This week, Father Perry writes from Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor.
By Father Perry D. Leiker, pastor
A reflection on the daily readings, for Saturday of the Third Week of Lent, by Father Perry.
+ There are some wonderful qualities or things that happen in the scriptures that either speak of incredible and very creative writing, or truly inspired words of God, or both.
Three such things are clearly a part of the word of God today.
There is a kind of “cross referencing” that happens often in the scriptures.
Cross referencing is phrases, words or ideas that seem to refer and link with the same hundreds of years before or after.
Some of those words or ideas jump out at us today from Hosea: “On the third day …”.
And in the same sentence, we hear of “spring rain that waters the earth” that cannot but cause us to think of baptismal waters that bring life to our souls and spirit.
And back and forth we hear of God’s mercy and love that “binds up our wounds” and “heals us” and through which we are actually invited “to live in his presence.”
It would be remarkable if we heard this even one time in the scriptures.
But like a kind of cross referencing it happens to the prophets, and through the prophets, and in the words of the prophets over hundreds of years; then, again through Jesus and taught by Jesus, and passed on to and through the apostles.
And now in, through and for us!
It almost happens in a “serendipitous” way; that is, it just seems to innocently occur unexpectedly, although many would believe it is simply the integrative, cohesive, all-encompassing, and eternal word of God at work over the ages and probably for all time.
But apart from or in addition to this cross referencing and serendipitous stuff going on, there is also what some would call the “Alice in Wonderland”-like descriptive quality and teaching that especially is abundant in and through the teachings of Jesus.
In fact, they would almost seem to be core to Jesus’ teaching.
It just isn’t enough for Jesus to bring up or refer to self righteousness versus humility.
Oh no! Rather, he encapsulates this as teaching through parable storytelling that stingingly and visually makes it so present and available to us as lived and livable wisdom.
In his “Alice in Wonderland”-style of teaching, he gives us “up is down, and down is up”; and “in is out, and out is in.”
And we are led to discover wisdom and life, and living and goodness and Godness through the truly simple and ordinary.
Imagine a religious man doing actual good religious activities is not spiritually nourished by his efforts but becomes, instead, self-righteous, judging, condemning, seemingly bitter, ugly and nasty, arrogant, and proud.
So much for fasting and paying tithes.
The Pharisee and tax collector.
