April 3

OT – Deuteronomy 23:1-25:19
So, clearly I just caught Moses on a bad day yesterday.
Today’s reading is full of nuggets of gold and goodness. Some goofy stuff too and things I would rather not think about (nocturnal emissions….) but good, logical social directives.
For example, the pooping outside of the camp. In 1900, social workers coming into the Appalachian mountains had to instruct the mountain people about where to place their outhouses. Now, that seems sort of logical to me – not to place my outhouse close to my well or the spring where we draw our water, but clearly, the mountain people didn’t know it and I guess Moses’ camp people didn’t either. Dysentery dropped 75% after the social workers showed up. They also had to have a talk with them about inter-marrying, something Moses goes into a lot. I guess there weren’t a lot of Bible readers in the 1900 in Appalachia. My mother’s folks come from there and maybe that’s what makes me so argumentative.
When I read these passages in Deuteronomy, I think how smart and people savvy Moses must have been. Yes, there are some weird things like the mixed thread but I am assuming that we just don’t know the back story for that one. Other stuff like leaving part of your harvest for others or having differing weights in your bag makes a lot of sense to me and would be good for the group as a whole. There was a lot of thought put into these strictures – even the goofy ones.
And can Moses’ hold a grudge or what??? The tenth generation ? Wow, that is 300 years!! No Amalekites, no Ammonites or Moabites. Just wondering – who do we hate for 300 years?

NT – Luke 10:13-37
The Good Samaritan. Books have been written on this subject. Numerous sermons. I once heard a funeral where this was the scripture basis. Based on my knowledge of the family, I think, but I am not sure, that this scripture was used to point out that others had been kind but not family. However, my mother tried very hard to pound in the stricture of not speaking ill of the dead so I will only say ‘think’.
My recent meditations on this passage have to do with what was the Samaritan’s motivation. I know he had one. We all do. I do realize that this is a parable but Jesus’ parables came from real life observations and just like my funeral above, you see this kind of behavior happen over and over again. The one who is less than, put upon, the one with the scars and wounds, that is the one who reaches out to help. Why? Why isn’t the response bitterness, hatred and returning evil for evil?
I finally finished Winds of War which leaves the Henry family on December 11, 1941. One of the main characters Natalie Jastrow Henry is stuck in Italy with her 3 month old infant and elderly uncle. They are Jewish. At the very end of the book, I am ashamed to say, but I could not listen to any more about her. Every time her segment would come on, I would skip ahead. I KNOW what is going to happen to her and I just cannot bear the inhumanity she will endure and that will kill Aaron, her uncle. I am that way now when anyone tries to tell me about Dafar or the raging child molestation case or whatever is the horror of the week.
Does this mean that I am not capable of being the Good Samaritan? Am I stuck being the priest or even worse for me Miss Bible Queen, the Levite? Jesus tells the ‘expert in the law’ (Oh Dear….) that this is the way to heaven.
A checklist and none of my boxes are checked.

Psalm 75
Also a great psalm for today. I must have just been in a rotten mood yesterday.

Proverbs 12:12-14
One more reason to keep your mouth shut. To escape trouble rather than be trapped.

Go with God and look for the opportunity to be the Good Samaritan. Then, ACT.