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On the readings for October 5 – Part I

Moses – also known as “Charlton Heston” – holding the original 10 Commandments...

The readings for Sunday October 5 are Exodus 20:1-4,7-9,12-20, Psalm 19, Philippians 3:4b-14, and Matthew 21:33-46. For Psalm 19, see On the Psalms up to October 5. The full readings are at Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecost Proper 22.

Here are some highlights from the Old Testament reading. For highlights from the New Testament and Gospel readings, see On the readings for October 5 – Part II.

Exodus 20:1-4, 7-9, 12-20 includes the first rendition of the 10 Commandments. A second restatement came later on in Deuteronomy (from the Greek for “second law”):

Deuteronomy 5:4–20 consists of God’s re-telling of the Ten Commandments to the younger generation who were to enter the Promised Land. The passages in Exodus 20 and Deuteronomy 5 contain more than ten imperative statements, totalling 14 or 15 in all.

(E.A.) Incidentally, Dueteronomy is a set of sermons given by Moses to this younger generation, as a result of the older generation showing a lack of faith, 40 years earlier.

That is, not long after God gave the Hebrews the original 10 Commandments, He also gave them a chance to demonstrate their faith and enter the Promised Land quickly. But that older generation failed that test, and the result was their having to literally wander in the wilderness, for another 40 years, until that older generation died off and a new generation took its’ place.

Moses reviewed this history in the first chapter of Deuteronomy, to instruct that new generation about to enter the Promised Land. The review included a second version of the Ten Commandments, after Moses told of God’s pronouncement in Deuteronomy 1:34-36:

“And the LORD … was angered, and he swore, ‘Not one of these men of this evil generation shall see the good land which I swore to give to your fathers, except Caleb the son of Jephun’neh; he shall see it, and to him and to his children I will give the land upon which he has trodden, because he has wholly followed the LORD!’

(See also The Twelve Spies – Wikipedia, about Numbers 13, where Moses sent out 12 men to spy out the Promised Land. Ten men said the land was too hard to conquer, while Joshua and Caleb said it would be easy, with God’s help; “the Israelites believed the majority’s conclusions. All of the spies except Joshua and Caleb were struck down with a plague and died.” That led to the Hebrews having to wander in the wilderness another 40 years. So much for majority rule.)

And that’s why we have two versions of the 10 Commandments in the Bible…

Getting back to the original 10 Commandments, it is “a set of biblical principles relating to ethics and worship, which play a fundamental role in Judaism and Christianity.” See also, Ten Commandments – Wikipedia, which said they address “matters of fundamental importance in both Judaism and Christianity.” The article then added:

The Ten Commandments are written with room for varying interpretation, reflecting their role as a summary of fundamental principles… [T]hey provide guiding principles that apply universally, across changing circumstances. They do not specify punishments for their violation. Their precise import must be worked out in each separate situation.

Note those words like “varying interpretation,” and “guiding principles that apply across changing circumstances.” Of course Fundamentalism and/or interpreting the Bible literally is much easier to do, mostly because you don’t have to think or use the brain God gave you. (But see also On broadminded, spelled “s-i-n”.) Anyway, here are the original Big 10:

1) “I am the LORD your God[;] you shall have no other gods before me;” 2) You shall not make for yourself an idol;” 3) “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God;” 4) Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy;” 5) “Honor your father and your mother;” 6) “You shall not murder;” 7) “You shall not commit adultery;” 8) “You shall not steal;” 9) “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor;” 10) “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house … or anything that belongs to your neighbor.” [RSV]

As noted, for more highlights from the New Testament and Gospel readings, see On the readings for October 5 – Part II.

The upper image is courtesy of Never-before-seen slides from The Ten Commandments starring …, about a January 2014 auction of a “collection of items from Cecil B. DeMille films, including The Ten Commandments… The highlight of the collection is 15 previously unpublished 35mm color slides from the set of the 1956 classic.” The article added, “Charlton Heston was one of the iconic film stars of the 20th century… His instantly recognizable features, seen in these paintings have become synonymous with his commanding performance as Moses.”

The lower image is courtesy of the Wikipedia article, The Twelve Spies – Wikipedia, with the caption, “The Grapes of Canaan by James Tissot. Although the spies brought back a cluster of grapes so large that it took two men to carry it (Numbers 13:23), only two of the twelve brought back a good report of the land.” Wikipedia added the following note:

When ten of the twelve spies showed little faith … they were slandering what they believed God had promised them. They did not believe that God could help them, and the people as a whole were persuaded that it was not possible to take the land. As a result, the entire nation was made to wander in the desert for 40 years, until almost the entire generation of men had died. Joshua and Caleb were the two spies who brought back a good report and believed that God would help them succeed. They were the only men from their generation permitted to go into the Promised Land after the time of wandering.

Re: “My way or the highway.” See Matthew 13:52 (ERV), where “Jesus said to the followers, ‘So every teacher of the law who has learned about God’s kingdom has some new things to teach. He is like the owner of a house. He has new things and old things saved in that house. And he brings out the new with the old.” (Emphasis added. See also On Jesus: Liberal or Fundamentalist?)

As to Deuteronomy as a restatement, see Restatements of the Law – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, regarding “a set of treatises on legal subjects that seek to inform judges and lawyers about general principles of common law.”

On the Psalms up to October 5

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Welcome to DORScribe, a blog about reading the Bible with an open mind.

In other words, this blog is different.

It says you learn more by reading the Bible with an open mind, and that the Bible was written to liberate you, not shackle you it into a “spiritual straitjacket.”

Those ideas run contrary to some common perceptions these days: 1) that too many Christians are too negative; 2) that too many Christians are close-minded; or 3) that too many Christians think The Faith is all about following their specific set of rules, on pain of going to hell. (See my way or the highway – Wiktionary, but also Matthew 13:52, where Jesus said the key is finding the right balance, that is, combining “something new with something old.”)

For more on such thoughts see About this Blog, which also talks about the Three Great Promises of Jesus, to all people, and about how through those promises we can live full, rich lives of great spiritual abundance and do greater miracles than Jesus, if only we open our minds…

In the meantime:

This feature focuses on next Sunday’s psalm, and on highlights from the psalms in the Daily Office (DORs) in the week leading up to that upcoming Sunday. The plan is to review the next Sunday’s readings on the Wednesday before, and to review the psalms from the DORs for the week ending on the Tuesday just before that “prior Wednesday.”

The Lectionary Page psalm for Sunday, October 5, is Psalm 19. The DOR psalms highlighted here are from the readings for Wednesday, September 24, up to Tuesday, September 30.

Psalm 19 will be discussed below, but first here are some highlights from last week’s DORs.

The DORs for Wednesday, September 24, included Luke 4:1-13, about the “temptations of Jesus,” one of which is illustrated above by Gustave Dore, and each of which showed Jesus resisting that temptation by citing the appropriate psalm or other verse from the Bible. (One lesson being that it pays to know the Bible and the psalms!)

For more information, see Temptation of Christ – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

The temptation of Christ is detailed in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. According to these texts, after being baptized, Jesus fasted for forty days and nights in the Judaean Desert. During this time, Satan appeared to Jesus and tried to tempt him. Jesus having refused each temptation, Satan departed and angels came and brought nourishment to Jesus.

In one temptation the Devil took Jesus to Jerusalem and “set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here; for it is written, ‘He will give his angels charge of you, to guard you,’ and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.’” In doing so, the Devil cited Psalm 91:11-12:

For he will give his angels charge of you
to guard you in all your ways.
On their hands they will bear you up,
lest you dash your foot against a stone.

But Satan left out the words, “‘in all your ways,’ thus changing a general rule of life to one particular expediency, and that quite contrary to God’s will,” according to the International Bible Commentary (IBC). And Matthew Henry‘s commentary noted that Satan also left out verse 9, which included the proviso, “Because you have made the Lord your refuge, and the Most High your habitation…” That is, the promises of Psalm 91:11-12 “are sure to all those who have thus made the Most High their habitation … that is, ‘as long as thou keepest in the way of thy duty.'”

Put another way, those promises don’t apply to those who “put themselves out of God’s protection.” (See Psalms 91 Commentary – Matthew Henry Commentary on the Whole ….)

Which is why Jesus responded, “The Scriptures also say, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to a foolish test.'” (See Deuteronomy 6:16, “You must not provoke [God] and try His patience as you did when you complained against Him at Massah,'” with both quotes from The Living Bible.)

That leads to another lesson: The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose. (See No Fear Shakespeare: The Merchant of Venice: Act 1, Scene 3 ….) And that in turn makes it doubly important – as noted above – to know the Bible and the psalms!

Psalm 91:13 goes on, “You shall tread upon the lion and the adder; you shall trample the young lion and the serpent under your feet.” That brings up an equally dangerous practice, of taking passages “out of context.” That topic was addressed in On snake-handling, Fundamentalism and suicide – Part I, and On snake-handling, Fundamentalism and suicide – Part II.

And just as an aside, the DORs for Friday, September 26, included this same Psalm 91, the one Jesus quoted in the DOR Gospel for Wednesday, September 24. (Cue the Twilight Zone theme.)

Moving ahead, the DORs for Sunday, September 28 included Psalm 66:9 and 14. Psalm 66:9 reads, “For you, O God, have proved us; you have tried us as silver is tried.” Psalm 66:14 reads, “Come and listen, all you who fear God, and I will tell you what He has done for me.”

Two points. The first is that silver is tried by fire, as noted in Proverbs 17:3; in The Living Bible, “Silver and gold are purified by fire, but God purifies hearts.” The Revised Standard Version reads, “The crucible is for silver…” And as Wikipedia noted, “crucibles can be made from any material that withstands temperatures high enough to melt or otherwise alter its contents.” (E.A. See also crucible: definition of crucible in Oxford dictionary …, which added that the term can also mean a “place or occasion of severe test or trial,” as in “the crucible of combat,” or a place or situation “in which different elements interact to produce something new.”)

Either way, the point is that a devout student of the Bible definitely should not get either self-righteous or complacent, as noted below “vis-a-vis” Psalm 19.

The second point? I’m trying to implement Psalm 66:14 by and through this blog…

Turning to Psalm 19 – the psalm for Sunday, October 5 – it begins, “The heavens declare the glory of God,and the firmament shows his handiwork,” and ends with verse 14, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my strength and my redeemer.” The International Bible Commentary (IBC) said of Psalm 19:

The writer loves and treasures God’s law, but he is far from being self-righteous or satisfied with a merely external observance of it. He finds the study of the law both challenging and disconcerting; he feels the need of inward cleansing and of power to overcome temptation… Acceptance by God must be an act of grace.

Emphasis added, with the emphasized passage underscoring some basic themes of this blog, the first being that if you want to get more out of the Bible, you need to go beyond a “merely external observance of it.” (Consider two karate students. One goes to an hour lecture each week but just sits and watches. The other takes notes, listening carefully, then goes home to practice the suggested forms and studies even more. Which student will make more progress?)

The second is a need to guard against “resting on your laurels.” It’s like physical exercise; “resistance training.” If it gets too easy you’re not making progress; you’re just marking time and likely getting complacent. Thus the quest to delve deeper into the Bible can and should be both “challenging and disconcerting,” but eventually way more rewarding.

That digression leads to the topic, Soapbox – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Okay, I’ll shut up – for now.

The upper image is courtesy of Bible Illustrations, by G. Dore – Main Page – Creationism.org:

French artist Gustave Doré (1832-1883) produced hundreds of quality Bible story illustrations… Many masters produced such artwork for illustrating Biblical themes, and Doré was among the most famous of them.Doré’s realistic style breathed new life into these real stories. Centuries of mosaics, frescos, and stone reliefs … had caricaturized many Bible stories in the minds of believers. But [Doré’s] persons and places look real. [His] work (and artistic license) was criticized by some in his own day, but these illustrations stand the test of time as good physical representations of important Biblical events.

In Matthew 13:52 (ERV), “Jesus said to the followers, ‘So every teacher of the law who has learned about God’s kingdom has some new things to teach. He is like the owner of a house. He has new things and old things saved in that house. And he brings out the new with the old.” (E.A.)

The lower image is courtesy of Speakers’ Corner – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, included in the article Soapbox – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The full caption reads, “Danny Shine arguing against the absurdity of society,” at the original and most noted “Speaker’s Corner,” in the northeast corner of Hyde Park in London. The “soapbox” article adds this:

A modern form of the soapbox is a blog: a website on which a user publishes his/her thoughts to whomever they are read by.

On Rosh Hashanah

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Hasidic Jews performing tashlikh on Rosh Hashanah…

Rosh Hashanah – popularly known as the “Jewish New Year” – began at sundown on Wednesday, September 24, and ended at sundown on Thursday, September 25.

It’s different from the traditional American New Year in that it’s not about a “midnight drinking bash and daytime football game.” But it is alike in that it too is a time “to plan a better life” and to make resolutions. In other words, it too is “a time to begin introspection, looking back at the mistakes of the past year and planning the changes to make in the new year.”

Another popular practice of the holiday is Tashlikh (“casting off”) [as shown in the painting above]. We walk to flowing water, such as a creek or river, on the afternoon of the first day and empty our pockets into the river, symbolically casting off our sins…

See Judaism 101: Rosh Hashanah. Or as Wikipedia put it, “Prayers are recited near natural flowing water, and one’s sins are symbolically cast into the water.”

The article – Rosh Hashanah – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia – added that the Torah defines Rosh Hashanah “as a one-day celebration, and since days in the Hebrew calendar begin at sundown, the beginning of Rosh Hashanah is at sundown,” in this case sundown, September 24. (The Torah is known to us as the first five books of the Bible, written by Moses, although the term in Hebrew “has a range of meanings.” See Torah – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)

Here’s another note distinguishing this New Year celebration from the “other three:”

Rosh Hashanah marks the start of a new year in the Hebrew calendar… It is the new year for people, animals, and legal contracts. The Mishnah also sets this day aside as the new year for calculating calendar years, shmita and yovel years. Jews are confident that Rosh Hashanah represents either figuratively or literally God’s creation ex nihilo.

As an aside, ex nihilo is a Latin phrase meaning “out of nothing,” and usually appears together with the idea “of creation.” A shmita year, also known as a sabbath year, is the seventh year in the agricultural (farming) cycle, during which the land is allowed to lie fallow (or “rest”). A “yovel year” is the year at the end of seven cycles or shmita years, and is also known as the “Year of the Jubilee.” (See also For a book version… above, and no that wasn’t planned.)

Now, about those four different Jewish New-Year celebrations:

Judaism has several different “new years,” a concept which may seem strange at first, but think of it this way: the American “new year” starts in January, but the new “school year” starts in September, and many businesses have “fiscal years” that start at various times of the year.

Judaism 101: Rosh Hashanah. As to the meaning in the original Hebrew, “rosh” translates as head, “ha” translates to our English word the, and “shanah” translates as year. So “Rosh HaShanah” translates literally as “head of the year,” meaning the Jewish day of the new year.

And why should we as Christians – or prospective Christians – care about this strange, one-of-four-Jewish-New-Year feast days? For the same reason that people who love modern country music should listen to and fully appreciate the music of Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs:

It’s all about Roots!

(Which – incidentally – is why we read and study the Bible in the first place…)

The upper image is courtesy of Rosh Hashanah – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, with the caption, “Hasidic Jews performing tashlikh on Rosh Hashanah, painting by Aleksander Gierymski, 1884.”

The lower image is courtesy of Roots (TV miniseries) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Roots is a television miniseries [which] first aired, on ABC-TV, in 1977… It received unprecedented Nielsen ratings for the finale, which still holds a record as the third-highest-rated US television program [and] introduced LeVar Burton in the role of Kunta Kinte.

See also Roots: The Saga of an American Family – Wikipedia, the free …. Levar Burton was later known to TV viewers as “Lt. Commander Geordi La Forge in Star Trek: The Next Generation.” For more on this topic Google the term “search for roots,” or in the alternative “why are people interested in geneology?” That should lead to sites including Why We Care About Our Ancestry – LiveScience, which said genealogy is “America’s second-most popular hobby;” a hobby that goes back to “the hunter-gathers of the Neolithic Period about 11,500 years ago.”

Among other things, Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs founded and led The Foggy Mountain Boys, “one of the landmark bands in bluegrass music.” See Foggy Mountain Boys – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. They also composed the “Ballad of Jed Clampett,” the theme song for the TV series, The Beverly Hillbillies. See The Ballad of Jed Clampett – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

And the image below shows a Jewish-American New Year card, circa 1900, courtesy of the Wikipedia article, and/or “upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Happynewyearcard.jpg:”

On “God’s Favorite Team” – Part II

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Moses at Rephidim: “If I let my arms down, the other team will win!“

Talk about timely! The Bible readings for Sunday, September 28, include Exodus 17:1-7, which serves as a prelude to Exodus 17:8-16, which in turn tells of Israel pulling off their “first upset of the season.” They beat their hated arch-rival, the dreaded Amelikites, thanks to Moses:

Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. ¹¹Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed; and whenever he lowered his hand, Am′alek prevailed. ¹²But Moses’ hands grew weary; so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat upon it, and Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side; so his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.

As noted in On the readings for September 28, that sounds “a lot like a modern-day football fan, watching his favorite team on TV; moving around the room, sometimes standing, sometimes sitting,” sometimes muting the sound, sometimes telling his wife to leave the room, but “always trying to ‘help his team win.’” (See also On “God’s Favorite Team” – Part I.)

So imagine Moses – today – watching the “battle” from a stadium seat, or on his TV back at home. For some reason he holds his arms up, and his team scores a touchdown. But then his arms get tired and he lets them down, and – lo and behold! – the other team scores a touchdown. So, in order to help his team win – or in the alternative, to avoid “jinxing” his team – Moses got his buddies Aaron and Hur to hold his arms up “for the rest of the game.”

That makes Moses the prototype of the modern-day football fan who does all kinds of strange things to help his team win. And that is a basic theme of the Scribe’s new novel, God’s Favorite Team. The book is all about finding spiritual growth by and through reading the Bible on a regular basis, and offering up the appropriate, “ritually efficacious” sacrifice to God.

Here’s how one “skeptic” explained the phenomenon, as shown by Moses at Rephidim and by the modern-day football fan trying to help his team win:

It’s a natural tendency for people to make connections between events. “When I do this, that happens…” Primitive people [and perhaps even modern-day football fans] developed superstitions in similar ways. One year, the crops were bad. The next year, they put a basket of dead birds in the middle of the field, and everything turned out great. Therefore, placing a basket of dead birds in the field ensures a good crop… Like the primitive farmers, we continue to make assumptions of causation [which] leads us to think that [for example] prayer works (you pray for your sports team to win…) [I]t’s important that we not jump to conclusions. We should make multiple observations. We should try different sequences in various combinations… Even with all that, we might never be sure about the real causes. But we can rule some out, and we can increase our confidence in others.

See Faulty logic: Post hoc, ergo propter hoc « Gotham Skeptic. All of which is another way of saying that many times those fan superstitions just don’t work out, as in reference to The Pueblo Chieftain | Broncos fans hope superstitions pay …., which told of the rituals used by Denver Bronco fans before last January’s Super Bowl. (And we know how that turned out.)

Superstition is a large part of a fan’s repertoire these days, especially when the home team is in Super Bowl XLVIII today. – See more at: http://www.chieftain.com/news/2249487-120/broncos-hankins-flag-inflatable#sthash.OkAMWQ7l.dpuf

On a happier note, that also brings up the subject of “Touchdown Jesus,” a feature of the stadium at Notre Dame, and in which the pose of Jesus – seen further below – looks a lot like the pose of Moses at Rephidim, with his arms held over his head. (And who knows? Maybe today’s signal for a touchdown somehow came from “the original,” Moses at the Battle of Rephidim.)

Beyond that, many “Irish” fans believe TDJ brings the team good luck, and/or “helps them win.” See for example Touchdown Jesus: Does Notre Dame have God on its side, posted on January 5, 2013, the Saturday before the national championship game:

Will God be on Notre Dame’s side Monday night when the No. 1 Fighting Irish meet No. 2 Alabama in college football’s national championship game in Florida? Hard to say… But when Notre Dame plays at home, Touchdown Jesus stands watch. Here are some little-known facts about the iconic mural that some call superstition, others consider the embodiment of belief and all would agree is a symbol of the Irish, who are one victory away from their first national title since 1988…

Of course we know how that game turned out too, but it does lead to another interesting point.

When I first published God’s Favorite Team several years ago – under a different nom de plume – Notre Dame had the most national championships of any college football team, at 13. But in the years since then Alabama won national titles in 2009, 2011 and 2012, to take the lead at 15. Which leads to another interesting point…

How can we tell which college football team is “God’s Favorite?” Is it the number of national titles they have? On that note, were the original Children of Israel known for the number of “national championships” they won? Or was there something other factor involved?

The answer could be in God’s Favorite Team. More later…

The Scribe

Touchdown Jesus Notre Dame - (Tom Hauck/Getty Images)

The upper image is courtesy of Rephidim – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, with the full caption: “Moses holding up his arms during the Battle of Rephidim, assisted by Hur and Aaron, in John Everett Millais‘ Victory O Lord! (1871).”

The lower image is courtesy of Touchdown Jesus at Notre Dame – College Football – About.com, with caption: “‘Touchdown Jesus’ is seen here towering over Notre Dame Stadium. (Tom Hauck/Getty Images).” Here’s a closer view courtesy of Word of Life Mural // Hesburgh Libraries … Notre Dame.

For further information on TDJ, see Notre Dame Stadium – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Touchdown Jesus – A Notre Dame Campus Landmark | UHND.com, and/or Word of Life Mural // Hesburgh Libraries // University of ….

On the readings for September 28

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“Moses … during the Battle of Rephidim, assisted by Hur and Aaron…”

The readings for Sunday September 28 are Exodus 17:1-7, Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16, Philippians 2:1-13, and Matthew 21:23-32. For Psalm 78, see On the psalms up to September 28. The full readings are at Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost Proper 21, but here are some highlights.

Exodus 17:1-7 tells about the Children of Israel, complaining in the “wilderness of Sin,” which is a lot like last week’s OT, on the “Children of Israel moaning and complaining in the Wilderness, despite God’s miraculously rescuing them from their slavery in Egypt.”

In this reading they “camped at Rephidim, but there was no water for the people to drink.” Moses told God, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.”

(BTW: That’s why – in telling the Story of Creation – Moses had to use “language and concepts that his relatively-pea-brained contemporary audience could understand.” See On the readings for June 15 – Part I. That is, if Moses had said something like “the earth revolves around the sun,” he would have been stoned to death, or at least tarred and feathered.)

So anyway, here’s what Wikipedia said about the encampment at Rephidim and what happened after Moses provided water by “striking a rock,” the subject of today’s reading:

[T]he Amalekites attacked the Israelites while encamped at Rephidim, but were defeated (Exodus 17:8-16)… The Israelites were led by Joshua in the battle. Moses, Aaron and Hur watched the battle from a hill. Moses noticed that when his arms were raised the Israelites gained the upper hand, but when they were down the Amalekites struck back. Moses sat with his hands held up by Aaron and Hur until sunset, securing the Israelite victory.

(Empasis added.) And by the way, the emphasized portions sound a lot like a modern-day football fan, watching his favorite team on TV; moving around the room, sometimes standing, sometimes sitting, but always trying to “help his team win.” (See Rephidim – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, and also On “God’s Favorite Team” – Part I.)

Which makes this Bible reading very timely for the 2014 pro and college football season.

Anyway, in Philippians 2:1-13 Paul wrote what the International Bible Commentary (IBC) calls the famous “early Christian hymn on the humility and exaltation of Christ.” The Complete Jewish Bible translates Philippians 5 as, “Let your attitude toward one another be governed by your being in union with the Messiah,” then goes to Philippians 6-11:

Though he was in the form of God, he did not regard equality with God
something to be possessed by force. On the contrary, he emptied himself,
in that he took the form of a slave by becoming like human beings are…

Therefore God raised him to the highest place and gave him the name above every name;that in honor of the name given Yeshua [Jesus], every knee will bow — in heaven, on earth and under the earth — and every tongue will acknowledge that Yeshua [Jesus] the Messiah is Adonai [Lord] — to the glory of God the Father.

(And a BTW: In Philippians 2:11, Paul quoted Isaiah 45:23: “In the name of myself I have sworn, from my mouth has rightly gone out, a word that will not return — that to me every knee will bow and every tongue will swear.” And in Philippians 2:12, Paul quoted Psalm 2:11, “Serve the Lord with fear and trembling.”)

And finally, in Matthew 21:23-32, Jesus again distinguished the religious “powers that be” who challenged his authority,* with the simple “sinners” who did believe in Him and welcomed His message of redemption, telling those distinguished persons:

“Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.”

Apostle Matthew - Getty Images

The lower image is courtesy of Matthew in the Bible – Tax Collector and Apostle – Christianity, with the full caption: “Jesus calling Matthew, a taxman, to follow him and become a disciple.” The web article noted that “Matthew was a dishonest tax collector driven by greed, until Jesus Christ chose him as a disciple… Tax collectors were notoriously corrupt because they extorted far and above what was owed, to ensure their personal profit. Because their decisions were enforced by Roman soldiers, no one dared object.” The article further noted this unique take on Matthew:

Despite his sinful past, Matthew was uniquely qualified to be a disciple. He was an accurate record keeper and keen observer of people. He captured the smallest details. Those traits served him well when he wrote the Gospel of Matthew some 20 years later.

(Sometime the Lord does indeed “work in mysterious ways.”)

As to the location of Rephidim, see wilderness of Sin, which noted that it was “a geographic area mentioned by the Bible as lying between Elim and Mount Sinai. Sin does not refer to sinfulness [at least not literally], but is an untranslated word that would translate as the moon,” and/or as referring or alluding to the “semitic moon-deity Sin.”

* As to Jesus’ thoughts on “the religious ‘powers that be,'” see also Atlanta Bishop Robert Wright’s recent take on the readings for Sunday, September 28:

Institutional authorities often become obsessed with order and institutional maintenance to the detriment of innovation and adaptation. It becomes precedent over people; ritual over reflection; structure over Spirit… God’s spirit does come through the church but refuses to be limited by the church or the clergy.

(“The Scribe” couldn’t have said it better himself.) See The Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, Georgia (GA), under “For Faith,” for September 26, 2014.

On the psalms up to September 28

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“A woman playing a psalterion,” an instrument used to accompany psalms…

This feature focuses on the psalm for the upcoming Sunday and on highlights from the psalms in the Daily Office (DORs) in the week leading up to that upcoming Sunday. The general idea is to review the next Sunday’s readings on the prior Wednesday, and review the psalms from the Daily Office Readings for the week ending on the Tuesday just before that “prior Wednesday.”

For example, The Lectionary Page psalm for Sunday, September 28 is Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16. In turn, the DOR psalms highlighted in this post will be from the readings for Wednesday, September 18 (“more or less”), up to the readings for Tuesday, September 23.

Psalm 78 will be discussed below, but first here are some highlights from last week’s DORs.

Going back to Thursday, September 18, the DORs for that day included Psalm 71:18:

And now that I am old and gray-headed, O God, do not forsake me, *
till I make known your strength to this generation
and your power to all who are to come.

Which pretty much sums up how this blog got started. (Incidentally, some translations label this psalm “The Prayer of an Elderly Person,” but I wouldn’t go that far…)

Which is being interpreted: If the person who wrote Psalm 78 – or any other psalm – were alive today, he’d probably “get the word out” through a blog like this.

The DORs for Friday, September 19, included Psalm 69, verses 10 and 23. Psalm 69:10 reads, “Zeal for your house has eaten me up…” That passage was quoted by the Gospel writer in John 2:17, in the King James Version (the one God uses), “And his disciples remembered that it was written, ‘The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.'” This was right after the Wedding at Cana, when Jesus went into the Temple in Jerusalem, and proceeded to clean out the place with a whip of cords, driving out money-changers, publicans and the like. (See also Romans 15:3.)

Psalm 69:23 reads, “They gave me gall to eat, and when I was thirsty, they gave me vinegar to drink,” which foreshadowed Jesus on the cross. See Matthew 27:34 There they offered Jesus wine to drink, mixed …, and also Sour Wine and Gall: Was it a Merciful Gesture or Mockery? – …, which noted in part, “Offering sour wine combined with gall … may have been a medicinal and merciful gesture to dull the intense pain; but St. Luke in his Holy Gospel implies that the drink offered to our Lord Jesus at His crucifixion was part of the torture.”

The DORs for Sunday, September 21 included Psalm 96:1, “Sing to the Lord a new song,” about which much has been written herein. For examples, type “sing Lord new song” in the search box above right and you’ll get links like On “what a drag it is. . .” (alluding to the Rolling Stones song, Mother’s Little Helper). That post noted in part, “now that I’m ‘old and full of years’ – I [was] 62 – I can clearly see that ‘getting o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-ld’ beats the heck out of the alternative.” (Which could also qualify as the “prayer of an elderly person.”)

And finally, the DORs for Tuesday, September 23, included Psalm 78:2, “I will open my mouth in a parable; I will declare the mysteries of ancient times.” On that note, Jesus specialized in the parabolic method of teaching – of teaching through the use of parables – a method discussed in On three suitors (a parable). That included a discussion of the problems inherent in trying to “strictly” or “conservatively” interpret a parable, as some try to do.

Turning to the psalm for Sunday, September 28, Psalm 78:1-4, 12-16, the first part – including Psalm 78:2, noted above – begins with a note of praise, and of our duty to future generations:

We will recount to generations to come
the praiseworthy deeds and the power of the LORD, *
and the wonderful works he has done.

Which means of course that it is in God’s best interest to have His followers succeed in life, but oh does God love His drama, as noted in Psalm 50:15, “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor me.” (The “honor” seems to be the flip side of the “trouble.”)

The International Bible Commentary (IBC) said that Psalm 78 was about “the lessons of history,” and despite how short this Sunday’s reading is, “78” is one of those psalms that is so long that it got divided in two. It has 72 verses, and verses 12 through 16 are about “Grace abounding,” according to the IBC. Specifically, these five verses recite “the plagues in Egypt, the crossing of the Red Sea, guidance through the wilderness by cloud and fire, and the provision of water at Rephidim (Exod. 17:6) and Kadesh (Num. 2010 f.).”

Which leads to the valuable lesson: There’s a big difference between “arguing with God” – see On arguing with God – and “deliberately challenging God,” or defying Him, or being too skeptical about His ability to “deliver us from evil,” as detailed in Psalm 78.

The upper image is courtesy of Psaltery – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, with the full caption: “A woman playing a psalterion. Ancient Greek red-figured pelike from Anzi, Apulia, circa 320–310 BCE.”

The lower image is courtesy of Psalms – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, with the full caption: “David Playing the Harp by Jan de Bray, 1670.”

As to David playing the harp, see David – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, which noted the account of First Samuel, Chapter 16, which told of Saul, the first-ever king of Israel, being tormented by an evil spirit. In turn it was suggested that “he send for David, a young warrior famed for bravery and his lyre playing. Saul did so, and made David one of his armor-bearers. From then on, whenever ‘the spirit from God came on Saul, David would take up his lyre and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him,’” as illustrated above.

My way or the highway – Wiktionary defined the term as “suggesting an ultimatum which indicates the listener(s) will either conform to the desires of the speaker or else be excluded.”

As to “get the word out,” see Get the word out – Idiom Definition – UsingEnglish.com, “If you get the word out, you inform or let people or the public know about something.”

As to deliver us from evil: The Lord’s Prayer “concludes with ‘deliver us from evil‘ in Matthew, and with ‘lead us not into temptation’ in Luke.” See Lord’s Prayer – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

* * * *

As to Book of Psalms generally, it is “commonly referred to simply as Psalms or ‘the Psalms’ … the first book of the Ketuvim (‘Writings’), the third section of the Hebrew Bible. The English title is from the Greek [word] meaning ‘instrumental music’ and, by extension, ‘the words accompanying the music.’ There are 150 psalms in the Jewish and Western Christian tradition.” Psalms – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia… The book is “divided into five sections, each closing with a doxology (i.e., a benediction) … probably introduced by the final editors to imitate the five-fold division of the Torah.”

Wikipedia added that the “version of the Psalter in the American Book of Common Prayer prior to the 1979 edition is a sixteenth-century Coverdale Psalter. The Psalter in the American Book of Common Prayer of 1979 is a new translation, with some attempt to keep the rhythms of the Coverdale Psalter.”

For another take on the psalms in general, type “Thomas Merton” in the Search Box above right.

On St. Matthew

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“St. Matthew by Frans Hals…”

September 22 is the Feast Day for “St Matthew, Evangelist (transferred),” as in “transferred from September 21, which this year fell on a Sunday.” According to the Bible, he was “one of the twelve apostles of Jesus and, according to Christian tradition, one of the four Evangelists.” See Matthew the Apostle – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, which added:

Matthew was a 1st-century Galilean (presumably born in Galilee[,] the son of Alpheus. As a tax collector he would have been literate in Aramaic and Greek. After his call, Matthew invited Jesus home for a feast. On seeing this, the Scribes and the Pharisees criticized Jesus for eating with tax collectors and sinners. This prompted Jesus to answer, “I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

The Old Testament reading for the day is Proverbs 3:1-6, which begins, “My child, do not forget my teaching, but let your heart keep my commandments.” (As aptly illustrated by the Frans Hals painting above.) The psalm for the Feast Day is Psalm 119:33-40, which begins in like manner, “Teach me, O LORD, the way of your statutes, and I shall keep it to the end.” And as author of the first of four Gospels, Matthew “fit the bill” as a preeminent teacher.

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.

That’s from Second Timothy 3:14-17, the New Testament reading for the day, which gives a pithy summary of the benefits of reading “all scripture,” and especially the four Gospels, and more especially the first of the four Gospels, the one by Matthew. And not surprisingly, the Gospel reading for the day is Matthew 9:9-13, which gave the following account:

As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples.

It was at this point that the Pharisees got all bent out of shape – metaphorically speaking – mostly because in the Bible times of Jesus, tax collectors worked for the Roman forces of occupation and so were viewed as collaborators, “Quislings,” and/or traitors to their country:

Tax collectors, also known as publicans, are mentioned many times in the Bible (mainly in the New Testament). They were reviled by the Jews of Jesus’ day because of their greed and collaboration with the Roman occupiers. Tax collectors amassed personal wealth by demanding tax payments in excess of what Rome levied and keeping the difference. They worked for tax farmers. In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus sympathizes with the tax collector Zacchaeus, causing outrage from the crowds that Jesus would rather be the guest of a sinner than of a more respectable or “righteous” person. Saint Matthew in the New Testament was a tax collector.

See Tax collector – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, and the Wikipedia article on tax farmers.

Isaac Asimov offered another view of why such persons were held in such low esteem:

No tax collector … is actually going to be loved, but a “publican” of the Roman sort was sure to be hated above all men as a merciless leech who would take the shirt off a dying child. It is not to be wondered at, then, that the word “publican” is used as representing an extreme of wickedness in the Sermon on the Mount.

(Asimov, 829-31) The “Beatitude” referred to is Matthew 5:46, in the Complete Jewish Bible: “What reward do you get if you love only those who love you? Why, even tax-collectors do that!” As Asimov noted, “The publicans here are held up as an extreme. If even the publicans can do this, anyone can,” the point being that according to the Gospel of Jesus, “those who wish ethical perfection must do more.”

The other point being, that by the grace of God, Matthew the hated tax-collecting collaborator was “magically” transformed into a Gospel writer of the first magnitude, and that “if he can be so greatly transformed, so can we!” Or as a biographer wrote of another prophet, he was an ordinary man with more than a fair share of human faults, but it was just such “base metal which, in the marvelous alchemy of the spiritual journey, became transmuted into gold.”

The upper and lower images are courtesy of Matthew the Apostle – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. As to the lower image, Wikipedia added the caption, “St. Matthew and the Angel by Rembrandt.” An alternate title is “The Evangelist Matthew Inspired by an Angel.”

The Isaac Asimov quotes are from Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (Two Volumes in One), Avenel Books (1981), at pages 829-31.

A quisling is one “who collaborates with an enemy occupying force. The word originates from the Norwegian war-time leader Vidkun Quisling who was the head of a domestic Nazi collaborationist regime during the Second World War.” See Quisling – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, which added, “in a 1966 Peanuts comic strip, Linus tries to hide in Snoopy‘s doghouse only to have the beagle rat him out. ‘Traitor! Quisling! Squealer!‘ Linus shouts at Snoopy as his sister Lucy drags him away.”

The “transmuted into gold” quote is from Monica Furlong’s Merton A Biography, Harper and Row (1980), at page xx. See also On Thomas Merton.

On the readings for September 21

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An image of “the eleventh hour,” referring to a point in time “nearly too late; the last minute…”

The readings for Sunday, September 21, are Exodus 16:2-15, Psalm 105, Philippians 1:21-30, and Matthew 20:1-16. For more on Psalm 105, see On the Psalms up to September 21. As always you can see the full readings at The Lectionary Page, but here are some highlights.

We start with Philippians 1:21-30, because up to now the New Testament readings have been from Paul’s letter to the church in Rome, also known simply as Romans. But this week we begin hearing from Paul’s letter to the church at Philippi, one of the first churches on the continent of Europe. See Epistle to the Philippians – Wikipedia:

The letter was written to the church at Philippi, one of the earliest churches to be founded in Europe. They were very attached to Paul, just as he was very fond of them. Of all the churches, their contributions (which Paul gratefully acknowledges) are among the only ones he accepts. (Acts 20:33–35; 2 Cor. 11:7–12; 2 Thess. 3:8). The generosity of the Philippians comes out very conspicuously [as noted in Philippians 4:15]…

Bible scholars generally agree this is one of several letters Paul wrote while in prison in Rome, and he began by saying, “living is Christ and dying is gain… I do not know which I prefer … my desire is to depart and be with Christ … but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you.”

In other words, this is one of those passages that could easily misconstrued as promoting “early death” – especially considering Paul’s being in prison – or as the International Bible Commentary (IBC) paraphrased, “Death, for the Christian, is to be ‘away from the body and at home with the Lord.'” But the IBC also noted that Paul’s meaning is entirely different:

In [his] disembodied state, [Paul’s] condition is one of consciousness, of freedom from sin and of completeness in holiness, and moreover of the joy to which earth has no equal, that of beholding Christ directly and of dwelling in His presence.

Which is another way of saying that life can be a pain, but that we’re all here – each of us – with a job to do. Unfortunately, like all jobs there are peaks and valleys, in that God “has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well.”

On that note we return to the Old Testament reading, Exodus 16:2-15, filled with the Children of Israel moaning and complaining in the Wilderness, despite God’s miraculously rescuing them from their slavery in Egypt. But God heard their whining and provided them with food, though perhaps only in an effort to shut them up, even temporarily:

In the evening quails came up and covered the camp; and in the morning there was a layer of dew around the camp. When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance, as fine as frost on the ground. When the Israelites saw it, they said to one another, “What is it?” For they did not know what it was. Moses said to them, “It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.”

This was literally “manna from heaven.” See Manna – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Manna is from Heaven, according to the Bible, but the various identifications of manna are naturalistic. In the Mishnah, manna is treated as a natural but unique substance, “created during the twilight of the sixth day of Creation,” and ensured to be clean, before it arrives, by the sweeping of the ground by a northern wind and subsequent rains.According to classical rabbinical literature, manna was ground in a heavenly mill for the use of the righteous, but some of it was allocated to the wicked and left for them to grind themselves.

And finally, in Matthew 20:1-16, Jesus told the Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, in which the workers who started late in the day – literally, “at the eleventh hour” – got paid as much as those who had started early and worked throughout the heat of the day. That led to some more considerable complaining (which seems to be a theme for these readings).

Despite the complaining of the “early-comers,” the owner of the vineyard told them, “I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?'” And as one scholar wrote:

[T]he question inevitably arises: Who are the eleventh-hour workers in our day? We might want to name them, such as deathbed converts or persons who are typically despised by those who are longtime veterans and more fervent in their religious commitment. But it is best not to narrow the field too quickly. At a deeper level, we are all the eleventh-hour workers; to change the metaphor, we are all honored guests of God in the kingdom. It is not really necessary to decide who the eleventh-hour workers are. The point of the parable — both at the level of Jesus and the level of Matthew’s Gospel — is that God saves by grace, not by our worthiness. That applies to all of us.

Which is another way of saying that we all get “manna from heaven,” all of it both undeserved and a gift from God, to be received with thanks. Or as Paul said in First Corinthians 4:7:

What do you have that God hasn’t given you? And if all you have is from God, why act as though you are so great, and as though you have accomplished something on your own?

The upper image – along with the quote, Who are the eleventh-hour workers in our day? – are courtesy of Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard – Wikipedia, the free …. The full caption for the painting shown in the article reads: “Painting of the parable, by Jacob Willemszoon de Wet, mid 17th century.” The caption-definition of “eleventh hour” is courtesy of eleventh hour – Wiktionary.

See also, at the eleventh hour – Idioms by The Free Dictionary, which defined the term as “at the last possible moment. (Just before the last clock hour, 12),” with the examples, “She always turned her term papers in at the eleventh hour,” and “We don’t worry about death until the eleventh hour.”

The lower image is courtesy of Manna – Wikipedia, with caption: “The Gathering of the Manna by James Tissot.”

The quote from First Corinthians is from The Living Bible (TLB) translation.

On the Psalms up to September 21

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“A woman playing a psalterion,” an instrument used to accompany psalms…

This feature focuses on both the psalm for the Sunday coming up, and on highlights from the psalms in the Daily Office (DORs) leading up to that upcoming Sunday. The plan is to post the review of next Sunday’s readings on the prior Wednesday, and review the psalms from the Daily Office Readings for the week ending on the Tuesday just before that “prior Wednesday.”

For example, The Lectionary Page psalm for Sunday, September 21 is Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45. In turn, the DOR psalms highlighted in this post will be from the readings for Wednesday, September 10 (“MOL”), up to the readings for Tuesday, September 16.

Psalm 105 will be discussed further below, but first the highlights from last week’s DOR psalms.

Going back to the readings for Tuesday, September 9, in John 10:31-42, Jesus Himself quoted the Book of Psalms. This was after He’d used the “Good Shepherd” metaphor (and compared Himself to God), after which the Powers That Be got angry and set to stone Him to death:

Jesus replied, “I have shown you many good works from the Father. For which of these are you going to stone me?” ³³The Jews answered, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you, but for blasphemy, because you, though only a human being, are making yourself God.” ³⁴Jesus answered, “Is it not written in your law,^[d] ‘I said, you are gods’? ³⁵If those to whom the word of God came were called ‘gods’—and the scripture cannot be annulled— ³⁶can you say that the one whom the Father has sanctified and sent into the world is blaspheming because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?

Jesus quoted Psalm 82:6, which adds in verse 7 (of the RSV), “I say, ‘You are gods, sons of the Most High, all of you; nevertheless, you shall die like men, and fall like any prince.’” The point being that Jesus knew and quoted the psalms frequently (and so should we).

Wednesday, September 10, included Psalm 49:6-7,15, “We can never ransom ourselves, or deliver to God the price of our life; for the ransom of our life is so great, that we should never have enough to pay it… But God will ransom my life; he will snatch me from the grasp of death.” A nice reminder when things aren’t going well.

Thursday, September 11 included Psalm 50:5,15, which figures prominently in the Scribe’s new novel, God’s Favorite Team. (See On “God’s Favorite Team” – Part I.)

“Gather before me my loyal followers, those who have made a covenant with me and sealed it with sacrifice… Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall honor me.”

On a possibly-related note, Friday, September 12, included Psalm 51:14, ” I shall teach your ways to the wicked, and sinners shall return to you.” (Not that I’m comparing sports-fans to sinners, you understand.) Then Saturday, September 13, included Psalm 138:9, “The Lord will make good his purpose for me,” which in the case of Yours Truly arguably led up to the creation and implementation of the blog which even now “you” are reading.

And finally, skipping ahead to Tuesday, September 16, that day’s readings included Psalm 62:12, “though wealth increase, set not your heart upon it,” which is something I definitely don’t have to worry about “at this point in time.” (But I am doing what I love…)

Getting back to Psalm 105:1-6, 37-45, it starts off in verse 1 with an arguable foreshadowing of The Great Commission: “Give thanks to the LORD and call upon his Name; make known his deeds among the peoples.” (See Great Commission – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)

Then in verses 37-45 it offered a brief review of Israel’s history, from the beginning of the Exodus to the Children of Israel being brought into the Promised Land: God “led out his people with silver and gold,” in that “Egypt was glad of their going.” (See also Exodus 12:36, in the ASV, “And Jehovah gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they let them have what they asked. And they despoiled the Egyptians.“)

The psalm-review continued with an account including “the pillar of cloud,” of manna appearing from heaven, and of Moses “striking the rock at Meribah, ” as shown below.

The lower image – Moses Striking Water from the Rock – is courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tintoretto,_Jacopo_-_Moses_Str…. The artist was Jacopo Tintoretto, and the painting was finished in 1577. See also Moses Drawing Water from the Rock by TINTORETTO, which added:

In this painting … Moses, by his clothes and pose, recalls the figure of Christ and the water gushing from the rock symbolizes the blood that flows from the side of the Son of God. At the centre of the canvas, Moses strikes a rock and powerful streams of water erupt from it, filling plates, bowls, and jars held out eagerly by the parched Israelites… God the Father, borne aloft on a supernatural crystal globe, comes in haste to save his thirsty people.

* * * *

For another take on the psalms in general, type “Thomas Merton” in the Search Box above right.

And finally, see also Meribah – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, which indicated that despite his position as “God’s Favorite,” Moses often had to tread lightly:

The narrative in the Book of Exodus states that, on account of their thirst, the Israelites grumbled against Moses so Moses, in fear for his life, appeals to Yahweh; the narrative continues with Yahweh telling Moses to walk ahead of the others, and strike the rock at Horeb with his rod, and when Moses does this, it causes the rock to expel water.

Which is another reason that in writing up his history of the world, Moses had to “tell the story using language and concepts that his relatively-pea-brained contemporary audience could understand,” on pain of being tarred and feathered or stoned to death. (See On the readings for June 15 – Part I.)

On “God’s Favorite Team” – Part I

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“Osceola, the Black Drink, a Warrior of Great Distinction…”

With football season now in full swing – college and pro – it’s time to announce the publication of The Scribe’s new novel, God’s Favorite Team. The subtitle? (“A story of the 1996 college football season, and of ritual in sports and sport-fans.”) Here’s the sub-sub-title:

This book was originally written in the dark days after The Great FSU Loss to the Gators in the 1997 Sugar Bowl, and was intended to offer a message of hope…

In case you’ve forgotten, 1996 was the year the Florida State football team had to play a rematch against its hated arch-rival Florida Gators, despite beating them in the regular season finale. And that only happened because of a glitch in the system:

Third-ranked Florida was invited to the Bowl Alliance’s designated national championship game for the 1996-97 season [only] because the Pac-10 Conference was contractually obligated to play in the Rose Bowl… [T]he second-ranked Pac-10 champion, Arizona State, played the fourth-ranked Big Ten champion, Ohio State, in the Rose Bowl… Florida was assured of winning the consensus national championship [only] when Ohio State defeated second-ranked Arizona State in the Rose Bowl.

See 1997 Sugar Bowl – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, emphasis added. In other words, the end of the 1996 season not only saw FSU lose the championship game, it saw them lose in such a convoluted way that their hated archrivals won their first national title.

But we’re not hear to rehash the unfairness of the old college system. We’re here to explore the possibility that – by following pro or college football in the proper manner – the dedicated sports fan can achieve a theophany not unlike Moses had. (Though probably to a lesser degree. For more on such theophanies see On the readings for August 31 – Part I, and/or Theophany – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.)

The hero of God’s Favorite Team got into offering a “ritual-exercise sacrifice” to help his team, but lest you think he’s alone in his delusions, consider this from Saturday, February 4, 2012. (A day before Super Bowl XLVI, where the New York Giants beat the New England Patriots 21-17):

Whether it’s leaving up the [Christmas] tree, eating a special meal or wearing a team jersey, many sports enthusiasts have something they do in attempt to increase their team’s odds of winning. It’s possible that these wacky fan behaviors are related to the superstitious actions some athletes take in attempt to improve their luck said Joshua Shuart, chairman of Sacred Heart University‘s department of marketing and sport management. He pointed out that many athletes do things like growing beards or eating certain foods because they think the behavior is lucky. Adopting their own rituals is a way that fans can feel like they’re part of a team that they’re not actually a member of. “It all comes down to fan identification,” Shuart said. “They really feel that they’re part of the team.”

But the hero of GFT didn’t just indulge in his own “wacky behavior,” he also added the spiritual discipline of reading the Bible on a daily basis, and it was all part of his own personal Mystic Quest. (The “daily basis” was the Daily Office, a set of readings designed to get the reader through the Bible in two years. For on the Office, see About the DOR Scribe, above.)

Unfortunately, while the hero’s team ended up winning three national titles (so far), he also had to endure a lot of heartache along with way. That’s another way of saying that no one yet has found The Perfect Ritual to guarantee your team will always win. That in turn is another way of saying good ritual sometimes does no more than help us “accept the rhythm of the seasons,” which includes losing, heartbreak and/or heartache. An example is this February 1, 2014 post, just before the last Super Bowl, titled “Broncos fans hope superstitions pay off big time:”

This morning Grant Hankins – like thousands of other superstitious fans – will do his game day ritual… Superstition is a large part of a fan’s repertoire these days, especially when the home team is in Super Bowl XLVIII today… Kenny Shisler has similar superstitions. The lifelong Broncos fan said he will wear Broncos gear all week long, but refuses to do so on game day… “Like the Bud Light commercials, ‘It’s only weird if it doesn’t work,’” Shisler said… The superstition factor is a part of the game. It’s the fan’s way of connection to their team. “Hopefully our fans have better rituals than the Seahawks fans,” Hankins said.

Broncos fans hope superstitions pay off big-time

See The Pueblo Chieftain | Broncos fans hope superstitions pay …. (The devoted football fan will of course recall that in Super Bowl XLVIII, the Seattle Seahawks beat the Broncos 43-8.)

Which is yet another way of saying that in the whole history of the world, no one has found The Perfect Ritual to either: 1) “keep winter at bay,” or 2) guarantee a win for his team, or 3) – like the arrogant King Canute – “keep back the tide,” as seen below.

But here’s a hint: That’s part of the process. More later…

Engraving of picture of King Canute

The upper image is courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Osceola,_George_Catlin,_1838.JPG. The description included with the image reads as follows:

George Catlin painted Osceola in the final month of the warrior’s life, following his infamous capture in October of 1837. Among the most memorable portraits in Catlin’s large body of work, the painting vividly captures the chief’s pride amid a terrible change of circumstances.

As soon as he heard of Osceola’s capture, Catlin closed his New York studio and headed south. At Fort Moultrie, he found several competitors engaged in the process of painting and drawing Osceola. The chief suffered the artists graciously, often sitting for two at once. Of the group, he particularly liked Catlin, who had traveled widely in American Indian territories. The two stayed up talking late into the night.

Of the many images of Osceola, Catlin’s is the most famous and justifiably so. The painter’s craftsmanship and respect for his subject shine through in many accurate personal details and in the chief’s nobility and calm grace.

For further information on the painter, see George Catlin – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

For another view on such “wacky fan behavior,” see “Super”stitions: Fans engage in odd rituals – Connecticut Post, Faulty logic: Post hoc, ergo propter hoc « Gotham Skeptic, and/or Why Superstition Works: The Science of Superstition in Sports ….

The quotes about “keeping the winter at bay” and “accepting the rhythm of the seasons” were gleaned from the book Passages of the Soul[:] Ritual Today,” by James Roose-Evans, Element Books Ltd. (1994) Here are some further passages of interest: “All true ritual calls for discipline, patience, perseverance, leading to the discovery of the self within,” and this: “No rite has yet succeeded in keeping winter at bay … nor can rites of spring guarantee an abundant harvest. Such rituals [only] serve to help us to accept the rhythms of the seasons…”

The lower image is courtesy of BBC News – Is King Canute misunderstood? The article cited recent media misuse of the “Canute metaphor,” and added that in the examples, “the sentiment in the same, King Canute is being used as shorthand to describe trying and failing to hold back the tide.” But see also, King Canute and the waves, cited in Cnut the Great – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:

Proverbial reference to the legend in contemporary journalism or politics usually casts the story in terms of “Cnut’s arrogance” of “attempting to stop the tide.” It was cited, for example, by Stacy Head as typifying the New Orleans city council’s response to Hurricane Katrina (2005), or by Mark Stephens in reference to Ryan Giggs as “the King Canute of football” for his attempts of stopping “the unstoppable tide of information ” on the internet in the 2011 British privacy injunctions controversy. This is a misrepresentation of Huntingdon’s account, whose Cnut uses the tide to demonstrate his inability to control the elements and deferring to the greater authority of God.

(Emphasis added.) The foregoing may well be of interest to those engaging in Bible study, as an example of how past events and/or accounts can be twisted, manipulated and/or “spun.” See Spin (public relations) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.