The Ascension Tree - Barbara Billey
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12th Sunday in Ordinary Time Discussion Questions
A Conversation with the Weekend Readings Theme: Do Not Be Afraid June 16 2020 First Reading: Jeremiah 20: 10-13 Second Reading: Romans 5:12-15 Gospel: Matthew 10: 26-33 Discussion Questions 1) Our first reading is from the Book of Jeremiah. Jeremiah was born in 650 BC to a world in the midst of war. Jerusalem (the Temple) was destroyed in 587 BC and many of the Jewish people were sent into exile. Jeremiah (sometimes called “the weeping prophet”) warned the community of the coming consequences of their sinful behavior. What wars are we in the midst of today? What sinful social behaviors do we need to address today? As baptized Christians, we are called to the role of a prophet – how can we use our “voice” to warn others of these unavoidable consequences? What scares y...
Our Pentecost Fire - Assignment 2 Barbara Billey
Our Pentecost Fire by Rev. Dr. Barbara Billey, Priest ARCWP Heart of Compassion Faith Community, Windsor, Ontario, Canada (01 June 2020) “The dove descending breaks the air With flame of incandescent terror Of which the tongues declare The one discharge from sin and error. The only hope, or else despair Lies in the choice of pyre or pyre- To be redeemed from fire by fire. Who then devised the torment? Love. Love is the unfamiliar Name Behind the hands that wove The intolerable shirt of flame Which human power cannot remove. We only live, only suspire Consumed by either fire or fire.” ― T.S. Eliot, Four Quartets T.S. Eliot wrote this poem after he converted to Christianity. For him, the Holy Spirit is the central fire that redeems humankind from the fires of hell. I'm not a proponent of the dualistic theology of heaven and hell; however, how do we make sense of a senseless hell that has taken place during the past week in the US where a black men, Ge...
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