Here's what you need to know. There is a sealed box. Inside is (a) a cat, (b) a vial of poison, and (c) a mechanism to spill the poison. The mechanism will start only if a certain event occurs, and that event is unpredictable. Finally, if the mechanism spills the poison, the cat will die.
If you paid attention in science class (or are a fan of "The Big Bang Theory"), you’ve likely heard of Schrödinger's Cat. This is the famous thought experiment set up by physicist Erwin Schrödinger. And it is purely theoretical ... this was never a real experiment, just a mental exercise. So, no cats were harmed in the making of this reflection.
The purpose of the experiment was to illustrate a point: Until we open the box —and see with our own eyes— we cannot know whether the cat is alive or dead.
From a physics standpoint, nothing has actually occurred ... yet. The cat is constantly either alive or dead until we open the box and find out for certain ... a continuous state of possibility.
Have I lost you? Hang on. We're done with the science-y stuff. What it means, in every day terms, is this: we cannot know what we cannot know.
Anything is possible.
There are many treasures to be mined from the story of Joseph —the limits of prophecy, fractured families, the power of forgiveness, even agronomics— but, for me, it's this "not knowing" that keeps me coming back to Joseph.
That's because, in this particular sense, Joseph is just like us.
Despite the cryptic dreams he received as a young man, he could never have known he would become "a father to Pharaoh, and lord of all his house and ruler over all the land of Egypt."
When it comes to what to do and say when things go wrong, Joseph is a great model for us. At each challenge point, Joseph, not knowing the future, could have chosen either way. Just like us. We know that each time he chose to behave in a way that was pleasing to God. He did this even though the Law had yet to be handed down from God: there were no Ten Commandments.
Anyone can know right from wrong.
We, like Joseph, remain in a continuous state of possibility. That only changes when we "open the box," so to speak. Similar to Schrödinger's Cat, until we choose a course of action —in that nanosecond before our thoughts settle into our choice— we can go either way. And like Joseph, none of us can actually know our future.
But God can.
God sees all our possibilities. God can see into the "box," if you will. And, if we will allow it —if we can trust God as Joseph did— God will guide us into the best path ... and even to undreamed of achievements.
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A slightly different version of this reflection appeared in August 2014 as Schrödinger's Cat.
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany (February 24, 2019)
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu//texts.php?id=113
Genesis 45:3-11, 15
Psalm 37:1-11, 39-40
1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-50
Luke 6:27-38
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DaySpring’s Friday morning Lectionary Breakfast is a great way to start the weekend. Join us at 8:00 at the Waco “Egg and I” restaurant for food, fellowship, scripture, and hijinks (is that still a word?).
See you there,
Steve
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