Hear the Gospel

“This was now the third time that Jesus appeared to the disciples…” This excerpt from a passage from the John 21: 1-19 is included in the revised common lectionary provided by the Vanderbilt Divinity Library. The text is from the NRSV. You can hear a recording of this passage here.  Reading the Gospel aloud invites…

Hearing the voice of God, as recounted in the  Gospel of Luke 9: 28-36, 37-43a. Reading the Gospel aloud invites the audience to experience human encounters with the divine as revealed in the Bible. We can leave interpretation and meaning to members of the clergy and other scholars. What we are most interested in as…

I came across an interesting article at the Baptist Press website today. The article profiles a talk that Russell Moore gave at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary: Moore examines paradoxes in Scripture & ministry. What’s the story here? Those of you who follow my blog know that I strive to be (near) perfectly ecumenical. IMHO, you…

Reading the Gospel aloud invites the audience to experience human encounters with the divine as revealed in the Bible. Leave interpretation and meaning to members of the clergy and other scholars. What we’re most interested in as lay readers is the human experience found in the narrative. “…for forty days he was tempted by the…

Words as Feelings, is an interesting article at Aeon.co. The article describes the connection between specific words and sensual experience. While focusing primarily on the origins of language, the article introduces some interesting ideas that relate directly to the physical act of reading aloud.  Specifically, the article addresses ways in which we communicate experiences  to…

In reading the Gospel of Luke 5: 1-11 we discover minor miracles which are nevertheless life changing. Reading the Gospel aloud invites the audience to experience human encounters with the divine as revealed in the Bible. We leave interpretation and meaning to members of the clergy and other scholars. What we’re most interested in as…

An Opinion piece in yesterday’s Sunday NYTs, by psychologist David Desteno, identifies several practices that science could borrow from religion: What Science Can Learn From Religion. I like articles that explore the intersection of science and religion because I’m a big fan of both. A frontier exists between the two in the U.S. today, where…

Reading the Gospel of Luke 2:22-40 “…the inner thoughts of many will be revealed’ This passage from Luke 2: 22-40 is included in the revised common lectionary provided by the Vanderbilt Divinity Library. Hear a recording of this passage here. Reading the Gospel aloud invites the audience to experience human encounters with the divine as…

  As lay readers, we have a unique opportunity to experience the Bible. We generally think in terms of Bible study and “lessons” from the Bible. But as lay readers we read scripture aloud and so, I tend to focus on the experience of reading scripture aloud more than interpretation or meaning. The latter are…

  Merry Christmas everyone.  What a comfort it is to celebrate Christmas this year. It shouldn’t be a surprise to see so many opinion pieces about Christmas and Christianity in prominent media outlets online over the past few days – tis the season — but the number and the tone has surprised me. These articles…

Theodore May
about

Theodore May

Ted May speaks with no authority other than the fact that he has served as a lay reader for more than 50 years in multiple churches, spanning multiple denominations, and feels the call to share what he has learned from that experience with others. After a successful corporate career, he’s now an executive presentation coach who works with business professionals and students in the greater Washington, D.C. area. He and his wife live in Northern Virginia, where they raised three children.

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