 St Alban’s Episcopal Church Bolivar, Missouri Saturday, September 24, 2022 “There was a rich man…”   Despite a late frost, a long cold, rainy spring and then the burning heat of a very long summer, the fig bush/tree that Ruth Lewis planted is bearing actual, and delicious, tiny figs!  Luke 16:19-31 If you think this parable is a proof for the existence of heaven and hell, or that the rich man was an unbeliever and the poor man a saint, I would like to invite you to come and see what the text in its context, (which includes last week’s reading and the verses in between them,) is actually about. Remember, this is a Jewish parable told by a Jew to Jews. Christians wrote it down later, remembering it. But among Jews of the time, only Pharisees, who were already upset with Jesus, believed in “heaven and hell” – in the “resurrection of the dead.” That ought to help you re-think the usual interpretation of this passage! Adult Class Tomorrow the 9:30 adult gathering will begin the book, After, by Bruce Greyson, MD. There are 3 copies in the parish hall for those who want them. But Amanda Whatley says it is also available on the hoopla app for free to those who have a Polk County library card. The question about what happens when we near death, and after death is perennially interesting. |
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