{"id":3070,"date":"2011-11-20T07:26:01","date_gmt":"2011-11-20T12:26:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/?p=3070"},"modified":"2011-11-23T08:06:12","modified_gmt":"2011-11-23T13:06:12","slug":"3070","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/3070\/","title":{"rendered":"November 27, 2011&#8211;Signs of the Coming Kingdom?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Contributed by Paul Baglios, St. Paul, MN<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Warm-up Question<\/h3>\n<p>When we pray to God as Jesus taught, \u201cyour kingdom come,\u201d do we really mean it?\u00a0 Do we really expect it?\u00a0 Do we really want it?<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Signs of the Coming Kingdom?<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2011\/11\/asteroid.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-3083\" style=\"margin: 5px\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2011\/11\/asteroid.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"150\" height=\"156\" \/><\/a>Earlier this month , Asteroid 2005 YU55 passed by the earth at a distance closer than the moon.\u00a0 NASA&#8217;s Jet Propulsion Laboratory announced the following:\u00a0 \u201cAsteroid 2005 YU55 was discovered Dec. 28, 2005, by Robert McMillan of the Spacewatch Program near Tucson, Ariz. The nearly spherical object is about 400 meters in diameter [i.e., a quarter-mile wide, bigger than an aircraft carrier].\u00a0 \u00a0The closest approach will be at 6:28 p.m. today [November 8], when it will come within 80 percent of the distance to the moon.\u00a0 There is no danger the asteroid will pose a threat to Earth for at least 100 years.\u00a0 \u00a0The next approach of a space object as large as Asteroid 2005 YU55 will be in 2028.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0 Within days of that event, a passing comet produced an event known as a Taurid meteor shower, producing fireballs in the sky visible in both the northern and southern hemispheres of the earth.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0How many of you were aware of the passage of the asteroid close to the earth on November 8?\u00a0 How did you hear about it?\u00a0 What did you know about it?\u00a0 Was this event discussed in your school?<\/li>\n<li>Do any of you enjoy learning about astronomy?\u00a0 If so, what do you enjoy most about it?\u00a0 Do any of you have a telescope?<\/li>\n<li>How do you think earlier generations of human societies regarded visible astronomical phenomena before the invention of telescopes and the current understanding of our solar system and the cosmos?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Scripture Texts (NRSV) for Sunday, November 21, 2011 (First Sunday of Advent)<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=188301183\">Isaiah 64:1-9<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=188301221\">1 Corinthians 1:3-9<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/?ql=188301252\">Mark 13:24-37<\/a><\/p>\n<p>(Text links are to <a href=\"http:\/\/bible.oremus.org\/\">Oremus Bible Browser<\/a>. 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 <a href=\"http:\/\/www.elca.org\/Growing-In-Faith\/Worship\/Lectionary.aspx\">Lectionary Readings<\/a>.)<\/p>\n<p>For lectionary humor and insight, check the weekly comic <a href=\"http:\/\/www.agnusday.org\/\">Agnus Day.<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Gospel Reflection<\/h3>\n<p>Long before and ever since the birth of Jesus, some people have regarded astral phenomena as signs of an approaching end-time which brings the destruction of the earth and the end of life as we have known it.\u00a0 Many religious traditions have incorporated such speculation into their understanding of sacred purpose and reality.\u00a0 Jesus speaks to that interest in our gospel text from the Mark 13, but he cautions us against speculations which distract from the central concerns of faith.\u00a0 For Christian faith, speculation about the end-time is a trivial distraction from the present circumstances of our life and our world.\u00a0 When Jesus tells us, \u201ckeep awake,\u201d he is not calling us to anxious concern about the end-time but to vigilant exercise of faith in each present moment.\u00a0 The facts that dazzling astral phenomena can be seen in the skies in every generation and that Jesus speaks to \u201c<em>this <\/em>generation\u201d help us to understand that focusing our faith on speculation about the future is not nearly as important as engaging our faith in each present moment.\u00a0 Elsewhere Jesus says, \u201cthe kingdom of God has come near\u201d (for example, Mark 1:15).\u00a0 When he tells us to \u201ckeep awake,\u201d he is calling us to pay attention to the nearness of God\u2019s kingdom in the circumstances of our lives, today \u2013 and every day.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Discussion Questions<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>\u00a0To help you think about what Jesus means when he speaks about \u201cthe kingdom of God,\u201d read Mary\u2019s song of praise (known as the Magnificat) in Luke 1:46-55, and Jesus\u2019 own teaching in Luke 4:16-21 and Luke 7:18-23.\u00a0 When and where and how have you seen such signs of God\u2019s kingdom in the circumstances of your own life and the circumstances of our world?<\/li>\n<li>What makes it difficult to see signs of God\u2019s kingdom in our lives and our world?\u00a0 Why is it often difficult to believe that \u201cthe kingdom of God has come near\u201d?<\/li>\n<li>How do we, individually and together, represent to others the signs of God\u2019s kingdom, the signs of its nearness?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3><\/h3>\n<h3>Activity Suggestions<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li>Ask individuals to\u00a0 list two or three signs of God\u2019s kingdom they have seen recently \u2013 in their lives or in the lives of others, whether within their our own community or in the larger world.\u00a0 Share lists with the whole group.<\/li>\n<li>As a group, identify two or three ways that you might work together to be a sign of God\u2019s kingdom to others.\u00a0 Make a plan to act upon what you have identified.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3>Closing Prayer<\/h3>\n<p>God, strengthen our faith that we may sincerely pray for the coming of your kingdom, giving us eyes to see its nearness in our lives and in our world.\u00a0 Teach us to pray daily with all your people: Amen; come, Lord Jesus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; Contributed by Paul Baglios, St. Paul, MN &nbsp; Warm-up Question When we pray to God as Jesus taught, \u201cyour kingdom come,\u201d do we really mean it?\u00a0 Do we really expect it?\u00a0 Do we really want it? &nbsp; Signs of the Coming Kingdom? Earlier this month , Asteroid 2005 YU55 passed by the earth at [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1400],"tags":[465,6020,6021,483,339,414,625],"class_list":["post-3070","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-post","tag-advent","tag-asteroid","tag-awake","tag-hope","tag-justice","tag-kingdom-of-god","tag-signs"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>November 27, 2011-Signs of the Coming Kingdom? - Faith Lens<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.elca.org\/faithlens\/3070\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"November 27, 2011-Signs of the Coming Kingdom? - Faith Lens\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"&nbsp; Contributed by Paul Baglios, St. Paul, MN &nbsp; Warm-up Question When we pray to God as Jesus taught, \u201cyour kingdom come,\u201d do we really mean it?\u00a0 Do we really expect it?\u00a0 Do we really want it? &nbsp; Signs of the Coming Kingdom? 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