Don’t flay the sheep.

Writing that is not my sermon

Yep, I’m supposed to be writing my sermon. But I need to write something else. My brain is shredded enough from thinking about why on earth God would send a peasant-baby as the Messiah that these will be random thoughts.

1. Zora made out like a bandit for Christmas. Even though we were thinking about not getting her much (honestly, does she really care right now?). But, nothing is super-branded, super-nosy, or super-obnoxious. Nothing is labeled “princess.” One thing is a Noah’s ark, so she’s learning her Bible, right?
2. Beautiful, wonderful snow here today.
3. Last night, I had the worst ever of my “I’m-preaching-NOW-and-my-sermon-isn’t-done” dreams. I get these every time I preach. I guess many other preachers do, too.
4. We might move our TV out of our living room. If we can get that crazy back room organized.
5. While I was in the city with my parents, I discovered that trips to North Michigan Avenue give me morning-sickness/heart-burn flashbacks…I was really pregnant most of the year I worked there. Now, when I’m in that area, I’ll turn a corner and see or smell something and feel my tummy give a turn or recognition. How weird is that?! But, I am also a great asset…I know where ALL the bathrooms are.
6. I need to start doing some yoga again. Last night, I did 30 minutes with the help of a DVD. Wow. My body was tight and messed up. And it felt so much better afterward.
7. Speaking of yoga, during the final relaxation, I actually felt all the muscles in my cheeks (face, not…) go completely slack and fall to the floor. Or, I’m just getting older and there’s less collagen to hold things up than there was the last time I did some yoga.
8. I saw the movie Juno this week. Amazing. Loved it. Go see it. I’m contemplating the possibility of taking the youth group next week. If only it will stay in theaters that long…Any ideas for a back-up option if it’s gone?
9. We ate Lao food last week, too. Yum. If you can get to this place, go. My Dad has eaten there 3 times already, I think, and he says what he keeps ordering (chicken curry) is the best food he’s had in weeks.
10. I’m starting to get fed up with how complicated it is for me to post photos here. I’ve been doing a lot of frantic knitting and I can’t put up pictures. Bleagh…

Come back Monday and read the sermon! (It’s on Matthew 2:13-23 and Isaiah 63:7-9.)

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Incarnation

Immensity, cloistered in thy dear womb,

Now leaves his well-beloved imprisonment,

There he hath made himself to his intent

Weak enough, now into our world to come;

But oh, for thee, for him, hath the inn no room?

Yet lay him in this stall, and from the Orient,

Stars, and wisemen will travel to prevent

The effect of Herod’s jealous general doom.

Seest thou, my soul, with thy faith’s eyes, how he

Which fills all place, yet none holds him, doth lie?

Was not his pity toward thee wondrous high,

That would have need to be pitied by thee?

Kiss him, and with him unto Egypt go,

With his kind mother, who partakes thy woe.

From John Donne’s Corona cycle of poems. A reminder that this holiday is not primarily about sweet babies, magic,  snowfall, or shopping. It’s about the great mystery and paradox of God come among us as one of us…a mystery that Christians have been contemplating and reveling in for centuries.

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Link-a-doos

A few little tidbits that are link-worthy:

1. Singing clergy: We do this on special occasions. Honestly, it makes me feel a little bit like the family VonTrap. I guess I wish we did it regularly so that it wouldn’t be special, but a special pattern for worship.
2. God IS Great: I have been annoyed with the atheist-promoting books released this year. But I haven’t been able to put my finger on the reason. But, help comes from ESPN (“What?!?” You say, “Erica pays attention to ESPN?” No, but Erik does and this Gregg Easterbrook guy is pretty good–for a sportswriter.) Since the quote is hard to find on the page, here it is: Recent anti-religion best-sellers by Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens read like Middle Ages papal bulls, pronouncing a new orthodoxy in which everything about faith is bad, none of religion’s good points and virtues are permitted to be mentioned, and godlessness is the new God you must obey! TMQ pal Leon Wieseltier of The New Republic just had a wonderful line about this: “Religion may confer a preposterous cosmic significance upon the individual, but atheism is the true friend of egotism.” It is one thing to suppose there is no divine power, the universe coming into being solely through natural forces; this might turn out to be correct. It’s quite another to suppose God is impossible — that nothing can possibly exist that is greater than a 21st-century pundit with a book to sell. Pretty egotistical, huh?
3. I wrote something for Fidelia’s Sisters this month.
4. And, I better get reading because I’m going to this conference in the spring, and look at the list of authors! (If you have recommendations about who I should read in preparation and who I should go hear when I’m there, let me know.)
5. Zora bonus: We have this great soft-fabric nativity. Zora loves it. And I am a proud pastor mama because she finds the baby Jesus, says, “BAY-BEE” in her high pitched voice and gives him a kiss (OK, maybe it’s licking…)

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How postgraduate couples fight

I’m sitting here working on a little writing piece and I asked for Erik’s opinion about a clumsy sentence. He was helpful, but then got too picky for my taste about one phrase.

In order to shut him down, I said, “My master’s degree is bigger than your master’s degree.” (i.e. mine took 4 years of full time work and his took 1 year)

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The December 30 sermon I (don’t) think I’m going to preach

Last night, my latest issue of Brain, Child arrived.

There’s a great review by Kristin Kovacic of three books about teenagers (by the way, all of these books have longer titles, but I’m too lazy to type them, so click the links to see the subtitles):

The Stardust Lounge, by Deborah Digges

What It Takes to Pull Me Through, by David Marcus

Red, edited by Amy Goldwasser

Great review. I love book reviews that do a couple books in one shot.

As I’m reading this review, there were several quotes about how our culture is becoming “toxic” to teens, how we seem, statistically speaking, to be failing teens across the board as a culture, and even profiting from what goes wrong for them (i.e. marketing “booze, boys, and bad things” as my mother called them, to teens, profiting when they buy into it, and then profiting again when they need treatment).

Meanwhile, there was this essay by Rowan Williams (Archbishop of Canterbury), “Childhood and Choice” from the book, Lost Icons: Reflections on Cultural Bereavement that I read a few years ago, which has stuck with me. Honestly, I don’t remember the exact argument of the essay anymore, but I remember it was good. Good enough that I’ve kept the book in a prominent place so that I can find the essay back. (Good enough that I actually put in the effort to type in the subtitle!)

And, I’ve been trying to make myself finish reading Chap Clark’s Hurt (another long subtitle, on that one…). Basic premise: we’re abandoning the youth in our culture to their own little world of hurt. We’re doing this in the way we do youth ministry, too. (Aside…if someone names their kid “Chap” clearly they are sure that he will grow up to be a youth pastor.)

So, as I’m reading the review of the first three books, I’m finding this pattern of thought, and Matthew 2:18 starts running through my head:

A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled because they are no more.

I’m thinking that we as a society are maybe not doing so great with our teens. They are stressed, catered-to, loved-too-much, loved-too-little, much is expected of them, but we don’t always give enough, busy, tired…And, I know that if Rachel and God are weeping for children today, there are a whole lot of more deserving kids to talk about, kids whose lives are really a much bigger mess than my North American suburban teens.

But, what if the message of that text has something to say specifically to my context, here are now, in the middle of middle-America? The fact that Jesus had to be a teenager at some point has to count for something, too.

I have to preach on January 30. We’ll be finishing a year as a church when we read through the Bible together. (Well, some of us did. I fell off the Bible wagon in August.) I was thinking about some sermon that helps conclude that.

And, that’s probably what I’ll stick with. I’m just not sure if I can go the Rachel weeping route right now. I’m not sure I have the energy for it, or the credibility for it. I’m not sure if people can handle it a week after Christmas.

I’m not sure I can handle it a week after Christmas.

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Have you ever MET a Lutheran, Mr. Romney?

You’d think, if you had a boatload of speech writers on the payroll, and if you had the cash to hire some experts, that maybe someone in your entourage would do a little research and try to write something intelligent for you to say about other religious traditions.

Nope.  In Mitt Romney’s big religion speech, he had a section about what he appreciated about other religions. Honestly, could he not have gone out and hired someone with some expertise in the area to make sure what he said sounded intelligent? For instance, he said he appreciated: “The confident independence of the Lutherans.” Now, I love the Lutherans. But what on earth is he talking about? Is that supposed to be a reference to the Reformation? Come on!

The Weekly Standard’s take on this  is brilliant (and a good laugh for those of us suffering Daily Show/Colbert Report withdrawal.)

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Advent Music (part 2)

I’m curious now about other people’s favorite Advent music. So, I’m starting a meme. 5 favorite Advent songs, maybe traditional, maybe just things make you feel all Advent-y, and we’d really like to know if there’s a recording you especially like.
I tag: Meg; Katherine; Heidi; and Stacey.

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Advent Music (By Popular Demand)

If Meika and Shelly can count as popular demand, a few ideas for Advent music:

First, there is usually an Advent track or two on your Christmas albums. I highly recommend using the gift of mix CDs to take those songs and put them together.

I do have an Advent playlist on my iPod. Here are a few things. This is not comprehensive, some are not specifically Advent-y, but…

1. Cat Stevens, Morning Has Broken
2. Providence-St. Mel Choir, Freedom is Coming (also available somewhere on St. Olaf albums…)
3. Norah Jones, One Flight Down (which I associate with this time of year because I heard a sermon where it was used once)
4. Triakel, Adventspsalm
5. Alex De Grassi, Medley: Christ the Apple Tree
6. Beki Hemingway & Jonathan Rundman, Mary’s Song
7. Richard Proulx & The Cathedral Singers, On Jordan’s Bank
8. Richard Proulx & The Cathedral Singers, Advent Procession
9. Jonathan Rundman, Come Thou Long Expected Jesus
10. The Elora Festival Singers, Gabriel’s Message
11. U2, Yahweh
12. Full of Grace, Sarah McLachlan
13. BeBe Winans, My Sweet Lord
14. Anonymous 4, Blooming Vale
15. John Michael Talbot, Advent Suite
16. Alison Krauss, Down to the River to Pray
17. Beth Nielsen Chapman, Veni Veni Emmanuel
18. Elora festival Singers, Jesus Christ the Apple Tree

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Harking the Glad Sound

If you’re starting to put some Christmas music into the mix, I’d like to recommend this album. If you’re trying to stick to Advent music, it’s a still a safe bet because there are a few advent tracks. The self-written titles are a little goofy, but who can argue with creative use of a banjo on “Once in Royal David’s City”?

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Thankful

Meika has tagged me in a meme. I completely second what she says about being thankful. Two things I’m thankful for, maybe not the biggest things, but things none the less:

1. People who are welcoming and tolerant of little ones attending and participating in the worship service. I’m thankful for this in general in my work, but especially thankful for it as a mom. This morning was one of the four or so times a year when I get to worship as a congregant. I like to combine those opportunities with a little quality Zora time. Because it’s such a rare opportunity, it means so much to me when we aren’t shoo-ed off to the nursery. A special thank you to the folks at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church  in Minnetonka, MN this morning for being welcoming to me and Zora. (By the way, I can’t believe there is no picture of this gorgeous church online. I wish you could see it.)

2. Creature comforts. I’d like to be able to feel thankful, rather than guilty about these things. Because yes, I have more access to these things than some people do. But, within reason, it’s OK for me to enjoy these things.  Just a few that come to mind: ginger-scented perfume; my nice red sheets; comfortable places to sit; really good food.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

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