Above:  Icon of Abraham

Scan by Kenneth Randolph Taylor

Faithful Servants of God, Part II

NOT OBSERVED IN 2023; TRINITY SUNDAY TAKES ITS PLACE

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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 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

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Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 or Ecclesiastes 6 or Ezekiel 33:1-11

Psalm 7:1, 11-18

Galatians 3:19-29

Matthew 5:21-37

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Words matter, for they have power.  Today we read this in Ecclesiastes 5 and Matthew 5.  We have a moral obligation to refrain from all abusive language (such as Raqa, in the context of the culture of Matthew 5) and evasive language purposefully devoid of meaning (such as clever oaths in Matthew 5).

Actions matter also.  As much as God desires that the wicked repent, we mere mortals ought to seek reconciliation in disputes.  Accomplishing this is not always possible, for reconciliation requires more than one conciliatory party.  In such a case the desire to reconcile is laudable, at least.

The prayer from Psalm 7:9 that the wicked would cease to do harm and the reign of righteousness would begin is a timeless one.  I pray it often, for that would be a welcome change of reality.  Such a radical restructuring of the world requires an act of God, whose law Christ fulfills.

These admonitions can prove difficult to keep in one’s life.  We cannot succeed by our own strength of will.  Yes, our good intentions are laudable; God can work with them.  Yet we require grace to succeed in this noble endeavor.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 21, 2018 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH, CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH, AND JOHANN CHRISTIAN BACH, COMPOSERS

THE FEAST OF SAINT NICHOLAS OF FLÜE AND HIS GRANDSON, SAINT CONRAD SCHEUBER, SWISS HERMITS

THE FEAST OF SAINT SERAPION OF THMUIS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM EDWARD HICKSON, ENGLISH MUSIC EDUCATOR AND SOCIAL REFORMER

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Adapted from this post:

https://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2018/03/21/devotion-for-the-sixth-sunday-after-the-epiphany-year-a-humes/

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Above:  Fresco of King Solomon, Elmali Kilise, Cappodocia, Turkey, 1935

Image Source = Library of Congress

Ecclesiastes and John, Part IV:  Hypocrisy

MAY 28 = Pentecost Sunday (Outside of Ordinary Time) in 2023

MAY 29 and 30, 2023

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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

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The Assigned Readings:

Ecclesiastes 5:1-20/4:17-5:19 (May 28)

Ecclesiastes 6:1-7:10 (May 29)

Ecclesiastes 7:11-29 (May 30)

Psalm 123 (Morning–May 28)

Psalm 15 (Morning–May 29)

Psalm 36 (Morning–May 30)

Psalms 30 and 86 (Evening–May 28)

Psalms 48 and 4 (Evening–May 29)

Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–May 30)

John 8:1-20 (May 28)

John 8:21-38 (May 29)

John 8:39-59 (May 30)

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TECHNICAL NOTE:

Ecclesiastes 4:17-5:19 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox) = 5:1-20 (Protestant).

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 Koheleth, in Ecclesiastes, was King Solomon, at least according to tradition.  If Solomon did not write these words someone intended readers to think that he did.  Either day, the text of Ecclesiastes 5-7 seems ironic, coming from Solomon or jut placed in his voice.  He would have fared better had he followed the advice contained therein.

In John 8, the unity of which I have maintained, Jesus faced critics who clung to a holy label yet behaved in a contrary manner.  Their deeds, informed by their attitudes, belied their words.  Trying to kill a man over a theological dispute seems unjustifiable to me.  Of course, the offenders in John 8 would have cited the death penalty for blasphemy in the Law of Moses to justify their actions.  But there was much in the Law of Moses they did not keep strictly, so they were hypocrites on that front also.

Few offenses disturb me more than hypocrisy.  Of course, I realize immediately my need to examine myself spiritually for just that violation.  At least knowing that a problem exists increases the probability of addressing it successfully; that is sufficient grounds for some optimism.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

JULY 3, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF ELIZABETH FERARD, ANGLICAN DEACONESS

THE FEAST OF SAINT ELIZABETH OF PORTUGAL, QUEEN

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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/ecclesiastes-and-john-part-iv-hypocrisy/

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