Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Acts reading.
Acts 16:9-15
9During the night Paul had a vision: there
stood a man of Macedonia pleading with him and saying, “Come over to
Macedonia and help us.”
10When 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.
11We set sail from Troas and took a straight course to Samothrace, the following day to Neapolis,
12and from there to Philippi, which is a
leading city of the district of Macedonia and a Roman colony. We
remained in this city for some days.
13On the sabbath day we went outside the
gate by the river, where we supposed there was a place of prayer; and we
sat down and spoke to the women who had gathered there.
14A certain woman named Lydia, a worshiper
of God, was listening to us; she was from the city of Thyatira and a
dealer in purple cloth. The Becoming One opened her heart to listen eagerly to
what was said by Paul.
15When she and her household were
baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to
the Becoming One, come and stay at my home.” And she prevailed upon us.
Queeries for the text:
During which night?
What would Paul have done if the vision was of a woman?
What role do dreams play in faith and action?
What was this journey like?
Why focus on the women?
Why purple cloth? What is special about purple?
How does Lydia have a household?
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J. Pace Warfield-May
queeries the reading from Revelation.
Revelation 21: 10, 22-22:5
10And the angel carried me away on a wind to a great, high mountain and showed
me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of the sky from God.
22I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the supreme Becoming One and the
Lamb. 23And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of
God is its sunlight, and its night time candle is the Lamb. 24The nations will walk
by the city’s sunlight, and the rulers of the earth will bring their glory into it. 25Its
gates will never be shut during the day or night. 26People will bring into the city the
glory and the honor of the nations. 27But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone
who practices lies or sets up false idols, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of
life. 22:1Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal,
flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2through the middle of the street
of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its
fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations.
3Nothing cursed or imperfect will be found there any more. But the judgment
bench of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and Xe’s servants will worship Xem;
4they will see Xyr face, and Xyr name will be written on their foreheads.
5And night will no longer be perceived as bad or scary; they need no light of candles or
sun, for the Becoming God will be their sun, and they will dwell there forever and ever.
Queeries for the text:
What is missing from
the text?
How do you imagine God’s glory as the sunlight would look and feel?
What is the book of
life?
What is the tree of
life?
How do we challenge light and dark binaries in scripture? Why is it important?
What are your queeries?
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