Exodus 29 – The ceremony for the dedication or ordination of priests follows: “Take a young bull and two rams with no defects. Then, using choice wheat flour and no yeast, make loaves of bread, thin cakes mixed with olive oil, and wafers spread with oil. Place them all in a single basket, and present them at the entrance of the Tabernacle, along with the young bull and the two rams” (29:1-2).

Aaron and his sons are to be washed with water at the entrance of the…

Exodus 28 - The vestments shall have breast-pieces, ephods, robes, brocaded tunic, miter and sash. Onyx stones—one for each of the sons of Israel—engraved with the names in order of birth, shall be set in the shoulder strap of the ephod.  The breastplate “of decision” made with various precious stones (the names of which seem to vary with each English translation)—12 different ones: carnelian, topaz, emerald—garnet, sapphire, beryl—jacinth, agate, amethyst—chrysolite, onyx, jasper…

Exodus 27 – The altar or “slaughter-site” [Schocken] shall be a square – five by five cubits, three cubits high. It is to be made of bronze and there are to be “horns” on each corner of bronze. Like the ark, it too shall have poles so that it may be carried.

The courtyard of the sanctuary should be enclosed with linen curtains hung on silver hooks and rings. The curtain shall be decorated “with beautiful embroidery in blue, purple and scarlet thread”…

What you must believe

Some time ago I wrote a little essay based on ministry I gave in worship with the title “It’s not about belief.”  In it, I assert that Quakerism has room for all kinds of theological beliefs because it is based not on faith but on practice.

I now think this assertion is not wholly true, because there is one thing you have to believe to be a Quaker: You have to believe it works.

You have to…

Exodus 26 – The dwelling tent shall be made of linen sheets of violet, purple and scarlet yarn, with cherubim embroidered on the sheets.  Each sheet shall be 28 cubits [42’] high by 4 cubits [6’] wide.  Five sheets are to be sewed together and then another five sewed together.  Along the edge of the end sheet there should be loops of violet yarn (50 on each end sheet) and 50 clasps of gold to join the sheets.  On top of this there is also to be another covering of woven goat…

Exodus 25 – The next section deals with the construction of the “tabernacle” or “dwelling” [“ark of the covenant” and “holy shrine” are other translations used] in great detail.  This tabernacle or ark will be carried by the people as they go on their journey to the Promised Land; it prefigures the Temple that will come later and perhaps even the Real Presence we celebrate as Christians and the Inner Light that guides us in our…

Exodus 24 – Moses goes up the mountain again, this time with Aaron, Nadab, Abihu (Aaron’s sons) and 70 elders, but only Moses is permitted to “come close” (24:2). 

Moses writes down all that the Lord tells him and in the morning erects an altar and 12 pillars or stones at the foot of the mountain.  He sprinkles blood on the altar and puts half of it in large bowls. The people confirm their allegiance to the covenant and he sprinkles the blood from the bowls on them,…

Exodus 23 – The listing of wrongs continues: Do not spread false rumors; do not side with the majority to the perversion of justice; do NOT favor the poor in a lawsuit when the facts do not support their cause [this is an interesting one]; do not mistreat foreigners; do not accept bribes.  What to do if you find lost property; caring for animals—even if they belong to people who hate you and your help will indirectly help your…

April 3, 2013

“Supreme Court Debates Same-Sex Marriage – Should We?”   This was the title of a recent blog post by Micah Bales that has stayed on my mind.  In it, he says he strongly supports moves towards legalization of same-sex marriage and yet harbors reservations.

Concerning his reservations, he says, “I recoil from the rights language that so many advocates of gay equality have…

Exodus 22 – More laws are presented that give us a perspective on how the Mosaic law dealt with morally complex cases: thefts of animals by those who can pay fines and by those who can’t; cattle that “wander” away from grazing lands and into crop-lands where they do damage to others; fires that are started for proper reasons but that get out of control; injuries to animals in the custody of people who are not their owners; seduction of virgin girls who are engaged to someone and those…

Exodus 21 – Now we get into some of the details of the Mosaic Law, details that my Jerusalem Bible call the “Book of the Covenant” and notes that come from the “Elohistic” tradition.

This division of Old Testament texts into Jahwist, Elohist, Priestly and Deuteronomist traditions was very well established in the 20^th century, but more recent…

For Palm Sunday we had an experiential, intergenerational worship time complete with children's story and palm branches. Listen to the podcasthere!

Exodus 20 – The Ten “Words” or Commandments:  Schocken points out that they are unusual in that no penalties are attached for breaking them as in the more detailed regulations.  They are the framework against which the more detailed infractions can be understood.  The order differs for Jews as it does for Catholics and Protestants.  The following is the Jewish division:

Tablet 1

• I am YHWH “who brought you out from the land of Egypt. .…