Queerying Narrative Lectionary 133

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary.

Matthew 22:1-14
Jesus spoke to his chosen family in parables, once more. He said, ²"The kin-dom of heaven could be described as a ruler who gave a wedding banquet for his son. ³He sent all of his slaves to call the guests who had been invited to attend. The guests would not come. ⁴Again, the ruler sent other slaves out, saying to them, 'Tell those who have been invited: Look, everything is prepared: for dinner, the oxen and best quality of my cows have been prepared. Everything is ready! Come to the wedding banquet.' ⁵But the invited guests couldn't be bothered. One went back to his farm, another to his business, ⁶while another guest decided to be extra and seized up the ruler's slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. ⁷The ruler was enraged. He sent his troops, killed the guests who had murdered his slaves and burned their city. ⁸The ruler said to his remaining slaves, 'The wedding is ready, but those I originally invited were not worthy. ⁹Go then into the streets and invite everyone you can find to the wedding banquet.' ¹⁰The slaves went out into the streets and gathered everyone they could find, regardless of their character or worthiness, so that the wedding hall was filled with guests.

¹¹"But when the ruler came in to see all the guests, he noticed that there was a man who was not wearing a wedding robe. ¹²The ruler said to him, 'Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?' And the man was silent. ¹³Then the king said to the guests, 'Bind this man's hands and feet so he cannot get free. Then throw him into the outer unknown, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.' ¹⁴For many are called, but few are chosen."

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying text?
Where is this going?
Why is the ruler such an asshole in this?
How has this text been used in antisemitic and supersessionist ways?
What does the heavenly banquet look like here and now?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 132

Rev. Emily E. Ewing and Pace Warfield-May queery the Narrative Lectionary.

Matthew 20:1-16
“For the reign of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for their vineyard. ²After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, they sent them into the vineyard.

³When they went out about nine o’clock, they saw others standing idle in the marketplace ⁴and said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went.

⁵When the landowner went out again about noon and about three o’clock, they did the same. ⁶And about five o’clock they went out and found others standing around and said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’

⁷They said to the landowner, ‘Because no one has hired us.’

The landowner said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’

⁸When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to their manager, ‘Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.’ ⁹When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage.

¹⁰Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. ¹¹And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, ¹²saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ ¹³But the landowner replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? ¹⁴Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. ¹⁵Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ ¹⁶So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying text?
Where is this going?
How would the world be different if no one were forced to work in order to survive?
Why didn't anyone hire the 5pm laborers? What impact did finally getting hired have on them?
What happens if God is the person at 5pm with no work?
Who is the real enemy?
What does friend mean? Why did the landowner only respond to one of the workers?
What if no one was last or first?

What are your queeries?


 

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 131

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary.

Matthew 18:15-35
Jesus said: "If your sibling causes you harm, speak to them alone about it. If you are listened to, you have rebuilt that relationship. ¹⁶But if you are not listened to, take one or two along with you so that every word you say can be supported by your witnesses. ¹⁷If that person refuses to listen to you and your witnesses, tell it to the church. If that person refuses to listen even to that church, that relationship is broken and you should sever ties. ¹⁸I tell you the truth: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you let go on earth will be let go in heaven. ¹⁹Again, I tell you this truth: if two of you agree about everything you ask, it will be done for you by my Parent in heaven. ²⁰For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am truly present among you."

Then Peter came and asked Jesus, "Teacher, if my sibling causes me harm, how often should I forgive them? Seven times?" ²²Jesus responded, "Not seven times, but I'm telling you seventy-seven times. ²³For this reason the kin-gdom of heaven may be compared to a slave master who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. ²⁴When he began the settling of accounts, the slave who owed him the equivalent of two hundred thousand days of labor was brought to him, ²⁵and, as he could not pay his master, the slave master ordered that slave to be sold together with his wife and children and all his possessions in order for the payment to be met. ²⁶So the slave prostrated himself before the master and said, 'Please, I beg of you, have patience with me. I will pay you everything I owe.' ²⁷And out of pity for him, the slave master released the debt that was owed. ²⁸But that same slave ran into one of his fellow slaves who owed him the equivalent of 100 days of work. He seized his fellow slave by the throat and said, 'Pay me all that you owe me.' ²⁹Then his fellow slave fell down and begged him, 'Please, have patience with me. I will pay you!' ³⁰But the first slave refused. Indeed, he threw the other slave in a prison until he could pay the debt. ³¹When the rest of the slaves heard about what happened they were very upset. They reported it to the slave master. ³²The slave master summoned the first slave back to him and said, 'You wicked slave! I forgave you that huge debt you owed me because I took pity on you when you pleaded with me. ³³Should you not have shown your fellow slave mercy, the way I showed you mercy?' ³⁴The slave master in anger handed him to be tortured until he could pay back the entire debt he owed. ³⁵So it will be with my Parent in heaven if you do not truly forgive your siblings from your heart."

Queeries for the text
What is this text building on?
What was skipped? What is the accompanying reading?
Where is this headed?
How have passages like this been used to justify slavery?
When is it okay to not forgive?
What does true forgiveness look like?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 130

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary.

Matthew 18:1-9
Shortly after the transfiguration on the mountain top, the twelve chosen family members came to Jesus and asked, "Who is the G.O.A.T.–greatest of all time–in the kin-dom of heaven?" ²Jesus called out to a nearby child and brought the child among the chosen family ³ and said, "I tell you the truth: unless you transform and become like children, you will never enter the kin-dom of heaven. ⁴Whoever humbles themselves to be like this child is the G.O.A.T. in the kin-dom of heaven. ⁵Whoever welcomes a child such as this in my name welcomes me.

⁶If any among you cause one of these little ones who believe in me to miss the mark, it would be better if you had a great stone chained to your neck and you were thrown into the depths of the sea to drown! ⁷Woe to the world for all the systems that create and cause sin! These things are always going to come, but woe to the one and the systems through whom they come! ⁸If your hand or your foot or any other appendage causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter enter life without that appendage than for you to have all your appendages and be thrown into the never ending fire. ⁹And if your eye causes you to sin, rip it out and throw it away; it is better for you to be missing that eye than for you to have both eyes and be thrown into the hell of never ending fire."

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying text?
Where is this going?
What is disability theology?
How can we help protect children?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 119

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary reading.

Matthew 1:1-17
¹The family tree of Jesus the Anointed One, the descendent of David and Bathsheeba, and of Abraham and Sarah.

²Abraham and Sarah were the parents of Isaac, and Isaac and Rebecca the parents of Jacob, and Jacob and his wives the parents of Judah and his siblings, ³and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Aram, ⁴and Aram the father of Aminadab, and Aminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, ⁵and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, ⁶and Jesse the father of King David.

And David and Bathsheba were the parents Solomon, ⁷and Solomon the father of Rehoboam, and Rehoboam the father of Abijah, and Abijah the father of Asaph, ⁸and Asaph the father of Jehoshaphat, and Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, and Joram the father of Uzziah, ⁹and Uzziah the father of Jotham, and Jotham the father of Ahaz, and Ahaz the father of Hezekiah, ¹⁰and Hezekiah the father of Manasseh, and Manasseh the father of Amos, and Amos the father of Josiah, ¹¹and Josiah the father of Jechoniah and his siblings, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

¹²And after the deportation to Babylon: Jechoniah was the father of Salathiel, and Salathiel the father of Zerubbabel, ¹³and Zerubbabel the father of Abiud, and Abiud the father of Eliakim, and Eliakim the father of Azor, ¹⁴and Azor the father of Zadok, and Zadok the father of Achim, and Achim the father of Eliud, ¹⁵and Eliud the father of Eleazar, and Eleazar the father of Matthan, and Matthan the father of Jacob, ¹⁶and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Mary gave birth to Jesus by the Holy Spirit, and Jesus is called the Anointed One.

¹⁷So all the generations from Abraham and Sarah to David and Bathsheeba are fourteen generations; and from David and Bathsheeba to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations; and from the deportation to Babylon to the birth of the Anointed One, fourteen generations.

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying text?
Where is this going?
What is skipped over?
Who are the women named in the genealogy? Why are so few named?
What is the importance of genealogy and ancestry?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Advent 4A and Narrative Lectionary 116

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative and Revised Common Lectionary Gospel.

Matthew 1:18-25
¹⁸Now the birth of Jesus, the Anointed One, took place in this way: when Jesus' mother Mary was engaged to Joseph, she was found to be with child (from the Holy Spirit). This was before they lived together or had sexual relations. ¹⁹Mary's husband, Joseph, was self-righteous and unwilling to expose himself or Mary to public disgrace, so he decided to break off the engagement quietly. ²⁰But just as he had decided to do this on his own, an angel of the Becoming One appeared to him in a dream and said, "Joseph, scion to David, do not be afraid. Take Mary as your wife, for the fetus within her was conceived through the Holy Spirit. ²¹She will give birth to a son, and you both are to name him Jesus, from the Hebrew Yehoshua for God saves, for he will save his people from their sins." ²²All this took place to fulfill what had been spoken by the Becoming One through the prophet Isaiah:

"Look, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son,

and they shall name him Emmanuel (from the Hebrew for God is with us)."

²⁴When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Becoming One had commanded him to do: he married Mary, ²⁵but he did not have sex with her until she gave birth to the promised son, and they named him Jesus.

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying Narrative Lectionary text?
Where is this headed?
How is Matthew using or misusing the Isaiah quote?
What is the importance of names?
What do dreams mean for us?
What was wrong with Joseph's 'righteous' plan?
How do you experience the promise that God is with us?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Advent 3A

River Needham, MA ThM queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Isaiah 35:1-10
The dry 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 one who refuses to see shall be opened,
And the ears that refuse to hear shall be unstopped.
Then those who cannot walk shall leap like a deer,
And the one who cannot talk 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 the directionally challenged, 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:
What is the opposite of dry?
How do we make firm tottering knees?
Where is the Sacred Way?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 11:2-11
²When John heard during his incarceration what the Messiah was doing, he sent word by his chosen family 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 witness: ⁵the blind receive guidance, places are made accessible for the lame who use assistive devices, healthcare is free as the lepers are cleansed, the Deaf are respected in language and culture, the dead are raised, and the poor have money, support, and opportunity 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 mansions and penthouses.

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 reign of heaven is greater than he.

Queeries for the text:
Why was John incarcerated?
Who are you waiting for?
How has Jesus' call to community and accessibility been used for harm?
At whom do you take offense?
Who wears soft robes today?
Who is soft?
How can a person be more than a prophet?
Where is it written?
Who is greater? Who desires greatness?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 115

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary reading.

Isaiah 42:1-9
¹Yo, look! It's my servant that I hand picked!

My chosen servant, in whom I find deep joy;

I have put my spirit upon her;

She will inspire and bring justice to all nations.

²She will not cry out or shout

Or try to call attention to herself in the streets!

³She will not even break a twig that's barely hanging on to the branch,

and she will not put out even the faintest flame on the wick:

She will faithfully bring forth justice.

⁴But neither will she grow faint or be crushed

until she has established justice in all corners of the earth;

and the coastal areas will wait upon her teaching.

⁵Thus says God/ess, the Becoming One,

who created the heavens and stretched them out,

who spread out the earth and what comes from it,

who gives breath to the people upon it

and spirit to those who walk in it:

⁶I am the Becoming One, I have called you in righteousness;

I have taken you by the hand and kept you;

I have given you as an unfailing, everlasting promise to the people,

a lighthouse for all nations to sail and navigate safely by,

⁷to bring wholeness and healing to those broken or in need,

to set the prisoners free, just and unjustly imprisoned alike,

for all prisons are unholy and broken.

⁸I am the Becoming One, that is my name;

my glory is mine alone,

no idols deserve the praise belonging to me.

⁹See, the old ways have died,

"a new, more glorious dawn awaits,"

before the sun rises on this dawn,

I am telling you of the wonderful things to come.

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying text?
Where is this headed?
What does a "new, more glorious dawn" entail?
Who is the suffering servant?
What needs to die in order to give birth to new life?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Advent 2A

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Matthew 3:1-12
In those days John the Baptizer appeared in the wild sparseness of Judea, proclaiming, ²“Turn around, for the reign of heaven has come near.” ³This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when saying, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Becoming One, make Her paths queerly accessible.’” ⁴Now John wore clothing of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist, and his food was locusts and wild honey.

⁵Then the people of Jerusalem and all Judea were going out to John, and all the region along the Jordan, ⁶and they were baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins and separation. ⁷But when John saw many religious leaders of all political perspectives coming for baptism, he said to them, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? ⁸Bear fruit showing you're changing your mind. ⁹Do not presume to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our ancestor’; for I tell you, God is able from these stones to raise up children to Abraham. ¹⁰Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

¹¹“I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to carry his sandals. This one will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. ¹²The winnowing fork is in hand, and this one will clear the threshing floor and will gather the wheat into the granary; but the chaff will burn with unquenchable fire.”

Queeries for the text:
Who else appears in the wild sparseness?
What nourishment do locusts and wild honey provide?
What sins do we have to confess at rivers and waterways?
Who else is cussed at?
When else are stones anthropomorphized?
What does fire do?
Is it better to be eaten or burned?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 114

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary reading.

Esther 4:1-17
¹When Mordecai learned all that had been done--King Xerxes and the noble person Hamman had decided to kill the Jewish people because Mordecai, who was Jewish himself, was not paying appropriate tribute to Hamman--Mordecai tore his clothes and put on sackcloth and ashes, as you do, and went through the city, crying, wailing, and weeping bitterly. ²He went up to the entrance of the king’s gate, for no one might enter the king’s gate half naked like he was, donned only in his sackcloth ³In every province, wherever the king’s command and his decree about sending the Jewish people to death came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting and weeping and lamenting, and most of them lay in sackcloth and ashes.

⁴Esther's handmaidens and castrated servants came and told her what was going on with Mordecai half naked outside the gate. The queen was deeply distressed; she sent garments to clothe Mordecai, so that he might take off his sackcloth and be able to enter the king's gate; but he would not accept them. ⁵Then Esther called for Hathach, one of the king’s castrated servants who had been appointed to serve her, and Esther ordered them to go to Mordecai to learn what was happening and why. ⁶Hathach went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate, ⁷and Mordecai told them all that had happened to him, and the exact sum of money that Haman had promised to pay into the king’s treasuries for the destruction of the Jewish people. ⁸Mordecai also gave them a copy of the written decree issued in Susa for the destruction of the Jewish people so that Hathach might show it to Esther, explain it to her, and charge her to go to the king to make supplication to him and hopefully get him to change his mind on behalf of her people.

⁹Hathach went and told Esther what Mordecai had said. ¹⁰Then Esther spoke to Hathach and told them to reply to Mordecai with the following: ¹¹"Everyone knows, from the king's slaves to the nobility, that if anyone goes to the king inside the inner court without being summoned by him, there is but one law—all are to be put to death. Only if the king holds out the golden scepter to someone, may that person live. I myself have not been called to come into the king's chamber for a month." ¹²When they told Mordecai what Esther had said, ¹³Mordecai told them to reply to Esther, "Even in the king's palace and as his wife, don't think you will have a better chance of escaping his genocide than the rest of the Jewish people. ¹⁴For if you keep silence at such a time as this, relief and deliverance will still rise up for the Jews from another path, but you and your extended family will still perish. Who knows? Perhaps you have come into your place as queen in the palace for just such a time as this." ¹⁵Then Esther replied to Mordecai, ¹⁶"Go, gather all the Jewish people to be found in Susa and hold a fast on my behalf. Do not eat nor drink for three days, night or day. I and my servants will also fast as you do. After those three days have passed, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law; and if I am murdered, I am murdered. So be it." ¹⁷Mordecai then went away and did everything as Esther had requested of him.

Queeries for the text:
What is this text building on?
What is the accompanying reading?
Where is this text headed?
Who was Esther?
What are different models of leadership? What makes a good leader?
How can you be an ally to a marginalized and/or oppressed group with your power?
What is genocide?
What can you do in such a time as this?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narative Lectionary 113

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary reading.

Habakkuk 1:1-7; 2:1-4; 3:[3b-6], 17-19
^1:1The message that the prophet Habakkuk saw.

Habakkuk's request to God:
²Hey Becoming One, how long shall I beg for help,

and you won't listen to me?

Or like cry out to you "Look at this violence!"

and you will not bring salvation?

³Why do you make me see all these awful things, all this suffering

and make me look at trouble?

Destruction, devastation, and violence are all before me;

turmoil, violent divisions, keep arising.

⁴So the laws meant to protect people are ignored

and justice never prevails.

The wicked, the oppressors, the evil surround the righteous–

therefore judgment, what little there is, comes forth broken and incomplete.

God's response to the prophet:
⁵Look at all of the nations and see what is happening!

Be astonished! Be astounded!

For a work is being done right now in your very lifetime

that you would not believe is happening even if you were told.

⁶For I am rousing the Chaldeans from their slumber,

that fierce and anxious nation,

who march through the entirety of the known earth

to seize and colonize lands that are not their own.

⁷Indeed, they bring dread and fear wherever they go;

they put the law into their own hands and bring honor only to themselves.

[…]

Habakkuk responded:
^2:1I will stand at my watch-post,

and keep watch on the ramparts;

I will keep watch to see what Shee will say to me,

and what She will answer concerning my complaint.

²Then the Becoming One answered me and said:
Write this vision down,

meme-ify it and post it to the socials

so that anyone even scrolling through their feeds will be able to read it.

³For there is still a vision for the time to come that I have appointed

it speaks of the end of all things and it does not lie.

Even if it seems like the appointed time is forever away, wait for it anyway;

it will surely come, I promise. It will not be delayed.

⁴Look at the proud!

Their spirit is not right within them,

but the righteous live by their faith.

[…]

[^3:3bGod's glory covered the cosmos,

and the ground beneath us was full of Her praise.

⁴The brightness was so bright, it was like the surface of the sun;

rays of sunlight came forth from the Becoming One's hand,

where Her power lay hidden behind the light.

⁵Before the Becoming One went out a plague,

and in Her footsteps was left a pandemic.

⁶She stopped and Her stopping shook the entire earth;

with one look all the peoples of all the nations trembled in fear.

The tallest mountains were shattered;

along the ancient pathways,

the everlasting hills sank to the ground.]

[…]

¹⁷Though the fig tree is not in bloom,

and there are no fruit on the vines;

though the olive trees aren't bringing forth olives

and the fields aren't giving forth food;

though the flock appears lost and cut off from the herd

and there are no animals in the stalls,

¹⁸I will still rejoice in the Becoming one;

I will find joy in the God/ess of my salvation.

¹⁹God/ess, the Becoming One, is my strength;

She makes my feet like the feet of a deer,

and allows me to tread upon the cliffs with no fear of falling.

To the leader: with stringed instruments.

Queeries for the text: What is this building on?
What is missing from this passage?
What is the companion text?
Where is this headed?
What does it mean to put the law into your own hands?
How does one watch and wait for the divine?
Why does a pandemic follow in the footsteps of the divine?
How bright is the light of the sun?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Narrative Lectionary 111

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Narrative Lectionary readings.

Isaiah 36:1-3, 13-20; 37:1-7; then Isaiah 2:1-4
^36:1In the fourteenth year of King Hezekiah's reign, King Sennacherib of Assyria rose up against all the defended cities of Judah and captured them all. ²The king of Assyria sent the Rabshakeh from Lachish with a massive army to King Hezekiah at Jerusalem. He stood waiting by an entry to the upper pool on the highway to the Fuller’s Field. ³And Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebna the secretary, and Joah son of Asaph, the recorder, all came out to him.

[…]

¹³Then the Rabshakeh stood and called out in a loud voice in the language of Judah, ‘Hear the words of the great king of Assyria! ¹⁴Thus says the king: “Do not let your lowly King Hezekiah deceive you, for he will not be able to deliver you. Do not let Hezekiah make you rely on the Becoming One by saying, The Becoming One will surely deliver us; this city will not be given into the hand of the king of Assyria.” ¹⁵Do not listen to Hezekiah; for thus says the king of Assyria: “Make your peace with me and come out to me; then every one of you will be free to eat the fruits of your labor and till your own land and drink your own water, ¹⁷until I colonize your land and take you instead to a land like your own land, but my land, but do not worry, it will still be abundant in fruit and fields and water. ¹⁸Do not let Hezekiah mislead you by saying, the Becoming One will save us. Have any of the gods of the other nations I've colonized saved their land out of the hand of the king of Assyria? ¹⁹Where are the gods of Hamath and Arpad? Where are the gods of Sepharvaim? Have they delivered Samaria out of my hand? ²⁰Who among all the gods of these countries have saved their countries and kept them out of my hand, that the Becoming One you worship should save Jerusalem out of my hand?”’

[…]

^37:1When King Hezekiah heard this, he tore his clothes, covered himself with sackcloth, and went into the house of the Becoming One, (which was a thing people apparently did in this time period to show humility before the Becoming One, like, this wasn't just Hezekiah having strange vibes). And he sent Eliakim, who was in charge of the palace, and Shebna the secretary, and the senior priests, all of them covered with their matching sackcloth aesthetic, to the prophet Isaiah son of Amoz. ³They said to him, ‘Thus says Hezekiah, This day is a day of distress, of rebuke, and of disgrace; children are about to be born, and yet there is no strength leftover to raise them. ⁴It may be that the Becoming One the Divine heard the words of the Rabshakeh, whom his master the king of Assyria has sent to mock the living God, and will rebuke the words that the Becoming One the Divine has heard; therefore lift up your prayer for the remnant that is left.’
⁵When the servants of King Hezekiah came to Isaiah, ⁶Isaiah said to them, ‘Say to your master, “Thus says the Becoming One: Do not be afraid because of the words that you have heard, with which the servants of the king of Assyria have reviled me. ⁷I myself will put a defeating spirit in him, so that he shall hear a rumor and return to his own land; and while there, I will cause him to be taken out by the sword in his own land.”’

[--]

^2:1The word that Isaiah son of Amoz saw concerning Judah and Jerusalem:

²In the days to come

the mountain of the Becoming One's house

shall be made to be the highest of all the mountains

and shall be raised above the hills,

and all the nations shall be like a river running toward it.

³Many people will come and say,

"Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Becoming One,

to the house of the God of Jacob, Rebecca, Leah, Bilhah, and Zilpah,

that Xe may teach us Xyr ways

and that we may journey along Xyr paths."

For the law shall flow out from Zion,

and the word of the Becoming One shall pour out from Jerusalem.

⁴The Divine shall judge between the nations,

and provide guidance between people for all disputes;

all people will beat their swords into plowshares,

and their spears into pruning-hooks;

nation will no longer fight against nation,

and nations will learn war no more.

Queeries for the text:
What is this building on? What is missing from this passage? Why was it left out and why the strange ordering?
What is the companion text?
Where is this headed?
What does it mean for children to be born with no strength left to raise them?
How is water important for the future of Zion?
What would a future without war look like?

What are your queeries?

Queerying Reign of Christ the Queen C

Brooke McLain and Annie Porter musically queery the RCL readings.

How do you experience distance and closeness in your relationship with God?

How does God shelter us?

How does God strengthen you in difficult times?

Who are the faithful antiheroes in your life? 

-----

River Needham, MA ThM queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Jeremiah 23:1-6
Ah, shepherds who let the flock of My pasture stray and scatter—declares the Becoming One. Assuredly, said the Becoming One, the God of Israel, concerning the shepherds who should tend My people: It is you who let My flock scatter and go astray. You gave no thought to them, but I am going to give thought to you, for your wicked acts—declares the Becoming One. And I Myself will gather the remnant of My flock from all the lands to which I have banished them, and I will bring them back to their pasture, where they shall be fertile and increase. And I will appoint over them shepherds who will tend them; they shall no longer fear or be dismayed, and none of them shall be missing—declares the Becoming One. See, a time is coming—says the Becoming One—when I will raise up a true branch of David’s line. Xe shall reign as sovereign and shall prosper, and xe shall do what is just and right in the land. In those days Judah shall be delivered and Israel shall dwell secure. And this is the name by which xe shall be called: “The Becoming One is our Vindicator.”

Queeries for the text:
Where have people strayed and scattered?
What is the solution?
Who are the shepherds?
What is the true branch of David's line?
Who needs vindication?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 23:33-43
³³When Jesus, the Roman soldiers, and the crowd came to the place that is called The Skull, the Roman soldiers crucified Jesus there with the criminals, one on his right and one on his left.

³⁴Then Jesus said, “Caregiver, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” And the Roman soldiers cast lots to divide his clothing. ³⁵And the people stood by, watching; but the leaders of the people scoffed at Jesus, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Messiah of God, the chosen one!”

³⁶The soldiers also mocked Jesus, coming up and offering him sour wine, ³⁷and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!” ³⁸There was also an inscription over Jesus, “This is the King of the Jews.”

³⁹One of the criminals who were hanged there kept deriding Jesus and saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us!”

⁴⁰But the other rebuked the first, saying, “Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? ⁴¹And we indeed have been condemned justly, for we are getting what we deserve for our deeds, but this one has done nothing wrong.” ⁴²Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.”

⁴³Jesus replied, “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”

Queeries for the text:
Where are the criminals?
How do we cast lots?
Who else is told to save themselves?
What do we inscribe over others?
What do we deserve?
Who has done nothing wrong?
Who is remembered? Who needs to be?
Who is re-membered? Who needs to be?

What are your queeries?

Queerying All Saints C

Suzannah Porter and Brooke McLain musically queery the RCL readings.

Who is waiting to dance with you?

How does God transform hearts?

How do you experience God in difficult times?

Where is the tension between legacies you carry and Christ's promises? 

How are we susceptible to the normalization of oppression?

-----

River Needham, MA ThM queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Daniel 7:1-3,--(4-14)--15-18
In the first year of King Belshazzar of Babylon, Daniel saw a dream and a vision of his mind in bed; afterward he wrote down the dream. Beginning the account, Daniel related the following:
“In my vision at night, I saw the four winds of heaven stirring up the great sea. Four mighty beasts different from each other emerged from the sea.
--
The first was like a lion but had eagles’ wings. As I looked on, its wings were plucked off, and it was lifted off the ground and set on its feet like a human and given the mind of a human. Then I saw a second, different beast, which was like a bear but raised on one side, and with three fangs in its mouth among its teeth; it was told, ‘Arise, eat much meat!’ After that, as I looked on, there was another one, like a leopard, and it had on its back four wings like those of a bird; the beast had four heads, and dominion was given to it.

After that, as I looked on in the night vision, there was a fourth beast—fearsome, dreadful, and very powerful, with great iron teeth—that devoured and crushed, and stamped the remains with its feet. It was different from all the other beasts which had gone before it; and it had ten horns. While I was gazing upon these horns, a new little horn sprouted up among them; three of the older horns were uprooted to make room for it. There were eyes in this horn like those of a human, and a mouth that spoke arrogantly.

As I looked on, thrones were set in place, and the Ancient of Days took Xyr seat. Xyr garment was like glittering snow, and the hair of Xyr head was like lamb’s wool. Xyr throne was tongues of flame; its wheels were blazing fire. A river of fire streamed forth before Xym; thousands upon thousands served Xym; myriads upon myriads attended Xym; the court sat and the books were opened.

I looked on. Then, because of the arrogant words that the horn spoke, the beast was killed as I looked on; its body was destroyed and it was consigned to the flames. The dominion of the other beasts was taken away, but an extension of life was given to them for a time and season.

As I looked on, in the night vision, one like a human being came with the clouds of heaven; she reached the Ancient of Days and was presented to Xyr. Dominion, glory, and kingship were given to her; all peoples and nations of every language must serve her. Her dominion is an everlasting dominion that shall not pass away, and her kingship, one that shall not be destroyed.
--
As for me, Daniel, my spirit was disturbed within me and the vision of my mind alarmed me. I approached one of the attendants and asked her the true meaning of all this. She gave me this interpretation of the matter:
‘These great beasts, four in number mean four empires will arise out of the earth; then holy ones of the Most High will receive the empire, and will possess the empire forever—forever and ever.’

Queeries for the text:
What brought about this vision?
Who are the four empires?
What beasts are arrogant and need to be killed?
How does snow glitter?
Who was the Ancient of Days?
How was Daniel's mind alarmed?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 6:20-31
²⁰Then Jesus looked up at his chosen family and said: “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the reign of God.
²¹“Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled.
“Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.
²²“Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Human One. ²³Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

²⁴“But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
²⁵“Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry.
“Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep.
²⁶“Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets.

²⁷“But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, ²⁸bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. ²⁹If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt. ³⁰Give to everyone who begs from you; and if anyone takes away your goods, do not ask for them again. ³¹Do to others as you would have them do to you.

Queeries for the text:
Where are there false binaries?
How is being harmed a blessing?!
Who excludes, reviles, and defames others in Jesus' name?
Who is rich, full, and laughing?
Who is spoken well of?
How do we bless and pray for those who harm?
What happens when you strike the other cheek?
What happens when you're naked?
What if others want you to do differently?

What are your queeries?

Queerying 21st after Pentecost C

Suzannah Porter and Brooke McLain musically queery the RCL readings.

How do we stand the waiting for justice in the face of so much violence?

How does God lead the way through uncertainty?

How can you lift up someone going unnoticed?

How do we need to change to be our best selves?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 19:1-10
Jesus entered Jericho and was passing through it. ²A man was there named Zacchaeus; he was a ranking Empire collaborator and was rich. ³He was trying to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was short in stature. ⁴So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore tree to see Jesus, because he was going to pass that way.

⁵When Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down; for I must stay at your house today.” ⁶So Zacchaeus hurried down and was happy to welcome Jesus.

⁷All who saw it began to grumble and said, “Jesus has gone to be the guest of one whose work makes them a sinner.”

⁸Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Leader, “Look, half of my possessions, Leader, I give to the poor; and when I have defrauded anyone of anything, I pay back four times as much.”

⁹Then Jesus said to Zacchaeus, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he too is a child of Abraham. ¹⁰For the Human One came to seek out and to save the lost.”

Queeries for the text:
What did we skip?
Where is Jericho?
Who is short?
What is a sycamore like?
How is hospitality imposed? How is it offered?
Who grumbles?
Who is a sinner?
Who gives to the poor and repays four times as much?
What is salvation?
Who is lost?

What are your queeries?



 

Queerying 20th after Pentecost C

Suzannah Porter and Brooke McLain musically queery the RCL readings.

How does God reassure us in the midst of difficulty?

How have you witnessed God moving mountains?

What leads us to the crown of faithfulness?

How does money connect and separate us?

-----

River Needham, MA ThM queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Joel 2:23-32
O children of Zion, be glad,
Rejoice in the Becoming One your God.
For Xe has given you the early rain in kindness,
Now Xe makes the rain fall as formerly—
The early rain and the late—
And threshing floors shall be piled with grain,
And vats shall overflow with new wine and oil.
“I will repay you for the years
Consumed by swarms and hoppers,
By grubs and locusts,
The great army I let loose against you.
And you shall eat your fill
and praise the name of the Becoming One your God
who dealt so wondrously with you—
my people shall be shamed no more.
And you shall know
That I am in the midst of Israel:
That I the Becoming One am your God
And there is no other.
And My people shall be shamed no more.”
After that,I will pour out My spirit on all flesh;
Your children of many genders shall prophesy;
Your old people shall dream dreams,
And your young ones shall see visions.
I will even pour out My spirit
Upon slaves of all genders in those days.
Before the great and terrible day of the Becoming One comes,
I will set warning signs in the sky and on earth:
Blood and fire and pillars of smoke;
The sun shall turn into darkness
And the moon into blood.
But everyone who invokes the name of the Becoming One shall escape;
for there shall be a remnant on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,
as the Becoming One promised. Anyone who invokes the Becoming One
will be among the survivors.

Queeries for the text:
What rain do we need?
Where do we need rain?
Who do we trust for provision?
Who dreams today? When do we look for visions?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 18:9-14
⁹Jesus also told this riddle to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous while despising others: ¹⁰“Two people went up to the temple to pray, one a religious leader and the other an Empire collaborator.

¹¹The religious leader, standing to himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people: those who exploit others, those who are corrupt in their relationships, those who cheat, or even like this Empire collaborator. ¹²I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my possessions.’

¹³But the Empire collaborator, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’

¹⁴I tell you, on the way home, this one is justified alongside that one; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.”

Queeries for the text:
Who trusts in themselves to be righteous?
Who despises others?
How is comparison helpful? Unhelpful?
How is gratitude called for?
How do you seek to atone for your sins?
Who justifies whom? 

What are your queeries?



 

Queerying 19th after Pentecost C

Suzannah Porter and Brooke McLain musically queery the RCL readings.

How does dealing with the past help to move into the future?

How can scripture strengthen against injustice?

How does proof-texting justify harm?

How do you persist for justice?  How does justice persist against you?

-----

Pace Warfield-May queeries the Tanakh reading.

Tanakh: Jeremiah 31:27-34
²⁷The days are surely coming, says the Becoming One, when I will plant seeds of humans and animals in the two houses of my people, the houses of Israel and Judah.

²⁸And just as I've tended over them to pluck, break down, overthrow, destroy, and bring evil, so I will continue to tend over them to build up and to plant, says the Becoming One.

²⁹In those days there will no longer be the saying, "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree, or the children must have the bad karma of their parents" ³⁰Rather, all shall die for their own harm, the bad apples will remain in the rotten tree that sprouted them."

³¹ The days are surely coming, says the Becoming One, when I will make a new covenant, a new unbreakable promise, with the houses of Israel and Judah. ³²It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I, like a gentle lover, held them by their hand to guide them out of the land of Egypt--a promise that they broke, though I was and remain their committed partner, says the Becoming One. ³³But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Becoming One: I will write my law within them, bind it to their DNA, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be God, their beloved, and they shall be my people, my beloveds. ³⁴No longer shall they have to teach one another, or say to each other, "Know the Becoming One" for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Becoming One; for I will wipe away the barriers that separate them, and remember their harm no more."'

Queeries for the text:
What is the context for this passage?
What is karma?
What would this day to come look like?
What else is written in our DNA?
How does one cheat on God?
What does it mean for God to be your beloved partner?
What barriers separate us from one another?

-----

Rev. Emily E. Ewing queeries the Gospel reading.

Gospel: Luke 18:1-8
Then Jesus told his chosen family a parable about their need to pray always and not to lose heart. ²He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. ³In that city there was a widow who kept coming to the judge and saying, ‘Avenge me against my adversary.’ ⁴For a while he refused; but later the judge said to himself, ‘Though I have no fear of God and no respect for anyone, ⁵yet because this widow keeps coming at me, I will avenge her, so that she may not wear me out by continually coming.’” ⁶And the Leader said, “Listen to what the corrupt judge says. ⁷And will not God avenge her favorites who cry to her day and night? Will she delay long in having patience with them? ⁸I tell you, she will quickly grant justice to them. And yet, when the Human One comes, will they find faith on earth?”

Queeries for the text:
What did we skip?
Whose heart is being lost?
What do judges do?
Who neither fears God nor respects people?
Who annoys the powerful?
What happens when you continually come?
What is justice? Who cries to whom for justice? 

What are your queeries?