Theophany & Creation Time

 

                                     Moses and the Burning Bush -- Canadian artist William Kurelek 1960

 Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God.

 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed.

 Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up."

 When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am."

Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground."

Exodus 3:1-5 NRSVue

I appreciate that the United Church of Canada has recognized Creation Time for more than a decade now, the mini-season of the liturgical year which begins on September 1st and concludes on October 4th, the Feast of St. Francis. In partnership with a number of other Protestant denominations and the Roman Catholic communion and the Orthodox church worthwhile resources have been developed to observe this period of reflection and action. Many denominations use the term Season of Creation. 

I continue to be puzzled that the lectionary readings for these five Sundays have not been revisited to specifically reflect the theme. Sometimes the earnest theological gymnastics to get the passages to fit the season feel like a dubious exercise in getting into a set of Spanx, liturgically speaking, of course!

This said, the Hebrew scripture passage for this Sunday couldn't be more appropriate for the beginning of Creation Time. It is the story of the theophany of Moses in the wilderness, the numinous encounter with the God of Creation and Liberation. This story is echoed in Elijah's "sound of sheer silence" mountaintop experience, and then in the Transfiguration encounter recorded in the gospels. You'll recall that Jesus met Moses and Elijah in some mystical way on the mountain which was either Tabor or Hermon. 

I wonder why Christians are such indoor folk when it comes to experiencing the Creator when so many of the big-ticket biblical moments happen outside? Jesus was a camper, happy and otherwise, through much of his ministry, beginning in the Judean wilderness, tramping about Galilee, and spending his final night in an olive grove.

Let's keep in mind that one of the symbols of the United Church crest is the Burning Bush and that the four colours are from the Medicine Wheel which reflects the four seasons and four directions. There's even a dove as a central symbol.  

Perhaps a Creation Time progression could be going on the lamb with our flocks (sorry, I couldn't resist) and celebrating both Creator and Creation en plein air. We could use a theophany or three, couldn't we? Hey, I'm long retired so I can say anything I like!