Queerying 20th after Pentecost A

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 22:15-22

¹⁵Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap Jesus in what he said. ¹⁶So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one; for you do not regard people with partiality. ¹⁷Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to the emperor, or not?” 

¹⁸But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? ¹⁹Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. ²⁰Then Jesus said to them, “Whose head is this, and whose title?” 

²¹They answered, “The emperor’s.” 

Then Jesus said to them, “Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.” ²²When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away.

Queeries for the text:
Where did this conversation take place?
Who do I try to entrap today? Who tries to entrap me?
Who were the Herodians? Why would they collaborate with the Pharisees?
Who pays taxes? Who doesn't?
What purpose do taxes serve today?
Why do they have a denarius in the temple?
What does not belong to God? 

What are your queeries?

Queerying 15th after Pentecost A

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

Tanakh: Exodus 14:19-31

The angel of God, who had been going ahead of the Israelite army, now moved and followed behind them; and the pillar of cloud shifted from in front of them and took up a place behind them, it came between the army of the Egyptians and the army of Israel. Thus there was the cloud with the darkness, and it cast a spell upon the night so that the armies could not come near the other all through the night.

Then Moses held out his arm over the sea and the Becoming One drove back the sea with a strong east wind all that night, and turned the sea into dry ground. The waters were split, and the Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.

The Egyptians came in pursuit after them into the sea, all of Pharaoh’s horses, chariots, and horsepeople. At the morning watch, the Becoming One looked down upon the Egyptian army from a pillar of fire and cloud, and threw the Egyptian army into panic. They locked the wheels of their chariots so that they moved forward with difficulty. The Egyptians said, “Let us flee from the Israelites, for the Becoming One is fighting for them against Egypt.”

Then the Becoming One said to Moses, “Hold out your arm over the sea, that the waters may come back upon the Egyptians and upon their chariots and upon their horsepeople.” Moses held out his arm over the sea, and at daybreak, the sea returned to its normal state, and the Egyptians fled at its approach. But the Becoming One hurled the Egyptians into the sea.

The waters turned back and covered the chariots and the horsepeople—Pharaoh’s entire army that followed them into the sea; not one of them remained. But the Israelites had marched through the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.

Thus the Becoming One delivered Israel that day from the Egyptians. Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the shore of the sea. When Israel saw the wondrous power which the Becoming One had wielded against the Egyptians, the people feared the Becoming One; they had faith in the Becoming One and their servant Moses.

Queeries for the text:
What do we need freedom from?  Who is setting us free?
How do we shift the leaders around us?
How does God work in the world?

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Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 18:21-35

²¹Then Peter came and said to Jesus, “Guide, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” 

²²Jesus said to Peter, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. 

²³“For this reason the reign of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. ²⁴When the king began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; ²⁵and, as the slave could not pay, her lord ordered her to be sold, together with her spouse and children and all their possessions, and payment to be made. 

²⁶So the slave fell on her knees before the king, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ ²⁷And out of pity for her, the lord of that slave released her and forgave her the debt. 

²⁸But that same slave, as she went out, came upon one of her fellow slaves who owed her a hundred denarii; and seizing them by the throat, she said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 

²⁹Then her fellow slave fell down and pleaded with her, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ ³⁰But she refused; then she went and threw them into prison until they would pay the debt. 

³¹When her fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 

³²Then her lord summoned her and said to her, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ³³Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴And in anger her lord handed her over to be tortured until she would pay her entire debt. 

³⁵So my heavenly Parent will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your sibling from your heart.”

Queeries for the text:

What's so special about 77?
How does a person rack up a debt of 10,000 talents?
How can debts be paid when the debtor is imprisoned? When they are tortured?
Who is master in this story?
What is mercy?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 11th after Pentecost A

 

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 15:[10-20]21-28

[¹⁰Then Jesus called the crowd to him and said to them, “Listen and understand: ¹¹it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.” 

¹²Then the disciples approached and said to Jesus, “Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?” 

¹³Jesus answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Creator has not planted will be uprooted. ¹⁴Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit.” 

¹⁵But Peter said to Jesus, “Explain this parable to us.” 

¹⁶Then Jesus said, “Are you also still without understanding? ¹⁷Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? ¹⁸But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. ¹⁹For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. ²⁰These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile.”]

²¹Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. ²²Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, “Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.” 

²³But Jesus did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, “Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.” 

²⁴Jesus answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” 

²⁵But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” 

²⁶Jesus answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.” 

²⁷She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” 

²⁸Then Jesus answered her, “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed instantly.

Queeries for the text:
How are the first and second parts connected?
How is what Jesus says ableist? What kind of guides are blind people?
What comes from the heart? How do words defile?
Why is hand-washing important?
Who else are Canaanite women?
Who has privilege and power in this text?
Who else is called dog?
Who receives crumbs?
How do words empower and resist?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Easter 2A

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Acts reading.

Acts 2:14a, 22-32
¹⁴But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd in Jerusalem,

²²“You people of Israel, listen to what I have to say:
Jesus of Nazareth, one attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know— ²³this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. ²⁴But God raised them up, having freed them from death, because it was impossible for them to be held in its power. ²⁵For David says concerning them, ‘I saw the Becoming One always before me, for They are at my right hand so that I will not be shaken; ²⁶therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; moreover my flesh will live in hope. ²⁷For you will not abandon my soul to Sheol, or let your Holy One experience corruption. ²⁸You have made known to me the ways of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

²⁹“You people and kindred, I may say to you confidently of our ancestor David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. ³⁰Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn with an oath to him that They would put one of his descendants on the throne. ³¹Foreseeing this, David spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, saying, ‘They were not abandoned to Sheol, nor did their flesh experience corruption.’ ³²This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. ...

Queeries for the text:
What's missing?
When is this taking place?
How does God's "definite plan and foreknowledge" of the crucifixion comfort?  How does it disturb?
How might antisemitism be read into this text?  How does Peter's second naming of the crowd challenge that interpretation?
What is the difference between Sheol and Hades?
Is David saying the same thing two different ways?
Whose hands are outside the law?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Lent 2A

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

Gospel: John 3:1-17
¹Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Judeans. ²He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.”

³Jesus answered Nicodemus, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the reign of God without being born from above.”

⁴Nicodemus said to Jesus, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the parent’s womb and be born?”

⁵Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the reign of God without being born of water and Spirit. ⁶What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. ⁷Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ ⁸The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

⁹Nicodemus said to Jesus, “How can these things be?”

¹⁰Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

¹¹“Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. ¹²If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? ¹³No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Human One. ¹⁴And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Human One be lifted up, ¹⁵that whoever believes in Them may have everlasting life. ¹⁶For God loved the world in this way: that God gave Their only Child, so that everyone who believes in Them may not perish but may have everlasting life. ¹⁷Indeed, God did not send the Child into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Them.”

Queeries for the text:
What happened to the Pharisees?
What else happens at night?
How else can someone experience the reign of God besides sight?
Who else has a womb besides a mother?
How else is love expressed?
Who is condemned?  How might they be saved?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 6th after Epiphany A

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

Tanakh: Deuteronomy 30:15-20

See, I set before you this day life and prosperity, death and adversity. For I command you this day, to love the Becoming One your God, to walk in Her ways, and to keep Her commandments, Her laws, and Her rules, that you may thrive and increase, and that the Becoming One your God may bless you in the land that you are about to enter and possess.

But if your heart turns away and you give no heed and are lured into the worship and service of other Gods, I declare to you this day that you shall certainly perish; you shall not long endure on the soil that you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.

I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day: I have put before you life and death, blessing and curse. Choose life—if you and your offspring would live— by loving the Becoming One your God, heeding Her commands, and holding fast to Her. For thereby you shall have life and shall long endure upon the soil that the Becoming One swore to your ancestors, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to give to them.

Queeries for the text:
What dualisms are set up in this text? How can they be queered?
How are ways, commandments, laws and rules similar? How are they different?
Who are the other Gods? What kind of relationship to the Becoming One exists in this text?
How does the text handle its forays into the future? How does knowing what comes after change your encounter with the text?
What does it mean to value life? What are your personal growing edges in valuing life? What are the growing edges of society?
Where does choosing life lead us to today? Is that a worthwhile destination? What are the unintended consequences?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 5:21-37
²¹“You have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not murder’; and ‘whoever murders shall be liable to judgment.’ ²²But I say to you that if you are angry with a sibling, you will be liable to judgment; and if you insult a brother or sister, you will be liable to the council; and if you say, ‘You fool,’ you will be liable to the hell of fire. ²³So when you are offering your gift at the altar, if you remember that your sibling has something against you, ²⁴leave your gift there before the altar and go; first be reconciled to your sibling, and then come and offer your gift. ²⁵Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are on the way to court with him, or your accuser may hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. ²⁶Truly I tell you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny.

²⁷“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ ²⁸But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart. ²⁹If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. ³⁰And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away; it is better for you to lose one of your members than for your whole body to go into hell. ³¹“It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ ³²But I say to you that anyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of unchastity, causes her to commit adultery; and whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.

³³“Again, you have heard that it was said to those of ancient times, ‘You shall not swear falsely, but carry out the vows you have made to the Becoming One.’ ³⁴But I say to you, Do not swear at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, ³⁵or by the earth, for it is her footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great Queen. ³⁶And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. ³⁷Let your word be ‘Yes, Yes’ or ‘No, No’; anything more than this comes from the evil one.

Queeries for the text:
How does anger lead to death?  How is anger good?
What does "you fool" sound like?
Who are the powerful Jesus is talking to?  How does Jesus address power?
Who might be assumed to look at a woman with lust?  What does this imply about victim blaming?  How does personal responsibility impact these situations?
What would happen to a woman if she received a certificate of divorce?  How did they perpetuate the patriarchy?
What is Jesus saying about control?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Advent 4A

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeried the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 1:18-25

¹⁸Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When Jesus' mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be with child from the Holy Spirit.

¹⁹Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to dismiss her quietly. ²⁰But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of God appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will bear a child, whom you are to name Jesus, for this one will save the people from their sins.”

²²All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by God through the prophet: ²³“Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a child, whom they shall name Emmanuel,” which means, “God is with us.” ²⁴When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of God commanded him; Joseph took Mary as his wife, ²⁵but had no marital relations with her until she had borne a child; and Joseph named the child Jesus.

Queeries for the text:
What does it mean to be righteous?
What would have happened if Joseph had dismissed Mary?
Why does verb tense matter?
What kind of name is Jesus?
What does virgin actually mean?
What did the prophet actually say?
How did Joseph take Mary?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Advent 3A

River Needham, queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Isaiah 35:1-10

The arid desert shall be glad, the wilderness shall rejoice and shall blossom like a rose.

It shall blossom abundantly, It shall also exult and shout.

It shall receive the glory of Lebanon, the splendor of Carmel and Sharon.
They shall behold the glory of the Becoming One, the splendor of our God.

Strengthen the hands that are slack; make firm the tottering knees!
Say to the anxious of heart,

“Be strong, fear not; Behold your God! Requital is coming, The recompense of God—
She herself is coming to give you triumph.”

Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.

Then the lame shall leap like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb shall shout aloud;

For waters shall burst forth in the desert, streams in the wilderness.

Torrid earth shall become a pool; Parched land, fountains of water;
The home of jackals, a pasture; The abode of ostriches, reeds and rushes.

And a highway shall appear there, which shall be called the Sacred Way.

No one unclean shall pass along it, but it shall be for them.
No traveler, not even fools, shall go astray.

No lion shall be there, no ferocious beast shall set foot on it— these shall not be found there.
But the redeemed shall walk it; and the ransomed of the Becoming One shall return, and come with shouting to Zion,
Crowned with joy everlasting. They shall attain joy and gladness, while sorrow and sighing flee.

Queeries for the text:
Can land be glad?
What does it look like for wilderness to rejoice?
What is the splendor of God?
How might a blind person receive this text?
How might a D/deaf person receive this text?
How might a disabled person hear this text?
What is the Sacred Way?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeried the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 11:2-11

²When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his disciples ³and said to Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”  

⁴Jesus answered them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see: ⁵the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have good news brought to them. ⁶And blessed is anyone who takes no offense at me.”

⁷As they went away, Jesus began to speak to the crowds about John: “What did you go out into the wilderness to look at? A reed shaken by the wind? ⁸What then did you go out to see? Someone dressed in soft robes? Look, those who wear soft robes are in royal palaces. ⁹What then did you go out to see? A prophet? Yes, I tell you, and more than a prophet. ¹⁰This is the one about whom it is written, ‘See, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way before you.’ ¹¹Truly I tell you, among those born of women no one has arisen greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the realm of heaven is greater than John.

Queeries for the text:
Why was John in prison?
Who takes offense at Jesus?  How?
How is ableism embedded in the text?  How can we challenge it?
What assumption is everyone making?
What assumptions do we make about who Jesus and John are?
What does greatest mean?  What about least?
What about those not born of women?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 23rd after Pentecost C - Isaiah

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Isaiah 65:17-25
¹⁷ For I am about to create new heavens
   and a new earth;
the former things shall not be remembered
   or come to mind.
¹⁸ But be glad and rejoice for ever
   in what I am creating;
for I am about to create Jerusalem as a joy,
   and its people as a delight.
¹⁹ I will rejoice in Jerusalem,
   and delight in my people;
no more shall the sound of weeping be heard in it,
   or the cry of distress.
²⁰ No more shall there be in it
   an infant that lives but a few days,
   or an old person who does not live out a lifetime;
for one who dies at a hundred years will be considered a youth,
   and one who falls short of a hundred will be considered accursed.
²¹ They shall build houses and inhabit them;
   they shall plant vineyards and eat their fruit.
²² They shall not build and another inhabit;
   they shall not plant and another eat;
for like the days of a tree shall the days of my people be,
   and my chosen shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
²³ They shall not labour in vain,
   or bear children for calamity;
for they shall be offspring blessed by the Becoming One—
   and their descendants as well.
²⁴ Before they call I will answer,
   while they are yet speaking I will hear.
²⁵ The wolf and the lamb shall feed together,
   the lion shall eat straw like the ox;
   but the serpent—its food shall be dust!
They shall not hurt or destroy
   on all my holy mountain, says the Becoming One. 

Queeries for the text:
What former things will not come to mind?
What happens when people don't remember?
Which infants live but a few days?
Who doesn't live out a lifetime?
Who creates with their lives?
How must the powerful change to achieve the restoration of wolf and lamb?
How does the church hurt?

What are your queeries?


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The manuscript for the sermon I preached, rooted in these queeries, can be found on my other blog here.

Queerying 15th after Pentecost C

Periodic queerier, River Needham, queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Jeremiah 8:18-8:23(9:1)

When in grief I would seek comfort, my heart is sick within me.

“Is not the Becoming One in Zion? Is not her Majesty within her?
 Why then did they anger me with their images, with alien futilities?”

Hark! The outcry of my poor people from the land far and wide:

“Harvest is past, summer is gone, and we have not been saved.”

Because my people are shattered I am shattered;
I am dejected, seized by desolation.
Is there no balm in Gilead?

Can no physician be found?

Why has healing not yet come to my poor people?

Oh, that my head were water, my eyes a fount of tears! Then would I weep day and night for the slain of my poor people.

Queeries for the text:
What do we grieve?
How do we find comfort?
What makes our heart sick?
What is Zion?
What do we need to be saved from? Who will save us?
How are people shattered?
Where does Gilead show up?
Who are the slain of my poor people?

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Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke16:1-13

Then Jesus said to the disciples,

“There was a rich man who had a manager,

and charges were brought to him

that the manager was squandering his property.

²So the rich man summoned her and said to her,

‘What is this that I hear about you?
Give me an accounting of your management,

because you cannot be my manager any longer.’

³Then the manager said to herself,

‘What will I do, now that my master is taking the position away from me?

I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.

⁴I have decided what to do so that,

when I am dismissed as manager,

people may welcome me into their homes.’

⁵So, summoning her master’s debtors one by one, she asked the first,

‘How much do you owe my master?’

⁶Ze answered,

‘A hundred jugs of olive oil.’

She said to zim,

‘Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it fifty.’

⁷Then she asked another,

‘And how much do you owe?’

Fae replied,

‘A hundred containers of wheat.’

She said to faer,

‘Take your bill and make it eighty.’

⁸And her master commended the dishonest manager

because she had acted shrewdly;

for the children of this age are more shrewd

in dealing with their own generation

than are the children of light.

⁹And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth

so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the everlasting homes.

¹⁰“Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much;

and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.

¹¹If then you have not been faithful with the dishonest wealth,

who will entrust to you the true riches?

¹²And if you have not been faithful with what belongs to another,

who will give you what is your own?

¹³No slave can serve two masters;

for a slave will either hate the one and love the other,
or be devoted to the one and despise the other.

You cannot serve God and wealth.”

Queeries for the text:
What did we skip?
How does gender change how we read this?
What kind of manager was this?
How is divide and conquer at work?
How does this manager resist the divide and conquer mentality?
How big is the difference between what is owed and what was borrowed?
What does it mean to act shrew(d)ly?
How does Jesus evaluate and value wealth?
What master do I serve?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 14th after Pentecost C

Periodic queerier, River Needham, queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28
At that time, it shall be said concerning this people and Jerusalem:

The conduct of my poor people is like searing wind from the bare heights of the desert—

It will not serve to winnow or to fan. A full blast from them comes against me: Now I, in turn, will bring charges against them.
-------
For my people are stupid, they give me no heed; they are foolish children,  they are not intelligent. they are clever at doing wrong and unable to do right. I look at the earth, it is unformed and void; at the skies, their light is gone. I look at the mountains, they are quaking, and all the hills are rocking. I look: no human is left, and all the birds of the sky have fled. I look: the farmland is desert, and all its towns are in ruinó Because of the Becoming One, because of zir blazing anger. For thus said the Becoming One: the whole land shall be desolate, but I will not make an end of it. For this the earth mourns, and skies are dark aboveó because I have spoken, I have planned, and I will not relent or turn back from it.

Queeries for the text:
Where is the heat coming from? Why is it the humans' fault?
What charges might God bring against humans today?
What is missing from the assigned text?
Is the speaker justified in using ableist slurs? Why or why not?
Where else are white humans unable to do right?
What does it mean to be unformed and void?
Where did the humans go?

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Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 15:1-10
Now all the tax collectors and "those people"

were coming near to listen to Jesus.
²And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying,

“This fellow welcomes 'those people' and eats with them.”

³So Jesus told them this parable:

⁴“Which one of you,

having a hundred sheep and losing one of them,

does not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness
and go after the one that is lost until you find it?

⁵When you have found it,

you lay it on your shoulders and rejoice.
⁶And when you come home,

you call together your friends and neighbors, saying to them,

‘Rejoice with me,

for I have found my sheep that was lost.’

⁷Just so, I tell you,

there will be more joy in heaven over one of 'those people' who repents

than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.

⁸“Or what woman having ten silver coins,

if she loses one of them,

does not light a lamp,
sweep the house,
and search carefully until she finds it?

⁹When she has found it,

she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying,

‘Rejoice with me,

for I have found the coin that I had lost.’

¹⁰Just so, I tell you,

there is joy in the presence of the angels of God

over one of 'those people' who repents.”

Queeries for the text:
What did we skip?  What does the RCL have against salt?
What kind of nonsense is leaving 99 perfectly good sheep to find the one sheep that might already be killed and eaten?
Why would you throw a party costing more than the lost sheep?
Did the sheep repent? Or was it the shepherd?  Can sheep repent?  Can coins?
How much is a silver coin worth?  Who would search for the lost?
How do you lose one coin out of ten?
Why spend the found coin—and perhaps more—on a party?
How do we anthropomorphize what is not human or not alive?
Who is lost?  How?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 10th after Pentecost C

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 12:49-56
Jesus said:
⁴⁹“I came to bring fire to the earth,

and how I wish it were already kindled!
⁵⁰I have a baptism with which to be baptized,

and what stress I am under until it is completed!

⁵¹Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth?

No, I tell you, but rather division!

⁵²From now on five in one household will be divided,

three against two and two against three;
⁵³they will be divided:

father against son and son against father,
mother against daughter and daughter against mother,
mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law.”

⁵⁴Jesus also said to the crowds,

“When you see a cloud rising in the west,

you immediately say, ‘It is going to rain’;

and so it happens.

⁵⁵And when you see the south wind blowing,

you say, ‘There will be scorching heat’;

and it happens.

⁵⁶You hypocrites!

You know how to interpret the appearance of earth and sky,

but why do you not know how to interpret the present time?

Queeries for the text:
What did we skip?  Why do we keep skipping verses?
Was Jesus a pyro?  How is fire helpful?
When are families divided?
Does Jesus bring the division or shed light on it?
What can we interpret from earth and sky?
What is in the present time?
What stress does baptism cause?
How are we divided?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 4th after Pentecost C

Periodic queerier, River Needham, queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: 2 Kings 5:1-14
Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was important to his ruler and high in his favor, for through Naaman the Becoming One had granted victory to Aram. But the man, though a great warrior, was a leper. Once, when the Arameans were out raiding, they carried off a young girl from the land of Israel, and she became an attendant to Naaman’s wife. She said to her mistress, “I wish Master [Namaan] could come before the prophet in Samaria; he would cure Naaman of his leprosy.” Naaman went and told his ruler just what the girl from the land of Israel had said.

Then the king of Aram said, “Go to the king of Israel, and I will send along a letter.” Namaan set out, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten changes of clothing. He brought the letter to the king of Israel. It read: “Now, when this letter reaches you, know that I have sent my courtier Naaman to you, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” When the king of Israel read the letter, he rent his clothes and cried, “Am I God, to deal death or give life, that this fellow writes to me to cure a man of leprosy? Just see for yourselves that he is seeking a pretext against me!”

When Elisha, the man of God, heard that the king of Israel had rent his clothes, he sent a message to the king: “Why have you rent your clothes? Let him come to me, and he will learn that there is a prophet in Israel.” So Naaman came with his horses and chariots and halted at the door of Elisha’s house. Elisha sent a messenger to say to him, “Go and bathe seven times in the Jordan, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” But Naaman was angered and walked away. “I thought,” he said, “he would surely come out to me, and would stand and invoke the Becoming One his God by name, and would wave his hand toward the spot, and cure the affected part. Are not the Amanah and the Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? I could bathe in them and be clean!” He stalked off in a rage. But his servants came forward and spoke to him. “Sir,” they said, “if the prophet told you to do something difficult, would you not do it? How much more when he has only said to you, ‘Bathe and be clean.’” So he went down and immersed himself in the Jordan seven times, as the man of God had bidden; and his flesh became like a little boy’s, and he was clean.

Queeries for the text:
Where was Aram? When did this story take place? Were there ruling powers even over these kings when this story took place? How would that change the power analysis in this story?
What does it mean for a child to be enslaved? What kinds of labor do u.s.ians expect from children today?
What is the significance of the prophet in Samaria? What does it imply about when this took place or when it was written?
How do we expect healing and labor from people without recognizing the great cost that often comes with being a healer?
Why was the King of Israel so upset at the King of Aram's demand? What does this tell us about the power dynamics at play?  Who has the geo-political power?
Why does Elisha have a better relationship with the Monarchs than Elijah? What parts of the story have been omitted that helped that happen?
In which other traditions is water a gift from the divine(9-11)?  Does that giftedness change if God is not invoked in the cleansing bath?
If you were retelling this story in a modern setting, what details would you change, and how? Which ones would you keep the same, and why?

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Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Luke 10:1-11, 16-20
After this the President appointed seventy others
and sent them on ahead of him in pairs

to every town and place where he himself intended to go.

²Jesus said to them,

“The harvest is plentiful,

but the laborers are few;

therefore ask the CEO of the harvest

to send out laborers into the harvest.

³Go on your way.

See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves.
⁴Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals;

and greet no one on the road.

⁵Whatever house you enter,

first say, ‘Peace to this house!’

⁶And if anyone is there who shares in peace,

your peace will rest on that person;

but if not, it will return to you.

⁷Remain in the same house,

eating and drinking whatever they provide,

for the laborer deserves to be paid.

Do not move about from house to house.

⁸Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you,

eat what is set before you;
⁹cure the sick who are there,
and say to them, ‘The nation of God has come near to you.’

¹⁰But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you,

go out into its streets and say,

¹¹‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet,

we wipe off in protest against you.

Yet know this: the nation of God has come near.’

¹⁶“Whoever listens to you listens to me,
and whoever rejects you rejects me,

and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.”

¹⁷The seventy returned with joy, saying,

“President, in your name even the demons submit to us!”

¹⁸Jesus said to them,

“I watched the Prosecutor fall from heaven like a flash of lightning.

¹⁹See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions,

and over all the power of the enemy;

and nothing will hurt you.

²⁰Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this,

that the spirits submit to you,

but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Queeries for the text:
What's missing?  What does Sodom have to do with hospitality?
Why 70?  Why pairs?
Did Jesus end up going everywhere he intended?
What would u.s. culture be like if hospitality were so reliable?
Why can't they greet anyone on the road?
How much peace is available to share?  What about freedom?
How much are the laborers paid?
What does it mean to wipe dust from feet?
Does the reign of God come near whether or not we welcome it?
Why are the 70 still so excited about the power?  Where are our priorities?

What are your queeries?

Remembering Pulse: Words at a Vigil

Below are my words from the Pulse Vigil that took place this evening at The Blazing Saddle in Des Moines.  I was one of three speakers and simultaneous translation and interpretation were provided in Spanish and ASL, so I only have the English below.

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Buenas noches.  Good evening.

I'm Pastor Emily Ewing and I'm the Social Justice Pastor at Trinity las Américas United Methodist Church.  My pronouns are they/them/theirs, elle.

Today, my queerly beloved, we gather on land originally inhabited by the Ioway, Sauk, and Meskwaki peoples to remember violence perpetrated on the land of the Seminole people.

The attack on Pulse night club on Latinx night was a decidedly “American” attack—born from a country that weds the dominant religious ideology and white supremacy.  This country combines the evils of racism and queer- and transphobia and in recent years has been even more explicitly encouraging them.

The ways this country has historically and still today perpetuated and even created newly horrific forms of racism, queerphobia and transphobia, especially under the name of Christianity and “religious freedom” are sin.  Racism is sin.  White supremacy is sin.  Queerphobia is sin.  Transphobia is sin.  Heterosexism and cisgenderism are sin.

They harm everyone.

Just as immigration and the evils of ICE and Border Patrol don’t just impact those living along the borders, what happened at Pulse is not restricted to Orlando.  White supremacists and neo Nazis have been physically disrupting Prides this year.  In recent months we have heard again of Black trans women being killed in Dallas, of yet another Latina trans woman dying in detention while seeking asylum, and this is all to say nothing of the murders that don’t make our news.

And so we gather.

Again and again we gather.

We gather to support and encourage each other.

We gather to remember the lives we have lost—the ones unjustly taken from us.

We gather to challenge the powers and principalities that seek to do harm—to oppress, divide, and diminish especially the most marginalized among us.

In my Lutheran tradition, when someone is baptized or confirmed—recommitting themselves to their faith journey—we celebrate and we also make space to renounce the forces that divide and harm us and the world.  So, if you are willing, please join me when appropriate by responding to my questions with “I renounce them.”  Not every renunciation will apply to each one of us gathered here, but especially when it comes to systems and powers that you benefit from or that you want tonight to commit to challenging, please join in the renunciation.  The decision is entirely yours to do as you feel moved.

Do you, my queerly beloveds, renounce queerphobia, homophobia, and biphobia?

I renounce them.

Do you renounce racism, white supremacy, and xenophobia?

I renounce them.

Do you renounce transphobia, cisgenderism, and the gender binary?

I renounce them.

Do you renounce all forms of religious bigotry, religious extremism, and religious supremacy?

I renounce them.

Do you renounce the shame that others impose and use to condemn?

I renounce them.

Do you renounce the powers and principalities that attempt to divide and conquer us?

I renounce them.

Recommitting ourselves to the work of justice, of love, and of peace takes all of us—calling each other in when we mess up, supporting and carrying each other when we cannot go it alone, ensuring the most vulnerable among us are safe and centered in the work we do, and also celebrating both when there are victories and when the victory is simply that we are still here to fight another day—celebrating even in the face of those who would seek to harm us.

So, to you my queerly beloveds,

who come from the rich, nourishing dirt of the earth

and the brilliant, sparkling stardust scattered throughout the cosmos

you, who bear the divine image, love, and wonder in all of who you are,

and in all of who you are becoming:

May you remember and work to honor those no longer with us—

from the early resisters, rioters, and brick throwers

like Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson

to those whose lives were taken at Pulse
to those who are killed still today—

may your living do them justice and honor them

May you know that you are loved—oh so very loved—

that you are lovable,
and that you are capable of so much love.

May you know sacred spaces throughout your life—

from queer bars to faith communities,
from parks and coffee shops to gardens and shelters.

May you always know that you belong,

that you are valid,

and that your existence in the world is important.

Amen.

Queerying Holy Trinity C

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

John 16:12-15
Jesus said:
¹²"I still have many things to say to you,

but you cannot bear them now.

¹³When the Spirit of truth comes,

she will guide you into all the truth;

for the Spirit will not speak on her own,

but will speak whatever she hears
and will declare to you the things that are to come.

¹⁴The Spirit will glorify me,

because she will take what is mine and declare it to you.

¹⁵All that the Loving Parent has is mine.

For this reason I said that she will take what is mine
and declare it to you."

Queeries for the text:
Does Jesus have FOMO? Or is YOLO driving this speech?  Is YOLO even possible for Jesus?
What can't we bear?
How and why does truth matter?
What does the Spirit hear today?  Does she need to hear in order to comprehend?
Which possessions or people do Jesus and the Loving Parent hold in joint custody?
What things are to come?
What does the Spirit declare?
How will the Spirit glorify Jesus?  Did it already happen?  Will it ever happen?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Easter 5C

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Acts reading.

Acts 11:1-18
Now the apostles and the believers who were in Judea heard

that the Gentiles had also accepted the word of God.

²So when Peter went up to Jerusalem,

the circumcised believers criticized him,

³saying, “Why did you go to uncircumcised men

and eat with them?”

⁴Then Peter began to explain it to them,

step by step, saying,

⁵“I was in the city of Joppa praying,

and in a trance I saw a vision.

There was something like a large sheet coming down from heaven,

being lowered by its four corners;

and it came close to me.

⁶As I looked at it closely I saw four-footed animals,

beasts of prey, reptiles, and birds of the air.

⁷I also heard a voice saying to me,

‘Get up, Peter;
kill and eat.’

⁸But I replied,

‘By no means, Holy One;

for nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

⁹But a second time the voice answered from heaven,

‘What God has made clean,

you must not call profane.’

¹⁰This happened three times;

then everything was pulled up again to heaven.

¹¹“At that very moment three men,

sent to me from Caesarea,

arrived at the house where we were.

¹²The Spirit told me to go with them

and not to make a distinction between them and us.

These six believers also accompanied me,
and we entered the man’s house.

¹³He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying,

‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon,

who is called Peter;

¹⁴he will give you a message

by which you and your entire household will be saved.’

¹⁵And as I began to speak,

the Holy Spirit fell upon them just as it had upon us at the beginning.

¹⁶And I remembered Jesus' words,

having said,

‘John baptized with water,

but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

¹⁷If then God gave them the same gift

that God gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ,

who was I that I could hinder God?”

¹⁸When the apostles and believers who were in Judea heard this,

they were silenced.

And they praised God, saying,

“Then God has given

even to the Gentiles

the repentance that leads to life.”

Queeries for the text:
Why do they only care about the men in the story?  What about people of other genders?
Where and with whom does the story really begin?
What do the animals have in common?
Why is Peter so invested in binaries?
Why does it take Peter so long to get what God is trying to say?
Which six believers?
Did the Holy Spirit trip?  On what?
Who needs to be silenced today?  Who needs to stop being silent?  How does God surprise us into silence?
Why are Peter and the believers so surprised that God is with those who are different from them?

What are your queeries?