kayre | Paying attention while reading

Yesterday's liturgical readings were a rather disturbing set-- full of the wrath of God, doom and gloom. Six years ago (liturgically) Pastor Kim read "As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth" and finished with a remarkably perky "This is the Good News of Jesus Christ!" Left me wondering if she had just mentally edited out that final verse.

My new church uses all the readings, rather than just the one being preached, so a lay reader went through the reading from Zephaniah: "I will bring such distress upon people that they shall walk like the blind; because they have sinned against the LORD, their blood shall be poured out like dust, and their flesh like dung. Neither their silver nor their gold will be able to save them on the day of the Lord's wrath; in the fire of his passion the whole earth shall be consumed; for a full, a terrible end he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth." Then he paused for a moment, and quietly said "Whoa!" Much more sensible! And after the Gospel he quite solemnly said "The Word of God" for the response.