Neli ML

Fourth Sunday after Pentecost Jeremiah 20,7-13 Rev. Neli Miranda The Revised Common Lectionary provides two tracks of lessons for the Season After Pentecost. This year, we are going to listen to track two in which we will hear the voice of the prophets in the reading of the Old Testament. Today we hear the voice of one of the most intense prophets, Jeremiah, whose prophecies were heard in the midst of a historic juncture for the people of Israel, just before the Babylonian exile (7 th and 6 th centuries BC).  His suffering, experienced during this hard time, is described in his books, and this has prompted Bible scholars to refer to him as “the weeping prophet”. One of the books attributed to this prophet is the Book of Jeremiah, which presents many of his prophecies and several details about his private life. In fact, this book begins with the call to Jeremiah when he was very young. In chapter one, Jeremiah testifies how God called him by saying, “ Before I formed you in the womb I

  Holy Trinity Sunday. June 4, 2023 Genesis, II Corinthians and Matthew Rev. Neli Miranda   Today, our lessons open with the first chapter of Genesis which is a beautiful poem that tells us about God who in the beginning creates the heavens and the earth and all that is in it. The sacred writer poetically tells us that, in the midst of chaos and darkness, the Divine presence, the “ Ruah of God” swept over the face of the waters (1,2).   Ruah is a Hebrew term for spirit, breath and wind, and it is used in the Old Testament to describe the living and animating presence of God in the world.  The image of Ruah tells us how the people of Israel understood God as a living breath and force that energizes and moves life in the world.  Brothers and sisters, just imagine the Ruah, the divine breath inspiring you in this very moment, entering your nostrils and animating your lives. This is God!! ( The grammatical gender of Ruah  is feminine). The text from Genesis is read in the l