Lectionary Reflection
Year A, Lent 1
Standard (Episcopal) Lectionary – Revised
Common Lectionary
Old Testament – Hebrew Scripture
|
Genesis 2: 4b-9, 15-17, 25 –
3: 7 (Episcopal [Standard] Lectionary)
Genesis 2: 15-17; 3: 1-7 (Revised
Common Lectionary)
|
[Start
Standard Lectionary] In the day that the LORD
God made the earth and the heavens, when no plant
of the field was yet in the earth and no herb of
the field had yet sprung up-- for the LORD God had
not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there
was no one to till the ground; but a stream would
rise from the earth, and water the whole face of
the ground-- then the LORD God formed man from the
dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils
the breath of life; and the man became a living
being. And the LORD God planted a garden in Eden,
in the east; and there he put the man whom he had
formed. Out of the ground the LORD God made to grow
every tree that is pleasant to the sight and good
for food, the tree of life also in the midst of
the garden, and the tree of the knowledge of good
and evil.
[Start
RCL] The LORD God took the man and put him in
the garden of Eden to till it and keep it. And the
LORD God commanded the man, "You may freely
eat of every tree of the garden; but of the tree
of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not
eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall
die."
[Standard
Lectionary only] And the man and his wife were
both naked, and were not ashamed. [Resume both
Lectionaries] Now the serpent was more crafty
than any other wild animal that the LORD God had
made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, `You
shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
The woman said to the serpent, "We may eat
of the fruit of the trees in the garden; but God
said, `You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree
that is in the middle of the garden, nor shall you
touch it, or you shall die.'" But the serpent
said to the woman, "You will not die; for God
knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be
opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and
evil." So when the woman saw that the tree
was good for food, and that it was a delight to
the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to
make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and
she also gave some to her husband, who was with
her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both were opened,
and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed
fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.
[End both Lectionaries]
|
|
| New
Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989
by the Division of Christian Education of the
National Council of the Church of Christ in the
USA, and used by permission. |
|
|
Reflection
on Genesis 2: 4b-9, 15-17, 25 –
3: 7
by Nan Stokes
The Old Testament
reading for the beginning of Lent is a "never get tired of hearing
it" kind of reading – the account of creation, including
the formation of a human from the dust of the ground. God had
even provided for a way to water the earth before he caused
it to rain – "a stream would rise from the earth and water
the whole face of the ground." Then he formed the living being
to be in the garden in Eden and to till that ground and keep
it and care for the plants which grew and were pleasant to the
sight and good for food. Even though we are no longer in the
garden, we need to continue to keep the ground and care for
the plants and the creatures God created, including humans.
This is an important and serious task and becomes more imperative
with the passing of time. It could even be one part of
our Lenten discipline.
We know the rest
of the story – that we return to dust and need to be reminded
of how far we have strayed from that perfection. Temptations
continue to abound all about us, and during this penitential
season, we strive to get centered in faith so we can deal with
everything in the world that impacts us in our daily life and
work.
|
|
Copyright
© 1991-2008, The Environmental Stewardship Commission,
Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota, all rights reserved.
The information on the pages of this website may be
retransmitted for information purposes, but may not
be used in any non-MEESC publication (other than that
of the Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota) without the written
permission of the Chair of the Commission.
All retransmissions, postings, and publications or this
webpage must include this notice.
|
back
to original
|
|
Nan
Stokes was an active member of St. Edward's Episcopal Church,
Duluth, MN, when she originally wrote this reflection in 1999.
Nan and we welcome your comments. Please address your comments
or additional reflections to Nan
Stokes or any MEESC
member, or mail them to:
MEESC
c/o C. Morello
4451 Lakeside Drive
Eveleth, MN 55743-4400 USA |
The MEESC assumes that all correspondence
received is for publication on this web site. If your comments
are not for publication, please so note on your correspondence.
The MEESC reserves the right to decide which items are included
on the website.
|
|
.