The Mink

The Mink

The college freshman affirmed her autonomy.  “Carver made an incredible impact!  He’s a genius, compassionate, my mentor!”

Hands waiving the air as if sweeping her aside, Hami, her brother, winced in agony ridiculing her.  “You goin’ Iowa State ‘cause Carver goes there?  What idiot does that?”

“Carver?  He’s dead.”  Blushing, Mia grinned adeptly rolling her eyes over her brother’s left shoulder as not to offend him for his lack of knowledge.  “I chose botany and genetics.  I chose Iowa State because they’re great in both.”

“You dying to be dead.”  Hami teased mocking.  “His spirit talking to you?”

“I do read, Hami.”  Mia reached across the table to clutch his sleeve, trap his attention, but he moved quickly to avoid.  “You should try it sometime.”

“Hey guys,” a youthful café owner prompted as she cleaned the dining counter, “time to close shop.” She dried her hands on her festive apron.  Her smile welcomed payment for their meal. “On Christmas Eve, you got a better place to be than my diner.”

Christmas Fertilizer

Merry Christmas!  Today I write to you about manure.

What does manure have to do with Christmas?  To start with, Jesus was born in a stable, which isn’t exactly the most sterile of environments.  Despite the overly idealized versions of our current Nativity scenes, Jesus’ birth was certainly not a pleasantly aromatic experience.  However, I’ve touched on that already in the past.  Today I’d like to concentrate on a very interesting take I recently heard regarding the Parable of the Barren Fig Tree. 

Luke 13:6-9 (taken from usccb.org online bible):

And he told them this parable: “There once was a person who had a fig tree planted in his orchard, and when he came in search of fruit on it but found none, he said to the gardener, ‘For three years now I have come in search of fruit on this fig tree but have found none.  Cut it down.  Why should it exhaust the soil?’

He said to him in reply, ‘Sir, leave it for this year also, and I shall cultivate the ground around it and fertilize it; it may bear fruit in the future. If not you can cut it down.’”

We are all familiar with this story about how the gardener would add tender loving care to the fig tree for a year to try to revive it and nurture it along.  At least that was the thought that had gone through my head whenever I hear the parable.  I imagined the gardener kneeling down beside the tree and gingerly patting up dirt around its base with his bare hands.  I imagined him spreading fertilizer around the soil, and whenever I did, in my mind it somehow looked like the bleached white granules you pour out of a Miracle-Gro bag.  I’ll admit I probably even envisioned him wrapping his blanket around the trunk, and having the fig tree spring back to life, just like Linus did in “A Charlie Brown Christmas.” 

Exile

O come, O come, Emmanuel

And ransom captive Israel

That mourns in lonely exile here

Until the Son of God appear

Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel

Shall come to thee, O Israel

These are familiar words this time of year.  As early as mid-November they can be heard on the radio, and they are sung numerous times at mass during this Advent season.  I've known them since my youth, but the meaning has come to light in a much deeper way as I have come to better understand what it means to be an Exile.

From the website "Online Etymology Dictionary" -

Several etymologies are possible. It might be a derivative of a verb *ex-sulere 'to take out' to the root *selh- 'to take', cf. consul and consulere; hence exsul 'the one who is taken out'. It might belong to amb-ulare < *-al- 'to walk', hence 'who walks out'. It might even belong to *helh-, the root of [Greek elauno] 'to drive': ex-ul 'who is driven out' ["Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages"]

In my 51 years I have cultivated a home, with a wonderful wife and family, a job that provides for our sustenance plus, and a relationship with a loving God - so I will have to admit that I don't feel like one who has been 'taken or driven out of my home', like someone who is captive and in need of ransom.  I don't feel lonely (mostly), and mourning is not something I commonly experience.

So how does this song apply to me, and how can I be considered an exile?

Pulling back the Veil

So as many of you can attest, I am no biblical scholar.  I normally digest scripture in small palatable bites, like a Pinterest motivational poster.  I'm realizing that I miss out on some amazing stories when I don't actually "read" the Bible.  Recently I did some research after a reading in mass caught my attention.  I came across a podcast that helped me put all the pieces together, and I thought it was worth sharing.

The book of Daniel has a lot of great narratives. The Lion’s Den, the three men who survive the fiery furnace, the writing on the wall.  The book in a lot of ways serves as a template for our ancestors, as well as all of us today, to understand who Jesus was.

This book of the bible is referred to as apocalyptic literature.  Apocalyptic doesn’t necessarily point to the end of the world, but a pulling back of the veil. In Latin pulling back the “velum”.  Apocalyptic is about revealing something; showing a new world. 

The story I found so interesting was about King Nebuchadnezzar.  He had a dream that really disturbed him and he couldn't sleep until he found out what it meant.  None of his wise men or fortune tellers could decipher it so all of them were to be put to death.  Daniel, an Israelite from Judah was grouped in with these magicians to be executed.  He asked God to reveal the dream and its meaning in prayer so he could approach the king.  His prayer was granted.

The dream was of a statue made of a variety of substances.  The head was of gold, the breast and arms are of silver, it’s belly and thighs of brass, and  the feet of clay.  A stone that was cut from a mountainside and not by human hands was hurled at the statue, destroying it.  

Daniel immediately, confidently explained the meaning of the dream to Nebuchadnezzar.  The statue represented several different kingdoms that would follow one upon the other, until ultimately they would be replaced by a kingdom created by God - 'not made by human hands'. 

7^thchapter in the book of Daniel, this prophecy is reinforced with a dream that Daniel himself now has.  Four great beasts come out of the sea.  The first a lion, the second like a bear, the third a leopard and the fourth a terrible animal with ten horns and teeth like iron.  Weird dream.  Then the “Ancient Days” (God) took his thrown and thousands ministered to him. The four beasts had the power of dominion taken from them.  Then Daniel sees one, “Like the son of man”, coming on the clouds of heaven.  He arrives at the throne and is given dominion power and glory and all nations will serve him.

There is a reference again of four kingdoms that will succeed one another and a final kingdom, not of human origin that will come to be.  At the head of it will be a heavenly figure who is like the Son of Man.

These two dreams confirm one another. Something is being revealed here.

When will all of this take place?  Look at the 9^thChapter of the book of Daniel. This isn’t a dream, but a direct angelic revelation.  Daniel, like all pious Jews follow the teaching of Jeremiah, learned that the restoration of Jerusalem will happen after seventy years.   Keep in mind Israel was taken away by the Babylonians.  The most traumatic event in the history of Israel.  September 11^th times 1,000.  The temple was destroyed and the leadership taken off into exile.

Jeramiah said after 70 years the new kingdom would arrive.  Daniel like all of the Israelites are wondering, what gives?  Is God’s promise going to deliver?  It’s been way past 70 years.  

The angel Gabriel appears to Daniel.  Gabriel explains to Daniel that this means 70 weeks of years.  Keep in mind the ancient Israelites loved playing with numbers and number symbolism. So 70 X 7 is 490 years.  

Ok, what would a Jew whose been reading the book of Daniel be expecting?  They would be expecting four wicked kingdoms to rise and fall before a final kingdom would be ushered in.  Furthermore, they would be expecting this about 500 years after the Babylonian captivity which took place at around 500 B.C.  Imagine living in the first century.  They have seen four kingdoms emerge.  Babylon, Persia, Greece, and Rome.  They knew they were living around 500 years after the captivity.  Can you see why there was so much expectation for the Messiah at that time?

And then what happens?  Out of the hills of Galilee comes a prophet who is preaching of the Kingdom of God.  The Kingdom of God is arriving is a way to fulfil the prophecy in the book of Daniel.  

Finally, think of the words Jesus himself spoke to the Sanhedrin after he was arrested.  They ask, “Are you the messiah?”  Jesus answers, “I am.”  “And you will see the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven.”   He is directly citing Daniel chapter 7.  He is claiming that he himself is the human divine figure, that after the fall of the four kingdoms, would be given dominion.  

This is the great unveiling of a kingdom not made by human hands who succeeds a series of fallen kingdoms and has a dominion that lasts forever.  

The kingdom of the church is not a political organization or some club, it’s a kingdom not made by human hands.  Will it be opposed by the kingdoms of the world, you bet. Will it be triumphant.  Yes, the gates of hell will not prevail against it.

The mission of the church, from its beginning up to today is to continue to pull back the veil and reveal this great truth.

As we approach the Advent season, we too will wait for the Messiah to come.  May the season be filled with that anticipation as well as the faith that our divinely appointed church will withstand these turbulent times.