Faithful Conversations #45

Introduction to Readers:
David Brooks writes with precision and grace. Though I hesitate to recommend books due to my sense that reading is a highly personal endeavor, his most recent book, How to Know a Person is exceptional, and therefore, I recommend it with enthusiasm! At the outset, Brooks asserts the following: There is one skill that lies at the heart of any healthy person, family, school, community organization, or society: the ability to see someone else deeply and make them feel seen — to accurately know another person, to let them feel valued, heard, and understood. In turn, he suggests that, as a society in 2024, we are sorely lacking in this regard and the impact is exponentially harmful to us. Our political divide, for example, is one manifestation of our inability to “see” each other. Though not necessarily writing from a faith perspective (Brooks, by the way, is Jewish), he offers profound insights for those of us who walk as children of the light (1 Thessalonians 5:5). I will circle back to Brooks at the end of this week’s blog. 

You will note that I have listed the readings for Epiphany (Saturday), and I would urge you to walk through them prior to taking on the Sunday readings. Recall that Epiphany marks the visit of the Magi to Bethlehem. My reflections will focus on the Baptism of Our Lord, particularly the readings from Genesis and Mark. As always, mange tak for your continued interest in Bible study!   

Note: I do utilize various hyperlinks within the body here for further exploration on your  part if interested! They are a different color and italicized. If you click out to the supplemental information, simply click back to return to the blog. The images included, mostly, are from Wikimedia Commons, and therefore are in the public domain. 

Readings for Epiphany (6 January)
Isaiah 60: 1-6
Psalm 72: 1-7, 10-14
Ephesians 3: 1-12
Matthew 2: 1-12

Readings for the Baptism of Our Lord (7 January)
Genesis 1: 1-5
Psalm 29
Acts 19: 1-7
Mark 1: 4-11

The First Reading: Genesis 1: 1-5
When God began to create the heavens and the earth, ² the earth was complete chaos, and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. ³ Then God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. ⁴ And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. ⁵ God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day.

The Gospel: Mark 1: 4-11

⁴ so John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. ⁵ And the whole Judean region and all the people of Jerusalem were going out to him and were baptized by him in the River Jordan, confessing their sins. ⁶ Now John was clothed with camel’s hair, with a leather belt around his waist, and he ate locusts and wild honey. ⁷ He proclaimed, “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the strap of his sandals. ⁸ I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” ⁹ In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. ¹⁰ And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove upon him. ¹¹ And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”

This Week’s Reflection: “Life Giving Water”  

Those first five verses of Genesis remind me that I have always struggled with the “science vs. religion” argument that ensnares many of our Christian sisters and brothers. Whatever processes led to the amazing world we daily experience, the essential point is that God created the universe, an awe-inspiring reality. As a sidebar, the image you’re seeing here is the Genesis passage from the Ho-Chunk Bible, a gift T.M. Rykken received in the 1921 while serving at Bethany Mission in Wittenberg, Wisconsin. John Stacy, the first Christian convert at the Mission east of Black River Falls, and Jacob Stucki of the German Reformed Church, translated portions of the Bible into Ho-Chunk in the early years of the 20th Century and one of them gave a copy to my grandfather (Hogusra translates as a place of creation). And, by the way, you may find the Ho-Chunk creation story compelling as a comparative exercise with our Judeo-Christian account, but I digress.   

Water, the elemental foundation of life, is present in each reading for Sunday. Water, in fact, was present before God spoke the light into existence in the Genesis passage (verse 2). Cory Driver poses the following thought-provoking question in his commentary in this week’s Living Lutheran: Where did the water come from? We just don’t know . . . We have the briefest poetic description of the formation of the deep, but a lot of creating is assumed to have happened before Genesis begins. Wow. 

And that mysterious, amazing water is present in Mark’s account of Jesus’ baptism, connecting our Lord to the creation moment and that “wind from God” — that Spirit descending in the form of a dove (verses 10-11). And, that same water, present in the moment of our baptism, connects us to Christ and the Holy Spirit. Let’s hear from Luther on this: “What then is the significance of such a baptism with water? It signifies that the old person in us with all sins and evil desires is to be drowned and die through daily sorrow for sin and through repentance, and on the other hand that daily a person is to come forth and rise up to live before God in righteousness and purity forever” (The Small Catechism).  Thank you brother Martin and thanks be to God! 

Let us build a house where all are named,
their songs and visions heard.
And loved and treasured, taught and
claimed as words within the Word.
Built of tears and cries and laughter,
prayers of faith and songs of grace.
Let this house proclaim from floor to rafter;
All are welcome, all are welcome,
all are welcome in this place. Amen. 

Note: If you need a few moments of uplift today, check out this magnificent version of the above hymn. It speaks to the ability we have in our daily interactions with others — and certainly our ability as a church community — to SEE all people!  The congregation in the video is from The Collegiate Church of St. Mary (Anglican) in Warwick, England. The first time I heard this version, I was stuck by the wonderful sincerity of the congregants!    

Announcement Regarding Our Lectionary Discussions:

Join us, if you can, for a free-wheeling discussion of this week’s readings after worship on Sunday (10:45) in the library. All are welcome!