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 07, 2008

I. Readings
Psalms 51, 65, 142
Zephaniah 3:8-13
Revelation 17:1-18
Luke 13:31-35

II. Selections
Psalm 51:3
For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.

Zephaniah 3:13b-c
...[ the remnant of Israel] shall do no wrong
and utter no lies,
nor shall a deceitful tongue
be found in their mouths.

Revelation 17:18
" ...The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth." [ An angel to the narrator]

Luke 13:34
" ...Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! ... " [ Jesus' lament over Jerusalem]

III. Meditation: Ever before us

We know our transgressions,
and our sin is ever before us.

We sin individually,
we sin corporately.

As individuals we utter lies;
collectively we believe them.

We speak with deceitful tongue;
we allow ourselves to be deceived.

If our society kills those you send,
we are co-defendants in murder.

If our nation acts as empire,
we are rulers over others.

If the brood refuses your protective
wings, we all shiver in the cold.

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