Does the lectionary work for the CIA?

The cartoon Zits is one of those that makes you feel like someone must have a camera inside your house. Every Sunday morning it seemed like our life was being put on the funny pages.

Recently, the Revised Common Lectionary has been doing the same thing to me. (Unliked Zits, of course, the lectionary suffers for not having illustrations.)

Here’s the gospel reading for next Sunday:

Now large crowds were traveling with him; and he turned and said to them, ”Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple.

Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it will begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.’

Or what king, going out to wage war against another king, will not sit down first and consider whether he is able with ten thousand to oppose the one who comes against him with twenty thousand? If he cannot, then, while the other is still far away, he sends a delegation and asks for the terms of peace.

So therefore, none of you can become my disciple if you do not give up all your possessions.

I’m not going to go into details of my personal life on a public blog, but – let me just note – it’s a bit creepy to have the lectionary hit you between the eyes.

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