“Helvetica and Filling in the Gaps”
While we were in New York last month, one of the many highlights of the week was taking in a couple of Broadway shows. One of the shows we saw was titled Gutenberg! The Musical! It was so much fun. The show portrays 2 aspiring playwrights (Bud & Doug) who are previewing their newest musical in front of a live audience. Their musical follows the life of Johannes Gutenberg, inventor of the printing press. However, Bud and Doug admit that there isn’t a lot of information known about Johannes Gutenberg (except for what they found on Wikipedia, a very unreliable source when looking for facts). Because of this, they describe their work as “Historical Fiction,” blending the facts they could verify with stories to fill in the gaps.
The show goes on through an absolutely hilarious and absurd series of events that lead to the invention of the printing press and the obstacles Gutenberg might have faced after its development. One of the “gaps” Bud and Doug seek to fill is about Gutenberg’s love interest. The fictional playwrights named her Helvetica, assuming the font must have been named for someone Johannes Gutenberg knew. After the show, one of the boys asked how much of what we heard was likely true. While not knowing for sure, our guess is that other than Gutenberg inventing the printing press, attributing the correct year and town where he lived, the rest of it was “historical fiction.”
Last Sunday we looked at the Gospel of Luke, chapter 4. Immediately prior to the passage we focused on is the story of Jesus’ temptation in the desert by Satan, which occurs right after Jesus’ baptism and prior to any of Jesus’ public ministry. Luke 4 implies that the crowd in Nazareth already knew of the impacts of Jesus’ ministry, but Luke’s Gospel doesn’t detail any of it. I mentioned in my message that we could “fill in the gaps” and assume Jesus had been busy in the time between his stint in the wilderness described in Luke 3 and the beginning of Luke 4.
A lot of what we do while studying and interpreting Scripture requires us to “fill in some gaps.” The Bible is a collection of stories and writings ranging in age from 2000 to 6000 years old, most of which were passed down in oral tradition long before they were ever written down. The Bible consists of multiple genres of literature including narrative, poetry, wisdom, law, prophecy, gospels, epistles, and apocalypse. Some of the writings are intended to be read literally, while others are intended to be read as metaphor, simile, hyperbole, and even folklore.
Because of all this variety and the extraordinary way in which the Bible came to be, we need to be intentional about how we approach it. One of the many important practices we should do when approaching scripture is to ask for the Holy Spirit to be with us as we read and to illuminate the Word for us. In doing so, the “gaps” we often encounter might be filled in easily. Or, we can come to understand they aren’t as important as we first thought.
I encourage you to approach your time in God’s word much more carefully and prayerfully than Bud and Doug approached the details of Johannes Gutenberg’s story. As we do so, God will help us to see and understand Him, and ourselves better.
Blessings, Chris
Mission
To make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
Vision
Nelson Memorial UMC seeks to be a place where all God’s broken, hurting, and imperfect children discover wholeness and community while experiencing the warm and welcoming love of Jesus Christ. We seek to connect with one another to grow in our knowledge and love of God, to encourage each person to live out their unique calling to serve God, and to make a difference in the Boonville community and throughout the world.
Priorities
Developing and Nurturing Faith in Children and Youth
Fostering Growth and Community in Worship and Small Groups
Provide Opportunities to Serve God in Boonville and Beyond
Worship This Week
This Sunday we continue our new message series, Cringe, which takes a look at a few of the more difficult teachings of Jesus. This week we will take a look at a statement Jesus makes to a large crowd that begins to follow him. This can be found in the Gospel of Luke, chapter 14, verses 25-27:
Large crowds were traveling with Jesus and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters – yes, even their own life – such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.“
Our Gathering Song this week is Lead On Good Shepherd, by Patrick Mayberry. Our Opening Hymn in the will be All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name. Our Praise Song will be You Are My All In All, and we will close with O Jesus, I Have Promised. Our Choir will share a prelude with us in our 10:20 service.
Virtual Worship Information
In addition to in-person worship, our service will be live-streamed. The service can be viewed on our Facebook Page. The service will start at approximately 10:25 am following our Gathering Song. Additionally, we post a recording of our messages to our website by early Sunday afternoon.
Announcements
Adult Mission Trip – April 2024 – On December 10, 2021, a violent, long-tracked tornado moved across western Kentucky producing severe to catastrophic damage in numerous towns. We are planning to return to the area during the week of April 14, 2024 for our adult work team to help with the renovation of a home. If you are interested in joining our group and wish for more information, please contact Bill Salyer, Tim VonEngeln or Larry Long for details. No one under the age of 18 will be allowed on the work sites without an accompanying parent or guardian
Music & Pie, 28th Annual Silver Pirate Band Concert and Pie Auction (NEW DATE) – Mark your calendars: Sunday, February, Time: 6:45 pm, Location: LSE Auditorium. Come support our students, enjoy some sweet treats, and celebrate the incredible talent we have in our #OnePirateShip community!
Blessing Bags – The Outreach committee have prepared Blessing Bags and invite you to pick some up and distribute them as you see a need. They are in various places around the church. Please take one or two (or more) and leave them in your car. As you see someone needing food or help, share this bag with them. This is a great (and easy) way to help people in need. Thank you to all involved for preparing these and giving us this opportunity!
Thank You – “Nelson Memorial – You outdid yourselves again! On behalf of the entire LSE Staff, I wanted to say thanks for the delicious homemade treats. Our hearts and bellies are full because of your thoughtful gesture. It’s wonderful to have your support and connection. Thanks again, Angie Rogers, LSE Principle.”
Thank You – To everyone who supported our most recent Red Cross Blood Drive. 12 units of blood were donated this time. A big thank you to everyone who donated and those who helped out with the drive. Stay tuned for the date of our next blood drive. The need never goes away.
Events this week:
Monday, January 22: TOPS, 9:15 am, Lounge
Al-Anon Meeting, 8:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Wednesday, January 24: Women’s Bible Study, 10:00 am, Lounge
Al-Anon, Noon, Fellowship Hall
Thursday, January 25: Praise Band Rehearsal, 6:00 pm, Sanctuary
Friday, January 26: Al-Anon, 7:00 pm, Fellowship Hall
Closing Words of Wisdom:
The Bible is not a random collection of verses that may be interpreted in isolation. To properly understand any passage one must interpret it in light of the paragraphs immediately preceding and following it, the chapter or section it is in, and the book containing it. Context provides the flow of thought in which any given passage of Scripture exists. To ignore context is to sacrifice a proper interpretation; it has well been said that a text without a context is a pretext.” – John MacArthur