Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Week 3: Greatness and Kenosis" Hospitalization: A Rite of Passage" /Quiz and Philemon Prep



This week's COMMUNITY theme and symbol="kenosis"  ("self emptying," as in the 2nd symbol  above..
Tonight we met a couple of great contemporary servant-leaders:

like the littlesphepherdette/llamaherder I filmed in Peru::




and like this guy with the splangizomai  (sometimes spelled "splagchnizomai") glasses:

Who did people say was "great" in your surveys?


---------------------------------------
Then we apply some "Three Worlds" theory to Matthew 18 and the topic of "Who is great?":



Page 22 of Syllabus,Matthew 18 Outline:

1 Question #1: Who is Greatest?

2-17 Responses (each are counter proposals)
2-10 Response #1: Children
2-4 Counter Proposal: Accept children
5-9 Threat: If cause scandal
10 Show of force: Angels protect

12-14 Response #2: Sheep
12-14 Counter Proposal: Search for the 1 of 100 who is lost

15-17 Response #3: Brother who sins (counter proposal)
15a Hypothetical situation: If sin
15-17 Answer: Attempt to get brother to be reconciled
17b If fail: Put him out and start over

18-20 Statement: What you bind or loose

21-22 Question #2: How far do we go in forgiveness?

23-35 Response #1: Parable of the forgiving king/unforgiving servant


----------------------------------------------------------------
Doug Pagitt, in "Preaching Reimagined," comments on this at least three times:
  • There are those who assume that if more people are allowed to share...then there's a greater risk of the church losing truth. But the history of heresy shows it's most often the abuse of power--not an openness of power--that creates envirins ripe with heresy. The church is at greater risk of losing its message when we limit those who can tell thes story versus when we invite the community to know and refine it. (43)
  • When I've talked with other pastors about progressional preaching, their concerns are almost always about heresy..They're concerned all hell--literally--will beak loose. I understand this concern. As pastors we spend years in theological training...(so) we won't toss out crazy ideas about God to the masses...But I've found this concern to be unfounded. Far from pulling us in the direction of heresy, including collective conversation in our sermon time has in many, many instances led to greater understanding....and actually prevents the heretical thinking so easily found in individuated expressions of faith. When people set their ideas on the table, thoss who might lean towards heresy or idiocy are quickly called out by the group (53-54)
  • We may not agree with the conclusions people draw, but we're better when we're moved to additional ways of seeing the world (137)
And Tony Jones, who attends the church pastored by Paggit, comments that 99 percent of churches don't let just anyone talk...




“..but because anyone, including Trucker Frank, can speak freely in this emergent church, my seminary-trained eyes were opened to find a truth in the Bible that had previously eluded me.”-Tony Jones,The New Christians, p.92
That truth emerged in a discussion of Matthew 18's "treat the unrepentant brother like a tax collector or sinner.":
"And how did Jesus treat tax collectors and pagans?" Frank asked aloud, pausing, "as of for a punchline he'd been waiting all his life to deliver,"....., "He welcomed them!""


Is this a BOUNDED SET, or CENTERED SET passage?  Is Jesus saying:



  • "kick them out of the church and diss them; treat them like you normally treat pagans."



and/or

  • "kick them out--but temporarily and for a season of tough love and redemptive discipline; and treat them like I  normally treat pagans: love them"

??
---------------------
Click links on "literary world" discussion of the passage:


-------------------
We might see the whole unit as a chiasm with inclusio.  See below (copied from here):
Jesus foretells His death: Matthew 17:22-23
A. Jesus speaks of giving freely/sacrificing self: Matthew 17:24-27
B. Little children are the essence of the kingdom: Matthew 18:1-7
C. Sacrifice the body for the sake of the kingdom: Matthew 18:8-9
D. Do not despise what God values: Matthew 18:10-14
E. Entreating a brother about sin or offense: Matthew 18:15-17
F.Agreement between Heaven and Earth: Matthew 18:18-20
E. Entreating a brother about sin or offense: Matthew 18:21-35
D. Do not despise what God values: Matthew 19:1-9
C. Sacrifice the body for the sake of the kingdom: Matthew 19:10-12
B. Little children are the essence of the kingdom: Matthew 19:13-15
A. Jesus speaks of giving freely/sacrificing self: Matthew 19:16-20:16
Jesus foretells His death: Matthew 20:17-19

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What did you learn about a millstone from tonight's video clip?:





--

I really recommend

Chapter 5 of "Hospital Ministry,' (ed. by Holst)
"Hospitalization: A Rite of Passage"  by John Katonah..
We'll summarize it in class, but it is complete here below

(click each page to read, then click again to enlarge):







Related reading:


>>Here is a link  to read  which critiques Katonah's s three stages (see pp 302-303, about stripping but not consummating )

>>Another book suggests prayers/liturgies(click to read) that nurses/caregivers can offer  to accompany each of the three stages.

--




--

We reviewed the symbols for the quiz  (This replaces the terms on syllabus) on Week 5 (sample from another class):



Answers:
First page:

  1.  a
  2. h
  3. b
  4. e
  5. i
  6. d
  7. g
  8. a
  9. f

Second page:


  1. e
  2. c
  3. b
  4. d
  5. a
  6. f      
all are explained in more detail on posts on week 1, 2, and 3:









--

We' spent a few minutes readiig and acculturating ourselves to Philemon, prepping for our final paper.  
SHHHHHH... don't tell... a tab  recently appeared at the top of this website, it says
"Philemon help?" Whatever you do, do not click it.
  at least until you've read the book of Philemon a few times yourself (Like we did in class today)'
,and unless you want tons of help for your Philemon paper.  (:







Next week:
READ:
Proverbs 10-15
Hauer and Young, Chapters 6 and 8
Finish Chapman readings

PREP ASSIGNMENTS;
Questions from Hauer and Young (just those listed on syllabus
Questions BELOW on Chapman book (OR write a 1 page review/summary of Chapman):

  • Part One: Chapter 1, “Opening Challenge,” pg. 193
  • Part One, Chapter Four, “Sacred Encounters, Sacred Work,” p. 194
  • Part One, Chapter 9, “The Not-So-Surprising Outcomes of the Healing Hospital,” p. 195
    Part Two, Chapter 4, “The Sacred Encounter in Practice,” p. 197
Posted by at

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)