Esther: A True Hero of the Faith
A well-beloved ambassador arrives in many churches throughout the country this Sunday via the RCL (Track #1) lectionary: Esther. The inspiration for the Jewish feast of Purim, she is one of only a handful of biblical women who regularly crosses the divide between religious and secular worlds. Memorialized in books and films, she is beautiful, brave, kind, patient and smart. Remarkably...
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The Woman in Proverbs 31: Yikes!
Okay. There’s a woman in the Bible that leaves me feeling a little, well unnerved. And she comes up in this Sunday’s lectionary (RCL, Year B, September 20). Described in Proverbs 31, she’s known as the “capable wife.” Unfortunately, we’re missing a few verses in Sunday’s lectionary, which makes a huge difference. Here’s how it starts on Sunday: “A good wife who...
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The Shulammite Woman: Arise, My Love, and Come Away
Passionate. Sensual. Provocative. Eloquent. Erotic. It’s all there, in the Bible, in the beautiful collection of poems known as the Song of Solomon, otherwise known as the Song of Songs. In this Sunday’s lectionary reading (RCL), we hear the main character in the Song—an unnamed woman—eloquently describe how much she yearns to be with her lover—and how she will fully...
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Athaliah: Granny the Ripper
A friend of mine often posts photos of her baby granddaughter on Facebook. “Beautiful eyes!” we ring in. “Adorable!” we say. With dozens of other women across the country, I am now a cyber auntie, feeling the joy so evident in my friend’s soul. And that’s the way it should be—for grandmothers hold open the door to both future and past....
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The 7 Secrets of Bible Women
In third grade, I was put in a coat room at the back of the classroom for being troublesome. The coat room was not a bad place at all. It was actually a lovely place to while away an hour or two. Much better than sitting on a stool wearing a dunce hat (yes, that happened too...
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Real Mothers of the Bible: To Hell and Back for Their Children
According to a recent poll,* Mother’s Day is second only to Christmas and Easter for church attendance. So when Johnny and Jimmy and Debbie take their mothers to church this Sunday, chances are they will hear a pleasant sermon, see pretty flowers, hear upbeat music. And perhaps enjoy a nice lunch afterward. Yet that sense of “nice,” so prevalent in the...
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Samson’s mother’s story (Judges 13) Why is Samson’s mother the mystery woman of Advent? Because, like Elizabeth and Mary, she was the mother of a son whose birth was announced by God. Both she and Elizabeth were mothers of “nazarites:” men set apart by God before birth as holy men. Heroes both, John the Baptist and Samson set the stage for...
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Deborah: God, Politics and Inner Chaos
In these post-election days—depending on your point of view, of course—things might seem widely out of control, depressing, exhaustive, nonsensical. It might have appeared that way, too, in ancient Israel, in about the year 1150 BC...
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The Ten Bible Women Who Spoke the Most
Who were the ten women who said the most in the Bible? Counting down...
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