Written between the third and first centuries BCE, the Dead Sea Scrolls include the oldest known biblical manuscripts in existence. In 68 BCE, they were hidden in 11 caves in the Judean desert on the shores of the Dead Sea to protect them from the approaching Roman armies. They weren’t discovered again until 1947, when a Bedouin shepherd threw a rock in a cave and realized something was inside. … Among other topics, the scrolls offer critical insights into life and religion in ancient Jerusalem, including the birth of Christianity.

Now the Google corporation has announced a new project to make the Dead Sea Scrolls, said to be the most important archeological discovery of the 20th century, accessible to the world.

[via The Official Google Blog]

The earth is the Lord’s and all that’s in it,

the world, and those who live in it;

for God has founded it on the seas,

and established it on the rivers.

–Psalm 24

It’s the 40th anniversary of Earth Day today. If you’ve been enjoying the “Life” series on cable as I have, you’ll like this short film, beautifully produced by Mirko Faienza, called “My Father’s Garden.”   To see the beauty of the natural world so close-up, it reminds me that I need to give more care and attention to God’s creation.

My Father’s Garden from Mirko Faienza on Vimeo.

Church of the Beatitudes

Church of the Beatitudes

Church of the Beatitudes, Sea of Galilee

Likely the place where Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount.  The Church of the Beatitudes is constructed in a hexagonal shape, reflecting the 8 Beatitudes.

[via Occasional Sightings of the Gospel]

[photo via Stitch]

So where does science fit in? Our best science is rational, empirical, and well-thought-out. If faith is the work of the heart and soul, science is a fitting use for the human brain and God-given wisdom. And Jesus told us to love God with heart, soul, mind and strength. Christians need to reclaim the mind part of loving God. Faith and science are good neighbors. There’s no need for barbed-wire fences between them.

The United Church of Christ’s General Minister and President John Thomas has released a Pastoral Letter this week.  It’s a statement of faith that addresses the complexities of technology and theology, suggesting that the two can be complementary.

In an introduction to the Pastoral Letter, Thomas quotes Barbara Brown Taylor, an excellent preacher and writer, from her book “The Luminous Web”:

In Sunday School I learned to think of God as a very old white-bearded man on a throne, who stood above creation and occasionally stirred it with a stick. When I am dreaming quantum dreams, what I see is an infinite web of relationship, flung across the vastness of space like a luminous net. It is made of energy, not thread. As I look, I can see light moving through it as a pulse moves through veins. What I see “out there” is no different from what I feel inside. There is a living hum that might be coming from my neurons but might just as well be coming from the furnace of the stars. When I look up at them there is a small commotion in my bones, as the ashes of dead starts that house my marrow rise up like metal filings toward the magnet of their living kin.

Reverend Thomas goes on to say

Indeed, science, far from threatening our faith, can make God even more exciting for us. I pray that the Pastoral Letter will open up a new dialogue between faith and science, encouraging our deep respect for scientists while opening our faith to provocative questions and discoveries that can only enrich us.

You can download or read the Pastoral Letter from the ucc.org website here.

This is a visualization of cross references within the Christian scriptures. It began as a study of Bible passages that refer to other passages, and was developed in a graphical way that has its own sense of majesty and beauty.

From the website:

Due to the extremely high number of cross-references, this lands more on the aesthetic side of the information visualization spectrum. Different colors are used for various arc lengths, creating a rainbow like effect. The bar graph running along the bottom shows every chapter in the Bible and their respective lengths (in verses). Books alternate in color between white and light gray.

[BibleViz via The Daily Dish]

From Sunday’s sermon, Timing is Everything:

Jesus says that we need to be counted among his faithful people when that day of wonder and surprise comes. We need to be ready…we need to LIVE ready for Christ’s return.

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus gives us an example of a man working in the field and a woman grinding grain at the mill who looked just like their unprepared counterparts. They were busy at their daily work, focused on the jobs they were doing. But they had a connection to the Messiah, and when the Messiah called, they were ready.

If timing is everything, the season of Advent tells us to live in God’s timing, and live ready for the coming of our Savior. We celebrate Christ’s birth of 2,000 years ago, and we long for Christ’s coming again. That’s what the season of Advent is about… a call to see beyond business as usual, a challenge to return to God’s ways.

+++

We need to be searching too, and watching and waiting. I hope you won’t be distracted with business as usual. We need to learn to let go, learn to release our tight grip on what is, so that God might move us toward what might be.

All things happen in God’s time, and we can use the season of Advent to get ready.

But Advent is not the time to prepare for the coming of Christmas. Advent is the time to prepare for the coming of Christ.

[image courtesy of The Ongoing Adventures of ASBO Jesus]

The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;

for God founded it upon the seas
and established it upon the waters. –Psalm 24

Today is Blog Action Day, and bloggers around the world are posting information about environmental issues. How about we simply celebrate the beautiful world that God has created, and pledge to do better in keeping God’s creation clean and ready for future generations? After all, it’s a gift given for us to enjoy and to manage. Taking care of God’s green earth is part of the stewardship of resources we’re responsible for. Frankly, our record as Christians hasn’t been too good throughout history. Join me in recycling more, consuming less, and giving thanks more frequently.

• Do you know how much your lifestyle contributes to greenhouse gas emissions? There’s an interesting calculator at The Nature Conservancy site.
• If you want specific information about how to be a better steward, see the extensive list of suggestions at Treehugger.

From Sunday’s sermon:

The disciples say, “Give us more faith.” They are asking Jesus to help strengthen their belief in what God can do through them and for them. And Jesus gives an interesting reply, “If you had faith as a grain of mustard seed, you could uproot a tree and plant it in the sea.” That “if” is the kind of “if” that says… “and you do”. Like this: “If you had faith the size of a mustard seed (and you do)…use it to do great things.” The little seed of faith within us is enough to do great things.

I drove up to the church one morning this week and I noticed that Mike C. had changed the church sign. I don’t know what inspired him, but…did you notice?…it’s a single word. Two letters. I-F. “IF”. That’s all it says! I first thought he hadn’t finished. But it made me stop and think; it hung with me for a while. What does it mean? IF what? IF who? What IF? And I told staff in the office that it was the best church sign ever! I love it, and I think it was divinely inspired. It’s an IF from Jesus. It’s a hopeful, optimistic “if”. And Jesus gives us another IF today…”if you have faith the size of a tiny mustard seed”…and it’s an IF that adds, “…and you do.”

Jewish folk show great reverence for the scriptures.  When the scroll is taken from the ark, it is ceremonially uncovered and the rabbi and temple leaders parade with it through the congregation.  Those who wish can touch the scroll with their prayer book or prayer shawl.  It’s really cool to wear a yarmulke too, that little hat for men that shows reverence in God’s presence.  I’ve always wondered how they stay on so well, but the one I borrowed stayed on just fine.  If you’ve never been to a Jewish service, there are usually a box of yarmulkes at the back for those who don’t have one.

It’s a great experience to share in worship with those of other faith expressions.  Our Confirmation Class will have that opportunity in the spring when they attend a Seder feast.  I’m always reminded of how much we have in common with our Jewish forebears–Jesus, of course, probably attended Rosh Hashanah services just over 2000 years ago.  The scripture readings this morning were familiar and comforting.  Some readings were in Hebrew, but most in English. The prayers, like those in the Christian tradition, acknowledged God’s goodness and our need for repentence and a fresh start.

And then we were blessed, using one of my favorite benedictions.  Maybe it will bless you today too.

May the Lord bless you and keep you; may the Lord’s face shine upon you and be gracious unto you; may the Lord’s countenance be upon you and give you peace.  — Numbers 6:24-26