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February 10, 2013–Transcendent Moment

Contributed by John Wertz, Blacksburg, VA

 

Warm-up Question

The ancient Greek philosopher Heraclitus famously said, “The only constant in life is change.”  Name three things in your life that have changed since the beginning of the school year?

Transcendent Moment

shutterstock_110592482editChances are that you or someone in your family was one of over 115 million people who watched the Super Bowl last weekend.  When the game was over, Joe Flacco was  named as the Most Valuable Player for the game.  Now to be sure, Flacco is still the same person he was before the game, but by shining brightly in the biggest game of the year, Flacco will now be seen in a different light by those around him.  People around the world will suddenly know his name.  Companies will ask him to endorse their products.  He’ll be lifted up by fans and celebrated as a hero in his community and eventually his team, or another team interested in his abilities, will probably pay him more money in his next contract.  Thanks to this one event on this one day his life will change.

Most of us will never play professional sports, but our lives often have transformational moments when our gifts are revealed to the world.  These moments may happen on a large public stage, like the Super Bowl.  These moments may happen in the quiet of a family room.  These moments may happen through a paper written for school.  We rarely know when these moments will occur, but when they happen, the people around us –our family, our friends, and our peers, begin to discover who we are and what we are capable of accomplishing.

 

Discussion Questions

  • Have you experienced transformational moment when you discovered something new about yourself or someone else?  How did you react?  How did the people around you react?
  • Can anyone in the group name the last five Super Bowl MVP’s?  What do you think makes some transformational moments lasting and others only temporary?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, February 10, 2013 (Transfiguration of Our Lord)

Exodus 34:29-35

2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2

Luke 9:28-36 [37-43]

(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

In our Gospel reading today from Luke, we see Jesus undergo a powerful transformational moment of his own.  Jesus takes Peter, James and John with him to the top of a mountain to talk to and listen to God in prayer.  In Luke, we see Jesus praying at his baptism (3:21).  We see Jesus praying the night before he calls the apostles (6:12).  We see Jesus praying following the feeding of the five thousand (9:18) and during his final days, we will see him praying in the Garden of Gethsemane (22:41) and on the cross (23:34, 46).  For the disciples, seeing Jesus in prayer would have been a fairly normal part of their faith and life, but their experience on top of the mountain with Jesus was certainly unique.  While he was praying, his clothing became dazzling white; his face began to change, and Moses and Elijah appeared in their glory.  Just as Peter appears to be getting a handle on what is happening, a terrifying cloud moves over them and a voice from heaven says, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”  Within moments, the whole experience was over.  Jesus’ face and clothing returned to normal.  Moses, Elijah, and the cloud disappeared.  The voice faded away, but the there is no doubt that the disciples and Jesus were changed by this transformational moment.

In this time of prayer on top of a mountain, Jesus’ true nature is revealed by God’s presence and power.  For Jesus and the disciples, prayer was not an afterthought or something you only did at meals.  Prayer was an important part of a relationship with God and a place where they expected God to be present and active.  The dazzling clothing, the appearance of Moses and Elijah, and the booming voice from heaven during this time of prayer affirm Jesus’ mission and ministry and make it clear to the disciples that Jesus is more than just a teacher, miracle worker, and prophet.  Now certainly every time of prayer in scripture is not accompanied by a dramatic transformational event, but the story of the Transfiguration reminds us that through prayer we can experience God’s presence in our midst and we can discover more about who we are and who God is calling us to be.

Discussion Questions

  • Why do you think Jesus took Peter, James and John with him to pray?  How is praying with a group different than praying alone?  How do you think you would have reacted if you had been on the mountain top praying with Jesus?
  • The voice from heaven affirms that Jesus is God’s Son, just as it did at Jesus’ baptism, but the focus of the overall message changes.   At the Baptism of Jesus, the voice says,  “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”  At the Transfiguration, the voice says, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”  Why do you think the message changed?  What does this message at the Transfiguration mean for Jesus? for the disciples? for all of us?
  • Prayer is clearly a part of Jesus’ relationship with God.  How is prayer a part of your relationship with God?  What is one question you have about prayer?

Activity Suggestions

  • Try a one-word prayer.  Say a prayer by having everyone in the group say one word.  Pick someone to start and then have the person to their left add the next word.  For example, the first person might say, “Dear,” the second person might say, “God,” and the third person might say, “we”.  Have people continue to add words until you get a complete prayer thought.
  • If your congregation participated in the Super Bowl of Caring, find a creative way to share the story of how your donations will help fight hunger in your community.  If your congregation did not participate in the Souper Bowl of Caring, use their website: souperbowl.org to learn about this exciting ministry.

Closing Prayer

Loving God, we give you thanks for sending Jesus to be a light in the world and a model for ministry.  Transform us by your presence with us and inspire us to be your hearts and hands and voices in the world.  Amen.

February 2-8-2011–The Souper Bowl

Contributed by Kelly Derrick, St Philip Lutheran Church, Roanoke, VA

Warm-up Question

Are you going to watch the Super Bowl?

The Souper Bowl

On Sunday, February 6th, millions of Americans will watch the Super Bowl, the NFL’s final showdown between the Steelers and the Packers.   Also on this same Sunday, thousands of young people in America will participate in the Souper Bowl of Caring.

The Souper Bowl of Caring began in 1990 in Columbia, SC, as a ministry of 22 congregations seeking to answer this simple question: “Why not use Super Bowl weekend, a time when people come together for football and fun, to also unify the nation for a higher good: collecting dollars and canned food for the needy?”  The movement is now the nation’s largest celebration of giving and serving.  Young people are the primary leaders of this food drive/service blitz movement.  Groups are encouraged to collect both donations of cans of food (really any non-perishable food will do!) as well as monetary donations.  Most often, the money is collected in soup pots (makes sense, huh?).  All of the food and all of the money collected is kept within the local community.  Each group decides to whom the food and money will go.  Each group also reports the totals of their collection to the Souper Bowl of Caring so that a national total of food and money is tallied.

Along with collecting food and funds for hunger agencies in their own area, groups are encouraged to participate in a Service Blitz.  The reasons for doing a Service Blitz are, in part, because it “helps youth connect the contents of their soup pots to the individuals directly benefiting from the dollar and can donations and gives youth exposure to poverty, hunger, homelessness, and injustice in their own community.”

Discussion Questions

  • Have you ever participated in the Souper Bowl of Caring?  If so, what did you do? What was it like?  How did it make you feel?
  • What is your congregation doing to respond to hunger in your community? Around the world?
  • The Souper Bowl of Caring believes that young people have the ability to serve and should be given opportunities to lead their communities in helping others.  How has God gifted you to lead?  Does your congregation empower you to serve and to lead?
  • The Souper Bowl of Caring also believes that hunger and poverty have a negative impact on individuals and the communities in which they live.  Do you think that hunger and poverty actually do have a negative impact on your community? If so, how?  If not, why not?

Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, February 6, 2011 (Fifth Sunday and Epiphany)

Isaiah 58:1-9a [9b-12]

1 Corinthians 2:1-12 [13-16]

Matthew 5:13-20

(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

Be salt? Be light? Huh? Over the years, many people (including some scholars) have been confused by these words from Jesus.  How are we to be salt and light?  What does that mean?  Maybe it has something to do with the good works Jesus mentions?

This passage from Matthew is part of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7).  To really oversimplify, the Sermon on the Mount is Jesus’ instructions for those who follow him – what to believe and, much more important, what to do.  Following Jesus requires a response from us!  Jesus has certain expectations for how his followers will act.  Faith is not just about belief; faith is about action.  So, what is it that we are supposed to do?

Jesus says that we should do good works and that our righteousness should exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees.  So what does Jesus mean by righteousness?  God’s righteousness is about covenant: God keeping the promises God has made to the people, most important God’s promise to save the people.  God’s righteousness is about God’s action on behalf of God’s people – saving, freeing, helping, assisting, raising up.  Most often God’s actions were on behalf of the poor and needy.  As God’s people, our righteousness should be like God’s righteousness.  When Jesus says we should act in righteousness, he means that we should act as God acts.  Like God, we should be concerned about – and act on behalf of – those who are poor and needy.  Righteousness is doing justice for the poor, the helpless, the oppressed, the widow, the orphan, and the resident alien – all of those who are the least, last, lost, littlest, and lifeless within the community.

So, how do we act in a righteous way?  I think the words for today from Isaiah give us some hints.  The prophet says that God wants us to worship in this way: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, to share your bread with the hungry, to bring the homeless poor into your house, to cover the naked and not to hide yourself from your own kin.  Look at all those verbs; that’s lots of action!  Then, Isaiah says, your light shall break forth like the dawn!  Sounds a lot like being light to me!

Discussion Questions

  • What do you think Jesus means by being salt and being light?
  • At the end of the Lutheran baptism service, the pastor often says this from Matthew 5:16: “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven.”  What does baptism have to do with doing good works?
  • What do you think Jesus wants us to do?
  • What does the Souper Bowl of Caring have to do with doing righteousness? With letting your light shine before others so they can see your good works and glorify God?
  • The Souper Bowl of Caring believes that there is joy in serving?  Do you feel joy when you serve?  Should this be our motivation for helping people who live in poverty and hunger?  Are there others reasons that we should help people who are in need (hint: does God have anything to do with it!?!)?

Activity Suggestions

  • Consider watching the Hunger Education video that is part of the Souper Bowl of Caring or taking the Hunger Quiz. Are you familiar with these hunger statistics?  How did you do on the quiz?  What surprised you?  Was anything particularly shocking to you?
  • Using 100 of anything (pennies, beans, crackers, pieces of paper, people), show visually how the world divides resources by using the World of 100 Statistics.   Or you can watch the video: The Miniature Earth (with similar info; they also have a statistical list on their homepage).

Closing Prayer

Gracious and loving God, thanks for your many gifts to all of humanity.  Help us to use the gifts you have given us to be light in the world.  Empower us to see those who are hungry and poor as your children and our neighbors.  Help us to help all of your people.  Fill us with your Holy Spirit, so that we can feed hungry people today and work for a world in which there are no hungry people at all.  Amen.