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Dear Friend,

Fasten you seatbelts, November is almost here. It’s a fast ride from All Saints Day to the first Sunday in Advent, with Election Day, Thanksgiving, “Black Friday,” and the financial crisis all vying for our attention and some perspective from the pulpit. I hope this edition of Bread for the Preacher will provide some help in the “perspective” area.

In this time of financial uncertainty, there is a real danger that the concerns about an economic contraction will lead to a time of spiritual contraction, in which we are tempted to forget the needs of others. Bread for the World president David Beckmann dealt with this theme in a sermon he presented at Belmont University in conjunction with the presidential debate.  In it, David reminds us that “the antidote to spiritual contraction is the goodness and mercy of God.” I recommend this sermon as you prepare to lead your congregation through this time of uncertainty and into an Advent season of expectation and hope. Download the sermon (PDF).

Grace and peace,

Gary Cook
Director of Church Relations

Lectionary Reflections

The last few weeks of the season after Pentecost are filled with Jesus’ teachings of the Kingdom of Heaven and the role and responsibilities of God’s children in the world. Barbara Lundblad and Walter Wink take us through these passages before we are met with Advent. Garnett Foster begins her series of Advent reflections by addressing the laments that begin our season of anticipation and excitement at the approaching birth of Christ.

From Hunger for the Word, Year A and year B:

• November 1, All Saints Day
  ...The communion of saints gathers up the living and the dead in one eternal, sacred tapestry. ...This communion transcends not only time but also space, taking us beyond our neighborhoods and national boundaries. Those gathered in the sanctuary are part of a global communion of saints too large to fit inside one church, people of every race and tongue and nation. 

• November 2, Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time (Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost)Much of the intolerance and hatred directed toward persons of other religions arises from the failure to recognize religion's inescapable ambivalence. ...To be sure, the great religions are paths to the divine. They have produced saints, mystics, wise women and men, great teachers of the religious path. But typically only one side of the ambivalence is acknowledged. 

• November 9, Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (Twenty-Sixth Sunday after Pentecost)
  ...This parable has frequently been treated as a Christian allegory of the marriage of Christ and his Church. But the bride never makes an appearance. The meaning, then, must be sought in the ten maidens, not the bride and groom. 

• November 16, Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Twenty-Seventh Sunday after Pentecost)
  ...This parable...far from encouraging "developing our talents," is an indictment of the Powers That Be for reaping where they do not SOW and gathering where they do not scatter seed. What do we, as advocates for people who are hungry, make of this story? 

• November 23, Christ the King
  … [In this parable, the] “sheep” are surprised they are the elect; they were compassionate, not in order to earn a reward, but simply because they were in solidarity with the sufferers. They just cared. Note that the judgment is not between believers and unbelievers, or Christians and non-Christians, or church members and non-church members.

• November 27, Thanksgiving Day
  ...How can we faithfully worship God on a day when the rituals of the marketplace worship something else? The reading from Deuteronomy can be especially helpful. It may seem like our founding fathers borrowed these words about the promised land: a land with flowing streams, wheat, and barley, a land where we can eat bread without scarcity. 

• November 30, First Sunday of Advent
  ...Isaiah's desperate cry for God's intervention in the life of the world seems harsh amidst the promises of beauty and peace of the Advent/Christmas season. It is not what congregations want to hear. Sweet babies and caring shepherds are more to their liking. Yet the Advent season begins in lament, in pain, in feelings of abandonment, in longing. 
  

Youth Corner

Many congregations host food drives leading up to Thanksgiving. Think about how you might involve your youth — perhaps they can adopt a family and coordinate the collection of food. They can do this by creating a Thanksgiving Day menu and then distributing the list of ingredients needed to the congregation, asking them to donate the needed items. A day or two before Thanksgiving they can deliver the food to their adopted families or the agency that coordinates your community outreach.

This activity introduces youth to many aspects of hunger, such as what truly goes into making a nutritious meal — important since many may not participate in grocery shopping and cooking in their own homes. It is also a good opportunity to teach them about the three "T's" of stewardship — time, talent, and treasure.

Don't forget to check out the "Children's Time" section at the conclusion of each Lectionary Reflection to help you prepare time with your community's children.

Praying Together

God, you are the source of all blessings. We give you thanks for all that you have provided for us — family and friends, homes and schools, food and clothes. We ask that you be with those who do not have these things. Hold them in your love and give them comfort, until that day when all are fed and all share fully in the goodness of your creation. In the holy name of Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Other Resources and Opportunities 

Bread for the World's 2009 Offering of Letters is asking Congress to rework U.S. foreign assistance to be a more effective tool in reducing poverty. Early spring is the best time for your church to hold an Offering of Letters, and planning materials will be available beginning in January. Pre-order information will be availalbe soon.