October 10, 2006

I. Readings
Psalms 42, 102, 133
Hosea 7:8-16
Acts 23:12-24
Luke 7:1-17

II. Selections
Psalm 42:6
My soul is cast down within me;
therefore I remember you
from the land of Jordan and of Hermon,
from Mount Mizar.

Hosea 7:14a
[ The people of Israel] do not cry to me from the heart,
but they wail upon their beds;
they gash themselves for grain and wine;
they rebel against me.

Acts 23:14
[ The Jewish conspirators] went to the chief priests and elders and said, "We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste no food until we have killed Paul. ... "

Luke 7:4-5
When [ the Jewish elders] came to Jesus, they appealed to him earnestly, saying, "[ The centurion] is worthy of having you do this for him, for he loves our people, and it is he who built our synagogue for us."

III. Meditation: When our souls are cast down

When our souls are cast down within us,
remind us of places and occasions
where you were with us in the past.

Let us not in fear or sorrow wail upon our beds,
like rebels who have forsaken you;
rather may we from our hearts cry out to you.

Deliver us from evil plots and evil forces;
but remind us-aliens, too, may be worthy
of support, and objects of your compassion.