Bible Study

On Wednesday, September 25, 2012 at the CME Unity Summit in New Orleans, LA, Bishop James B. Walker presented Bible Study, looking at The Book of Chronicles for the Week.   This morning was an introduction to the Old Testament book, which Bishop Walker refers to as "... a book not the be read, but... to be studied". The text from the handout is available at www.c-m-e.org/biblestudy.pdf, but here are a few highlights not listed.

Walker expounds on the history of Chronicles by presents the transitional phase from the old the new.  The Chronicler takes a turn from what was presented before him - it is a book that in fact ends with a word from Cyrus, previously the oppressor, who says there is a word from God.  When you teach intentionally, you cater to the needs and make it relevant to the current times, referring to Bishop Snorton's keynote from the night before (see Grow Up, Graduate and Get a Job). Walker talks about the Hebrew Bible, the TaNaK, or TNK, and the importance of Chronicles in the Jewish tradition.  He encourages us to look at Sarah Japhet as a reference, author of the commentary on 1 and 2 Chronicles.

"There is a revolution of the spiritual that is taking place today", Bishop Walker muses, discussing how  people want to understand the Quran and the Bible, want to not have to go to church to be Christian - all things that come up in the Book of Chronicles.   But this is not new, for, as Walker addresses, how not to be a church is listed in the reading of 1 and 2 Kings, and 1 and 2 Samuel.  He specifically talks about 2 Samuel 13:1 - 2 Samuel 16:6 on the lineage of David, the rape of Tamar, the death of Amnon and the King and his people have to leave, walking with his head down.

In some churches, when people join the church, the first thing they do it tell all the gossip, but we need to see how we can look forward.  David looks past his children's wrongs and finds hope in Solomon.  "Yes, there is bad stuff to talk about," said Bishop Walker, "but you have to teach hope and you have to teach hope intentionally."

Walker invites participants to read the first 9 chapters, which are about genealogy.  He refers to them as Black book (The Bible) and Red book issues (The Discipline) when the Chronicler stops in the middle to bring in facts about the land.  Walker encourages read the reading of the laws so that we can govern our lands.   He goes on to encourage the understanding of the importance of genealogy by seeing what would happen if either the stories out of your Family Reunion are omitted or taking down the Vietnam Memorial in Washington, DC?   The Chronicler was using the genealogy to inspire.  Walker ends by mentioning that, "[The first nine books of Chronicles] is where Israel puts her hand on her true identity.