Has anything changed under the sun? "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which one can say, “Look! This is something new”? It was here already, long ago." Eccl 1:9-10
Mordecai's life is in danger. Esther's life is in danger. The death of all Jews is imminent. Their deaths have been secured with payment to the king's treasury by Haman. Esther, although the wife of King Xerxes, finds it out, not from her husband, but from Mordecai. And... yet, she is reluctant to go to the king to intercede for her people. The king is not aware, yet, that she is a Jew and what is more anyone who enters (including the queen) the presence of the king without being called is in danger of being put to death. I think maybe she thinks that somehow she will be immune from the destruction that has been decreed upon all Jews. She's got a pretty good chance of dying either way. When she finally agrees, she asks that all her people, all of the Jews, spend the next three day fasting.
The payment is my concern this morning. Has anything changed under the sun? Money has been known for changing the way we live for the good or bad. How much money is spent in manipulating (lobbying) for specific interests that in the end changes our lifestyles and sometimes to the degree that it has killed a lifestyle? Since, we just finished with a week of confirmation classes, the commandments "thou shall not kill" and "thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor" come to mind. How much money is spent on false advertising to undermine opponents. And in the end, how much of this bearing false witness actually affects the lives of both the candidates and constituates? How many spirits are weakened by this lack of integrity? According the Luther's Small Catechism what is the meaning of the 5th commandment about murdering mean?
"We should fear and love God that we may not hurt nor harm our neighbor in his body, but help and befriend him in every bodily need [in every need and danger of life and body]."
So does what goes on in politicing prior to elections actually help or harm our neighbor? Will we do what we need to do to help all people or will we first think, as Queen Esther did, about what the best thing to protect our own lives is?
Just wondering....
God's Peace - Pr. J
Mordecai's life is in danger. Esther's life is in danger. The death of all Jews is imminent. Their deaths have been secured with payment to the king's treasury by Haman. Esther, although the wife of King Xerxes, finds it out, not from her husband, but from Mordecai. And... yet, she is reluctant to go to the king to intercede for her people. The king is not aware, yet, that she is a Jew and what is more anyone who enters (including the queen) the presence of the king without being called is in danger of being put to death. I think maybe she thinks that somehow she will be immune from the destruction that has been decreed upon all Jews. She's got a pretty good chance of dying either way. When she finally agrees, she asks that all her people, all of the Jews, spend the next three day fasting.
The payment is my concern this morning. Has anything changed under the sun? Money has been known for changing the way we live for the good or bad. How much money is spent in manipulating (lobbying) for specific interests that in the end changes our lifestyles and sometimes to the degree that it has killed a lifestyle? Since, we just finished with a week of confirmation classes, the commandments "thou shall not kill" and "thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor" come to mind. How much money is spent on false advertising to undermine opponents. And in the end, how much of this bearing false witness actually affects the lives of both the candidates and constituates? How many spirits are weakened by this lack of integrity? According the Luther's Small Catechism what is the meaning of the 5th commandment about murdering mean?
"We should fear and love God that we may not hurt nor harm our neighbor in his body, but help and befriend him in every bodily need [in every need and danger of life and body]."
So does what goes on in politicing prior to elections actually help or harm our neighbor? Will we do what we need to do to help all people or will we first think, as Queen Esther did, about what the best thing to protect our own lives is?
Just wondering....
God's Peace - Pr. J
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