Sunday 25^th July 2022 (’01) 17thSUNinORDINARY : C

1. GEN18:20-32

• What was the ‘outcry’ against TheCities? FromTheEarth,orWomen,orChildren?
• Read 19 1-38! What sorts of ‘sin’ are depicted or hinted? Any ‘virtue’?
• In 45words, what ‘outcry’ is there, against oneor otherofourowntownsor cities? &What ways are the ‘destroyingangels‘ there? &Isanyonepleadingfor‘clemency’?
• Are there ‘juster’ ways of dealing with ‘immorality^‘ than ‘destructive rage’?
• How am I related to the ‘immorality’ that is anessential ingredient ofIrish Society? 2. THE PSALM : 137 1-3, 6-8 (What of vv4-5?)

• Read 137(138) 1-8′ DoesHetrulysupportme? or is it ‘wishful thinking’?
• Does my preoccupation with cultic or heavenly ‘temples’ permit me to forget or ignore that TheEarth, with itsnuminousrichness, is TheTrueEmbodiedTemple?
• Have I been encouraged, by anunselfcritical ¹monotheism’, to be much too la-di-da&aisy-oisy about theawesomepowerof ‘The0therGods’?

3 COL2.12-14

• Read 2 1-23!The desperate struggle to–be–TheChristinahostilesociety!
• In too many respects, haven’t ‘adult chnstians’ been thrown-to–the-wolves?
• ‘Baptism!’ What of the reference here, is to an impressive&terrifying&memorable experience of ritual-death, undergone by a prepared adult, marking her for ‘life”
• ‘Cos arguably, our own utterly–domesticated ritual of ‘cradle–baptism‘ has become very much a take-it-or-leave-it, with questionable valence!

4. LKll·1-13

• Will giving someone a ‘formula-of-prayer‘ also ‘teach them to pray’? Or is an important ‘teaching’ hidden in the formulation, &the accompanying ‘catechesis’?

Does ‘bread’ come from heaven, or from the determinationof friendstoshare? What has enabled me to persist in thedeep nittygritty of ‘prayer’?

Especially, fidelity to the ritual, &attentiveness to the dialectic? AdultPrayer, is it being neutralised&forfeited by ‘child-spintuality’? Without TheHolyBreath, isn’t it only-words’ withTheHolyBreath, wow!’

5. The presence&action of the BlessedOne, is it like this?

‘God, quick Gertie’ call us a bucket a’ shandy there, a’m parched with.. ‘ ‘Are y’ OK Cissie? maybe y’re comm’ down with ‘ ‘…With shock, from hearin’…’ ‘Head a’ wit, was it, talkin’ like a tap ?! ‘Wait til y’ hear!’ ‘Hurry Cissie!I can’t wait’ 0 here’s y’r shandy, throw it inta ya, an’ we’ll fix another” ‘No, we’d a vision’ monsiggner, if y’ don’t mind” ‘Skershay mwah!’ ‘An’ listen, from Spam…’ ‘Ha! Shershay” ‘But he spoke gorgeous english, with an accent like…’ ‘Is tha’ what has y’ parched wi’ th’ droot?’ ‘No, what he said’ I never heard it in all me puff!’ ‘God Cissie, tell us quick” ‘He said, if God’s not y’r true friend every way y’ can think of, then forget it! y’re wastin’ y’r time, Hozay! Not y’r creator, or Judge, or anythin’! y’r true friend! who’ll give ya their last ‘ ‘ ..chockie?’ ‘…an’ ‘U get up at midnight if y’ need fish or bread or eggs!’ ‘God, that’s a new one on me!’ ‘We were all sorta whispenrin’that ourselves! he musta heard’ Go an’ try it, he shouted! If yez dare, go on an’ find out’ An’ then lafft, there on th’ altar” ‘God Cissie,if y’ ever find it, a certain someone ‘ll be out of a job!’

6 RIDDLE TheMostDesirableNegotiation! WithYahweh’sRage? WithTheGrteaterBody? With AllThatDetachedPiety? WithWinnowingRituals? WithChristianApathy? WithTheImportunateBreath?

Refections and comments can be emailed to adbi@chokmah.ie