Sacred Frames - The Sopranos Part II

Pastor Chris continues in our series called Sacred Frames by looking again at the show The Sopranos. Pastor Chris explores the themes of belonging and community as the show highlight's Tony Sopranos loneliness. Pastor Chris invites us to engage with each other and suggests that the Church continues to hold a place of belonging for each other.

Live Teaching Podcast Scriptures & References

Ecclesiastes 1

1 These are the words of the teacher, the son of David, king in Jerusalem.
2 Teacher: Life is fleeting, like a passing mist.
It is like trying to catch hold of a breath;
All vanishes like a vapor; everything is a great vanity.
3 What good does it do anyone to work so hard again and again, sun up to sundown? All his labor to gain but
a little?

Ecclesiastes 1

4 One generation comes, another goes;
but the earth continues to remain.
5 The sun rises and the sun sets,
laboring to come up quickly to its place again
and again.
6 The wind in its travels blows toward the south,
then swings back around to the north.
Back and forth,
returning in its circuit again and again.

Ecclesiastes 1

7 All rivers flow to the sea,
but the sea is never full.
To the place where the rivers flow,
there the water returns to flow once again.
8 Words, words, words! So many words! They are wearisome things; and yet people cannot refrain from speaking.
No eye has ever surveyed the world and said, “I have seen enough”; no ear has ever listened to creation and said, “I have heard enough.”



Ecclesiastes 1

9 What has been, that will be;
what has been done, that will be done.
Nothing is new under the sun;
the future only repeats the past.
10 One person may say of some idea,
“Pay attention to this; it’s original!”
But that same idea has already been expressed;
it’s been with us through the ages.

Ecclesiastes 1

11 We do not remember those people and events of long ago, as future generations will not remember what is yet to come.
12 I, the teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I decided to seek out and study the wisdom of the ages, of all that had been done under the heavens. I soon discovered the harsh realities of the work God has given us that keeps us so busy.

Ecclesiastes 1

14 I have witnessed all that is done under the sun, and indeed, all is fleeting, like trying to embrace the wind. 15 There is an old saying: Something crooked cannot be made straight, and something missing cannot be counted.
16 I mused over it all and thought to myself, “I have done great things, and I have gained more wisdom than anyone who reigned over Jerusalem before me. I have contemplated great wisdom and knowledge.”

Ecclesiastes 1

17 I decided to study wisdom and instead acquainted myself with madness and folly. It, too, seemed like trying to pursue the wind, 18 for as my wisdom increased, so did my vexation. As my knowledge grew, so did my pain.



Isaiah 43:1

Eternal One: Remember who created you, O Jacob? Who shaped you, O Israel? See, you have nothing to fear. I, who made you, will take you back. I have chosen you, named you as My own.



Ecclesiastes 4:7-12

7 Again I observed another example of how fleeting life is under the sun: 8 a person who is all alone—with no child, no sibling—yet he works hard his entire life. Still he is never satisfied with the wealth he gains. Does he stop to ask, “Why am I working so hard?” or “Why am I depriving myself of life’s simple pleasures?” This, too, is fleeting, like trying to catch hold of a breath; it’s a miserable situation.


Ecclesiastes 4:7-12

9 Two are better than one because a good return comes when two work together. 10 If one of them falls, the other can help him up. But who will help the pitiful person who falls down alone? 11 In the same way, if two lie down together, they can keep each other warm. But how will the one who sleeps alone stay warm against the night? 12 And if one person is vulnerable to attack, two can drive the attacker away. As the saying goes, “A rope made of three strands is not quickly broken.”



Deuteronomy 5:9-10

9 You are not to bow down in worship of any images of other gods, for I am the Eternal your God. I am jealous for worship, bringing punishment on you and your children to come, even down to your great-grandchildren, to whoever hates Me. 10 Instead, those who obey My commands and truly love Me will receive My loyal love endlessly, even for a thousand generations.



Psalm 110:3

Your people will come as volunteers that day; they will be a sight to see: on that day, you will lead your army, noble in their holiness.
As the new day dawns and dew settles on the grass,
your young volunteers will make their way to you.