Archive for the ‘Feeding of the 5000’ Tag
Above: Cross and Crown
Image in the Public Domain
A Royal Nation
AUGUST 13, 2023
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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Isaiah 55:1-5
Psalm 104:25-31 (LBW) or Psalm 136:1-9, 23-26 (LW)
Romans 8:35-39
Matthew 14:13-21
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Gracious Father,
your blessed Son came down from heaven
to be the true bread which gives life to the world.
Give us this bread,
that he may live in us and we in him,
Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
OR
Almighty God, judge of us all,
you have placed in our hands the wealth we call our own.
Give us such wisdom by your Spirit
that our possessions may not be a curse in our lives,
but an instrument for blessing;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 26
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Let your continual mercy, O Lord, cleanse and defend your Church;
and because it cannot continue in safety without your help,
protect and govern it always by your goodness;
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 73
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The story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand, present in all four canonical Gospels, is a topic about which I have written many times during the years I have been composing lectionary-based posts. I refer you, O reader, to those posts for more about that event.
Second Isaiah applied the Davidic Covenant to the people of Judah, delivered from the Babylonian Exile. He wrote that the Jewish people had royal status, not a human king. This transformation of the Davidic Covenant accounted for the fall of the Davidic Dynasty in 587/586 B.C.E. Historically, that dynasty never returned to power. Second Isaiah, having democratized the Davidic Covenant, did not include an idealized future king–the Messiah–in his theology. This vision of the future contrasted with Second Zechariah, who wrote of such a Davidic monarch in Zechariah 9:9-12.
God provided for that royal nation. The authors of Psalms 104 and 136 also understood God as being active in nature and history. The theme of God feeding people carried over into the Feeding of the Five Thousand.
For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nothing already in existence and nothing still to come, nor any power in the heights nor the depths, nor any created thing whatever, will be able to come between us and the love of God, known to us in Christ Jesus our Lord.
–Romans 8:38-39, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
This is excellent news! Do you, O reader, trust that this is true?
Psalm 23 tells us that divine kindness and faithful love either pursue or accompany (depending on the translation) us, even in the presence of our enemies. God is on our side. Are we on God’s side?
The people of God are a royal nation. May we think and act accordingly, loving God fully and our neighbors (all people) as ourselves.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 20, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOSEPH AUGUSTUS SEISS, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, LITURGIST, HYMN WRITER, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF ALFRED RAMSEY, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF BERNARD ADAM GRUBE, GERMAN-AMERICAN MINISTER, MISSIONARY, COMPOSER, AND MUSICIAN
THE FEAST OF CHARLES COFFIN, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF HANS ADOLF BRORSON, DANISH LUTHERAN BISHOP, HYMN WRITER, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM JOHN SPARROW-SIMPSON, ANGLICAN PRIEST, HYMN WRITER, AND PATRISTICS SCHOLAR
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Multiplication of the Loaves and Fishes, by Francisco Herrera the Elder
Image in the Public Domain
Human Obliviousness and Disharmony with God
JULY 3, 2022
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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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Genesis 2:15-25 or Acts 20:1-12
Psalm 120
Revelation 1:9-10
John 6:1-15
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Genesis 2:15-25 presents, in the format of a myth, a portrait of life in harmony and innocence in the Garden of Eden. That is not the kind of life known during any documented epoch of the human past, or the of the present. Therefore, an encounter with God may seem frightening. Or it may seem intimate and comfortable. Or it may astound. Given the variety of encounters with God, both direct and indirect, as well as the range of people and circumstances, one cannot legitimately say that an encounter with God will definitely proceed in a given manner.
To ask that we have more than a very short-term memory of the encounter is reasonable, though. We read of the Feeding of the Five Thousand in John 6:1-15. If we keep reading, we reach the events of the next day, in the immediate area. We read in John 6:30-31:
So they said, “What sign will you yourself do, the sight of which will make us believe in you? What work will you do? Our fathers ate manna in the desert; as scriptures says, He gave them bread from heaven to eat.
—The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
Jesus must have rolled his eyes and muttered an ancient equivalent of,
Oy vey!
The author of the Gospel of John did not record that reaction, of course.
Not being oblivious to God is one step toward living in harmony with God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 15, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER AND MARTYR, 1968
THE FEAST OF ABBY KELLEY FOSTER AND HER HUSBAND, STEPHEN SYMONDS FOSTER, U.S. QUAKER ABOLITIONISTS AND FEMINISTS
THE FEAST OF BERTHA PAULSSEN, GERMAN-AMERICAN SEMINARY PROFESSOR, PSYCHOLOGIST, AND SOCIOLOGIST
THE FEAST OF GENE M. TUCKER, UNITED METHODIST MINISTER AND BIBLICAL SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF JOHN COSIN, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF COSIN
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/15/human-obliviousness-and-disharmony-with-god/
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Above: The Grief of Hannah
Image in the Public Domain
Rhapsodic Faith
AUGUST 15, 2021
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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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1 Samuel 1:1-20 or Jeremiah 14:1-22
Psalm 101
Romans 5:12-21
Luke 11:27-36
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Your love and justice will I sing,
to you, Yahweh, will I chant,
I will rhapsodize about your dominion complete.
When will you come to me?
–Psalm 101:1b-2a, Mitchell J. Dahood (1970)
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The Psalter in The Book of Common Prayer (1979) renders the third line quoted above as,
I will strive to follow a blameless course…
The germane notes in Dahood’s third (of three) volumes on the Book of Psalms for The Anchor Bible series cite Hebrew words and linguistic nuances to justify his choice of translation. Part of the pleasure of reading Dahood on the Psalms is studying, after a fashion, under a master of his field–in his case, ancient Semitic languages. I recommend purchasing his three volumes on the Psalms if one seeks to study the Book of Psalms deeply.
Part of the Hebrew text of Psalm 101 can legitimately read in English as,
I will strive to follow a blameless course,
and as,
I will rhapsodize about your dominion complete.
Think about that, O reader. One rendering focuses on deeds; the other zeroes in on joyfulness and singing. No single English-translation can capture the richness of the Hebrew text.
The attitude of the Psalmist, like that of Hannah in 1 Samuel 1:1-20, contrasts with that of the wicked people and generations in the other assigned readings.
- Human nature is flawed; that is obvious to me. Human depravity is not even an article of faith for me; I need no faith to accept that for which I have evidence.
- Sadly, false prophets (frequently supporting a political establishment) remain with us. One may read of the false prophets in the Book of Jeremiah and think readily of some of some of their contemporary counterparts.
- The quest for signs indicates faithlessness. Furthermore, human memories and attention spans can be fleeting. Consider, O reader, John 6. One reads of the Feeding of the Five Thousand in the first fifteen verses. One also reads in verse 30, set on the following day, “Then what sign will you do, that we may see, and believe you?”
May we, by grace, pay attention. May we mark, learn, and inwardly digest the law of of God. May we find that law written on our hearts. Then may we rejoice. May we rhapsodize consistently and strive to follow a blameless course. And may we succeed, by grace.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 19, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALPHEGE, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, AND MARTYR, 1012
THE FEAST OF DAVID BRAINERD, AMERICAN CONGREGATIONALIST THEN PRESBYTERIAN MISSIONARY AND MINISTER
THE FEAST OF SAINT EMMA OF LESUM, BENEFACTOR
THE FEAST OF MARY C. COLLINS, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MISSIONARY AND MINISTER
THE FEAST OF OLAVUS PETRI, SWEDISH LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN, HISTORIAN, LITURGIST, MINISTER, HYMN WRITER, HYMN TRANSLATOR, AND “FATHER OF SWEDISH LITERATURE;” AND HIS BROTHER, LAURENTIUS PETRI, SWEDISH LUTHERAN ARCHBISHOP OF UPPSALA, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND “FATHER OF SWEDISH HYMNODY”
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/19/rhapsodic-faith/
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Above: Traditional Site of the Feeding of the Five Thousand
Image Source = Library of Congress
Divine Extravagance
AUGUST 11, 2024
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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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Exodus 16:2-15 or 2 Samuel 23:1-7
Psalm 53
2 Corinthians 9:6-15
Mark 6:30-44
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Some say they have nothing or too little to give. Perhaps one cannot spare money, but one has something to give, thanks to the generosity of God. With God extravagance is the rule. Compared to God’s resources, of course, ours are meager. They are still important, though.
I dislike the category “supernatural.” The prefix “super” means “more than,” To call something supernatural is, therefore, to claim it is more than natural. But what if everything in the created order is natural? Some of them simply exceed our knowledge and understanding. Quail and manna are easily identifiable as natural; they are birds and crystalized insect excrement, respectively. The feeding of the Five Thousand+, found in four versions, one in each of the canonical Gospels, seems to be supernatural. According to my hypothesis, however, it is also natural.
The immoral, benighted fool of Psalms 14 and 53, the benighted fool of Psalms 14 and 53 thinks that God either does not care (in TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures, 1985) or is not present (Father Mitchell J. Dahood, 1968). Yet God is present and does care. God cares, for example, that people are hungry. God cares enough to multiply our puny gifts, regardless of the forms in which we offer them, and to leave leftovers.
That sounds like grace to me. Such divine extravagance demands human gratitude, evident in faithfulness.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 23, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BRIDGET OF SWEDEN, FOUNDRESS OF THE ORDER OF THE MOST HIGH SAVIOR; AND HER DAUGHTER, SAINT CATHERINE OF SWEDEN, SUPERIOR OF THE ORDER OF THE MOST HIGH SAVIOR
THE FEAST OF ADELAIDE TEAGUE CASE, PROFESSOR OF RELIGIOUS EDUCATION
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PHILIP EVANS AND JOHN LLOYD, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIESTS AND MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF THEODOR LILEY CLEMENS, ENGLISH MORAVIAN MINISTER, MISSIONARY, AND COMPOSER
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2019/07/23/divine-extravagance/
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Above: Church of the Multiplication, Tabgha, Israel
Image in the Public Domain
With God There Are Leftovers
AUGUST 4, 2021
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The Collect:
O God, eternal goodness, immeasurable love,
you place your gifts before us; we eat and are satisfied.
Fill us and this world in all its need with the life that comes only from you,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 44
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The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 55:1-9
Psalm 107:1-3, 33-43
Mark 8:1-10
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Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
and his mercy endures for ever.
Let all those whom the LORD has redeemed proclaim
that he rendered them from the hand of the foe.
He gathered them out of the lands;
from the east and from the west,
from the north and from the south.
–Psalm 107:1-3, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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Repentance is an option, even late in the game, so to speak. God, who glorifies the chosen people and remains faithful to divine promises, invites those who need to change their minds and ways to do so. The more people who are present at the divine banquet, the merrier.
Speaking of banquets, Mark 8:1-10 tells of Jesus feeding 4000 people (not just men) with a few fishes and loaves of bread. I refuse to try to explain the Feeding of the 4000 and the 5000 (Plus) (Mark 6:30-44) rationally for the same reason, which is that to do so is address the wrong question. I focus instead on one detail: there was more afterward than before.
Some people think that they have nothing to offer or that what they have to offer is inadequate, so they do not offer it to God for divine purposes. God, however, can multiply those gifts and talents, leaving leftovers. Many people need to repent of their failure to trust in God’s strength instead of their own. These are not evil people, just weak ones with psychological and emotional issues. At some point in each of us has been among this population. Others of us remain in their ranks.
The graciousness of God to the Hebrews in Isaiah 55 benefited the world (verse 5). God’s blessings to any one of us can and should benefit others. If we trust God to multiply that which we have to offer, as meager as it might seem, it will enrich the lives of more people than we can imagine, for the glory of God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 6, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCELLINUS OF CARTHAGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
THE FEAST OF DANIEL G. C. WU, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND MISSIONARY TO CHINESE AMERICANS
THE FEAST OF FREDERIC BARKER, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF SYDNEY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/04/06/with-god-there-are-leftovers/
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Above: St. Edward’s Episcopal Church, Lawrenceville, Georgia, October 19, 2014
Image Source = Bill Monk, Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta
Four Banquets
JULY 28, 2021
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The Collect:
Gracious God, you have placed within the hearts of all your children
a longing for your word and a hunger for your truth.
Grant that we may know your Son to be the true bread of heaven
and share this bread with all the world,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 43
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The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 25:6-10a
Psalm 111
Mark 6:35-44
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He has provided food for his worshippers;
he remembers his covenant for ever.
–Psalm 111:5, Harry Mowvley, The Psalms Introduced and Newly Translated for Today’s Readers (1989)
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This is a post about four banquets: the divine coronation feast in Isaiah 25:6-10a, the sordid feast of Herod Antipas in Mark 6:14-29, the Feeding of the 5000 (Plus) in Mark 6:30-44, and the Holy Eucharist.
The reading from Isaiah 25 speaks of a time immediately after Yahweh has defeated pride, evil, and sorrow, and established the Kingdom of God, in its fullness, on the Earth. This is a time in our future. All people are welcome at Yahweh’s coronation feast, to take place on Mount Zion, in Jerusalem. All is well, except for those whom God has vanquished, namely the Moabites (25:10).
Our next two banquets, which stand is stark contrast to each other, come from Mark 6. The first is a sordid event, with Herod Antipas lusting after the seductive Salome (whose name and image come to us via archaeology, not the Bible) and making a hasty promise which leads to the execution of St. John the Baptist. The Herodian family tree was complicated, for both Herodias and her daughter, Salome, were granddaughters of Herod the Great via different women. Herod Antipas, a son of Herod the Great via a third woman, married Herodias, who had been the wife of a half-brother of Herod Antipas. Thus Salome was the step-daughter and a cousin of Herod Antipas.
I will not attempt to explain the Feeding the 5000 (Plus) rationally, for doing that constitutes seeking an answer to the wrong question. (And I am more of a rationalist than a mystic.) Neither will I try to explain Jesus walking on water (next in Mark 6) logically, for the same reason. No, I am interested in answering the question which compelled one of my spiritual mentors whenever he studied any passage of scripture:
What is really going on here?
The Markan account of the Feeding of the 5000 men (no word about the number of women and children) uses imagery from elsewhere in the Bible. Jesus is the Good Shepherd feeding the flock. His feeding of the multitude exceeds Elisha’s feeding of 100 men (2 Kings 4:42-44) and Elijah’s miracle of the refilling jug of oil (1 Kings 17:8-16). The messianic banquet, an echo of Isaiah 25:6-10a, recurs in the wilderness motif in subsequent pseudipigraphal works, such as in 2 Baruch 29:4 and 4 Ezra 6:52. Two main ideas stand out in my mind:
- Jesus is greater than Elijah and Elisha (see Mark 6:15, in which some people thought that Jesus was Elijah), and
- Nothing we bring to Jesus is inadequate in his capable hands. There will be leftovers after he has finished working with it. We are insufficient by ourselves yet more than sufficient in Christ. That is what grace can effect.
The eucharistic imagery in Mark 6 points to the fourth banquet, which I, as an Episcopalian, celebrate at least once weekly. The Holy Eucharist has constituted the core of my spiritual life since childhood. One reason I left the United Methodism of my youth was to have the opportunities to partake of the sacrament more often. In the Holy Eucharist I meet Jesus in the forms of bread and wine and swear loyalty to him again. No, I am not worthy on my merit (such as it is) to do this, but I rely on his merits to make me worthy to do so. The first step to becoming worthy is acknowledging one’s unworthiness.
The contrast between human systems built on the foundation of violence, exploitation, and oppression on one hand and the Kingdom of God on the other hand is clear. Injustice and artificial scarcity characterize the former, but justice and abundance for all distinguish the latter. We can experience a foretaste of the Kingdom of God, which is partially present already, but we await the fullness of the Kingdom. Until then we can, at least, leave the world better off than we found it. No effort toward this goal is too little in Christ’s capable hands.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 6, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCELLINUS OF CARTHAGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
THE FEAST OF DANIEL G. C. WU, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND MISSIONARY TO CHINESE AMERICANS
THE FEAST OF FREDERIC BARKER, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF SYDNEY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/04/06/four-banquets/
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Above: Northern Views, Site of the Feeding of the Five Thousand
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-05555
Deuteronomy and Matthew, Part XIV: Violence and Compassion
OCTOBER 18 AND 19, 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:
Deuteronomy 17:1-20 (October 18)
Deuteronomy 18:1-22 (October 19)
Psalm 13 (Morning–October 18)
Psalm 56 (Morning–October 19)
Psalms 32 and 139 (Evening–October 18)
Psalms 100 and 62 (Evening–October 19)
Matthew 14:1-21 (October 18)
Matthew 14:22-36 (October 19)
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I have become convinced that the best way to read the Law of Moses is in small doses, usually in reference to narrative Bible stories. Yet the main purpose of a lectionary is to guide the orderly reading of the Bible, even books one might avoid otherwise. So I continue.
These days in Deuteronomy we read about court procedures. There must be at least two witnesses, in a capital case, for a person who has committed idolatry must die. Levites will settle baffling cases, and the king will have no role in justice. We read also of Levites and prophets, whose authority came from God, not any other source.
Speaking of prophets—yes, more than a prophet—we read of Jesus feeding the five thousand men plus an uncounted number of women and children with a small amount of food and ending up with more leftovers than the original supply of food. Then we read of Jesus walking on water then curing many people. That material completes a chapter which begins with the execution of St. John the Baptist due to a rash promise made at a tawdry party. The sublime grace and a great power of God at work in Jesus exists among violent men and women. That is the story I detect uniting Matthew 14.
There is also violence—albeit carefully regulated violence—in Deuteronomy 17. I continue to object to executing people for committing idolatry either. But, if human life is as valuable as some parts of the Law of Moses indicate, why is so much stoning demanded there? I read of how Jesus helped people from various backgrounds (often marginalized individuals) and think of his great compassion. Surely executing someone for working on the Sabbath or committing idolatry is inconsistent with that ethic.
But at least the Levites got to eat.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 8, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BENEDICT II, BISHOP OF ROME
THE FEAST OF DAME JULIAN OF NORWICH, SPIRITUAL WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT MAGDALENA OF CANOSSA, FOUNDER OF THE DAUGHTERS OF CHARITY AND THE SONS OF CHARITY
THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER OF TARENTAISE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/deuteronomy-and-matthew-part-xiv-violence-and-compassion/
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Above: The Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes, by James Tissot
Christ, Our Passover
The Sunday Closest to July 27
The Ninth Sunday After Pentecost
JULY 25, 2021
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FIRST READING AND PSALM: OPTION #1
2 Samuel 11:1-17 (Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition):
(In Chapters 8-10, David fights wars and shows kindness to Jonathan’s son.)
In the spring of the year, the time when the kings go forth to battle, David sent Joab, and his servants with him, and all Israel; and they ravaged the Ammonites, and besieged Rabbah. But David remained at Jerusalem.
It happened, late one afternoon, when David arose from his couch and was walking upon the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; and the woman was very beautiful. And David sent and inquired about the woman. And one said,
Is not this Bathsheba, the daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite?
So David sent messengers, and took her; and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself form her uncleanness.) Then she returned to her house. And the woman conceived; and she sent and told David,
I am with child.
So David sent word to Joab.
Send me Uriah the Hittite.
When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab was doing, and how the people fared, and how the war prospered. Then David said to Uriah,
Go down to your house, and wash your feet.
And Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. But Uriah slept at the door of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. When they told David,
Uriah did not go down to his house,
David said to Uriah,
Have you not come from a journey? Why did you not go down to your house?
Uriah said to David,
The ark and Israel and Judah dwell in booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.
Then David said to Uriah,
Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will let you depart.
So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day, and the next. And David invited him, and he ate in his presence and drank, so that he made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but did not go down to his house.
In the morning David wrote a letter to Joab, and sent it by the hand of Uriah. In the letter he wrote,
Set Uriah in the forefront of the hardest fighting, and then draw back from him, that he may be struck down, and die.
And as Joab was besieging the city, he assigned Uriah to the place where he knew there were valiant men. And men of the city came out and fought with Joab; and some of the servants of David among the people fell. Uriah the Hittite was slain also.
Psalm 14 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.”
All are corrupt and commit abominable acts;
there is none who does any good.
2 The LORD looks down from heaven upon us al,
to see if there is any who is wise,
if there is one who seeks after God.
3 Every one has proved faithless;
all alike have turned bad;
there is none who does good; no, not one.
4 Have they no knowledge, all those evildoers
who eat up my people like bread
and do not call upon the LORD?
5 See how they tremble with fear,
because God is in the company of the righteous.
6 Their aim is to confound the plans of the afflicted,
but the LORD is their refuge.
7 Oh, that Israel’s deliverance would come out of Zion!
When the LORD restored the fortunes of his people,
Jacob will rejoice and Israel be glad.
FIRST READING AND PSALM: OPTION #2
2 Kings 4:42-44 (New Revised Standard Version):
A man came from Baal-shalishah, bringing food from the first fruits to the man of God: twenty loaves of barley and fresh ears of grain in his sack. Elisha said,
Give it to the people and let them eat.
But his servant said,
How can I set this before a hundred people?
So he repeated,
Give it to the people and let them eat, for thus says the LORD, “They shall eat and have some left.”
He set it before them, they ate, and had some left, according to the word of the LORD.
Psalm 145:10-19 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
10 All your works praise you, O LORD,
and all your faithful servants bless you.
11 They make known the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your power;
12 That the peoples may know of your power
and the glorious splendor of your kingdom.
13 Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom;
your dominion endures throughout all ages.
14 The LORD is faithful in all his words
and merciful in all his deeds.
15 The LORD upholds all those who fall;
he lifts up those who are bowed down.
16 The eyes of all wait upon you, O LORD,
and you give them their food in due season.
17 You open wide your hand
and satisfy the needs of every living creature.
18 The LORD is righteous in all his ways
and loving in all his works.
19 The LORD is near to those who call upon him,
to all who call upon him faithfully.
SECOND READING
Ephesians 3:14-21 (New Revised Standard Version):
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name. I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit, and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, as you are being rooted and grounded in love. I pray that you may have the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.
GOSPEL READING
John 6:1-21 (Anchor Bible):
Later on Jesus crossed the Sea of Galilee [to the shore] of Tiberias, but a large crowd kept following him because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. So Jesus went up the mountain and sat down there with his disciples. The Jewish feast of Passover was near.
When Jesus looked up, he caught sight of a large crowd coming toward him; so he said to Philip,
Where shall we ever buy bread for these people to eat?
(Actually, of course, he was perfectly aware of what he was going to do, but he asked this to test Philip’s reaction.) He replied,
Not even with two hundred days’ wages could we buy enough loaves to give each of them a mouthful.
One of Jesus’ disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, remarked to him.
There is a lad here who has five barley loaves and a couple of dried fish, but what good is that for so many?
Jesus said,
Get the people to sit down.
Now the men numbered about five thousand, but there was plenty of grass there for them to find a seat. Jesus then took the loaves of bread, gave thanks, and passed them around to those sitting there; and he did the same with the dried fish–just as much as they wanted. When they had enough, he told his disciples,
Gather up the fragments that are left over so that nothing will perish.
And so they gathered twelve baskets full of fragments left over by those who had been fed with the five barley loaves.
Now when the people saw the sign[s] he had performed, they began to say,
This in undoubtedly the Prophet who is to come into the world.
With that Jesus realized that they would come and carry him off to make him king, so he fled back to the mountain alone.
As evening drew on, his [Jesus’] disciples came down to the sea. Having embarked, they were trying to cross the sea to Capernaum. By this time it was dark, and still Jesus had not joined them; moreover, with a strong wind blowing, the sea was becoming rough. When they had rowed about three or four miles, they sighted Jesus walking upon the sea, approaching the boat. They were frightened, but he told them,
It is I; do not be afraid.
So they wanted to take him into the boat, and suddenly the boat reached the shore toward which they had been going.
The Collect:
O God, the protector of all who trust in you, without whom nothing is strong, nothing is holy: Increase and multiply upon us your mercy; that, with you as our ruler and guide, we may so pass through things temporal, that we lose not the things eternal; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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Some Related Posts:
Proper 12, Year A:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/01/11/proper-12-year-a/
Break Thou the Bread of Life:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2010/07/29/break-thou-the-bread-of-life/
2 Samuel 11:
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2011/06/12/week-of-3-epiphany-friday-year-2/
John 6:
http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2010/10/29/thirteenth-day-of-easter/
http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2010/10/29/fourteenth-day-of-easter/
Matthew 14 (Parallel to John 6):
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/01/14/proper-13-year-a/
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/01/17/week-of-proper-13-monday-year-1/
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/01/31/proper-14-year-a/
Mark 6 (Parallel to John 6):
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2010/09/15/third-day-of-epiphany/
http://adventchristmasepiphany.wordpress.com/2010/10/09/week-of-4-epiphany-saturday-year-1/
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/09/20/proper-11-year-b/
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Only one miracle story occurs on all four canonical Gospels. That is the feeding of the Five Thousand, with slight variations. Were there, for example, five thousand men (as Mark and Luke record the miracle), five thousand people (as John indicates), or five thousand men plus an uncounted number of women and children (as Matthew says)? All that is beside the point, for the accounts describe a staggering act of divine power and mercy.
Afterward, in John’s Gospel, the astonished crowd recognizes Jesus as a political messiah, so he and the Apostles leave the area. This (in the Johannine Gospel) sets the stage for Jesus walking on water, much to the astonishment of his Apostles. There is an accompanying storm for Jesus to calm in the Matthew and Mark accounts, but not here. Rather, the Johannine account emphasizes that Jesus is the incarnate I AM, not a political messiah.
Before I proceed further, I must acknowledge that I am drawing heavily from Father Raymond E. Brown’s Anchor Bible commentary on the Gospel of John. His depth of knowledge and extreme attention to details (He gets to John 6 on page 231 of Volume I.) are staggering. I can feast on this material for a long time to come.
Back to the Gospel of John….
There are obvious Eucharistic overtones in the Johannine account of the mass feeding. But how should we understand the walking on water? Brown, citing other sources, suggests a Passover image. Think about it: In both the Book of Exodus and in John 6 we find a water passage and the presence of unexpected food in close proximity to each other. And, in John, there is an explicit point of profound theology: JESUS IS THE PASSOVER LAMB. Thus we find Jesus dying on the cross as the sacrifice of animals occurs at the Temple. (In the Synoptic Gospels, however, Jesus is crucified on the next day.) The Last Supper, in the Synoptic Gospels, is a Passover meal. Yet, in the Johannine Gospel, JESUS IS THE PASSOVER MEAL. (See John 19:16b following.)
We encounter astounding theology in John 6. Who do we want Jesus to be, and why might we follow him? Do we week a national liberator or a Passover lamb? And what does our expectation indicate about us?
KRT
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2011/09/25/christ-our-passover/
ORDINARY TIME DEVOTIONS 
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