Marginal Christianity

The end of our look at Hosea as the introduction to the Book of Twelve will be to draw the message of this prophet to the fore. One overriding message of this book is the utter necessity to "walk on" in faithfulness to God in all circumstances of life. That message is captured as well as anything I know by U2's song "Walk On" from their "All That You Can't Leave Behind" album. Listen reflectively and prayerfully and mull the message of Hosea. Peace.

The Book of the Twelve for Lent 2016 The Dynamics of Life with God and as his People - Hosea (6) Lent 4           I hope you can see from the soundings we have taken in Hosea so far how rich and supple its thought and dynamics are. And how appropriate it is that the editors of this collection of prophetic books put it at the head of the collection as an introduction.           The template Hosea presents is one of repeated overtures by God to the people, repeated (partial) responses by the people followed by relapses into idolatry and disloyalty, followed by further overtures from God and less than faithful responses by the people, ending with a promise by God to do what the people cannot or will not do for themselves, forgive and restore them by grace and out of love for them.           Hosea seems to lack a tight structure instead openi...

The Book of the Twelve for Lent 2016 Creation in the Book of the Twelve – Hosea (5) Lent 3           We have seen thus far how wide and deep Hosea casts his net in probing the most basic truth of human life: God’s relationship with us. Nothing seems to escape the orbit of this relationship. Even things we might not imagine or have been led to believe have nothing to do with it.           See, truth is that God through Hosea is on the side of those who think human actions play an important role in environmental degradation! So whether you think the science behind global warming is legitimate or not, God insists that our actions, particularly our sin and idolatry, are a root cause of defiling and defacing the good creation he entrusted to our care. God says in Hosea 4:3 “Therefore the land mourns,      and all who live in it languish; together with the wild ...

The Book of the Twelve for Lent 2016 God’s Work in the Book of the Twelve – Hosea (4) Lent 2           Hosea has set up our reading of the Book of the Twelve in Lent so far by setting out two overriding themes pervading the Twelve and foundational for a faithful practice of Lent, -the character of God as love - the One who is utterly faithful to himself and to the good of those to whom he has committed himself; and -humanity’s self-chosen trail of tears known as I-dolatry – placing the I in the driver’s seat, displacing God and presumptively taking his place.           Today the prophet gives us invaluable insight into the kind of process we enter if we “return” to YHWH (8x in Hosea) in repentance and hope. But this “return” is never a matter first, our action seeking to restore and renew our life with God. Instead, even the desire to return and renew life with God is a respon...

The Book of the Twelve for Lent 2016 The Problem in the Book of the Twelve – Hosea (3) Lent 1           As the introduction to the Book of the Twelve Hosea gives a detailed profile of Israel’s problem. And since Israel bears humanity’s problem as well as its future and destiny, Israel’s problem is our problem too. And how YHWH is and what YHWH does to and for Israel is of utmost interest to us as well.           Lent is the time between two deaths – our death with Christ in baptism and our death at the end of our earthly lives. That first death enables us to embrace and live well toward that second death. Utter honesty is required for us to live well so it appropriate for us to begin Lent with as brutally frank an appraisal of our situation as we can bear. Walter Brueggemann once claimed that Israel has given the church the inestimable gift of modeling a faith that holds together ut...

The Book of the Twelve for Lent 2016 The God of the Book of the Twelve – Hosea (2) Ash Wednesday           Lent begins with Ash Wednesday’s great call to national repentance from the Book of the Twelve in Joel 2. We will get to Joel 2 in time but we will not start there in our reflections. We will start where everything Christian starts – with God. More particularly, with YHWH, the covenant, personal, familial God of Israel.           Everything, I mean everything, in life begins with and is colored by who we believe God to be. In 1995 Joan Osborne released her hit song “One of Us.” In it she asked two questions:           - If God had a name what would it be? -If God had a face what would it look like? Is God personal and can we know God, these are the questions whose answers determine in large measure the tenor and texture of o...

Hosea (1)           No, the Book of the Twelve is not some new archaeological discovery, fantasy novel or self-help program. It is the name scholars give to what most of us call the twelve books of the “Minor Prophets.” You know, there those short books tucked in the very end of the Old Testaments after the longer, “Major Prophets,” of Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel. Daniel is not considered a “prophetic” book in the Hebrew Bible even though it is included among them in our Bibles. The twelve “Minor Prophets” are considered to be one book, and hence, a fourth prophetic “book” along with the three “Major Prophets.” We read them, then, both as individual writings and then as “chapters” in a larger book. It is these chapters we will use to guide our Lenten reflections this year.           The great theme and pattern of the Bible is Exodus – Exile repeated over and over again through Israel’s ...