The following Bible passage, reflection, prayer and action are taken from Surefish's Daily Readings, which can be found here

Arise! Shine!

A memorial and a name

Something to read

Do not let the foreigner joined to the Lord say,
'The Lord will surely separate me from his people'; and do not let the eunuch say, 'I am just a dry tree.' For thus says the Lord: To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give, in my house and within my walls, a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that shall not be cut off ... For my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples. Thus says the Lord God, who gathers the outcasts of Israel: I will gather others to them besides those already gathered.
Isaiah 56:3-5,7b-8 (NRSV)

Something to think about

As far as God is concerned, who has the right to see himself or herself as an insider, welcomed and loved? Under the Law of the Hebrew people two groups were specifically excluded - foreigners and eunuchs. To be a member of the covenant community was based on family and land, so a person with no children and a person with no stake in the land were considered to be outside the scope of God’s blessing.

But here Isaiah broadcasts words of God which completely demolish that exclusive attitude. God is gathering to himself a people so diverse that those who consider themselves insiders will continually be taken by surprise and need to make space for newcomers.

I wonder which groups of ‘people who cannot have children’ today recognise the church’s insiders trying to keep them out, while God is longing to draw them to himself. Is it too provocative to suggest that homosexuals might see themselves in this way?

I wonder which groups of ‘foreigners’ today experience no welcome from Christian people, while God is longing to create a house of prayer which is for all peoples. Is it too provocative to find in these promises an umbrella under which different religions and races could shelter while they talk about how to ‘choose the things that please God’?

Something to do

Think of groups across the world who are in some sense ‘outcasts’ of their communities. Give them your own personal ‘monument and name’ by writing their names on a postcard and propping it up in a prominent place in your home.

Something to pray

'A memorial and a name' (in Hebrew, Yad Vashem) is what the museum of the holocaust near Jerusalem is called. Pray for the government and people of the present-day state of Israel, as they wrestle with their need for their home to be a place of safety but also their need to maintain justice for all who are gathered as their neighbours.

Today in history

Today in 1520 Luther burned the papal Bull excommunicating him, along with all his volumes of canon law.

Today in 1539 Martin Luther allowed the Landgrave Philip of Hesse to commit bigamy. Philip threatened to take his country back to Catholicism if he didn’t, which looked fatal for the Protestant cause.

Today in 1688 James II, Britain’s last Catholic monarch, fled the country, after a controversial attempt to restore Catholicism by stealth.

Martin Luther King received the Nobel Peace Prize today in 1965.

Image of the day

Chaquey Abreu is head teacher and community worker at the 'Little School' in Los Peres. Chaquey shows one of her pupils, Pamela, how to find the Dominican Republic on the globe. Christian Aid / Peter Graystone

Advent Calendar:
December 10

Making your own Christmas cards means that you can send something unique and completely personal. And if you are not feeling particularly creative, use last year’s Christmas cards stuck onto folded recycled card, or download card outlines and print onto recycled card – there are even verses, poems and quotes available if your muse has gone Christmas shopping.

Last posting day for Airmail to Japan, USA, Canada and Eastern Europe and last day to order PresentAid gifts for delivery in Europe.

Advent tip of the day:
Buy online

Save valuable time by shopping online. You’ll save petrol and parking money, too. To save even more, sign up to a voucher code website to receive free discounts on well-known brands.

The Surefish Shop offers a huge range of high street and eco shops that give commission from all puirchases to Christian Aid, and regularly give exclusive special offers.

Presentaid gift of the day -
beekeeping hats

Present Aid – gifts that count. To go with yesterday’s beehive – help Bolivian farmers by giving beekeeping hats to protect them from the bites of their bees. If you want to hand over a gift on Christmas Day, add in a Christian Aid Calendar (or get one free if you spend over £40). Use the link to go to the Present Aid site and then search for the gift you want to give.

Amazon gift idea – LEGO Brick Box

Does what it says on the tin – a LEGO Brick Box – LEGO bricks in a useful storage box!

Play for hours! Use the link to buy the gift and raise money for Christian Aid as well.

Eco gift idea – Eco Bowls

Classy enough for a present but biodegradable too – these Eco Bowls will take hot food and should last for about five years before they begin to break down. Use the link to buy the gift and raise money for Christian Aid as well.