Peaches as a way forward

Last year I was told the peach season in Texas was deeply impacted by the drought. This meant that the peach crop in Texas was going to be small. But what I also learned that when the fruit trees are affected by drought, they will not only produce less fruit but the fruit that is produced is highly flavorful.

Drought for peaches means that a plethora gives way to potent.

The Church talks about being in a bit of a drought. The rise of the "nones" (as nicely articulated in the recent Time magazine) highlights that the Church is not going to get a plethora of members anytime soon.

What would it look like if the Church mimicked the peach trees? What if we gave up on getting a plethora of members and focused on creating potent disciples?

To be honest, the crop may have been small but last years peaches were the best I have had in years.

Worship is like meatloaf?

Have you ever heard, or perhaps you might have said, something about worship on Sunday morning that could be mistaken for a critique of a restaurant?

"Well, that was good."

"I really liked it today."

"I will be back next week."

All of these comments, and others like them, are built upon the idea that Sunday worship is very much like a dish that is served up for our consumption. And just like after a meal at a restaurant, we have a number of comments that "evaluate" what we just experienced.

"The service was slow." 

"After that, I feel full."

"I am not sure I would go back."

"I could not read the menu."

Worship "evaluation" is built on the idea that it is just another thing we consume. If we do not like the "head chef" then we will not go back to that restaurant. If we had a good experience we might attend again, but we really would tell someone about our dislike of the music (selection or volume). 

When we are hungry we have any number of food options at our disposal and it really does not matter which restaurant we go to because they all ultimately serve the same thing - calories - just in different styles. 

Worship is consumed like meatloaf.

Worship is not something to consume. We do not attend worship in order to, like a meal, "get something out of it". We are not looking for a "nugget" that we can "chew on" for later this week. We are not attempting to "fill ourselves up" with an experience with the Holy or Mystery. 

Worship is not something we just consume, but something we participate in.

It is the difference in going to a restaurant and ordering the meatloaf so that someone else makes it and serves it to you or going to a kitchen and learning to prepare meatloaf in a class. 

Transfiguration is pointing to the...

While a few days late on this post in terms of the liturgical calendar, a couple of weeks ago Mark 9:2-8 came up in the worship service in the church calendar.

It is worth noting that the transfiguration story is often understood as a precursor to the resurrection. But let us be clear, in the original ending of the Gospel of Mark, there is no resurrection story. So how could the transfiguration be a precursor to a story that does not exist?

Perhaps the transfiguration is not a story that points toward resurrection at all. Perhaps Mark's telling of the transfiguration points to the crucifixion.

Take a look at these similar connections:

• The transfiguration took place six days later while the  crucifixion took place over the course of six hours.
• Three men witnessed the transfiguration but three women witnessed the  crucifixion .
• Moses and Elijah appeared in one story while the other had two unnamed thieves with Jesus.
• Jesus has white clothes but at the  crucifixion his clothes are gambled for and he is naked.
• Peter wants to build three tents on the mountain but when Jesus dies the Jerusalem temple tent is torn.
• God declares Jesus as the "Son of God" at the transfiguration, but it was a roman centurion who make this same statement at the  crucifixion . 

This is just what I came up with while looking at the texts side by side and no exegetical work. 

While I quickly want to jump to the resurrection and all the hope that comes with that, perhaps I am missing the point int he gospel of Mark for whom seems to be pointing to the crucifixion as the apex of the gospel.