.Easter
April 21, 2019
If you love someone, set them free
Millions of posters offer this advice, which is attributed to various advice givers. It is advice given to people who fear the end of a relationship. These words, often followed by a promise of return are meant to give strength to the crestfallen. The counsel is to trust in fate and give up any desire to control loved ones. Of course, phrases such as "I would do anything for him" or “I would go to the end of the earth for her” provide the opposite advice. Such phrases encourage every effort to be exhausted and never to admit defeat. Many a love story creates this arc of relentless pursuit that eventually pays off or in some cases takes a very demented path.
John 20:17
Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and say to them,
"I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
As I have written elsewhere in this book, it is not we who catch God, but God who catches us. Here, Jesus makes this point to Mary. Even with their intimate meeting at his resurrection, Jesus is never to be her commodity. He is not to be “held on to” nor should he ever appear to “fit in our pocket” or be “at our beck and call.” A similar idea presents in the story of the transfiguration where Jesus wants to hold on to his mountaintop experience by building houses for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. (Mark 9:5) Clearly, God's intention was not for them to rest comfortably in this "spiritual high" but to use it for momentum to come down the mountain and set towards Jerusalem where Jesus would die. Christ asked his closest friends to “set him free” rather than “hold on to him” and they did!
Easter 2
April 28, 2019
It's peer pressure
Frank Magazine was a sarcastic news source before its time. It came to be in the late 1980s with versions in both Halifax and Ottawa. I was won over by an article that was titled The Myth of Peer Pressure which stated candidly, "kids don't use drugs and alcohol because of peer pressure, they use them because they are fun." While there may well be studies to the contrary and experts may be hard pressed to say such a thing, there is an intuitive sense at work here that ought not to be silenced too quickly.
Acts 5:29
But Peter and the apostles answered,
"We must obey God rather than any human authority….”
This could be taken as a healthy piece advice to not be taken in my peer pressure verses like this can be dangerous in the hands of those who are not ready. As I write this I still mourn the loss of a woman I worked with for a number of years who died of a drug overdose on Christmas Eve. She so badly wanted to reconcile with her family and while she was making some great strides, her family was not ready and it seems, neither was she. Her desire to put together her family into a caring and supportive unit blinded her to the risks. When she asked my advice, I was clearer and more directive than I usually am. She had asked for my opinion directly so I responded in kind with one word, "Don't!" Immediately she began arguing saying that the Spirit was at work and God had a plan. Saying and thinking "I told you so" is useless at the best of times and more so when someone has died.
Easter 3
May 5, 2019
There are plenty of fish in the sea
This is the claim that scarcity is not real but only perceived, and is almost always used in the context of searching for a romantic partner. Plenty of Fish is the name of a large online dating network that facilitates the hook-up culture. The name suggests that when you do not have many “non-negotiables” you will have a lot of choice. Casting your net as broadly as the sea is vast will also help.
John 21:6
He said to them,
"Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some."
So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in
because there were so many fish.
This story is told with more detail in Luke but both Luke and John bring a similar message: God provides. Some use the term "theology of abundance" to describe approaching all life not with a deeply rooted faith that God provides. Such a belief, by itself, could lead to a kind of selfish pattern that everything is there for our amusement and need not be honoured, cherished or cared for. However, in the context of this being at the beginning of Jesus' ministry (Luke) or at the beginning of our ministry after Jesus' resurrection (John) we are given a firm place to stand and from that place naturally follows honour, appreciation and care. Honour, appreciation and care are our natural responses to God’s provision.
Easter 4
May 12, 2019
Normal is a setting on a dryer
I am not sure how "common" this phrase is but I know I use it a lot. Telling people what "normal" is implies anything else is "abnormal" and therefore flawed. It implies there is only one way to do things and ends up being hurtful and unhelpful in its ignorant use. I use it most often when it comes to grief. We experience and express grief in many many ways and I am often asked "Is this normal?" I answer "normal is a setting on a dryer" to say that is not a useful question. Harry Ritchie who was my supervisor in a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education was the first person I heard use the phrase and his use was always well timed appropriate and helpful. He said it just came to him and had not heard it before. Who am I doubt that. It is a phrase that has been a great gift to it. Doctor, activist and author in addiction and related issues Gabor Mate is currently on a personal mission to get rid of the word "normal" saying it causes more trouble with addicted people than anything else.
Revelation 7:9
After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count,
from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages,
standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white,
with palm branches in their hands.
This vision of humanity is a vision of incredible diversity. There is no "normal" in his vision of all peoples before God. I often used this text in funerals when I worked on Gitxsan territory. When someone's life had been marked so much by the experience of isolation, bigotry and lost opportunities, it always seemed fit to recall that this was neither God's will nor vision. Normal is a setting in a dryer not a way to live in God's world let alone spend eternity.
Easter 5
May 19, 2019
A picture is worth a thousand words
The phrase seems to have come after the advent of the camera, even though drawings had been around for much much longer. Even “a thousand words” can understate the impact a picture can have. Consider the photojournalists who were in the right place at the right time and were able to catch an entire period in one moment. I think of the naked child Kim Phúc in 1972 trying to run away from napalm explosions. This is only one of countless images that lend credibility to the claim that a single picture can do even more than replace a thousand words. In fact, the phrase is often understood to have originated in the advertising industry. Most ads are much more likely to have a picture than 1,000 words.
Revelation 21:2
And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Although the Bible was not illustrated in its original form, the Bible has inspired art since it’s in first writing. Many illustrated versions of the Bible are also known and treasured. Museums and galleries are filled with religious art. It is as history has said the Bible needs art to let it fully speak. Within the Bible itself, the message of God often comes in the form of a vision. Ezekiel's vision of the bones in the desert comes to mind, as does the entire book of Revelation where the conjured images all point far beyond the words on the page. The Bible gets it; pictures are important.
Easter 6
May 26, 2019
When one door closes, another door opens
This phrase can be found in the Spanish Novella, The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities, published anonymously, due to its heretical content, in 1554 and later translated into English. A young boy, Lazarillo, is given up by his parents and "apprentices" under a variety of people. One is a priest and the young hungry Lazarillo (same name as Lazarus in John 11) is trying to find a way to steal communion bread from the priest. The phrase is used by the boy to encourage himself when one path to the bread is foiled. In this case it can be taken more as encouragement in persistence than a promise of providence. A comic take on this is "when a door closes, open it, because that is the way doors work."
Acts 16:6-10
After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia,
concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia,
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.
When they had come opposite Mysia,
they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them;
so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision:
there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying,
"Come over to Macedonia and help us."
When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia,
being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.
The proverb often is used by religious people and changed to say something like “When God closes one door, he opens another.” While the passage in Acts does not use the image of windows or doors, it is clear that God both closes (v6) and opens (v10) opportunities. The common phrase goes beyond saying that this can happen by stating that it will happen. This is a much grander claim and makes it sound like mechanical certainty. Fancy footwork must follow. If an opportunity is sought and then made unavailable, we are left to interpret whatever happens as the new opportunity. Can the football player who blows his knee out in his last year of college say the road to fame and fortune was closed and a new door to being a casual worker for a moving company opened? All the power to him! For he would be "giving thanks in all circumstances." (1 Thessalonians 5:18) This is to say that trusting in God's providence is something different than blind, false and manufactured optimism.
Easter 7
June 2, 2019
All for one, and one for all
This well-known phrase appears in the Three Musketeers, written by Alexandre Dumas in 1844. In fact, it is D'Artagnan, not one of the Musketeers, who utters the words coercively to Porthos before Athos and Aramis join in to swear this promise of unity. Although never officially adopted, these words have served as the motto of Switzerland since their first use there in 1868.Again, the intention is to rally to unity.
John 17:20-21
I ask not only on behalf of these,
but also on behalf of those
who will believe in me through their word,
that they may all be one.
As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us,
so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
Jesus' desire for our unity is a common and frequent theme in the Gospels. It is more pronounced in John and even more so within Jesus’ prayers as recorded by John. This verse is one of many where Jesus prays not only for those present but also for those who follow. This teaching is not time-bound;it applies today and into the future. The kinship we have with Jesus and our common Father points to the unity in which we are invited to live, within an ever-growing sense of “one for all and all for one.” Indeed, in our divided world, these are radical words.
Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Pentecost to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to The Reign of Christ
Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Trinity Sunday to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to The Reign of Christ
Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Pentecost to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to Reign of Christ
For more on Glenn Morison and his book that led to this page, check out The Things We Say.
All this material is copyleft. Feel free to use it however you see fit, with or without attribution.
If you wish to value this page, please make a donation to the Winnipeg Quaker Meeting.
April 21, 2019
If you love someone, set them free
Millions of posters offer this advice, which is attributed to various advice givers. It is advice given to people who fear the end of a relationship. These words, often followed by a promise of return are meant to give strength to the crestfallen. The counsel is to trust in fate and give up any desire to control loved ones. Of course, phrases such as "I would do anything for him" or “I would go to the end of the earth for her” provide the opposite advice. Such phrases encourage every effort to be exhausted and never to admit defeat. Many a love story creates this arc of relentless pursuit that eventually pays off or in some cases takes a very demented path.
John 20:17
Jesus said to her, "Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.
But go to my brothers and say to them,
"I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.' "
As I have written elsewhere in this book, it is not we who catch God, but God who catches us. Here, Jesus makes this point to Mary. Even with their intimate meeting at his resurrection, Jesus is never to be her commodity. He is not to be “held on to” nor should he ever appear to “fit in our pocket” or be “at our beck and call.” A similar idea presents in the story of the transfiguration where Jesus wants to hold on to his mountaintop experience by building houses for Jesus, Moses and Elijah. (Mark 9:5) Clearly, God's intention was not for them to rest comfortably in this "spiritual high" but to use it for momentum to come down the mountain and set towards Jerusalem where Jesus would die. Christ asked his closest friends to “set him free” rather than “hold on to him” and they did!
Easter 2
April 28, 2019
It's peer pressure
Frank Magazine was a sarcastic news source before its time. It came to be in the late 1980s with versions in both Halifax and Ottawa. I was won over by an article that was titled The Myth of Peer Pressure which stated candidly, "kids don't use drugs and alcohol because of peer pressure, they use them because they are fun." While there may well be studies to the contrary and experts may be hard pressed to say such a thing, there is an intuitive sense at work here that ought not to be silenced too quickly.
Acts 5:29
But Peter and the apostles answered,
"We must obey God rather than any human authority….”
This could be taken as a healthy piece advice to not be taken in my peer pressure verses like this can be dangerous in the hands of those who are not ready. As I write this I still mourn the loss of a woman I worked with for a number of years who died of a drug overdose on Christmas Eve. She so badly wanted to reconcile with her family and while she was making some great strides, her family was not ready and it seems, neither was she. Her desire to put together her family into a caring and supportive unit blinded her to the risks. When she asked my advice, I was clearer and more directive than I usually am. She had asked for my opinion directly so I responded in kind with one word, "Don't!" Immediately she began arguing saying that the Spirit was at work and God had a plan. Saying and thinking "I told you so" is useless at the best of times and more so when someone has died.
Easter 3
May 5, 2019
There are plenty of fish in the sea
This is the claim that scarcity is not real but only perceived, and is almost always used in the context of searching for a romantic partner. Plenty of Fish is the name of a large online dating network that facilitates the hook-up culture. The name suggests that when you do not have many “non-negotiables” you will have a lot of choice. Casting your net as broadly as the sea is vast will also help.
John 21:6
He said to them,
"Cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some."
So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in
because there were so many fish.
This story is told with more detail in Luke but both Luke and John bring a similar message: God provides. Some use the term "theology of abundance" to describe approaching all life not with a deeply rooted faith that God provides. Such a belief, by itself, could lead to a kind of selfish pattern that everything is there for our amusement and need not be honoured, cherished or cared for. However, in the context of this being at the beginning of Jesus' ministry (Luke) or at the beginning of our ministry after Jesus' resurrection (John) we are given a firm place to stand and from that place naturally follows honour, appreciation and care. Honour, appreciation and care are our natural responses to God’s provision.
Easter 4
May 12, 2019
Normal is a setting on a dryer
I am not sure how "common" this phrase is but I know I use it a lot. Telling people what "normal" is implies anything else is "abnormal" and therefore flawed. It implies there is only one way to do things and ends up being hurtful and unhelpful in its ignorant use. I use it most often when it comes to grief. We experience and express grief in many many ways and I am often asked "Is this normal?" I answer "normal is a setting on a dryer" to say that is not a useful question. Harry Ritchie who was my supervisor in a unit of Clinical Pastoral Education was the first person I heard use the phrase and his use was always well timed appropriate and helpful. He said it just came to him and had not heard it before. Who am I doubt that. It is a phrase that has been a great gift to it. Doctor, activist and author in addiction and related issues Gabor Mate is currently on a personal mission to get rid of the word "normal" saying it causes more trouble with addicted people than anything else.
Revelation 7:9
After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count,
from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages,
standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white,
with palm branches in their hands.
This vision of humanity is a vision of incredible diversity. There is no "normal" in his vision of all peoples before God. I often used this text in funerals when I worked on Gitxsan territory. When someone's life had been marked so much by the experience of isolation, bigotry and lost opportunities, it always seemed fit to recall that this was neither God's will nor vision. Normal is a setting in a dryer not a way to live in God's world let alone spend eternity.
Easter 5
May 19, 2019
A picture is worth a thousand words
The phrase seems to have come after the advent of the camera, even though drawings had been around for much much longer. Even “a thousand words” can understate the impact a picture can have. Consider the photojournalists who were in the right place at the right time and were able to catch an entire period in one moment. I think of the naked child Kim Phúc in 1972 trying to run away from napalm explosions. This is only one of countless images that lend credibility to the claim that a single picture can do even more than replace a thousand words. In fact, the phrase is often understood to have originated in the advertising industry. Most ads are much more likely to have a picture than 1,000 words.
Revelation 21:2
And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God,
prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Although the Bible was not illustrated in its original form, the Bible has inspired art since it’s in first writing. Many illustrated versions of the Bible are also known and treasured. Museums and galleries are filled with religious art. It is as history has said the Bible needs art to let it fully speak. Within the Bible itself, the message of God often comes in the form of a vision. Ezekiel's vision of the bones in the desert comes to mind, as does the entire book of Revelation where the conjured images all point far beyond the words on the page. The Bible gets it; pictures are important.
Easter 6
May 26, 2019
When one door closes, another door opens
This phrase can be found in the Spanish Novella, The Life of Lazarillo de Tormes and of His Fortunes and Adversities, published anonymously, due to its heretical content, in 1554 and later translated into English. A young boy, Lazarillo, is given up by his parents and "apprentices" under a variety of people. One is a priest and the young hungry Lazarillo (same name as Lazarus in John 11) is trying to find a way to steal communion bread from the priest. The phrase is used by the boy to encourage himself when one path to the bread is foiled. In this case it can be taken more as encouragement in persistence than a promise of providence. A comic take on this is "when a door closes, open it, because that is the way doors work."
Acts 16:6-10
After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia,
concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them.
They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia,
having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.
When they had come opposite Mysia,
they attempted to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow them;
so, passing by Mysia, they went down to Troas. During the night Paul had a vision:
there stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying,
"Come over to Macedonia and help us."
When he had seen the vision, we immediately tried to cross over to Macedonia,
being convinced that God had called us to proclaim the good news to them.
The proverb often is used by religious people and changed to say something like “When God closes one door, he opens another.” While the passage in Acts does not use the image of windows or doors, it is clear that God both closes (v6) and opens (v10) opportunities. The common phrase goes beyond saying that this can happen by stating that it will happen. This is a much grander claim and makes it sound like mechanical certainty. Fancy footwork must follow. If an opportunity is sought and then made unavailable, we are left to interpret whatever happens as the new opportunity. Can the football player who blows his knee out in his last year of college say the road to fame and fortune was closed and a new door to being a casual worker for a moving company opened? All the power to him! For he would be "giving thanks in all circumstances." (1 Thessalonians 5:18) This is to say that trusting in God's providence is something different than blind, false and manufactured optimism.
Easter 7
June 2, 2019
All for one, and one for all
This well-known phrase appears in the Three Musketeers, written by Alexandre Dumas in 1844. In fact, it is D'Artagnan, not one of the Musketeers, who utters the words coercively to Porthos before Athos and Aramis join in to swear this promise of unity. Although never officially adopted, these words have served as the motto of Switzerland since their first use there in 1868.Again, the intention is to rally to unity.
John 17:20-21
I ask not only on behalf of these,
but also on behalf of those
who will believe in me through their word,
that they may all be one.
As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us,
so that the world may believe that you have sent me.
Jesus' desire for our unity is a common and frequent theme in the Gospels. It is more pronounced in John and even more so within Jesus’ prayers as recorded by John. This verse is one of many where Jesus prays not only for those present but also for those who follow. This teaching is not time-bound;it applies today and into the future. The kinship we have with Jesus and our common Father points to the unity in which we are invited to live, within an ever-growing sense of “one for all and all for one.” Indeed, in our divided world, these are radical words.
Year A of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Pentecost to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to The Reign of Christ
Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Trinity Sunday to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to The Reign of Christ
Year C of the Revised Common Lectionary (Click on the season you wish to see)
Advent
Christmas and Epiphany
Transfiguration and Lent
Easter
Pentecost to Proper Sixteen
Proper Seventeen to Reign of Christ
For more on Glenn Morison and his book that led to this page, check out The Things We Say.
All this material is copyleft. Feel free to use it however you see fit, with or without attribution.
If you wish to value this page, please make a donation to the Winnipeg Quaker Meeting.