Reflexion, A Spiritual Community

The Book of Isaiah begins with God’s frustration over Israel; for instance:

“Children have I reared and brought up,
but they have rebelled against me . . . .
Ah, sinful nation,
a people laden with iniquity,
offspring of evil doers,
children who deal corruptly!
They have forsaken the LORD,
they have despised the Holy One of Israel,
they are utterly estranged” (Isa. 1:2-4)

Then in chapter 6, Isaiah tells the story of his call from God to be a prophet
- at first, he continues in the same stream as the opening
• but a little further on, he is given messages of hope
◦ God always provides a way back
◦ his radiant love always breaks through the dark clouds
• by chapter 30, his promises to Israel are fantastic
“For a people shall dwell in Zion, in Jerusalem; you shall weep no more. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as he hears it, he answers you. And though the Lord give you the bread of adversity and the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself anymore, but your eyes shall see your Teacher. And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, ‘This is the way, walk in it,’ when you turn to the right or when you turn to the left.”
- God promises his people he will always be speaking to them
• they will always hear him nearby, and he will guide them
• as long as they were willing to listen to him, and accept his direction,
◦ he was willing to constantly communicate with them

Sharing on oppressed lives of Latin Americans

Psalm 25

This psalm does not track a central theme

What I mean, is that we cannot say, “This is a psalm of praise,”
- or “Psalm of confession,” or “thanksgiving psalm,” or “supplication psalm”
• this doesn’t mean the structure of the poem is random,
◦ only that it doesn’t tell a story or develop a specific point
• nevertheless, there is a pattern to the psalm,
◦ but we don’t find it arranged in an obvious pattern
- the first Hebrew letter in the first word of the first verse is alef
(like 'A' is the first letter of our alphabet)
• the first letter in the first word of the second verse is bet
(like 'B' is the second letter of our alphabet)
◦ alef and bet are the first two letters in the Hebrew alphabet
◦ that’s what the poet used for the outline of the entire psalm
• it’s like the nursery rhyme, “A is for apple; B is for ball . . . .”
◦ except that two letters from the Hebrew alphabet are missing

There are several psalms that use this acrostic device
- Psalm 119 is the most radical example, supplying eight verses (each beginning with the same letter) for every letter of the Hebrew alphabet

The last two weeks I’ve been encouraging you to listen for God’s voice

Now, today, using this spectacular episode of Isaiah’s life is neither practical nor fair
– he was chosen by God to be a prophet,
• and the prophet’s calling is in most instances very dramatic
◦ e.g., Moses and the mysterious flames; Ezekiel’s fantastic vision, impossible to imagine
• so if there’s a legitimate reason for us to consider Isaiah’s experience,
◦ it’s because in his vision he saw and heard God speak to him
◦ that is what defines the prophet
– even if we never have a dramatic or spectacular encounter like Isaiah,
• we can draw lessons from what he describes, because we want to hear God’s voice
◦ and Isaiah’s experience may help us navigate our own less dramatic experiences
• let’s see what we can find in this story that will be useful to us

About six years before my dad died,

For some reason, that I don’t remember,
- I got the idea that it was really important for him to tell his life’s story
• there were already a lot of fictional stories regarding his life,
◦ and how he came to be the founder of a new church movement
• I suppose, that as his son, it was important to me,
◦ that people learned how God worked in his life to make him the man he was
- however, I knew that though dad was a gifted storyteller,
• he was not a writer, and would never find the time to produce an autobiography
◦ so I volunteered to be his ghost-writer, and he agreed
• I’m telling you this, because there’s something in his book I’m going to read

What are we witnessing in this archetypal story?

First, why do I refer to the story as “archetypal”?
– archetypes have to do with basic themes planted in the human mind
• familiar themes are revealed in the heroes, heroines, and villains of fables, myths, and fairytales
◦ these characters represent specific qualities that define human persons and their behavior
◦ including: virtuous, courageous, clever, creative, wise or foolish, industrious or lazy
• the plot of the stories, and the actors differ from culture to culture,
◦ but the qualities are universal, so we recognize when they’re pointed out to us
– in this story of Eli and Samuel, the archetypal theme is similar to the “the sorcerer’s apprentice”
• it doesn’t follow specific rules, because Eli was a priest and not a prophet
◦ but he was familiar with prophecy and could give Samuel basic instructions
• so first, after a delayed response, Eli discerns what is happening to Samuel
◦ he is able to explain to the boy that God is calling to him
◦ and, then he instructs him how to respond to receive God’s message