Beginning in the Beginning

The core of this blog will built on studies from one of the week's Lectionary scriptures. The Lectionary evolved, possibly from an ancient devotional, into a three year walk through the bible. An interdenominational group is responsible for its care and feeding and we find the weekly scriptures are utilized in most mainline Protestant and Catholic services. Each Sunday scriptures from the Old Testament, a Gospel, an epistle, and a Psalm are identified for reading in the service and can be used by the clergy as the basis for the weekly message. The Lectionary has a repeating three year cycle and will cover most of the Bible during that time. There are many on-line commentaries for the weekly scriptures and one of my favorites is textweek.com.

The material and studies herein are based on the musings and observations of a person who has either led or been a part of bible study groups of various descriptions for over forty years. In the course of these bible related activities non-biblical scholar type research has been done. Over the years related books and reference materials have been read as part of preparation to lead or teach or in the course of satisfying personal curiosity and interest. So what is contained herein is strictly personal understanding and opinion, nothing more and nothing less.

Which gets me to a second very important point:

The very nature of the Bible makes its gifts unique to the individual reader. No one, regardless of their credentials, education, or theology can claim to know what the "true" meaning of any piece of scripture should be for you. People with credentials may be able to work with the original languages, know the cultural and historic backgrounds of the writers and their contemporaries. But this only helps us with context and accuracy of translation, which is of course interesting and important. You should instead be freed to interpret the meaning of scripture and apply it to your life. Reading and applying what we learn from scripture is an intensely personal experience and we should approach it without fear of being wrong or judged by others.