Merry Christmas everyone! I love the fact that we keep saying Merry Christmas well into January! Yes, it’s true that H-E-B has its Valentine’s Day stuff already, but we celebrate the full twelve days of Christmas! Today is the second Sunday of Christmas, and the eleventh day of Christmas.(That’s eleven pipers piping, in case you were wondering). There are two options for a Second Sunday after Christmas Gospel lesson: there is the great story of Jesus as a 12 year old, who gets left behind in Jerusalem. His parents frantically return to the huge city in a state of panic and don’t find the tween until after three days. And when they find him, he is, oblivious to their distress, discussing, debating, and even teaching in the Great Temple among the adults. That’s Luke story though, and since it is Lectionary Year A, the year we hear mostly from Matthew, it makes sense to choose the other option that comes from Matthew’s Gospel. As I said in my Trini...
Today’s Gospel (Luke 15:1-10) contains two little parables, one of which is well known. The depiction of Jesus and the lost sheep is a favorite of many artists. Those of you who have been down to my office may have seen this icon. I love this icon. I love the way Jesus is looking at the person looking at him. And I love the sheep, who I believe has had a rambunctious and uncertain journey, is now resting contently knowing the safety of Jesus' shoulders. Such depictions are often referred to as “Jesus the Good Shepherd”, and until this week I have always thought of it as such. And yet it illustrates a touch of misunderstanding here: “I am the Good Shepherd” is a text from John’s Gospel. It is one of the seven “I am” statements found only in that Gospel. That’s a sermon for another day. The story of seeking the lost sheep from the flock of 100 is a different, only Matthew and Luke story, and in Luke’s version the unique lost coin parabl...