Queerying Christmas 1 Year C

Periodic queerier, River Needham, queeried the reading from the Tanakh.

Tanakh: 1 Samuel 2:18-20, 26
Samuel was engaged in the service of the Becoming One as an attendant, girded with a linen ephod. Hir mother would also make a little robe for hir and bring it up to hir every year, when she made the pilgrimage with her husband to offer the annual sacrifice. Eli would bless Elkanah and eir wife, and say, “May the Becoming One grant you offspring by this woman in place of the loan she made to the Becoming One.” Then they would return home.
Young Samuel, meanwhile, grew in esteem and favor both with God and with humans.

Queeries for the text:
What is missing from this text?
What does it mean to be an attendant?
What is an ephod?
What pilgrimages do we make today?
What does it mean to bless someone?
Where is home? What is home?
What does it mean to grow in esteem and favor?

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Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeried the reading from the Gospel.

Gospel: Luke 2:41-52
⁴¹Now every year Jesus' parents went to Jerusalem

for the festival of the Passover.

⁴²And when Jesus was twelve years old,

they went up as usual for the festival.

⁴³When the festival was ended and they started to return,

the child Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem,

but his parents did not know it.

⁴⁴Assuming that he was in the group of travelers,

they went a day’s journey.

Then they started to look for Jesus among their relatives and friends.

⁴⁵When they did not find Jesus,

they returned to Jerusalem to search for him.

⁴⁶After three days they found Jesus in the temple,

sitting among the teachers,

listening to them

and asking them questions.

⁴⁷And all who heard Jesus were amazed

at his understanding and his answers.

⁴⁸When Jesus' parents saw him they were astonished;

and his mother said to him,

“Child, why have you treated us like this?

Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety.”

⁴⁹Jesus said to them,

“Why were you searching for me?

Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?”

⁵⁰But they did not understand what Jesus said to them.

⁵¹Then Jesus went down with them and came to Nazareth,

and was obedient to them.

His mother treasured all these things in her heart.

⁵²And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years,

and in divine and human favor.

Queeries for the text:
How hard is it to get to Jerusalem every year for the Passover?
What were Mary and Joseph doing during the festival?
What system of family care-giving did Jesus grow up with?
Where did Jesus sleep after Mary and Joseph began to head home?
Why does everything happen after three days?
If Jesus was listening and asking questions, how could people be amazed at his answers?
Who is responsible for anxiety?
How often do we not understand Jesus?  Children?
When else did Mary treasure things in her heart?
What does it mean to increase in wisdom? years? divine favor? human favor?

What are your queeries?