Above: Nazis and the Ark of the Covenant, from Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
(A Screen Capture)
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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The Assigned Readings:
2 Samuel 6:1-19
Psalm 51 (Morning)
Psalms 142 and 65 (Evening)
1 Corinthians 9:1-23
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Some Related Posts:
2 Samuel 6:
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/week-of-3-epiphany-tuesday-year-2/
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/09/07/proper-10-year-b/
1 Corinthians 9:
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2011/06/19/fifth-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-b/
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Sometimes I argue with Bible stories. The Bible, which people wrote, comes from antiquity, a time which predates many of the events which have shaped my worldview. I am, for example, a product of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment, and I have access to more knowledge than those who wrote the Bible could ever know about certain topics. So I reject the idea that demon possession causes epilepsy, for example.
Yet other influences on my thought which cause me to argue with certain Bible stories come from the Bible itself. God, depending on the part of the Old Testament one reads, is either approachable (as in the case of Abram/Abraham) or fearsome to be near (as in death for touching the Ark of the Covenant). But God was most approachable in the person of Jesus of Nazareth; people not only touched him but had him over for dinner.
The stories of the power and menace of the Ark of the Covenant speak of God as an undomesticated force. Jesus died for several reasons, among them the fact that he challenged domesticated views of God. The study of the past uncovers examples of people who faced violence (often fatal) because they challenged beloved organizing ideas in society. They include Jesus of Nazareth, Paul of Tarsus, Mohandas Gandhi, and numerous civil rights martyrs in the United States. Violence, part of the darkness of human nature, rears its ugly head in defense of the indefensible and the merely traditional alike. But one fact remains unchanged: We cannot domesticate God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 29, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF PAUL MANZ, DEAN OF LUTHERAN CHURCH MUSIC
THE FEAST OF CLARENCE JORDAN, RENEWER OF SOCIETY
THE FEAST OF JAMES HANNINGTON AND HIS COMPANIONS, ANGLICAN MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF JOHN BUCKMAN WALTHOUR, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF ATLANTA
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Adapted from this post:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2012/10/29/devotion-for-august-16-lcms-daily-lectionary/
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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