you're on fire,” then left. Then boom. It went up in flames.

There's a beautiful hymn/poem in the book of Daniel when the three men are being saved from the fire. Unfortunately, that lovely passage is not in the Protestant Bible, so you'll have to look on-line if you don't have a Catholic or Orthodox Bible. See Daniel 3:26-90. At verse 46, "Now the king's men who had thrown them in continued to stoke the furnace with brimstone, pitch, tow, and faggots. The flames rose 49 cubits above the furnace, and spread out, burning the Chaldeans nearby. But the angel of the Lord went down into the furnace with Azariah and his companions, drove the fiery flames out of the furnace, and made the inside of the furnace as though a dew-laden breeze were blowing through it. The first in no way touched them or caused them pain or harm. Then these three in the furnace with one voice sang, glorifying and blessing God: [and the hymn continues]

But I also like my friend Sonja Ness' method. She has named her tumors, "Gertie and the 3 blind mice" and enjoys watching them diminish as they are attacked by chemo (and probably her guardian angel who is guiding her treatment team). So using the angel example in Exodus 23:20-23 I'll name the tentacles of Phil's tumor, "My angel will go before you and bring you to the Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hivites, and Jebusites; and I will wipe them out."

Guardian angels aren't just for Hallmark cards. Nor are they cute, sweet and plump with feathery wings. They are strong and powerful like the one who came to Mary (Hail, Mary) to announce the coming of Jesus or the one who greeted the women at the Tomb. They have a long tradition in the church. Saint Basil the Great (d. 378) taught that "each and every member of the faithful has a Guardian angel to protect, guard, and guide them through life." St. Bernard of Clairvaux (d. 1153) wrote, "these celestial spirits have been placed at our sides to protect us, instruct us, and to guide us." Billy Graham wrote a book about angels and called them God's secret agents. Then there was a 19th century Dutch Calvinist, Abraham Kuyper, who also was a fan of angels (also wrote about demons and miracles) and describes their powers. http://www.ccel.org/ccel/kuyper/greater.x.html

A phrase attributed to St. Augustine, "“We cannot pass our guardian angel's bounds, resigned or sullen, he will hear our sighs.”

Don’t install Bible study in our public schools

I was in elementary school in the 1940s--they weren't "teaching" Bible then, although it was read occasionally. It's a bad idea--we've got 35,000 protestant denominations and groups, many called "Bible churches." We've got 6 rites within Catholicism with another 21 under that. We've got Orthodox, Mormons, and Jehovah Witnesses, plus some spiritualist types, unity affiliated, Swedenborgian, and those are just the ones in the big tent of Christianity. Then there is a buffet table of other religions who also have their own sacred scriptures. Teach religion at home or send your child to a religious school. We've got lefties who say we can't say "Western Civilization" or use certain pronouns. Can't imagine what they'd do with the battles and ceremonies of the Old Testament.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/trump-boosts-bills-teach-favorite-book-bible-public-schools-220638186.html

There is no shortage of ways to learn or read the Bible.

Grandma's notes fell out of a book--Monday Memories

Barnstormers stop at the farm about 1915--my mother in the white dress holding her father's hand

For their time, my maternal grandparents were well off.  After the death of my grandmother's father in 1912, they inherited a third of his estate.  Grandma's mother had died in 1895, and she was his only surviving heir because her three siblings had died. Willy died of diphtheria as a teen-ager.  Ira died in a farm incident in 1908 and had children who inherited their father's one-third share. Her one sister Martha died after childbirth of infection, but had two sons who inherited her one-third share. So my grandparents, thanks to grandma's inheritance, had a lovely home between Ashton and Franklin Grove, IL (remodeled around 1914) with 2 bathrooms, indoor plumbing, electricity from a generator, and easy access to train travel to Chicago for shopping and medical care. The home was recently sold out of the family in 2016.  They had a loyal carriage horse, but also automobiles, radios, and household help when many still used outhouses and "woman-power."  Things would change during the Depression, of course, but until then life was good.  But grandma was always frugal--a balance for her spouse.  So I found a note in one of Uncle Leslie's childhood books, "The Gospel Primer," 47th ed., Southern Publishing Association, Nashville. c. 1895.  The first 37 pages are learning letters and phrases, but after that it's full blown Bible stories I would guess to be about third or fourth grade reading level.  The note appears to be from a lecture, but I only have one page, and it seems to be grandma's handwriting. She wrote on the back of expenses (owed?) of the Farmers Co-operative Association, Nov. 16, 1909, for August 13 to Sept. 9. It is quite detailed, even noting the clerk who did the sale.

Grandma's handwritten in pencil note:

Grandma's handwritten notes about Peter Vieau

 "One who cannot see his own errors even when they are pointed out will not make much improvement.  Until we discover and deplore our defects we will not take pains to remedy them.  Frankness in confessing a fault is a grace.  When one becomes so perfect in his own estimation that he has no occasion to confess his faults to his neighbors, he is well nigh beyond the reach of hope.

An event of much interest to Milwaukee pioneers took place yesterday at Muskego when Peter Vieau celebrated his seventieth birthday.  He is supposed to be the oldest man . . .'. Ends there. Perhaps there was another page, and this scrap was simply having a third life as a bookmark.

I don't see how the two paragraphs are linked, but she may have been copying something of interest--from an 1890(!) newspaper.  I looked up Peter Vieau, and because he was born in 1820 and the oldest pioneer resident of Muskego, he had a lot of interviews and they've been copied and digitized for the Wisconsin Historical Society.  He died in 1905 at age 86 after a brief illness.

I can't determine the source of the first paragraph, but the content is in dozens of "how to improve" essays from Luther to Calvin to Finney and 21st century gurus. It's also the basic principle of confession  (Frankness in confessing a fault is a grace) in the Catholic church. Probably just notes taken during a quiet Sunday afternoon looking through stacks of old newspapers and magazines, sometimes with her scissors; something I saw her do many times.

The story of Susanna in Daniel 13

The Old Testament reading this morning was one of the longest, and most riveting I've ever heard, and the woman lector did a wonderful job. It was about Susanna (Shoshana), a chaste and devout Jewess, wife of Joakim in Babylon. Two old men, both judges, plot to rape her and she resisted. They lied and she was about to be executed and cried out to God for help. Then Daniel came to her defense and interrogated the men separately, destroying their story. "According to the law of Moses, they inflected on them the penalty they had plotted to impose on their neighbor; they put them to death. Thus was innocent blood spared that day." (Daniel 13)

I thought I'd heard all the interesting Bible stories, but this one is not in the Protestant Bibles, only the Catholic and Orthodox. It was part of the Septuagint (Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures used in the time of Jesus). I can't find that Luther or Calvin ever made a list for the canon, but apparently the Anglicans did, so we didn't get that one. So I checked for movies, because it would be a great one, and didn't find it, but it does appear in paintings and some poems and music.

 

Shallow memes by Democrats

This is what happens when unbelievers try to be theological and tell Christians what to believe and do.

When did Jesus ever tell sinners to continue as usual whether the sin was greed, lying, sex or telling others how to live? What did he tell Zacchaeus the tax collector who was cheating his own people?  He was really hard on hypocrites and haters, which right now the winners in that class are representatives of the LBGT community who demand service and ruin people’s livelihood after living years in the closet hiding who and what they were, voting for a man who lied about his true beliefs.

 Zaccheus stopped and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, half of my possessions I will give to the poor, and if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I will give back four times as much.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”

Noah and Jesus

I heard two reviews from committed Christians of the movie Noah at church this morning: one said it was awful, a terrible waste of money and didn't follow scripture; the other said it was fantastic, stayed very close to scripture and only embellished where there is no story, and was completely satisfied with using the word "creator" instead of "God," because Noah wasn't Christian and wasn't Jewish and millions of cultures don't use our word. The first said, don't see it, the other said, see it and let's talk about it.

I would never expect a movie to recreate any stories in Genesis, because of the 90 minute format. However, one young seminary student in our Sunday School class suggested it is like a "midrash" in Jewish tradition or a story from scripture that is embellished and used for moral or ethical teaching. I've always been surprised when I see children's books from the Bible how many aspects are not included in the original, to make them more interesting. Talking animals, friends, stars, angels.

Speaking of Noah, The Killing of Jesus a book by Bill O'Reilly sounds like a travesty. No, I haven't read it, only heard him talk about it in interviews. For some reason he thinks Josephus is an authoritative source for history, but not Luke. Luke used primary sources, like interviewing Mary, who obviously was not only present at the birth, but also the miracles, the crucifixion, and the empty tomb. Primary always trumps secondary, which Josephus used. Virtually all the New Testament is quoted in the early church fathers even before it was canon. O'Reilly decided through his research that no one was near enough to the cross to hear Jesus' words. So that would make John's account fiction? And he doesn't cover miracles because he can't prove them.

The oldest copy we have of Josephus is 11th century--for the New Testament there are thousands of extant copies of various parts dating to second century sources. He seems to think that by reading history (his version) people will read the real thing? Really O'Reilly? Also, I don't like O'Reilly. He's rude to his guests and is arrogant. Supposedly he's a Catholic and conservative, but I haven't seen a lot of evidence of that. Dennis Miller, whom he has on his show regularly, is work watching.

The History Channel will air The Bible

The Bible will air on the History Channel beginning March 3, with the last episode in the series airing on Easter Sunday. I've been a bit suspicious about how TV treats the Bible, but this one started with prayer, according to Roma Downey (Touched by an Angel) one of the producers of the 10 hour mini-series.

Even if it doesn't fit your denomination's interpretation, if it follows the basics, it can't go wrong.

Man disobeys,

God forgives;

Man disobeys again,

God forgives;

Repeat as needed.

If Christians support this, perhaps we can get better quality TV.

Christians quibble the Bible to death—the number of sacraments; whether there even are sacraments; divorce and remarriage; do miracles still happen in the 21st century; who needs to interpret  speaking in tongues; does the gift of tongues exist; which is better happy clappy songs or hymns; what is Mary’s role; were prophecies of the O.T. fulfilled in Christ; dip, dunk or sprinkle; and on and on.

Reading Exodus

Our church (Upper Arlington Lutheran Church) has been using the resource The Story (Zondervan) for morning worship, group studies and Sunday School. One can always find today’s diary or newspaper or evening news in the Old Testament. We’ll take a pause during Advent and also for All Saints Sunday.  I thought Pink’s’ assessment of Exodus explains it well.

One thing that impresses the writer more and more in his studies in and meditations upon the contents of this book of Exodus is the wonderful variety and the comprehensive range of truth covered by its typical teachings. Not only do its leading events and prominent characters foreshadow that which is spiritual and Divine, but even the smallest details have a profound significance. Moses is a type of Christ, Pharaoh of Satan, Egypt of the world. Israel groaning in bondage pictures the sinner in his native misery. Israel delivered from their cruel task-masters speaks of our redemption. Their journey across the wilderness points to the path of faith and trial which we are called on to walk. And now we are to see that the history of Israel also adumbrated the conflict between the two natures in the believer.

Arthur W. Pink (1886-1952)

The cupbearer and the baker

In Sunday school this morning we were looking at the Joseph story (the church is doing "The story.") I asked if the cupbearer and baker who were in prison with Joseph were a foreshadowing of the wine and bread, but no one knew.  When I got home I Googled it, and found this.

"The story of Joseph in Genesis is filled with Eucharistic imagery. The entire deliverance segment of his life is shrouded in the typology of the sacrament. While in an Egyptian prison, Joseph was joined by Pharaoh’s baker - of bread and the cupbearer - of wine. The baker was sentenced to die but the cupbearer was to live. Because of this, we see both death and resurrection linked to the Eucharist typology. Finally, it was through Joseph’s relationship with these two that he is delivered from the dungeon. The cupbearer, who lived, pleaded Joseph’s cause to Pharaoh. As a result, Pharaoh released Joseph, giving him his life back. The typology provides bread and wine, death and resurrection, and a new life for Joseph, all elements of the Eucharist. Minus the “Eucharistic events” in this story, Joseph was destined to rot in prison."
http://www.holytrinityparish.net/Links/EucharistNscriptureI.pdf

On the sixth day, God created animals

and said to the dog

'Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this, I will give you a life span of twenty years.'

The dog said: 'That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?'

So God agreed.

Then God created the monkey and said:

'Entertain people, do tricks, and make them laugh. For this, I'll give you a twenty-year life span.'

The monkey said: 'Monkey tricks for twenty years? That's a pretty long time to perform. How about I give you back ten like the Dog did?'

And God agreed.

Then God created the cow and said:

'You must go into the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer's family. For this, I will give you a life span of sixty years.'

The cow said: 'That's kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years. How about twenty and I'll give back the other forty?'

And God agreed again.

Then finally, God created man and said:

'Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. For this, I'll give you twenty years.'

But man said: 'Only twenty years? Could you possibly give me my twenty, the forty the cow gave back, the ten the monkey gave back, and the ten
the dog gave back; that makes eighty, okay?'

'Okay,' said God, 'You asked for it.'

So that is why for our first twenty years we eat, sleep, play and enjoy ourselves. For the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family. For the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren. And for the last ten years we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.

Life has now been explained to you.

There is no need to thank me for this valuable information. I'm doing it as a public service.

[My husband's high school friend, Mickey, sent this--I assume it's going around the Internet. I modified the days to fit the Genesis story.]

Monday Memories--Bible Studies I have known

Over at Daniel's site (Alaskan Librarian) I saw a note about John Cotton's Milk for Babes, a catechism published in 1646 and in print for 200 years, intended for children and new Christians. It has been digitized by the University of Nebraska. What makes it interesting (for me) is that it includes in this version, information on how it was digitized, including corrections of typographic errors. Sample:

Quest. What is Prayer ?
£nsw. It is a calling upon (a ) God
in the Name of Christ, by the helpe of
the Holy Ghost, according to the will
of God.

I think this is a great definition for prayer, because I've had a bit of a struggle seeing it as "conversation," and "a relationship," which is what we hear these days. I see nothing wrong with the word prayer. Christ's disciples didn't say, "Lord, teach us conversation techniques."

That aside, it did get me to thinking about all the Bible studies I've attended over the years, including last night's led by me, on Matthew's account of Jesus teaching his people how to pray.

My very earliest memories of Bible study are from Faith Lutheran in Forreston, Illinois, and Mrs. T.B. Hirsh using the flannel graph. She (the pastor's wife) was very dramatic and no child ever watched TV more closely than I watched those brightly painted disciples and shepherds move quickly around a flannel field of green and gold, blue and gray. Her nimble fingers would press a cloud in the sky, or a grove of trees on the horizon, or a staff into a hand, all the while I was waiting for the climax of the story from her deep, booming voice. Oh, it was wonderful. I'm sure I had Bible stories at my home church in Mt. Morris before we moved to Forreston, because I remember the little handouts and glossy Sunday School papers with full color pictures, but in my memory bank they've been relegated to the bleacher seats by the more entertaining Mrs. T.B.

4315

Watching Norman's Ark on Sunday morning Hallmark movie

What a travesty. Noah (1998) with Tony Danza. Fortunately there is a commentator on board at Hallmark, Kenda Creasy Dean.

For this morning's movie, I had to do more than suspend disbelief; I had to shackle it. The special effects look like my daughter's 7th grade science project: Heaven is a sexist phone company; the lion lies down with the lamb in cages that would send the SPCA into spasms; and nobody follows the Biblical script, starting with God.

That makes the story of Noah a perfect example of our tendency to tell the story of God in a way that will make us human beings look better. Norman may be a dishonest contractor; but God is the bad guy in this story, bent on an irrational flood to destroy petty people. That makes Norman the savior, not God; in fact, you could easily conclude that Norman saved his community from God-which is fine, if the movie had been named "Norman" instead of "Noah."

For Jews and Christians, the story of Noah isn't about God's meanness; it's about God's promise. In Genesis, after the flood, God sets a rainbow in the sky and tells Noah: "This will be a sign of my covenant between me and all creation. Never again will there be a flood to destroy the earth." My recommendation on NOAH? Read the book instead.

Yes, read the good book!