Stegosaurus = “roof lizard”
Στέγος - roof Σαύρα - lizard The verb form of stegos, στέγω (stego) means to keep, repel, protect, uphold, bear, or cover. All things which a roof or the armored plating of a stegosaurus do quite nicely. Here is a Clever Verse for your reading pleasure: 7 [Love] bears (stego) all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Corinthians 13:7). I guess we could also call the stegosaurs the "love lizard"
0 Comments
A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
κόπριον (koprion) dirt, filth, dung, manure A Clever Verse for Context He replied, ‘Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure (koprion) on it (Luke 13:8) Clever Reflections Spiritual I suppose if you are a fig tree, having someone dump manure (koprion) all over you is not a bad thing. For us humans, however, a bucket of manure to the feet, or, in the case of the unfortunate consul Bibulus, to the head, is an unpleasant and stinky experience. But crap, like air, water, and love is also the stuff of life. When the world gives us challenges, setbacks and grief (aka crap), God sustains us and helps us to grow. Life will give us more than we can handle, but nothing is too great or too repulsive for God to transform for good and for growth. Literary The historian Plutarch in his biography of Gaius Pompey describes civil unrest in the city of Rome, including an incident where manure or filth (koprion) is dumped over the head of the Roman Consul Bibulus (Plutarch, Pompey 48:1). Clever Questions for Further Reflection When have you felt overwhelmed by life’s difficulties? How have you experienced God in challenging and even hopeless situations? A Clever Prayer to Close Swift to its close ebbs out life’s little day. Earth’s joys grow dim, its glories pass away. Change and ecay in all around I see. Oh, Thou Who Changest Not, abide with me. ~Abide With Me, Henry F. Lyte A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
ἀμπελουργός (ampelourgos) gardener, vine-dresser A Clever Verse for Context So he said to the gardener (ampelourgos), ‘See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?’ (Luke 13:7) Clever Reflections Spiritual The vine-dresser or gardener (ampelourgos) in Luke’s fig tree parable is unafraid to get his hands dirty. His response to the fig tree’s unfruitfulness is to dig in the dirt and slather on a healthy dose of manure. Part of the fun of a good parable is sorting out who is who in the story. Most often, we tend to read this story an assume that we are the unfruitful fig tree and Jesus is the merciful gardener. Certainly Jesus as the Word Incarnate did do some substantial digging into the very stuff of our humanity, much of it filthy. But parables are open ended. What does it mean for us to take on the role of the vine-dresser? At Jesus’ invitation we are given a chance to examine our hearts and deal with our crap as we continue to grow into the people God created us to be. Literary The protagonist Trygaeus in Aristophanes’ comedy Peace is a farmer, and even introduces himself to the God Hermes as a good vine-dresser, (ampelourgos). In the play he flies to Olympus on the back of an enormous dung beetle he has kept fed on the excrement of various animals. His desire for peace as a farmer is contrasted with the various politicians and tradesmen who continue to profit from the ongoing war. Clever Questions for Further Reflection In what situations have you found yourself practicing self-examination aka working through your crap? How has this work helped you to grow and flourish? A Clever Prayer to Close O Lord, you have searched me and known me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high; I cannot attain it. Psalm 139:1-6 A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
συκῆ (suke) Fig tree A Clever Verse for Context Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none (Luke 13:6). Clever Reflections Spiritual If we are to go by the synoptic gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus has it in for fig trees. In both Matthew and Mark Jesus responds to the unripe fruit of an out of season fig tree by cursing the tree and causing its leaves to wither (Matthew 21:19-21, Mark 11:12-14, 20-21). In Luke we get something different, a parable on an unfruitful fig tree and its uncertain fate (Luke 13:6-9). Perhaps Luke’s addition to this story is the suggestion that both trees and people have seasons, times when we are fruitful and times when we are not. Anything different is nothing short of miraculous. To the fast paced and downright hangry Jesus of Matthew and Mark, the Evangelist Luke brings a gospel of patience. Literary The fig tree is one of fruit trees included in the orchard of the Phaeacians in Homer’s Odyssey. Nurtured by the gentle West Wind the trees continuously pass from growth to ripening without ever lying dormant during the winter (Odyssey 7.115-120) Clever Questions for Further Reflection When have you experienced a season of unfruitfulness? How did that time challenge you and how did it benefit you? A Clever Prayer to Close Holy One, for all of our planting, watering, and general fretting, you are the one who gives our growth. Bless us in our fruitful times and sustain us when we lie dormant. Teach us patience. In Your Strong Name we pray, Amen. A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
πιστός faithful, trusty A Clever Verse for Context No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful (pistos), and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13) Clever Reflections Spiritual Paul tells us that God is faithful (pistos). We humans are faithful too, but our quirks and flaws can sometimes distract from how holy that faithfulness can be. Our own lives are sustained and nourished by the imperfect people who are nevertheless faithful. I’m talking about the people who show up help lead worship even if they know they’re going to once again say Philippines instead of Philippians, the people who sing off key because someone needs to sing that hymn, gosh darn it, and the people who always managed to say the wrong thing and so just show up with a casserole and a smile, because it's the right thing to do. God is faithful and so we are empowered to be faithful too, never knowing just how much of God’s Kingdom is built by the faithful showing up of imperfect people. Literary The historian Herodotus uses the word faithful (pistos ) in a way that gives us a better appreciation for the full range of the word’s meaning. Harpagus, the servant of King Astyages, is described as being most faithful (pistotaton). He is described in this way as the King gives him the unpleasant and morally questionable task of disposing of the King’s infant grandson, whom the King believes to be a threat. Harpagus’ faithfulness is presented in terms of his ability to see the grim task through and do so discreetly. Though to find out just how pistos Harpagus turns out to be, I’d recommend you investigate Herodotus’ The Histories. Clever Questions for Further Reflection Who are the imperfect yet faithful people in your life? How have they helped and sustained you? When have you been faithful and a friend, spouse, or confidant? A Clever Prayer to Close 21 But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: 22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,[b] his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.” Lamentations: 3:21-23 A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
Πειρασμός (peirasmos) trial, test A Clever Verse for Context No testing (peirasmos) has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing (peirasmos) he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13) Spiritual Tragedy of all sorts can teach us a lot: about ourselves, about our loved ones about our own resiliency. I have experienced and accompanied others through enough tragedy that I cannot and will not simply say God sends calamity our way to test our faith. God is, afterall, God and knows perfectly well the substance of our faith all ready. We live in a broken creation where bad things will happen to good, bad, and faithful alike. The grace of any trials that come our way is not in the experience itself, but in what happens after, the results, if you will. The way we encounter unexpected grace in the compassion, care, and food that tends to show up in the wake of tragedy. The way we find ourselves whispering prayer even when we’re furious with God, humanity, and the universe in general. God does not test us, God stays with us, surrounds us, and sustains us, even the midst of trial. Literary While πειρασμός (peirasmos) is found only in New Testament Greek it is related to the word πεῖρα (peira). Both words can mean a trial or test, but peira can also mean an attempt or experiment. A Clever Prayer to Close 1 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? 2 How long must I bear pain[a] in my soul, and have sorrow in my heart all day long? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? 3 Consider and answer me, O Lord my God! Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep the sleep of death, 4 and my enemy will say, “I have prevailed”; my foes will rejoice because I am shaken. 5 But I trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. 6 I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me. Psalm 13 Dilophosaurus = “double-crested lizard” Δῐλοφος - double crested Σαύρα - lizard The Liturgisaur enjoyed getting his dino-selfie with a cheerful Dilophosaurus! A Clever Word for the Season of Lent
οἶκος (oikos) house, household A clever Verse for Context See, your house (oikos) is left to you. And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, "Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.' (Luke 13:35) Clever Reflections Spiritual Households can be small: a lady and her two cats, for instance, or large: a whole clan of assorted parents, grandparents, cousins and in-laws. It can even be larger referring to a people, nation, or church. But what a household comes down to is interdependence. The members of the household need one another, relate to one another, cannot help but be involved with one another. Even if the health of that involvement is debatable. Somehow as God’s people we are called to be a household together, to be involved with one another’s lives. It is through our household management as church, our economics (oikonomicos), that we encounter and put on Christ for one another. Literary The English word “economics” comes from the Greek οἰκονομικός (oikonomikos), an adjective meaning “well-managed with respect to the household (oikos),” and from there, simply “thrifty” or “well-ordered.” The Oikonomikos is also the name of a philosophical treatise by Xenophon (4th cent. BCE), which is written as a dialogue on the proper management of a household and the arrangement of domestic affairs. Clever Questions for Further Reflection What does your household look like? What is challenging about your household and what is lifegiving? When has household management (oikonomikos) been life giving? A Clever Prayer to Close Holy One, Strengthen us in the bearing of one another’s burdens. Encourage us in our involvement in each other’s lives. Empower us to hear, feed, and love one another. Bless us in the management of our household and your Body. Amen A Clever Word for the Season of Lent πτέρυξ (pterux) wing A Clever Verse for Context How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings (pterux), and you were not willing! (Luke 13:34) Clever Reflections Spiritual Every now and then, when I’m spending time with my sister she’ll take a look at me and give my hair a good scrunch (keeps the curls in good shape, you see). If I happen to be leading worship and she’s visiting, she’s been known to reach over and straighten out my stole. There’s a comfort in that. While there’s always a part of us determined to make it on our own and be the ones in control, there is also such relief in finding ourselves under someone else’s wing (pterux). For a moment we are reminded that someone has gone first, seen the danger and found a way through. Someone knows what we are going through and offers us comfort. It may not seem like much: a straightened stole, a scrunched up curl, a screen of feathers between us and the world. But in the moment, somehow, it is always just enough. Enough to remind us who we are, whose we are, and that we are beloved. Literary A Bonus Dino Selfie!!!!! Bonus dino etymology: Pterodactyl - “winged finger”
πτέρυξ - wing Δάκτυλος - finger A friendly Pterodactyl offered the Liturgisaur shelter beneath its tiny little finger wings! Clever Questions for Further Reflection Who are the people who have taken you under their wing? What exactly did they do? How did it help? A Clever Prayer to Close 1 But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. 2 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. Isaiah 43:1-2 A Clever Word for the Season of Lent:
ὄρνις (ornis) bird (including both birds of prey and domestic fowl) A Clever Verse for Context How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen (ornis) gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! (Luke 13:34) Clever Reflections Spiritual It’s a mystery. We have no problem depicting God as lamb, lion, flame, and giant disembodied hand, but the number of church banners decorated with God the Mother Hen that I have seen are few and far between (though I have seen them). God as chicken (duck, turkey, peacock etc.) is not all that impressive. The outraged clucking of a concerned mother hen does not measure up well to the thunder and trumpet blasts that come from Mount Sinai in the book of Exodus (Exodus 20). But God comes into our world not just awe us, but to teach us and even change us. There is wisdom in God the Mother Bird, determined to round up Her wayward chicks. There is wisdom in a God who has only feathers and love to place between Her Own and the evils of the world. As bird we see God as persistent, loving, and vulnerable. In the same way God is also revealed to us in Christ Jesus: persistent, loving, and vulnerable. Literary The word ornis in Greek is used for all kinds of birds (in Luke’s text, the word for “brood” helps to indicate that we’re dealing with chickens/domestic fowl). In a didactic poem called the Works and Days, the Greek poet Hesiod (7th cent. BCE) tells a story about two different birds: a hawk and a nightingale. He describes how the hawk, a “swift-winged bird (ornis)” catches the nightingale in his terrible talons (onux, see last Sunday’s etymology!). When the nightingale cries out, the hawk replies that only a fool tries to struggle with those who are stronger than him (see Hesiod, Works and Days, lines 202-213). Clever Questions for Further Reflection Who do you admire not for their strength but for their humility and vulnerability? When have you seen gentleness accomplish more than strength? A Clever Prayer to Close 1 Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.[a] 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. 5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. ~Psalm 91:1-6 |
About the Blog
Journey through the season of Advent with daily updates on the adventures of St. Mark's Lutheran Church in Belliacre, MI as they attempt to cobble together a Christmas Pageant with an unlikely cast of characters. AuthorsAmelia Corbett Illustrator
Stephanie Dubbs
Stephanie is an art educator and a landscape/portrait artist. Her inspirations come from the amazing people she meets and the gorgeous state of Michigan as well as her home state of Florida. She and he husband love nature. They are out in the water during the summer months and on the snow in the winter enjoying the simple pleasures of life. Archives
December 2021
Categories |