I am an emeritus professor from Cornell University and was a Commissioned Lay Preacher in the Presbyterian Church (USA). For many years I have followed the Daily Lectionary as printed in the Mission Yearbook of my church. For each day of a two-year cycle, the lectionary lists four psalms and three other scriptural passages--usually one from the Old Testament and two from the New Testament. My practice is to copy down a verse or two from one of the psalms and from each of the other three passages. After I have written out all four selections, I reflect upon them, rearrange their order, and incorporate them into a meditation. Sometimes I retain much of the original wording; sometimes all that remains of a selection is an idea that was stimulated when I read the original words. All selections are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. For the Daily Lectionary, see the link below.

November 12, 2007

I. Readings
Psalms 97, 112, 135
Nehemiah 2:1-20
Revelation 18:1-8
Matthew 15:1-20

II. Selections
Psalm 135:17
[ The idols of the nations] have ears, but they do not hear,
and there is no breath in their mouths.

Nehemiah 2:4
Then the king said to me, "What do you request?" So I prayed to the God of heaven.

Revelation 18:7
" ...As [ Babylon the great, i.e., Rome] glorified herself and lived luxuriously,
so give her a like measure of torment and grief. ... " [ An angel coming down from heaven, having great authority]

Matthew 15:3
[ Jesus] answered [ the Pharisees and scribes], "And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition?"

III. Meditation: Our tradition or your commandments?

How often do we follow tradition rather than your commandments?
In our tradition we live luxuriously and glorify our way of life;
our standard of living becomes our idol while many starve.
When the king asked Nehemiah to name his request,
Nehemiah did not depend upon his tradition;
he remembered the poor defenseless
and prayed to you for guidance.

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