James 1

Faith Practices for 4 September 2012

The Readings

Word of Life

  1. Honestly, it’s another of those situations in which I’m working my way towards knowing anything about the subject.
  2. I don’t find it impossible, but I will admit that sometimes just being a good person is difficult, let along living up to the sort of person that Jesus was.
  3. Through learning and through devotion. Through practicing the words and acting within them, carrying out the instructions they give.
  4. It means to not just be religious, but to be the sort of person Jesus taught us to be.
  5. The world would be quieter. The world would be more attentive to the needs of others, for listening is one of the greatest ways to respect the needs of others because you cannot respect (or act on) what others need without knowing.
  6. Think more.
  7. Anger is a naturally quick emotion, being slow to give into it means that you have mastered yourself, and put others before you enough to assume that the anger is not justified until such time that it is deeply proven.
  8. By following the other tenets discussed. If we listen more, consider things before we speak and refuse to be ruled by out anger our tongues are well bridled and kept to reign, going only as we wish them to. (Clearly this answer comes from a girl who rides…)
  9. I define it by action. By living the word in each day and trying to carry out good works that help those around you.
  10. To take action, to not just know that their are problems, but to act to attempt to solve these problems.
  11. Limitations of funding, time and will are the first and foremost. People also must sometimes overcome fear to help others.

Word Among Us

  1. The grandfather is, in my opinion, the very ideal of christian. He put others first and went out of his way to assist others.
  2. My life is blessed with a number of doers. My in-laws are spearheads of community efforts to do good within my church. My own father takes wonderful care of an elderly couple that lives near him.
  3. I do enjoy listening to stories others have to tell. You can learn so much about people when you listen to those little pieces of their lives they are willing to share.
  4. Practice, like most things in life.
  5. We live in a culture of immediacy, in which we act quickly on our impulses (there are entire TV channels devoted to impulse shopping). This same culture is also one that demands retribution and values those who get revenge.
  6. Empowering.
  7. I would like to think that I would be the person I am, but I’m not sure that’s possible… Even though I’ve not always devoted myself to learning God’s word, my parents did ensure that I knew the values in them…

Faith Practice in Daily Life

  • Living in a Christian community is an opportunity to see what others have to teach you, and to see how others who are already experienced and well practiced at living in the word are doing so.

Sermon for 2 September 2012

A Preface

I would like to open this, the first of my posts, with a few quick details for those reading this. First off, this is from a Lutheran Perspective. And not just any Lutheran, but the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America brand of Lutheran. I figure it’s only fair to warn people that I’m from the “Progressive” branch of this faith so that you don’t go into things expecting something I’m completely not.

Secondly, I would like to note that (while I’m not linking directly to it) I am using the Good News Translation of the Bible (sometimes called “Today’s English Version”) for all texts. As soon as I can manage, I’ll update the links so that they link to this version.

Readings

  • First Reading: Deuteronomy 4:1-2, Deuteronomy 4:6-9
  • Second Reading: James 1:17-27
  • Psalms 15:1-5
  • Gospel: Mark 7:1-8, Mark 7:14-15, Mark 7:21-23

Kitsu’s Thinking

I can’t help but think that today was an incredible Lutheran set of passages. There are layers of cautions about putting scripture before tradition, and worshiping the Lord rather than the traditions to which we have become accustomed.

The Pastor’s sermon had an emphasis on the place of tradition within the church, and the idea that tradition, in both life and religion, should serve a purpose. That is to say, avoid tradition for tradition’s sake, keep those that still hold true to the heart of the matter instead of simply binding yourself to a tradition without thought to why that tradition is or is not significant.

Now, stepping away from the sermon itself a bit, There are a few lines of the scripture that jumped out at me today. The first is James 1:26. It reads “Do any of you think you are religious? If you do not control your tongue, your religion is worthless and you deceive yourself.” and the second is Mark 7:21-22 which reads “For from the inside, from your heart, come the evil ideas which lead you to do immoral things, to rob, kill, commit adultery, be greedy, and do all sorts of evil things; deceit, indecency, jealousy, slander, pride, and folly“. It seems like a great deal of the emphansis in the passages read is also towards the fact that we are the source of our own downfalls… That we are the greatest danger to ourselves…

The state of this planet seems to support that! To me, it says that we should all work harder to be better people, to take better care of one another. To be better to the very root of our souls. On the cover of today’s bulletin are the words “Be the doers of the world” (James 1:22).

Better advice for life cannot be had.