Proper 23
October 9, 2022

Have a gratitude attitude
The rhyme is so obvious that it is almost comical reading how people claim they were the one to coin the phrase. It usually appears in the imperative, as something that should be done. This makes us ask: Can (true) gratitude be compelled or forced? A similar phrase is “Gratitude turns what we have into enough.”I remain unconvinced that gratitude is as simple as making a choice to be that way. And, therefore treating gratitude like it is a choice can be harsh and oppressive to those who are unable, for whatever reasons, to make that choice.

Luke 17:15-16
Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back,
praising God with a loud voice.
He prostrated himself at Jesus' feet and thanked him.
And he was a Samaritan.

These words fall at the end of a story in which Jesus heals ten lepers; only one– a Samaritan – gives thanks. Once again it is the outcast, the unclean one, who shines and does the beautiful thing. The in-group is exposed yet again. The good religious folk do not have the gratitude attitude. Presumably, they are prevented by their pride. The outsider, presumed by all to be wrong, has the thankful heart that leads to thankful actions. The story ends with Jesus proclaiming that it is the man's own faith, his dependence on God, that made him well, rather than any extraordinary power that Jesus himself had to heal. The gratitude attitude is neither coerced nor owned as a privilege. Instead, it arises naturally out of an awareness of need and an appropriate orientation of dependence which recognizes the foolish myth of self-sufficiency.

Proper 24
October 16, 2022

No use beating a dead horse

Often the word flogging is used instead of beating. This belies the origin in the 1800s where such a word was in greater use. It is thought to have arisen from the term "dead horse" which referred to work sold in advance, usually to pay a debt. That is to make a promise to pay off a debt. You should not flog someone who owed you labor, lest you rendered them unable to work. Commonly, of course, the proverb counsels against continuing to argue when an argument has been exhausted. Common use appears to apply whether the exhaustion is due to winning, losing or reaching a stalemate.

Luke 18:3-5
In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying,
"Grant me justice against my opponent.'
For a while he refused; but later he said to himself,
"Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone,
yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice,
so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.

This is another example of Jesus' use of exaggeration. In explaining that God is just and attentive, Jesus describes an unjust judge who simply gives in to persistence. The message is we do not have to be THAT persistent with God. However, there are other passages that point to the value of persistent prayer. (Eg. Psalm 88:1, Psalm 116:2, Acts 1:14 and 1 Thessalonians 5:17) In contrast, we are also told "ask and it will be given." (Matthew 7:7) When it comes to prayer, sometimes it is ok to "beat a dead horse" and sometimes it isn't.

Proper 25
October 23, 2022

There but for the grace of God go I

This phrase is often attributed to Pastor John Bradford who is reported to have called it out at an execution, as a challenge to all others watching in judgment. Ironically, Bradford himself was eventually hung to death. The popularity of this phrase within the Twelve Step movement extends well into popular culture. While used slightly differently in varying circumstances, it usually suggests that it is only a pretension to consider ourselves different from those who do terrible things or find themselves in dire circumstances for whatever reasons. I heard these words frequently in the jail setting. Often someone was acknowledging a friend or acquaintance who had died while following the same lifestyle as their own. I always struck by how as they spoke about somebody else, I could be saying it about my relation to them. It is like a long chain with each person saying it about the person that they can see below them.

Luke 18:9-14
He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves
that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:
“Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus,
‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people:
thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’
But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven,
but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’
I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other;
for all who exalt themselves will be humbled,
but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

I have quoted the entire pericope so as to let it speak for itself. Does the tax collector look at the Pharisee and say “There but by the grace of God, go I?” Or is the Pharisee looking at the tax collector and saying the same words? Maybe they both are.
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​​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.

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