Scott Moore, Erfurt, Germany

Warm-up Question

How can good come from evil?   Can you give an example?

Heavenly Mansions

Mackenzie Scott, novelist and former wife to Jeff Bezos, both of Amazon fame, is increasing her reputation for generosity with a significant donation to the California Community Foundation. This week she donated two mansions in Beverly Hills estimated at worth around $55 million. The foundation announced that 90% of the proceeds will go toward providing grants for affordable housing. The remaining 10% is slated to be used for programs for integration of immigrants. 

At the end of 2020, Scott’s net worth was estimated at around $62 billion. In the past couple of years, she has donated billions of dollars to a variety of causes concerned with racial equality, LGBTQ+ equality, democracy, and climate change. Her gifts also include millions to Historic Black Colleges and Universities, tribal colleges and universities, and Hispanic-serving institutions. 

Hundreds of charities have benefited from her generosity. In May 2019, Scott signed the Giving Pledge, a charitable-giving campaign in which she undertook to give away most of her wealth to charity over her lifetime or in her will.  Despite its name, the pledge is not legally binding. 

Critics say Amazon and many large companies create wealth by underpaying their workforces around the world. Ms. Scott’s positive use of that wealth certainly goes a long way to making more friends than enemies. 

Discussion Questions

• What charities would you want to support, if you had $10 or $100 million? 
• How do you think your lifestyle would change if you suddenly came into a lot of money?  What extravagant items might you want to purchase?
• To what charities, or kinds of charities, have you (or your parents) donated?

 Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Amos 8:4-7

1 Timothy 2:1-7

Luke 16:1-13

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Money, money, money. It is one of Jesus’ favorite topics in the gospels. Rightly so! What we do with money says a lot about our values; with it we can do both great and horrible things. 

Jesus’ parable in today’s gospel text shows the shrewd financial dealings of a manager charged with being the caretaker of someone else’s wealth. He gets wind of the accusations that he has squandered his master’s wealth. Instead of trying to argue his case, he apparently does more of the same and cuts a deal with those people who owed him. The master, in turn, praises him for being so shrewd. 

Wait. What? That’s not how this is supposed to go. The person who mismanaged the wealth gives a break to those in debt—and gets praised for his actions. Jesus takes the master’s appreciation of the manager and draws our attention to another dynamic: social currency. He praises the manager for creating good will among the debtors and thus profiting from the grace he shows. 

Jesus explains this parable with words that are a little hard to swallow. In verse 9, he says, “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of dishonest wealth so that when it is gone, they may welcome you into the eternal homes.” 

Yikes! This passage has the potential of becoming a stumbling block. Is Jesus condoning dishonesty? Let’s pause a bit and look a bit closer at what’s going on. The word “dishonest”here is not wrong but it is only one possible translation of the Greek word used in this passage. The word used is bigger than just “shifty”, “shady”, “dishonest”, or somehow “illegal”. It is a word that means “not righteous”. “Righteous” are things that have to do with God.

So “unrighteous” things aren’t godly. Jesus encourages his hearers to make friends with unrighteous wealth. The friends benefit and you establish a relationship. And, this becomes important because Jesus next words are rather prophetic, “so that when the wealth is gone, they may welcome you into homes that last forever.”

Jesus praises gracious and good deeds done for others even with wealth that is not righteous. Good deeds are much better than holding onto money. Even the manager in this difficult parable saw the opportunity to do some good. Was it totally selfless? No, not at all. Did it still use wealth or relief of debt to make the lives of others better? Yes. There is hope in relationships that can last. There is hope when positive things happen…even with wealth that is not a righteous as we might prefer. 

This is the underlying motivation behind actions such as churches using their resources to provide reparations for communities that suffered due to racism. Many philanthropists, such as Mackenzie Scott, do incredible good with their  wealth, even if some or much of it was gained through not so honorable means. The one doesn’t excuse the other. But moving toward grace and healing, restoring relationships, and making reparations for past sins is a goal we might consider. It is Jesus’ example and Jesus’ encouragement. 

Discussion Questions

• What ideas do you have about a justice system that fines guilty parties high amounts of damages for various crimes? 
• What do you think about your church body/denomination paying reparations to individuals who suffered because of institutional slavery and racism?
• What kind of price would you put a price on the worst thing someone has done to you?
• What kind of charitable work does your congregation do? Perhaps, someone from your parish/congregation could present something to your class.

Activity Suggestions

Reparations and compensation for groups who have suffered systemic harm are in the news a great deal these days.  Colleges debate renaming buildings or paying the descendants of the slaves who built those buildings.  An article in The Atlantic made the case for returning some National Parks to the Native American tribes whose land was stolen to create those parks.  Make two lists:  one noting all the reasons that some sort of reparations should be made to groups who have suffered systemic and government sanctioned harm, the other giving the reasons why such a plan is not feasible….Now, discuss how persons holding very different convictions might come together to address past wrongs and move toward a better future.

Closing Prayer 

Ever-merciful God, we have often missed opportunities to support others and make their lives even a little bit easier. You continue to watch over them and us, providing us with all that we need. Help us to see the need around us and find ways to respond with your grace and love. Give us the courage to risk in faith, using the wealth you have entrusted to us for the healing of the world. We ask this in the name of the One, who gave himself for us, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

Heather Hansen, San Antonio, TX

Warm-up Question

Have you ever been lost?  What was the situation and how were you “found”?

Be Still, Be Found

A common human experience human is to lose something.  Losing something can be very frustrating and produce a lot of stress, especially when you’re in a hurry or it’s a really important item.  There are many reasons for why this happens; more often than not, we find the things we’ve lost when least expect it.

But did you also know that it is common for people to “freak out”  when they are the thing that is lost?  In an article written by Michael Bond in May 2020, Bond details the sad story of a surveyor finding the remains of a female hiker who was reported missing two years earlier.  She left the Appalachian trail to find a private spot just a few yards from the path.  When she was ready to return, she became completely disoriented.  This is a very common occurrence in the forest, where there are frequently no distinguishing landmarks or focal points to use for direction.

Bond writes:

“Lost is a cognitive state.  Your internal map has become detached from the external world, and nothing in your spatial memory matches what you see.   But at its core, it is an emotional state…90 percent of people make things a lot worse for themselves when they realize they are lost – by running, for instance.  Because they are afraid, they can’t solve problems or figure out what to do.”

Bond also writes that finding a lost person is just as much a psychological puzzle as it is a geographical hunt. Research and interviews with found persons reveal that running when lost is not only common, but a strong compulsion.  The urge to run is one reason we teach young children to “stay in one place” when they find they are lost.  Usually, you aren’t far from where you need to be and it’s much easier to find you if you stay in one spot.

Discussion Questions

• Would you rather lose something important or be lost?  Why?
• What are the different ways we can become lost?  How would you feel in the different scenarios?  What would do in these situations?

Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Exodus 32:7-14

1 Timothy 1:12-17

Luke 15:1-10

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

This week’s readings share a thread.  All refer to people who are lost and are brought back into the fold by God’s forgiveness.  In the Exodus reading, God tells Moses he is going to destroy the people because they have quickly forgotten how God freed them from slavery.  In the midst of desert wandering and challenge, the people’s faith in God’s guidance wavers and they become lost.  (How does this relate to the phenomenon of running when you are lost?). Moses intercedes for the people and God forgives and restores them.  

Similarly, Paul refers to his former sinful, persecuting self and relates that, with God’s grace and mercy through faith in Christ Jesus, he has been forgiven and is no longer lost.

Finally, in response to the grumblings of the Pharisees and scribes, Jesus tells two parables about lost things.  They are unhappy because Jesus has been eating with sinners and tax collectors.  Jesus teaches them that God’s love leaves no person, even one considered the most lost, behind.  The lost are valuable enough to search for, even if they are just one of a hundred.  In the second story, Jesus says that the smallest thing is still significant to God and worth tearing everything apart to find.  Once the lost are found, there is great rejoicing.

I often wonder where most people see themselves in the parables.  Is it easier to think of ourselves as one of the ninety-nine?  Or is it the woman searching for the coin?  Can we even imagine being so lost that someone has to search for us?

The good news of the gospel is that God values us so much that they will search for us until we are found.  Then God celebrates that we are recovered  and brings us back into the fold.  We have a God that searches for us.  Just think on that for a moment.  While we often think of ourselves as people seeking God, what does it mean to be sought out by God?  Why do we often feel like we need to seek God, rather than allow God to come to us?  

Perhaps in the times when we feel lost, we would be better to sit still, take a moment to breathe, and allow God to find us.  

Discussion Questions

• Like the instinct we have to run when we are lost in the woods, why do you think we are inclined to seek God rather than be still and allow God to find us?
• How does it make you feel to know that you are so valuable, the shepherd would leave the rest of the flock to find you and bring you back?
• Why do you think God rejoices over one sinner who repents than ninety-nine that need no repentance?
• How does God measure value?  In God’s eyes, what makes a person valuable enough to seek out?

Activity Suggestion

Play the game Blindfold Maze Embers.

• How does this game relate to being lost and our tendencies to act when we are lost?
• How is asking for help more like sitting still and allowing God to “find” us rather than us seeking for the way out?
• Why is it hard to let others, including God, help us when we feel lost?

Closing Prayer

Holy God, It’s frightening to feel lost.  We panic and we fight for control over our situations.  Help us to know that when we are lost you are right there looking for us…we only need to stop and breathe, and you will bring us back.  Give us the courage to trust that you seek us out and forgive us when we go astray, and help us to rejoice when others are found and forgiven too.  Amen.

Faith Lens is not published during the summer.  The next posting will be on September 6. 2022 for Sunday, September 11.

Drew Tucker, Columbus, OH

Warm-up Question

How do you know that you belong in a community? What are the signs from a community that indicate you might not belong there? 

Noticed, Named, and Known

Recent research about Gen Z from the Springtide Research Institute suggests that a combination of three things leads to young people, aged 13-25,  feeling like they belong in school: being noticed, named, and known by a community. Paying attention to someone, noticing  rather than ignoring them, increases that person’s sense of connectedness. Greeting someone, holding the door for them, blessing them after a sneeze—all are simple ways to notice.

Naming someone accurately, as well as  using the pronouns they’ve asked you to use, deepens that connection. Think of the way that positive nicknames function to increase community. In sports, people called me “Tuck,” short for my last name. My grandfather affectionately called me “Drewser.”  These namings showed me I was not just noticed, but appreciated.

The Springtide research refers to the third dimension, being known, as “unreserved acceptance.” Even more than being noticed and named, being known in  a community gives reassurance. This might happen when I recall details a Gen Z student shared with me, or  trust them to use their passions to contribute to the community’s work. 

There are some troubling statistics in this work.  72% of male participants felt most adults openly supported them at school.  Only 66% of female participants and 51% of nonbinary participants felt that way. In other words, half of nonbinary students don’t feel like they belong, and more that a quarter of male and female students agree. Further, only 18% of all respondents felt safe enough to talk about things that matter most to them at school, and even fewer Black or African American students, 11%, felt safe enough to do so. 

Clearly, we have holy work to do in our schools to notice, name, and know Gen Z students.

Discussion Questions

• What are ways that you can notice, name, and know people in your life who might not get the attention they need to thrive? 
• What do we need to change about our schools to ensure that all people can feel like they belong?

Day of Pentecost

Acts 2:1-21

Romans 8:14-17

John 14:8-17 [25-27]

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Reflection on Festival Lesson

Much happened on that first Pentecost after Jesus’ resurrection from the dead and ascension into heaven. Most notably, tongues of fire appear upon the disciples heads. I’m sure that must have been a startling sight! Just as surprising, though, was the gift of speaking different languages, also called tongues. Clearly the Holy Spirit has a sense of humor. People from all over the Roman empire arrive in Jerusalem for the festival.  They bring their native languages and expect to hear only Greek (the empire’s common language), along with Aramaic and Hebrew (the local languages of Jerusalem at the time). Instead, far from their home, they hear a message of good news in the language most familiar to their hearts. 

The Book of Acts  doesn’t say the listeners felt like they belonged.  It says they were “amazed and perplexed.” They didn’t expect to hear Judeans speaking languages common to minority peoples throughout the empire. In this short story, they’re noticed by the disciples, named by the author, and known with words that speak directly to their experience. Rather than requiring a translation, the good news comes to them naturally, through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit.

We can’t force the miracle of tongues.  That’s God’s work. But this sign of the Holy Spirit reveals a divine priority we can practice.  We can do the hard work of translating the good news into the lived experience of those we encounter, rather than forcing them to adapt to our ways. In fact, we should do that. Our work—how we worship, how we preach, how we teach, what we study, who we invite, where we budget funds to be spent—should be shaped by the people God calls us to serve. Disciples unwilling to speak the language of other nations would have done the gospel no good on that first Pentecost. Similarly, a ministry unwilling to adapt in order to meet the needs of the people God brings to them refuses the work of the Spirit in their midst.

Discussion Questions

• Speaking in tongues is a spiritual gift which still happens  in different parts of the church. Have you or someone you know ever been given that gift? Share your experience. 
• What’s the difference between a miracle that God has done in the past and work that we’re called to do in the present?
• How do you imagine those early Christians developed a sense of belonging with those who first heard the Gospel on Pentecost? 

Activity Suggestions

• Play a game intent on decoding. Decrypto is a table-top team game that requires two teams.  It can be played with a few as four total players but can grow without limit. For individuals, try Draw Your Words, similar to Pictionary. Gather a set of simple words that aren’t as simple to draw. Have participants take turns trying to draw one of the words (without using any language) while the rest of the group tries to guess the intended word. Then follow with a discussion on the importance of sharing knowledge in ways that everyone can understand. 
• Use U.S. Census Bureau data (https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045221) to better understand the communities in your Zip Code. Have participants free write for five minutes to envision what kind of adaptation, translation, or innovation God might be calling your ministry to undertake. 
• Community Mapping asks people to draw a map of their community that highlights the places of power or value. These could be banks and barbershops, grocery stores and city parks, government buildings and historical landmarks. Have each participant draw their own community map on a presentation-size sticky note. The point isn’t to be geographically accurate, but instead, to visualize how different people understand influence at play in your communities. Consider each person’s map and then discuss how you might engage those parts of the community to better understand the people your ministry serves. The Highlander Research and Education Center has a fuller description of community mapping available in their “Mapping Our Futures” curriculum, available here: https://highlandercenter.org/our-impact/economics-governance/.  

Closing Prayer

God of Welcome, send a spirit of generosity upon your people. When we resist giving up things that no longer serve your good news, soften our hearts in ways which open us to your mission. Inspire us to adapt to the people you bring into our lives, so that all know they belong to your beloved community. We pray this in the just and merciful name of Jesus: Amen. 

Alyssa Kaplan, Baltimore, MD

Warm-up Questions

• What does the word “unity’’mean to you?
• Can you think of a time when you and a larger group of people felt ‘”unified” ?
• What was that like? Were the people with whom you felt “unified”  like you? How or how not?

Unity Not Uniformity

Sophie Beren describes herself as a “unifier.” She says, “I want to make the world feel smaller by bringing people together, and I want every person to understand the power of human

connection through conversation.” As the only Jewish student at her school in Wichita, Kansas, Sophie grew up often feeling misunderstood and on the outside of dominant culture . When she moved to Philadelphia for college and was surrounded by people who were culturally, politically, and religiously very similar to her, she found herself yearning for the diversity of life and experience that she grew up with in Kansas, even though it was at times uncomfortable. 

In 2019, Sophie founded a non-profit called ‘The Conversationalist,” a platform created for and by Gen Z-ers committed to unifying the world one conversation at a time. The Conversationalist aims to empower Gen Z-ers to break out of their echo chambers, have difficult conversations, and unify across differences—working to heal the polarized world this generation has inherited. 

She feels that opening space for safe and brave conversation, especially among folks whose identities, understandings and beliefs differ, can repair division and lessen the hatred in our world. 

Discussion Questions

• What is an “echo chamber”?
• Do most of your family and close friends believe the same or similar things about important topics?
• What are some of the challenges which might come up in Sophie’s work?
• Sophie talks about unity, not uniformity. What are at the differences  between those words? Can you feel unified to people who believe different or even opposite things from you?
• What  ground rules or expectations would you put in place if you were in Sophie’s role, facilitating hard conversations across differences?

Seventh Sunday of Easter

Acts 16:16-34

Revelation 22:12-14, 16-17, 20-21

John 17:20-26

(Text links are to Oremus Bible Browser. Oremus Bible Browser is not affiliated with or supported by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. You can find the calendar of readings for Year C at Lectionary Readings.)

For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic Agnus Day.

Gospel Reflection

Our Gospel text for this week comes from the end of a long conversation Jesus has with his disciples on the last night he spends with them before his trial and crucifixion. Jesus gathers them around a table, washes their feet, gives them a new commandment to love one another as he has loved them, and discusses at length his pending departure from them. Judas has left the dinner table, to turn Jesus over to the Roman imperial elites. Jesus tells Peter that even in spite his most earnest efforts, he will still fall short and deny even knowing Jesus three times. After all of this (four full chapters in the Gospel of John!), Jesus prays. He prays out loud for his disciples–the same ones who are in the room with him. He even prays for Peter who denies him. And, I think, he prays for Judas who betrays him. The very last thing Jesus does before he is arrested and put on trial, is to pray for his disciples in their presence. 

Today’s text is the last portion of this prayer. Jesus has already prayed that God would accompany his disciples and keep them safe. He has prayed that God’s spirit of truth would fill them and make them holy. Next Jesus turns his attention to prayers for unity and oneness. Jesus also broadens the direction of his prayers. He prays not just for the disciples in his presence, but for all those who will come to believe in Jesus through the ministry of his disciples. (spoiler alert–that’s us too!). 

Jesus repeatedly prays that “they may all be one,”  that through the communion of God and Jesus, we all may be one. This oneness is rooted in God’s immense love which goes beyond all time and space. 

Even in that upper room, the reality of this oneness rooted in love is hard to conceptualize. The folks who fill that room are far from perfect, they will mess up some in  pretty significant ways in the days to come, as they struggled to understand and cope with Jesus’ death and resurrection. Yet, knowing all this, Jesus prays for them and, in that moment, Jesus prays for us too. Jesus’ prayer for unity emphasizes that our unique identities and experiences can be brought together, through God’s love, for the sake of our communities and world. The oneness Jesus describes does not erase our differences or force us to uniformity. Rather, Jesus prays that we might be united to more fully demonstrate God’s immense love for all people.  

Discussion Questions

• How do you think the disciples felt as they heard Jesus pray for them?
• What were some the divisions which threatened to undermine the unity of the disciples in their mission?
• How are some of the divisions which threatened the unity of Jesus inner circle similar to those we see in our society today?
• What is the difference between unity and uniformity in a Christian community?

Activity Suggestions

• Sophie Beren started what would become “The Conversationalist” by plopping a couch out on the main lawn of her college and inviting people to chat. What projects can you think of that might invite conversation and help people feel unified with one another? Could you plop a couch out in front of your church’s lawn and invite your neighbors to chat with one another? What would a project like that require?
• Pair up with someone in your class talk for five minutes and together come up with a list of three things you have in common, and three differences.
• Jesus prays for his disciples in front of them and aloud. Sit in a circle and practice this kind of prayer.  Have each person pray aloud for the person to their right until each person has prayed for someone else and has heard themselves prayed for.

Closing Prayer 

Unifying God, help us to find common ground with others. Help us to understand that we can be unified in your love without forcing those different from us to conform to our way of being, thinking, or acting. Help us to stay curious and open to the movement of your Spirit that pulls us into relationships of love and justice, even with those we least expect. Amen.