Above:   A Hand Dryer

Image in the Public Domain

Full of Hot Air

NOVEMBER 9, 2022

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Collect:

O God, our eternal redeemer, by the presence of your Spirit you renew and direct our hearts.

Keep always in our mind the end of all things and the day of judgment.

Inspire us for a holy life here, and bring us to the joy of the resurrection,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.  Amen.

—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 52

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Assigned Readings:

Job 25:1-26:14

Psalm 123

John 5:19-29

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Have mercy upon us, O LORD, have mercy,

for we have had more than enough of contempt.

–Psalm 123:4, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Reading a portion of scripture from more than one translation can prove helpful.  The principle applies to Job 26 and 27.  The speech of Bildad the Shuhite encompasses all six verses of Chapter 25 as well as 26:5-14.  Job’s reply fills 26:1-4 and continues in Chapter 27.  The notes in The Jewish Study Bible–Second Edition (2014) recognize this, but the translation (TANAKH:  The Holy Scriptures, 1985) keeps the verses in numerical order, causing some confusion when the voice changes without any textual indication indicating that another character is speaking.  The Jerusalem Bible (1966), however, places 26:1-4 after 26:5-14 and immediately prior to 27:1, making the text coherent.

Job 24:25 concludes the main character’s rebuttal to Eliphaz the Temanite with:

Who can prove me a liar

or show that my words have no substance?

—The Jerusalem Bible (1966)

Bildad attempts to do just that, arguing for the sovereignty of God by pointing to evidences of God in nature.  It is a pious-sounding speech–one not entirely false.  Nevertheless, it is one applied in the service of a false notion–that Job’s reply to Bildad.  Job, with much sarcasm, says:

To one so weak, what a help you are,

for the arm that is powerless, what a rescuer!

What excellent advice you give the unlearned,

never at a loss for a helpful suggestion!

But who are they aimed at, these speeches of yours,

and what spirit is this that comes out of you?

–Job 26:2-4, The Jerusalem Bible (1966)

Then, in Chapter 27, Job continues to condemn Bildad for spouting empty words.

The words placed in the mouth of Jesus in John 5 are far from empty.  They also extol the sovereignty of God, but in the context of a book in which the glorification of Jesus is his crucifixion (something which Bildad would have argued incorrectly was due to our Lord and Savior’s sins) and resurrection.  One might profit by reading the Book of Job together with the Gospel of John, for the entirety of the latter contradicts the major assumption of the alleged friends of Job.

One can derive many spiritually helpful and theologically correct lessons from the Book of Job.  Among them is this:  We need to realize that, regardless of how orthodox we might be or seem to ourselves, we might nevertheless be full of hot air.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JUNE 3, 2016 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF WILL CAMPBELL, AGENT OF RECONCILIATION

THE FEAST OF SAINTS LIPHARDUS OF ORLEANS AND URBICIUS OF MEUNG, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOTS

THE FEAST OF THE MARTYRS OF UGANDA

THE FEAST OF SAINT MORAND OF CLUNY, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND MISSIONARY

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2016/06/03/full-of-hot-air/

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Above:  Boaz, by Rembrandt van Rijn

Image in the Public Domain

Responsibilities, Insiders, and Outsiders

NOVEMBER 8-10, 2021

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Collect:

O God, you show forth your almighty power

chiefly by reaching out to us in mercy.

Grant to us the fullness of your grace,

strengthen our trust in your promises,

and bring all the world to share in the treasures that come

through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.  Amen.

–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 52

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Assigned Readings:

Ruth 1:1-22 (Monday)

Ruth 3:14-4:6 (Tuesday)

Ruth 4:7-22 (Wednesday)

Psalm 94 (All Days)

1 Timothy 5:1-8 (Monday)

1 Timothy 5:9-16 (Tuesday)

Luke 4:16-30 (Wednesday)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Lord will not cast off his people:

nor will he forsake his own.

For justice shall return to the righteous man:

and with him to all the true of heart.

–Psalm 94:14-15, The Alternative Service Book 1980

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The composite pericope from 1 Timothy comes from a particular place and time, so some of the details do not translate well into contemporary Western settings.  May we, therefore, refrain from falling into legalism.  Nevertheless, I detect much of value in that reading, which acknowledges the existence of both collective and individual responsibilities and sorts out the boundary separating them in a particular cultural context.  One principle from that text is that relatives should, as they are able, take care of each other.  Another principle present in the reading is mutuality–responsibility to and for each other.

The lack of a support system, or at least an adequate one, is a major cause of poverty and related ills.  The support system might be any number of things, including:

1. the social safety net (the maintenance and strengthening of which I consider to be a moral imperative),
2. friends,
3. relatives,
4. neighbors,
5. the larger community,
6. a faith community,
7. non-governmental organizations, or
8. a combination of some of the above.

In the Book of Ruth Naomi and Ruth availed themselves of effective support systems.  They moved to Bethlehem, where Ruth was a foreigner but Naomi had relatives.  The women also gleaned in fields.  There Ruth met Boaz, a landowner and a kinsman of Naomi.  He obeyed the commandment from Deuteronomy 24:19 and left grain for the poor.  The story had a happy ending, for Ruth and Boaz married and had a son.  Naomi, once bitter, was thrilled.

One hypothesis regarding the Book of Ruth is that the text dates to the postexilic period.  If this is accurate, the story of the marriage of Ruth and Boaz functions as a criticism of opposition to intermarriage between Hebrews and foreigners and serves as a call for the integration of faithful foreigners into Jewish communities.  The Jewish support system, this perspective says, should extend to Gentiles.

Sometimes the call to exercise individual responsibility and to fulfill one’s role in collective responsibility becomes challenging, if not annoying.  One difficulty might be determining the line between the two sets of responsibilities.  Getting that detail correct is crucial, for we are responsible to and for each other.  The Pauline ethic (as in 2 Corinthians 8:7-15) which holds that those who have much should not have too much and that those who have little should not have too little is a fine goal toward which to strive, but who determines how much is too much and how little is too little?  And what is the best way to arrive at and maintain that balance?  These seem like communal decisions, given the communal ethos of the Bible.

If all that were not enough, we might have responsibilities to and for more people than we prefer or know we do.  John Donne wrote,

No man is an island,

Entire of itself,

Every man is a piece of the continent,

A part of the main.

If a clod be washed away by the sea,

Europe is the less.

As well as if a promontory were.

As well as if a manor of thy friend’s

Or of thine own were:

Any man’s death diminishes me,

Because I am involved in mankind,

And therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls;

It tolls for thee.

Do we dare to live according to the standard that anyone’s death diminishes us?  Do we dare to recognize foreigners and other “outsiders” as people whom God loves and whom we ought to love as we love ourselves?  Do we dare to think of “outsiders” as people to whom and for whom we are responsible?  If we do, how will we change the world for the better?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JULY 6, 2015 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT VINCENTIA GEROSA AND BARTHOLOMEA CAPITANIO, COFOUNDERS OF THE SISTERS OF CHARITY OF LOVERE

THE FEAST OF ISAIAH, BIBLICAL PROPHET

THE FEAST OF JAN HUS, PROTO-PROTESTANT MARTYR

THE FEAST OF OLUF HANSON SMEBY, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/07/06/responsibilities-insiders-and-outsiders/

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Above:  The Four Riders of the Apocalypse, by Albrecht Durer

Image in the Public Domain

Leaving Judgment to God

NOVEMBER 9-11, 2023

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Collect:

O God of justice and love,

you illumine our way through life with the words of your Son.

Give us the light we need, and awaken us to the needs of others,

through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord.  Amen.

–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 52

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Assigned Readings:

Amos 1:1-2:5 (Thursday)

Amos 3:1-12 (Friday)

Amos 4:6-13 (Saturday)

Psalm 70 (All Days)

Revelation 8:6-9:12 (Thursday)

Revelation 9:13-21 (Friday)

Matthew 24:1-14 (Saturday)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Be pleased, God, to rescue me,

Yahweh, come quickly and help me:

Shame and dismay to those who seek my life!

Back with them! Let them be humiliated

who delight in my misfortunes!

Let them shrink away covered with shame,

those who say, “Aha, aha!”

But joy and happiness in you to all who seek you.

Let them ceaselessly cry, “God is great,”

who love your saving power.

Poor and needy as I am,

God, come quickly to me!

Yahweh, my helper, my Saviour, do not delay!

–Psalm 70, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

As I read the lessons I wondered what I could write that I have not covered many times already.  The tone of the assigned passages fits the them of the church year well, for lectionaries tend to take an apocalyptic turn the last three or four weeks before Advent.  The theme of God destroying the sinful old order before replacing it with the Kingdom of God fully realized is quite old, as is the call to repent.  But how many times can one repeat the theology of repenting–turning around or changing one’s mind–without sounding like the most scratched of records and tiring of saying the same old thing again and again?

Here is something to consider:  we Christians need to accept the reality that Jesus was not always nice.  He seems so nice in illustrations from Bibles for children, but the canonical Gospels attribute many harsh words to him.  And judgment is as much a part of spiritual reality as is forgiveness.  Most of the readings for these days focus on judgment, but the possibility of forgiveness is present in some of them.  A plea for divine judgment against one’s adversaries, such as we find in Psalm 70 and many other psalms, is an understandable and familiar prayer.  I have uttered something like it many times.  Yet such attitudes will not aid or abet the arrival of the fully realized Kingdom of God or the partially realized one.

God is not always nice.  Jesus was not always nice.  And we are not always nice.  Furthermore, we do not understand God or Jesus much of the time, but doing so is not necessary.  We can, however, leave the judging to God and strive, by grace, to live mercifully and compassionately.  That proves quite difficult often, does it not?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

SEPTEMBER 7, 2014 COMMON ERA

PROPER 18:  THE THIRTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR A

THE FEAST OF THE SAINTS AND MARTYRS OF THE PACIFIC

THE FEAST OF ELIE NAUD, HUGUENOT WITNESS TO THE FAITH

THE FEAST OF JANE LAURIE BORTHWICK, TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS

THE FEAST OF JOHN GREENLEAF WHITTIER, POET

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2014/09/10/leaving-judgment-to-god-2/

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Above:  The Siege and Destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans Under the Command of Titus, A.D. 70 (1850), by David Roberts (1796-1864)

Jeremiah and Matthew, Part VII:  Mercy and Repentance

NOVEMBER 8 AND 9, 2023

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning:

Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,

that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,

which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, for ever and ever.  Amen.

–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Assigned Readings:

Jeremiah 20:1-18 (November 8)

Jeremiah 22:1-23 (November 9)

Psalm 51 (Morning–November 8)

Psalm 104 (Morning–November 9)

Psalms 142 and 65 (Evening–November 8)

Psalms 118 and 111 (Evening–November 9)

Matthew 24:29-51 (November 8)

Matthew 25:1-13 (November 9)

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod daily lectionary I am following provides a table for selecting Psalms for each day.  During Ordinary Time there is a rotation over a period of four weeks.  Then the cycle begins again.  So sometimes the appointed Psalms (or at least some of them) seem not to fit with the main readings.

God is mad in the Jeremiah and Matthew lections.  The Kingdom of Judah will rise.  The current king will go first, however.  When God acts many–evildoers–will have an ample supply of reasons for laments.  When God becomes the king in such a way that people recognize the divine kingship many people will consider this fact bad news, for it will be bad news for them.  But how else is God supposed to clean the slate and to rescue the oppressed righteous when evildoers refuse to change their minds and ways, to cease from oppressing?

The assigned Psalms range from a confession of sin to praises of God for being merciful and bountiful in dispensing blessings.  Actually, all of them fit the main readings well, for:

1. One should confess sins, especially in the face of judgment;
2. Confession of sins can lead to repentance, something God encourages in the Bible; and
3. Judgment and mercy coexist–judgment for some and mercy for others, according to the absence or presence of repentance.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JUNE 3, 2013 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT MORAND OF CLUNY, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND MISSIONARY

THE FEAST OF SAINTS LIPHARDUS OF ORLEANS AND URBICIUS OF MEUNG, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOTS

THE FEAST OF THE MARTYRS OF UGANDA

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

This is post #550 of this weblog.–KRT

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/06/06/jeremiah-and-matthew-part-vii-mercy-and-repentance/

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Above:  A Nurse with Infant Orphans

Image Source = Michielvd

Proper Behavior and the Golden Rule

NOVEMBER 8 and 9, 2022

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), of The Episcopal Church, contains an adapted two-years weekday lectionary for the Epiphany and Ordinary Time seasons from the Anglican Church of Canada.  I invite you to follow it with me.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

COMPOSITE FIRST READING

Titus 2:1-3:15 (Revised English Bible):

For your part, you must say what is in keeping with sound doctrine.  The older men should be sober, dignified, and temperate, sound in faith, love, and fortitude.  The older women, similarly, should be reverent in their demeanour, not scandalmongers or slaves to excessive drinking; they must set a high standard, and so teach the younger women to be loving wives and mothers, to be temperate, chaste, busy at home, and kind, respecting the authority of their husbands.  Then the gospel will not be brought into disrepute.

Urge the younger men, similarly, to be temperate in all things, and set them an example of good conduct yourself.  In your teaching you must show integrity and seriousness, and offer sound instruction to which none can take exception.  Any opponent will be at a loss when he finds nothing to say to our discredit.

Slaves are to respect their masters’ authority in everything and to give them satisfaction; they are not to answer back, nor to pilfer, but are to show themselves absolutely trustworthy.  In all this they will add lustre to the doctrine of God our Saviour.

For the grace of God has dawned upon the world with healing for all mankind; and by it we are disciplined to renounce godless ways and worldly desires, and to live a life of temperance, honesty, and godliness in the present age, looking forward to the happy fulfillment of our hope when the splendour of our great God and Saviour Christ Jesus will appear.  He it is who sacrificed himself for us, to set us free from all wickedness and to make us his own people, pure and eager to do good.

These are your themes; urge them and argue them with an authority which on one can disregard.

Remind everyone to be submissive to the government and the authorities, and to obey them; to be ready for any honourable work; to slander no one, to avoid quarrels, and always to show forbearance and a gentle disposition to all.

There was a time when we too were lost in folly and disobedience and were slaves to passions and pleasures of every kind.  Our days were passed in malice and envy; hateful ourselves, we loathed one another.

But when the kindness and generosity of God our Saviour dawned upon the world, then, not for any good deeds of our own, but because he was merciful, he saved us through the water of rebirth and the renewing power of the Holy Spirit, which he lavished upon us through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, justified by his grace, we might in hope become heirs to eternal life.

That is a saying you may trust.

Such are the points I want to insist on, so that those who have come to believe in God may be sure to devote themselves to good works.  These precepts are good in themselves and useful to society.  But avoid foolish speculations, genealogies, quarrels, and controversies under the law; they are unprofitable and futile.

If someone is contentious, he should be allowed a second warning; after that, have nothing more to do with him, recognizing that anyone like that has a distorted mind and stands self-condemned in his sin.

Once I have sent Artemas or Tychicus to you, join me at Nicopolis as soon as you can, for that is where I have decided to spend the winter.  Do your utmost to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their travels, and see that they are not short of anything.  And our own people must be taught to devote themselves to good works to meet urgent needs; they must not be unproductive.

All who are with me send your greetings.  My greetings to our friends in the faith.  Grace be with you all!

RESPONSE FOR TUESDAY

Psalm 37:1-6, 28-29 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):

1 Do not fret yourself because of evildoers;

do not be jealous of those who do no wrong.

2 For they shall soon whither like the grass,

and like the green grass they fade away.

3 Put your trust in the LORD and do good,

dwell in the land and feed on its riches.

4 Take delight in the LORD,

and he shall give you your heart’s desire.

5 Commit your way to the LORD and put your trust in him,

and he will bring it to pass.

6 He will make your righteousness as clear as the light

and your just dealing as the noonday.

28 Turn from evil, and do good,

and dwell in the land for ever.

29 For the LORD loves justice;

he does not forsake his faithful ones.

RESPONSE FOR WEDNESDAY

Psalm 91:9-16 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):

9  Because you have made the LORD your refuge,

and the Most High your habitation,

10  There shall no evil happen to you,

neither shall any plague come near your dwelling.

11  He shall give his angels charge over you,

to keep you in all his ways.

12  They shall bear you in their hands,

lest you dash your foot against a stone.

13  You shall tread upon the lion and adder;

you shall trample the young lion and the serpent under your feet.

14 Because he is bound to me in love,

therefore I will deliver him;

I will protect him, because he knows my name.

15 He shall call upon me, and I will answer him;

I am with him in trouble;

I will rescue him and bring him to honor.

16 With long life will I satisfy him,

and show him my salvation.

COMPOSITE GOSPEL READING

Luke 17:7-10 (Revised English Bible):

[Jesus said to his disciples,]

Suppose one of you has a servant ploughing or minding sheep.  When he comes in from the fields, will the master say, “Come and sit down straightway”?  Will he not rather say, “Prepare my supper; hitch up your robe, and wait on me while I have my meal.  You can have yours afterwards”?  Is he grateful to the servant for carrying out his orders?  So with you:  when you have carried out all you have been ordered to do, you should say, “We are servants and deserve no credit; we have only done our duty.”

In the course of Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem he was travelling through the borderlands of Samaria and Galilee.  As he was entering a village he was met by ten men with leprosy.  They stood some way off, and called out to him,

Jesus, Master, take pity on us.

When he saw them he said,

Go and show yourselves to the priests;

and while they were on the way, they were made clean.  One of them, finding himself cured, turned back with shouts of praise to God.  He threw himself down at Jesus’ feet and thanked him.  And he was a Samaritan.  At this Jesus said:

Were not all then made clean?  The other nine, where are they?  Was  no one found returning to give praise to God except this foreigner?

And he said to the man,

Stand up and go on your way; your faith has cured you.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Collect:

O God, whose blessed Son came into the world that he might destroy the works of the devil and make us children of God and heirs of eternal life: Grant that, having this hope, we may purify ourselves as he is pure; that, when he comes again with power and great glory, we may be made like him in his eternal and glorious kingdom; where he lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Some Related Posts:

Week of Proper 27:  Tuesday, Year 1:

https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/19/week-of-proper-27-tuesday-year-1/

Week of Proper 27:  Wednesday, Year 1:

https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/19/week-of-proper-27-wednesday-year-1/

Slavery:

https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/11/07/week-of-proper-25-wednesday-year-2-and-week-of-proper-25-thursday-year-2/

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Chapters 2 and 3 of Titus contain much practical advice and non-controversial administrative advice.  Some of the content is sexist by modern standards, but it did not seem so at the time.  Then there are really troublesome parts–slavery and submission to the government.  As I have already written, the failure to condemn slavery and to insist upon complete egalitarianism mars the Pauline tradition for me.  And, as for submission to the government, in the Pauline case, the Roman Empire, I have read some disturbing articles and editorials (as late as the middle 1970s) in arch-conservative, pro-law and order Christian magazines during the Vietnam War era, citing the Third Reich as an extreme example of a government to which one ought to submit.  What would Dietrich Bonhoeffer have said about that?

I propose that, as a Christian, my obligation is to follow the example of Jesus, who lived according to the Golden Rule.  So, regardless of the specific circumstances, may we treat others respectfully and act toward them compassionately.  This might entail some tough love, but so be it.  Each person bears the image of God; may we treat them with the dignity corresponding to the status of God-bearer.

KRT

http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/05/10/proper-behavior-and-the-golden-rule/

Above:  An Old Family Bible

Image Source = David Ball

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

God of glory,

as we prepare to study the Bible,

may we approach the texts with our minds open,

our intellects engaged,

and our spirits receptive to your leading,

so that we will understand them correctly

and derive from them the appropriate lessons.

Then may we act on those lessons.

For the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Amen.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

OCTOBER 7, 2011 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF HENRY MELCHIOR MUHLENBERG, SHEPHERD OF LUTHERANISM IN THE AMERICAN COLONIES

THE FEAST OF FRED KAAN, HYMNWRITER

THE FEAST OF JOHN WOOLMAN, ABOLITIONIST

Above:  The Missal (1902), by John William Waterhouse (1849-1917)

Image in the Public Domain

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Here I share with everyone a proposed form of the Prayers of the People, for congregational use, for the Season After Pentecost.  Anyone may modify this form to fit local needs and update it as people leave or enter office.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The congregational response to “We pray to you, O God” is “Hear our prayer.”

As God’s people, sanctified by the Holy Spirit, we ask that our lives may become prayer pleasing to you, and that all people and institutions which profess to follow our Lord, may express God’s love and grace to others.

We pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

That

• Barack, our President;
• Nathan, our Governor;
• Nancy, our Mayor;
• And all other government officials and all influential persons

may exercise their power and authority wisely and for the common good, so that all people everywhere may be treated with dignity and respect, dwell in safety, and have everything they need,

we pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

That we may love you with our whole heart and life and strength, and love our neighbors as ourselves,

we pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

That we may be good stewards of Mother Earth,

we pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

We intercede for

• (first names here);
• And our men and women in the armed forces, especially (names here);
• And all people struggling with vocational and career issues.

I invite your prayers, silent or aloud.

(Pause)

We pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

We thank you for

• (names here), who celebrate their birthdays this week;
• And (names here), who celebrate their wedding anniversaries this week.

I invite your thanksgivings, silent or aloud.

(Pause)

We pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

That all who have passed from this life to the next will know the boundless joy and peace of eternal rest,

we pray to you, O God,

Hear our prayer.

The celebrant concludes with a collect.

Above:  Parable of the Lost Sheep, by Jan Luyken

Image in the Public Domain

Repentance

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Holy Women, Holy Men:  Celebrating the Saints (2010), of The Episcopal Church, contains an adapted two-years weekday lectionary for the Epiphany and Ordinary Time seasons from the Anglican Church of Canada.  I invite you to follow it with me.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Romans 14:7-12 (Revised English Bible):

For none of us lives, and equally none of us dies, for himself alone.  If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord.  This why Christ died and lived again, to establish his lordship over both dead and living.  You, then, why do you pass judgement on your fellow-Christian? And you, why do you look down on your fellow-Christian?  We all stand before God’s tribunal; for we read in scripture,

As I live, says the Lord, to me every knee shall bow and every tongue acknowledge God.

So, you see, each of us will be answerable to God.

Psalm 27:1-6, 17-18 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):

1 The LORD is my light and my salvation;

whom then shall I fear?

the LORD is the strength of my life;

of whom then shall I be afraid?

2 When evildoers came upon me to eat up my flesh,

it was they, my foes and my adversaries, who stumbled and fell.

3 Though an army should encamp against me,

yet my heart shall not be afraid;

4 And though war should rise up against me,

yet I will put my trust in him.

5 One thing I have asked of the LORD;

one thing I seek;

that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life;

6 To behold the fair beauty of the LORD

and to seek him in his temple.

17 What if I had not believed

that I should see the goodness of the LORD

in the land of the living!

18 O tarry and await the LORD’s pleasure;

be strong, and he shall comfort your heart;

wait patiently for the LORD.

Luke 15:1-10 (Revised English Bible):

Another time, the tax-collectors and sinners were all crowding in to listen to Jesus; and the Pharisees and scribes began murmuring their disapproval:

This fellow,

he said,

welcomes sinners and eats with them.

He answered them with this parable:

If one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does he not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and go after the one that is missing until he finds it?  And when he does, he lifts it joyfully on to his shoulders, and goes home to call his friends and neighbours together.  “Rejoice with me!” he cries.  “I have found my lost sheep.”  In the same way, I tell you, there will be greater joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who do not need to repent.

Or again, if a woman has ten silver coins and loses one of them, does she not light the lamp, sweep out the house, and look in every corner till she finds it?  And when she does, she calls her friends and neighbours together, and says, “Rejoice with me!  I have found the coin that I lost.”  In the same way, I tell you, there is joy among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The Collect:

Almighty and merciful God, it is only by your gift that your faithful people offer you true and laudable service: Grant that we may run without stumbling to obtain your heavenly promises; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

A group of shepherds tended a communal flock.  The shepherds were responsible for the well-being of each precious sheep. Sheep and shepherds needed each other.  And the woman probably needed the silver coin, so it was precious to her.

Jesus tells these familiar stories in Luke 15, a chapter full of stories about being lost then found again.  The immediate context is grumbling about him dining with socially undesirable people.  If our Lord ‘s culture had a cliche about lying down with dogs and rising with fleas, he did not live according to it, for he cared more about repentance than respectability.

Repentance is a much-misunderstood word.  It means far more than saying “I’m sorry and I apologize.”  No, it indicates turning around and changing one’s mind. Repentance is active.  Much is active in the Bible.  Faith is active for Paul, for example.  Indeed, Paul reminds us that our lives occur within the context of God, so we ought not pass judgment on our fellow Christians.  All of us, he reminds us, are equally subject to God’s tribunal.

One might recall Matthew 7:1-5, which, according to the Revised Standard Version, reads:

Judge not, that you be not judged.  For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.  Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye?  Or how can you say to your brother, “Let me take the speck out of your eye,” when there is the log in your own eye?  You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

I could not say it better myself.  Now all I need to do is practice this advice more often.  And, being not all that different from many other people, I know that I have company in committing this sin.  May God forgive us all and grant us grace to live more nearly as we know we ought to do.

Every sheep and silver coin is precious to those who rely on them, and every person matters to God, who knows us better than we know ourselves.  May we therefore repent of our attitudes and actions which do not value others as much as we ought to do.

KRT

http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/05/09/repentance/

Above:  Everything is In the Past, by Vassily Maximov

Image in the Public Domain

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sovereign Lord of life,

may we not imprison ourselves in the past,

dwelling on disappointments and plotting revenge

or resting on our laurels.

Instead, may we learn the appropriate lessons from the past,

live in the present faithfully, and

look to the future faithfully.

May we be and remain open to

all the possibilities you present for us to fulfill our vocations.

And, in so doing, may we become the persons we need to become

–for your glory and the sake others.

In the name of God, the Holy and Undivided Trinity.  Amen.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 11, 2010

THE FEAST OF ALEXANDER FLEMING

Published originally at GATHERED PRAYERS COLLECTED BY KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR on July 17, 2010

Allegory of Faith, by Luis Salvador Carmona

Image Source = Luis Garcia

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Sovereign God,

I confess that I have sought control in matters small, medium, and large.

This has been a recurring, unfortunate, and sinful pattern.

Why have I not learned better that human control is purely illusory?

Why am I stubborn in this sin?

Deliver me–deliver all of us–I pray you–from this sin,

so that trust in you may replace the idolatrous quest for control,

that love for you and all your children may abound,

and that Shalom may result.

In the name of God, the Holy and Undivided Trinity.  Amen.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 10, 2010 (THE FEAST OF GEOFFREY STUDDERT KENNEDY)

Published originally at GATHERED PRAYERS COLLECTED BY KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR on July 17, 2010