Early this morning I posted an article at Gerbil Report™ titled, “The end is near.” It’s not particularly interesting—primarily just pointing out that Carl Gallups is still touting the Cold Case Posse investigation when in reality, that ship has sailed (and sunk). What caught my attention was a few hours later when I looked at my church bulletin and the first words on the page were “The end is near.”
I’m not one to see significance in obvious coincidences, but such connections give rise for opportunities to look at things from a different direction.
The lectionary and sermon today deals with the transience of things and to a lesser extent the “vindication” of the righteous, which is a word Carl Gallups used on his Facebook page to predict the transience of birther discomfiture and their ultimate vindication. Here’s part of one of the texts from the lectionary today:
See, the day is coming, burning like an oven, when all the arrogant and all evildoers will be stubble.
— Malachi 4:1
Birthers and their opponents both want the truth to be vindicated and the evildoers to get what they deserve. They just cannot agree on what the truth is, and who the evildoers are.
Another theme from today’s sermon is everything ends. For the birthers, the Obama presidency (usurperency?) will end, and for those not happy with the most recent presidential election, that will end too.
Also from today’s text is some admonition about what to do in troubled times and when it seems like evil prospers:
Brothers and sisters, do not be weary in doing what is right.
— 1 Thessalonians 3:13
The story is that Martin Luther was asked what he would do if he were convinced the world would end tomorrow and he replied “plant a tree.” Along that line I have seen a number of post-election list of virtuous things to do, including donate to Planned Parenthood (which has seen a spike in donations after the election). I’ll be out building affordable housing with Habitat for Humanity this week.
