Queerying 9th after Pentecost A

River Needham M.A., queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Genesis 32:22-31
That same night [Jacob] arose, and took his two wives, his two maidservants, and his eleven children, he crossed the ford of the Jabbok. After taking them across the stream, he sent across all his possessions. Jacob was left alone and a man wrestled with him until the break of dawn. When the man saw that he had not prevailed against Jacob, he wrenched Jacob’s hip at its socket, so that the socket of his hip was strained as the man wrestled with him.

Then the man said, “Let me go, for dawn is breaking.”

But he answered, “I will not let you go, unless you bless me.”

Said the other, “What is your name?”

He replied, “Jacob.” 

 

The man said, “Your name shall no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with beings divine and human, and have prevailed.” 

 

Jacob asked, “Pray tell me your name.” 

 

But he said, “You must not ask my name!” The man took leave of Jacob there. 

So Jacob named the place Peniel, meaning, “I have seen a divine being face to face, yet my life has been preserved.” The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping on his hip. That is why the children of Israel to this day do not eat the thigh muscle that is on the socket of the hip, since Jacob’s hip socket was wrenched at the thigh muscle.

Queeries for the text:
What is wealth in this text? What about today?

What does it mean to be alone? How long had it been since Jacob was alone?

Who do we fight at nighttime?
Are there erotic overtones?

How are names important? What names do you wear?

How do we change names?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21

¹³Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from his hometown in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. ¹⁴When Jesus went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick.

¹⁵When it was evening, the disciples came to Jesus and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.”

¹⁶Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.”

¹⁷They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.”

¹⁸And Jesus said, “Bring them here to me.” ¹⁹Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, Jesus looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. ²⁰And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. ²¹And those who ate were about five thousand cisgender men, not to mention the women, children, queer folks, and transgender people.

Queeries for the text:

What did Jesus hear?
Why did the disciples wait until the hour was late?
Who tries to hoard or protect resources?
Who is giving them something to eat?
What is nothing?
When else does Jesus bless and break bread?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 8th after Pentecost A

River Needham M.A., queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Genesis 29:15-28

Laban said to Jacob, “Just because you are kin, should you serve me for nothing? Tell me, what shall your wages be?”

Now Laban had two daughters; the name of the older one was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel. Leah had weak eyes; Rachel was shapely and beautiful. Jacob loved Rachel; so he answered, “I will serve you seven years for your younger daughter Rachel.” 

Laban said, “Better that I give her to you than that I should give her to an outsider. Stay with me.” 

So Jacob served seven years for Rachel and they seemed to him but a few days because of his love for her. Then Jacob said to Laban, “Give me my wife, for my time is fulfilled, that I may cohabit with her.” Laban gathered all the people of the place and made a feast. When evening came, he took his daughter Leah and brought her to him; and he cohabited with her.— Laban had given his maidservant Zilpah to his daughter Leah as her maid.— When morning came, there was Leah! So he said to Laban, “What is this you have done to me? I was in your service for Rachel! Why did you deceive me?” 

Laban said, “It is not the practice in our place to marry off the younger before the older. Wait until the bridal week of this one is over and we will give you that one too, provided you serve me another seven years.”

Jacob did so; he waited out the bridal week of the one, and then he gave him his daughter Rachel as wife.

Queeries for the text:
Where is God?

What kinds of exchanges occur for weddings?
Who do we call weak? What does weakness mean?

What does a Jewish Wedding look like?

What is agency?

What cultural influences shape weddings today?

What tradition did this story create that continues to this day?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 7th after Pentecost A

River Needham M.A., queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Genesis 28:10-19a

Jacob left Beer-sheba, and set out for Haran.

He came upon a certain place and stopped there for the night, for the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of that place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place. He had a dream; a stairway was set on the ground and its top reached to the sky, and angels of God were going up and down on it. And the Becoming One was standing beside him and Xe said, “I am the Becoming One, the God of your ancestor Abraham and the God of Rebecca: the ground on which you are lying I will assign to you and to your offspring. Your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All the families of the earth shall bless themselves by you and your descendants. Remember, I am with you: I will protect you wherever you go and will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you."

Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Becoming One is present in this place, and I did not know it!”

Shaken, he said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the abode of God, and that is the gateway to heaven.”

Early in the morning, Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up as a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He named that site Bethel; but previously the name of the city had been Luz. 

Queeries for the text:
Where did this story take place?
When did this story take place?
Did this story take place?
Who are angels?

Who are God's Messengers Today?

What does the assigning of the land mean? Who is captivated by the land?

Why did Jacob anoint the Rock?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

²⁴Jesus put before the disciples another parable: “The reign of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in their field; ²⁵but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. ²⁶So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. ²⁷And the slaves of the owner came and said to them, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?’

²⁸They answered, ‘An enemy has done this.’

The slaves said to them, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’

²⁹But they replied, ‘No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. ³⁰Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.’”

^...

³⁶Then Jesus left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field.”

³⁷Jesus answered, “The one who sows the good seed is the Human One; ³⁸the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the reign; the weeds are the children of the evil one, ³⁹and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. ⁴⁰Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. ⁴¹The Human One will send Their angels, and they will collect out of Their reign all causes of sin and all evildoers, ⁴²and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. ⁴³Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the reign of their Maker. Let anyone with ears listen!”

Queeries for the text:

What's missing?

What makes you uncomfortable in this passage?

What needs uprooting?

Who is human?

What is the difference between consequences and punishment?

How does context and interpretation matter?

How does listening happen without ears?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Break for 6th after Pentecost A

This week we're taking a break from queerying, but providing the Gospel reading and a few questions that are always good ones to use in your queerying.

Gospel: Matthew 1:1-9, 18-23

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the sea. ²Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. ³And he told them many things in parables, saying: “Listen! A sower went out to sow. ⁴And as they sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. ⁵Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. ⁶But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. ⁷Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. ⁸Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. ⁹Let anyone with ears listen!”

...

¹⁸“Hear then the parable of the sower. ¹⁹When anyone hears the word of the reign and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. ²⁰As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; ²¹yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. ²²As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. ²³But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.”

What are your queeries?

What is missing?

Whose voices are you hearing?

Whose perspective is missing?

How else could you interpret the parable?

Queerying 5th after Pentecost A

River Needham M.A. queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Genesis 24:34-38, 42-49, 58-67

“I am Abraham’s servant,” Eliezer began. “The Becoming One has greatly blessed my employer, and he has become rich: Xe has given him sheep and cattle, silver and gold, servants of many genders, camels and asses. And Sarah, my employer’s wife, bore my employer a son in her old age, and he has assigned to him everything he owns. Now my employer made me swear, saying, ‘You shall not get a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites in whose land I dwell; but you shall go to my father’s house, to my kindred, and get a wife for my son.’
[...]
“I came today to the spring, and I said: O Becoming One, God of my employer Abraham, if You would indeed grant success to the errand on which I am engaged! As I stand by the spring of water, let the young woman who comes out to draw and to whom I say, ‘Please, let me drink a little water from your jar,’ and who answers, ‘You may drink, and I will also draw for your camels’—let her be the wife whom the Becoming One has decreed for my employer’s son.’ I had scarcely finished praying in my heart, when Rebekah came out with her jar on her shoulder, and went down to the spring and drew. And I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’ She quickly lowered her jar and said, ‘Drink, and I will also water your camels.’ So I drank, and she also watered the camels. I inquired of her, ‘Whose daughter are you?’ And she said, ‘The daughter of Bethuel, son of Nahor, whom Milcah bore to him.’ And I put the ring on her nose and the bands on her arms. Then I bowed low in homage to the Becoming One and blessed the Becoming One, the God of my employer Abraham, who led me on the right way to get the daughter of my employer’s brother for his son. And now, if you mean to treat my employer with true kindness, tell me; and if not, tell me also, that I may turn right or left.”
[...]
They called Rebekah and said to her, “Will you go with this man?” And she said, “I will.” So they sent off their sister Rebekah and her nurse along with Abraham’s servant and his men. And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “O sister! May you grow into thousands of myriads; May your offspring seize the gates of their foes.” Then Rebekah and her maids arose, mounted the camels, and followed the man. so the servant took Rebekah and went his way. Isaac had just come back from the vicinity of Beer-lahai-roi, for he was settled in the region of the Negeb. Isaac went out walking in the field toward evening and, looking up, he saw camels approaching. Raising her eyes, Rebekah saw Isaac. She alighted from the camel and said to the servant, “Who is that man walking in the field toward us?” And the servant said, “That is my employer.” So she took her veil and covered herself. The servant told Isaac all the things that he had done. Isaac then brought her into the tent of his mother Sarah, and he took Rebekah as his wife. Isaac loved her, and thus found comfort after his mother’s death.

Queeries for the text:

What's missing?

What parts of this pericope might be objected to today? Why?

What's wrong with the women of Canaan?

What kinds of labor are valued or devalued?

What is the significance of a nose ring?
How is consent valued?
Why does he take Rebekah to Sarah's tent?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing and River Needham, M.A. queery the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30

Jesus said:

¹⁶“But to what will I compare this generation? It is like young ones sitting in the marketplaces and calling to one another, ¹⁷‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.’ ¹⁸For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, ‘He has a demon’; ¹⁹the Human One came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”

²⁰Then he began to reproach the cities in which most of his deeds of power had been done, because they did not repent. ²¹“Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. ²²But I tell you, on the day of judgment it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon than for you. ²³And you, Capernaum, will you be exalted to heaven? No, you will be brought down to Hades. For if the deeds of power done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day. ²⁴But I tell you that on the day of judgment it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom than for you.”

²⁵At that time Jesus said, “I thank you, Parent, Boss of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; ²⁶yes, Parent, for such was your gracious will. ²⁷All things have been handed over to me by my Parent; and no one knows the Child except the Parent, and no one knows the Parent except the Child and anyone to whom the Child chooses to reveal Xem.

²⁸“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. ²⁹Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Queeries for the text:

What's missing?

What are young ones doing without response today?

How are behaviors being policed?

What literary and rhetorical devices are at play in the woes?

What are the sins of Sodom?

What does rest feel like?

Who calls us to rest today?

What are your queeries?