On Days and Numbering and Other Things

Regular readers know that I am an occasional contributor to the Episcopal Cafe, so it won't surprise anyone that I am a daily reader. This morning, I followed this post, Bishop Katherine Jefferts-Schori contributing to the series on Faith and Science in the 21st Century at Day1, the radio and on-line resource supported by mainline Protestant churches. I certainly commend Bishop Jefferts-Schori's video and her reflection on re-framing and repentance.

And then, looking further in that series, I discovered another contribution: the Rev. Dr. Tom Long reflecting on Psalm 90 and the call to Number Our Days. I was especially interested because the point of his sermon (on the link, and then scroll down past the interview portion. If you're registered with Day1 you can hear the audio of the sermon.) was to reflect on numbering our days in light of the capacities of contemporary medicine. He speaks to a difficulty that I have described by saying, "When will folks understand that Dr. House lied to them? We don't get every patient cured, much less in 60 minutes!" Tom Long points this out himself, if more gently, and reflects on numbering our days and wisdom.

Often enough I have spoken to this myself, frequently addressing (all right, complaining about) the tendency in the media to hype every small study with an apparently positive result, without presenting that result in its longer - and not necessarily so positive - context. Tom Long does it with a bit more grace and a bit more Scripture, and I commend this to you, too.