Showing posts with label Psalm 87. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Psalm 87. Show all posts
Tuesday, July 4, 2023
Psalm Meditation 1203
¶Proper 9
¶July 9, 2023
¶Psalm 87
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+87&version=NRSVUE
(NRSV)
¶When the starting lineup of a professional sports team is introduced the announcer will include the most recent school a particular player attended. I often wondered why that is, until I read this psalm today. We like to know where a person is from in the event that we might have a connection with them. For those of us who will not play professional sports the question is, ‘Where were you born?’ or ‘Where are you from?’ Do we have a connection, positive or negative, on which to build a relationship?
¶Human beings appear to thrive on connection with others. After the extended period of COVID isolation, we find ourselves longing for renewed connection with those from whom we have been separated. We might also look for new connections in hopes of making up for some of our time in isolation. We like to know that we are not alone and that we have a place to belong with others like us. I find that it is just as important to have some who think and act differently in our circle so that we are exposed to a variety of opinions and activities.
¶The psalmist is celebrating the connection and comradery that comes from living in Jerusalem/Zion, the city of YHWH. In an era of city states, rather than full nations, it is important to know that we are among our own people. We have enough similarities to hold us together and enough tensions to keep ourselves interesting. To know that we are in the city established through divine influence sets us apart from those around us. We are set apart as servants of YHWH more than for some sort of privilege and glory.
¶July 4, 2023
¶LCM
Monday, July 13, 2020
Psalm Meditation 1048
Proper 11
July 19, 2020
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The Lord records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
There are cities that people imagine as wonderful places to be born and grow up. Some people get to experience growing up in those cities for themselves. Rome, Paris, London, New York, Chicago are some of the cities that come quickly to mind for me. You have your own list of dream cities in which to be born and grow up that are wonderful and exciting places. There are people who have excellent experiences of growing up in their home town. The psalmist extols the virtues of the city of Zion, Jerusalem.
For the psalmist, the city of Zion is a great place to be born because it is the city of God. The presence and blessing of God in the city makes it an exceptional place to live. It is one of those cities that holds a place in the hearts of anyone who grew up in it. The psalmist knows that Zion is a spring that wells up in the lives of citizens in a way that nourishes their souls throughout their lives.
There are celebrated cities that give the reputation of a person born there a boost. In many cases those boosts of reputation are justified. The psalmist has a more important criteria than the place of one’s birth; the presence of God. If God is a part of one’s upbringing there is a whole different spring in one’s step and lilt to one’s voice. To be born in the presence and under the influence of God helps set folks apart in a special way.
July 13, 2020
LCM
Proper 11
July 19, 2020
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the Lord loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The Lord records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
There are cities that people imagine as wonderful places to be born and grow up. Some people get to experience growing up in those cities for themselves. Rome, Paris, London, New York, Chicago are some of the cities that come quickly to mind for me. You have your own list of dream cities in which to be born and grow up that are wonderful and exciting places. There are people who have excellent experiences of growing up in their home town. The psalmist extols the virtues of the city of Zion, Jerusalem.
For the psalmist, the city of Zion is a great place to be born because it is the city of God. The presence and blessing of God in the city makes it an exceptional place to live. It is one of those cities that holds a place in the hearts of anyone who grew up in it. The psalmist knows that Zion is a spring that wells up in the lives of citizens in a way that nourishes their souls throughout their lives.
There are celebrated cities that give the reputation of a person born there a boost. In many cases those boosts of reputation are justified. The psalmist has a more important criteria than the place of one’s birth; the presence of God. If God is a part of one’s upbringing there is a whole different spring in one’s step and lilt to one’s voice. To be born in the presence and under the influence of God helps set folks apart in a special way.
July 13, 2020
LCM
Monday, February 20, 2017
Psalm Meditation 871
Transfiguration Sunday
February 26, 2017
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
Roots are important for many of us. In these nomadic times it is important to have a place to which we can return, a place to call home. For some of us it is the house in which we grew up, for others it is a grandparent’s house, for still others it is a place visited with some regularity in our formative years. Where we call home leaves a mark on us that makes a difference in how we behave and in how we are treated by those who know our roots.
For the psalmist, Zion is home. It is an important piece of information to have about someone. There are folks who were born in cities and areas besides Zion who claim it as home. While it is a good thing to claim Zion as home, it is impressive to be able to claim Zion as both birthplace and home. To hear God declare one’s birthplace as Zion is a wondrous claim to be able to make. The claim to Zion as both birthplace and home does not mean that those born elsewhere can’t call Zion home, it simply adds an accolade for those who can claim both.
The most important piece of all is the claim of God on a person. In truth, it is much more impressive to be born in the presence of God than to be able to claim a particular geography as birthplace and home. While we may not realize or recognize that we have been born in the presence of God, we have been. Roots are important for many of us. We are rooted and grounded in the presence of God.
February 20, 2017
LCM lcrsmanifold@att.net
http://psalmmeditations.blogspot.com/
Transfiguration Sunday
February 26, 2017
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
Roots are important for many of us. In these nomadic times it is important to have a place to which we can return, a place to call home. For some of us it is the house in which we grew up, for others it is a grandparent’s house, for still others it is a place visited with some regularity in our formative years. Where we call home leaves a mark on us that makes a difference in how we behave and in how we are treated by those who know our roots.
For the psalmist, Zion is home. It is an important piece of information to have about someone. There are folks who were born in cities and areas besides Zion who claim it as home. While it is a good thing to claim Zion as home, it is impressive to be able to claim Zion as both birthplace and home. To hear God declare one’s birthplace as Zion is a wondrous claim to be able to make. The claim to Zion as both birthplace and home does not mean that those born elsewhere can’t call Zion home, it simply adds an accolade for those who can claim both.
The most important piece of all is the claim of God on a person. In truth, it is much more impressive to be born in the presence of God than to be able to claim a particular geography as birthplace and home. While we may not realize or recognize that we have been born in the presence of God, we have been. Roots are important for many of us. We are rooted and grounded in the presence of God.
February 20, 2017
LCM lcrsmanifold@att.net
http://psalmmeditations.blogspot.com/
Monday, January 12, 2015
Psalm Meditation 761
Second Sunday After Epiphany
January 18, 2015
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
One of the important questions we ask as we get to know each other is, ‘Where are you from?’ Despite the suspect grammar of ending a sentence with a preposition, it is an important bit of information. It gives us a locale, a way to place someone in the world we know. In this mobile society, some of us name an area instead of a city or town while others can tell us where they were born, all the places they have lived and which one feels most like home. No matter how much we may have moved around in our lives, we too long for a place to call home.
For the psalmist, place is very important. To be able to claim Zion as one’s place of birth is to be firmly rooted in God, in body, in spirit and in place. Zion is the mount on which the central city was built. To have been born there gives one a very important place in the life of the community and an identity in the world at large. Zion is a location in geography as well as a location in heritage and ritual. To have been born in Zion is to have been born at the closest place to the heart of God.
Whether our place is one of geography or of some other type of identifier, we each have a place that feels like home. I understand that the Greek word translated as kingdom or realm, can mean a physical place as well as a sense of loyalty. One can thus be a part of the realm of God by being within the set bounds of some geographic limits or one can be a part of the realm of God by having a heart and life that says, “All my springs are in you.”
January 12, 2015
LCM
Second Sunday After Epiphany
January 18, 2015
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. Selah
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia—“This one was born there,” they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, “This one and that one were born in it”; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, “This one was born there.” Selah
7 Singers and dancers alike say, “All my springs are in you.”
(NRSV)
One of the important questions we ask as we get to know each other is, ‘Where are you from?’ Despite the suspect grammar of ending a sentence with a preposition, it is an important bit of information. It gives us a locale, a way to place someone in the world we know. In this mobile society, some of us name an area instead of a city or town while others can tell us where they were born, all the places they have lived and which one feels most like home. No matter how much we may have moved around in our lives, we too long for a place to call home.
For the psalmist, place is very important. To be able to claim Zion as one’s place of birth is to be firmly rooted in God, in body, in spirit and in place. Zion is the mount on which the central city was built. To have been born there gives one a very important place in the life of the community and an identity in the world at large. Zion is a location in geography as well as a location in heritage and ritual. To have been born in Zion is to have been born at the closest place to the heart of God.
Whether our place is one of geography or of some other type of identifier, we each have a place that feels like home. I understand that the Greek word translated as kingdom or realm, can mean a physical place as well as a sense of loyalty. One can thus be a part of the realm of God by being within the set bounds of some geographic limits or one can be a part of the realm of God by having a heart and life that says, “All my springs are in you.”
January 12, 2015
LCM
Monday, March 4, 2013
Psalm Meditation 664
Fourth Sunday in Lent
March 10, 2013
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. (Selah)
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia — "This one was born there," they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, "This one and that one were born in it"; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, "This one was born there." (Selah)
7 Singers and dancers alike say, "All my springs are in you."
(NRSV)
Many of us have a list of favorite places that include a favorite place to live and a favorite place to visit. For a few people, the same place is at the top of each list, they love where they live and have no desire to go or be anywhere else. For the rest of us, there are cities and places which are a part of lives because we go there often enough that they feel like home. At the same time we have an awareness that part of the attraction is that it is not home and if we were to move there it would lose some of its appeal. As we fell into habits and routines in this favorite place it would lose some of the exotic sense that keeps us going back with regularity.
Another reason a place becomes special is the people who live there. The place where grandparents live loses its attraction when those grandparents move out. Without the special people in that place there is no reason to go. In truth it is not the place that is special, it is the person or people who make the place special by their presence.
The psalmist reminds us that Zion is special because the presence of God makes it special. Anywhere that includes a life changing experience of the presence of God becomes a special place for us. It may be a very specific place, a particular seat, bench or rock where we were sitting when we felt the touch of God. It may be a larger area that renews our sense of the presence of God. It may be that the place we meet God is in our hearts, even though the way to get there is to remember a geographic spot. To experience the presence of God makes that place one of our favorites. It is not the place, it is the encounter with God that makes it special. It is not the locale, it is the memories and feelings the place evokes in our hearts and lives that gets us to sing, “All my springs are in you.”
March 3, 2013
Fourth Sunday in Lent
March 10, 2013
Psalm 87
1 On the holy mount stands the city he founded;
2 the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob.
3 Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God. (Selah)
4 Among those who know me I mention Rahab and Babylon; Philistia too, and Tyre, with Ethiopia — "This one was born there," they say.
5 And of Zion it shall be said, "This one and that one were born in it"; for the Most High himself will establish it.
6 The LORD records, as he registers the peoples, "This one was born there." (Selah)
7 Singers and dancers alike say, "All my springs are in you."
(NRSV)
Many of us have a list of favorite places that include a favorite place to live and a favorite place to visit. For a few people, the same place is at the top of each list, they love where they live and have no desire to go or be anywhere else. For the rest of us, there are cities and places which are a part of lives because we go there often enough that they feel like home. At the same time we have an awareness that part of the attraction is that it is not home and if we were to move there it would lose some of its appeal. As we fell into habits and routines in this favorite place it would lose some of the exotic sense that keeps us going back with regularity.
Another reason a place becomes special is the people who live there. The place where grandparents live loses its attraction when those grandparents move out. Without the special people in that place there is no reason to go. In truth it is not the place that is special, it is the person or people who make the place special by their presence.
The psalmist reminds us that Zion is special because the presence of God makes it special. Anywhere that includes a life changing experience of the presence of God becomes a special place for us. It may be a very specific place, a particular seat, bench or rock where we were sitting when we felt the touch of God. It may be a larger area that renews our sense of the presence of God. It may be that the place we meet God is in our hearts, even though the way to get there is to remember a geographic spot. To experience the presence of God makes that place one of our favorites. It is not the place, it is the encounter with God that makes it special. It is not the locale, it is the memories and feelings the place evokes in our hearts and lives that gets us to sing, “All my springs are in you.”
March 3, 2013
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