The Story for the
Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost
Oct 25, 2020

prepared by the Rev’d Rhonda Waters

Deuteronomy 34: 1- 12

Then Moses went up from the plains of Moab to Mount Nebo, to the top of Pisgah, which is opposite Jericho, and the Lord showed him the whole land: Gilead as far as Dan, all Naphtali, the land of Ephraim and Manasseh, all the land of Judah as far as the Western Sea, the Negeb, and the Plain that is, the valley of Jericho, the city of palm trees as far as Zoar. The Lord said to him, “This is the land of which I swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, saying, ‘I will give it to your descendants’; I have let you see it with your eyes, but you shall not cross over there.”

Then Moses, the servant of the Lord, died there in the land of Moab, at the Lord’s command. He was buried in a valley in the land of Moab, opposite Bethpeor, but no one knows his burial place to this day. Moses was one hundred twenty years old when he died; his sight was unimpaired and his vigour had not abated. The Israelites wept for Moses in the plains of Moab thirty days; then the period of mourning for Moses was ended.

Joshua son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him; and the Israelites obeyed him, doing as the Lord had commanded Moses. Never since has there arisen a prophet in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face. He was unequalled for all the signs and wonders that the Lord sent him to perform in the land of Egypt, against Pharaoh and all his servants and his entire land, and for all the mighty deeds and all the terrifying displays of power that Moses performed in the sight of all Israel. 

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Something to Do

I have let you see it with your eyes, but…

There is something quite timely about this notion of see but don’t touch. We can see our friends from a distance but we can’t give them a hug. We can dream about the places we want to visit but we can’t actually go there.

Let yourself feel that longing. Pull out old photos, set up a video call, or look up travel sites and just feel all the feelings.

Joshua…was full of the spirit of wisdom, because Moses had laid his hands on him

First, decide if you are feeling more like Moses – the experienced mentor preparing to pass the torch – or more like Joshua – ready to step up and embrace new responsibility. If you feel like Moses, reach out to someone who is preparing to step into leadership in some way and offer your support. If you feel like Joshua, reach out to someone with more experience and benefit from their wisdom.

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Something to Wonder

…but you shall not cross over there

We have reached the end of Moses’ story. He has led his people out of slavery and through the wilderness. He has fought with them about who they are to be and how they are to worship. He has loved them and worked for them and now, on the very threshold of the promised land, he is told that his part is done.

Unusually, we don’t hear what Moses says back to God. What do you imagine he might have said? How do you imagine he felt? Can you relate to Moses in this story?

Never since has there arisen a prophet like Moses…

Moses was not indispensable – he himself had anointed a successor whom the people trusted and followed. But, even so, Moses was irreplaceable: “Never since has there arisen a prophet like Moses”. His work and his influence shaped the people of Israel and continues to shape both Jews and Christians today.

As we prepare for the Feast of All Saints’ on Nov 1, who in your life is a “never since”? Who has shaped your faith or your approach to life or your understanding of yourself in such as way that you can still feel their influence even after there active work is done?

Might you like to share that story with the rest of us? Email Rhonda to be included in a time of storytelling during the Nov 1st Zoom church service or write your story down and send it along for inclusion in the Reflection email.

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Something to Learn

What did Moses see..and what happened next?

Much as we might prefer not to, it is important to remember that the land Moses has led the Israelites to was not empty. Joshua was appointed for battle; the Israelites were about to become an invading army. The Biblical record is complicated – and history is more complicated still – but no complications can erase the ways in which this is a story of conquest. It is a story that has been used – and continues to be used – by people who want to justify their claims on land that is already occupied by someone else. Non-Indigenous Canadians, among others, need to think about this story very carefully.

Unsettling the Word: Biblical Experiments in Decolonization is a collection of essays and reflections that tackles the damaging ways Biblical texts have been used and looks for new understandings. Published by the Mennonite Church in Canada, it is available from www.commonword.ca and from Amazon (including as a Kindle book). Read a review here: Liberating the Bible from the Hands of the Colonizers

Of course, Canada is not the only place where these texts need to be re-examined. This article from Friends of Sabeel, makes some powerful connections.

“Reading the Bible with the Eyes of the Canaanites”; from Nur Masalha:  “[T]he first person to develop this new perspective was the North American native scholar Robert Allen Warrior who speaks of how strongly he was compelled by Martin Luther King’s Exodus imagery of going to the mountaintop, seeing the Promised Land, and crossing the River Jordan. He writes of being stunned at the realization that native Americans were in fact the Canaanites of the American colonial experience.” Read on.

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Something to Pray

Holy God, we do not always understand your word or your ways. 
Give us wisdom and imagination and courage as we learn and grow. 

The story this week has made me wonder about…
         (what questions are still on your heart?)
Receive my questions and help me hear your answers.

The story this week has filled me with…
         (how are you feeling?)
Accept my praise, heal my hurt, ease my worry.

The story this week has reminded me of…
         (are there situations or people you are thinking of?)
Be with all who are in need of you.

In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.

The Story for the
Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost
Oct 18, 2020

prepared by the Rev’d Rhonda Waters

Exodus 33: 12-23

Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have said to me, ‘Bring up this people’; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favour in my sight.’ Now if I have found favour in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favour in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.” The Lord said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

And Moses said to him, “If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favour in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.” The Lord said to Moses, “I will do the very thing that you have asked; for you have found favour in my sight, and I know you by name.” Moses said, “Show me your glory, I pray.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you the name, ‘The Lord’; and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face; for no one shall see me and live.”

And the Lord continued, “See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock; and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back; but my face shall not be seen.” 

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Something to Do

But you said…

This conversation between Moses and God comes after the Israelites get in big trouble for creating and worshipping a golden calf while they were waiting for Moses to come back after his last talk with God. God is angry and has told Moses that while the people will still make it to the Promised Land, God, Godself, is no longer going with them. Instead, God says, I’ll send an angel to go with you.

Not good enough, says Moses. And that’s where we pick up the conversation, with Moses reminding God of God’s commitments to both Moses himself and to God’s people.

Imagine – or write – a conversation you would like to have with God that is as honest and bold and intimate as this one between God and Moses.

…unless you go with us

This is, at its heart, a story about who God is – God-with-us. During this time of renewed distancing, it is good to remember the power of “withness”. How might you be with someone this week?

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Something to Wonder

and you shall see my back

The fullness of God’s glory is too much, even for Moses, but God grants him a glimpse of the wonder that is God’s presence. In my mind’s eye, I see God leaving a trail of silvery glory dancing in God’s wake as evidence of God’s passage.

This is often the way we experience God – recognizing a moment of holiness just as it is slipping by. Have you ever had this experience? What happened? How did you respond?

I will put you in a cleft of the rock

Jan Richardson, of the Painted Prayerbook, offers a meditation on this image in which she reflects on the dual meaning of cleave – to separate and to join. She asks: “Where do you find the clefts in your own life—those places that break your heart open even as you become whole?”

And she offers one of her beautiful poem blessings:
In the Cleaving
A Blessing
Believe me,
I know how
this blessing looks:
like it is
leaving you,
like it is
walking away
while you stand there,
feeling the press
of every sharp edge,
every jagged corner
in this fearsome hollow
that holds you.
read the rest of Jan’s poem.

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Something to Learn

The Book of Exodus

Today’s reading comes from the second part of the Book of Exodus – the part where Israel and God work out the terms of their relationship after the drama of the escape from Egypt. It can be a tough slog to read through – it includes a lot of chapters about how to built a tent. Watch the Bible Project’s video to get the broad sweep of the story instead: Exodus: Chapters 19-30

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Something to Pray

Holy God, we do not always understand your word or your ways. 
Give us wisdom and imagination and courage as we learn and grow. 

The story this week has made me wonder about…
         (what questions are still on your heart?)
Receive my questions and help me hear your answers.

The story this week has filled me with…
         (how are you feeling?)
Accept my praise, heal my hurt, ease my worry.

The story this week has reminded me of…
         (are there situations or people you are thinking of?)
Be with all who are in need of you.

In Jesus’ name, we pray.
Amen.