Archive for the ‘Psalm 27’ Tag
Above: The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, by Rembrandt Van Rijn
Image in the Public Domain
The Faithfulness and Generosity of God
OCTOBER 1, 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 55:6-9
Psalm 27:1-13 (LBW) or Psalm 27:1-9 (LW)
Philippians 1:1-5 (6-11), 19-27
Matthew 20:1-16
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Lord God, you call us to work in your vineyard
and leave no one standing idle.
Set us to our tasks in the work of your kingdom,
and help us to order our lives by your wisdom;
through your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 28
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Keep, we pray you, O Lord, your Church with your perpetual mercy;
and because without you we cannot but fall,
keep us ever by your help from all things hurtful
and lead us to all things profitable for our salvation;
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 81-82
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Grace does not discriminate based on when one accepts it; all who accept grace receive the same rewards and the same duties to God and other human beings. The call to repentance from immediately before the end of the Babylonian Exile (Isaiah 55) remains current. Repentance is an appropriate response to grace. St. Paul the Apostle’s call for the Philippian congregation always to
behave in a manner that is worthy of the gospel of Christ
(1:27)
remains current for congregations, all levels of the institutional church, and individuals.
Resentment is a motif in some of the parables of Jesus. Think O reader, of the Prodigal Son’s older brother, for example. Recall that he honored his father and fulfilled his duty. So, why was that disrespecful wastrel getting an extravagant party upon returning home? One may easily identify with the grumbling of laborers who thought they should receive more than a day’s wages because people who started working later in the day also received the promised payment of a denarius.
Are you envious because I am generous?
–Matthew 15:15b, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
That is God’s question to grumbling, dutiful people today, too. All people depend completely on grace. Those who grumble and harbor resentment over divine generosity need to repent of doing so. To refuse to repent of this is to behave in a manner unworthy of the gospel of Christ.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
AUGUST 16, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHN DIEFENBAKER AND LESTER PEARSON, PRIME MINISTERS OF CANADA; AND TOMMY DOUGLAS, FEDERAL LEADER OF THE NEW DEMOCRATIC PARTY
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALIPIUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF TAGASTE, AND FRIEND OF SAINT AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO
THE FEAST OF JOHN COURTNEY MURRAY, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF JOHN JONES OF TALYSARN, WELSH CALVINISTIC METHODIST MINISTER AND HYMN TUNE COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF MATTHIAS CLAUDIUS, GERMAN LUTHERAN WRITER
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: All Souls’ Day, by Jakub Schikaneder
Image in the Public Domain
Praying for the Dead
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The Feast of All Souls originated at the great monastery of Cluny in 998. The commemoration spread and became an occasion to pray for those in Purgatory. During the Reformation Era Protestants and Anglicans dropped the feast on theological grounds. In the late twentieth century, however, the feast–usually renamed the Commemoration of All Faithful Departed–began appearing on Anglican calendars. The difference between All Saints’ Day and All Faithful Departed, in this context, had become one of emphasis–distinguished saints on November 1 and forgotten saints on November 2.
The idea of Purgatory (a Medieval Roman Catholic doctrine with ancient roots) is that of, as I heard a Catholic catechist, “God’s mud room.” The doctrine holds that all those in Purgatory will go to Heaven, just not yet, for they require purification. I am sufficiently Protestant to reject the doctrine of Purgatory, for I believe that the death and resurrection of Jesus constitutes “God’s mud room.” Purgatory is also alien to Eastern Orthodoxy, which also encourages prayers for the dead.
I pray for the dead, too. After all, who knows what takes place between God and the departed?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 14, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE HOLY CROSS
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Merciful Father, hear our prayers and console us.
As we renew our faith in your Son, whom you raised from the dead,
strengthen our hope that all our departed brothers and sisters will share in his resurrection,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9 or Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 27:1, 4, 7-9, 13-14 or Psalm 103:8, 10, 13-18
Romans 6:3-9 or 1 Corinthians 15:20-28
Matthew 25:31-46 or John 11:17-27
—The Vatican II Sunday Missal (1974), 1041-1048
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O God, the Maker and Redeemer of all believers:
Grant to the faithful departed the unsearchable benefits of the passion of your Son;
that on the day of his appearing they may be manifested as your children;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Wisdom of Solomon 3:1-9 or Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 130 or Psalm 116:6-9
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 or 1 Corinthians 15:50-58
John 5:24-27
—Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints (2010), 665
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Originally published at SUNDRY THOUGHTS
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Above: Ruins of Babylon, 1932
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-13231
Jeremiah and Matthew, Part XI: Getting On With Life
NOVEMBER 14-16, 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:
Jeremiah 29:1-19 (November 14)
Jeremiah 30:1-24 (November 15)
Jeremiah 31:1-17, 23-24 (November 16)
Psalm 36 (Morning–November 14)
Psalm 130 (Morning–November 15)
Psalm 56 (Morning–November 16)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–November 14)
Psalms 32 and 139 (Evening–November 15)
Psalms 100 and 62 (Evening–November 16)
Matthew 26:36-56 (November 14)
Matthew 26:36-56 (November 15)
Matthew 27:1-10 (November 16)
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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?
–Psalm 27, The Book of Common Prayer (2004)
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The Prophet Jeremiah relayed advice from God to those exiled from the Kingdom of Judah to Chaldea in 597 BCE: Get on with life. The wicked will perish, a faithful remnant will see divine deliverance, and the rebuilding of Jerusalem will occur. None of the members of the original audience lived to see that day, but it did come to pass.
Jeremiah prophesied during dark days which preceded even darker ones. “Dark days which preceded even darker ones” summarized the setting of the Matthew readings accurately. But, after the darker days came and went wondrously and blessedly brighter ones arrived.
I know firsthand of the sting of perfidy and of the negative consequences of actions of well-intentioned yet mistaken people. Sometimes anger is essential to surviving in the short term. Yet anger poisons one’s soul after remaining too long. Slipping into vengeful thoughts feels natural.
O daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy the one who repays you
for all you have done to us;
Who takes your little ones,
and dashes them against the rock.
–Psalm 137:8-9, The Book of Common Prayer (2004)
Yet such an attitude obstructs the path one must trod when getting on with life and remaining faithful to God therein. Leaving one’s enemies and adversaries to God for mercy or judgment (as God decides) and getting on with the daily business of living is a great step of faithfulness.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 4, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT FRANCIS CARACCIOLO, COFOUNDER OF THE MINOR CLERKS REGULAR
THE FEAST OF JOHN XXIII, BISHOP OF ROME
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/06/06/jeremiah-and-matthew-part-xi-getting-on-with-life/
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Above: Landscape with the Parable of the Sower, by Pieter Brueghel the Elder
Image in the Public Domain
Deuteronomy and Matthew, Part XIII: Loyalty and Identity
OCTOBER 15-17, 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 13:1-18 (October 15–Protestant Versification)
Deuteronomy 13:2-19 (October 15–Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox Versification)
Deuteronomy 14:1-2, 22-23; 14:28-15:15 (October 16)
Deuteronomy 15:19-16:22 (October 17)
Psalm 123 (Morning–October 15)
Psalm 15 (Morning–October 16)
Psalm 36 (Morning–October 17)
Psalms 30 and 86 (Evening–October 15)
Psalms 48 and 4 (Evening–October 16)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–October 17)
Matthew 13:1-23 (October 15)
Matthew 13:24-43 (October 16)
Matthew 13:44-58 (October 17)
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Here is a summary of the contents of Deuteronomy 13:1-16:22:
- Execute any false prophet or dream-diviner. (13:1-6/2-7)
- Execute anyone who entices another person to commit idolatry. (13:6-11/7-12)
- Execute the inhabitants of idolatrous towns, burn those towns, and destroy all spoil. Do not rebuild at any of those sites. (13:12-18/13-19)
- Avoid mourning rituals associated with pagan peoples. (14:1-2)
- Eat only ritually clean foods. (14:3-21)
- Pay a tenth of your crops and livestock to God. (14:22-26)
- Provide for the needy and the Levites. (14:27-29)
- Provide debts and free slaves every seventh year. (15:1-18)
- Sacrifice all male firstlings born into your flock to God, assuming that it is a proper physical specimen. (15:19-23)
- Keep a detailed festival calendar and the accompanying instructions. (16:1-17)
- Appoint magistrates who will govern honestly and justly, taking no bribes. (16:18-20)
- Erect no posts, as in honor to Astarte. (16:21-22)
I have mixed feelings about that material. On one hand, I approve of the social justice imperative parts of it. I find even the acceptance of any form of slavery offensive and the command to execute people intolerable. I know that one theme of the Law of Moses is absolute loyalty to God, so idolatry equaled treason, but some commands seem barbaric to me. So far as dietary laws are concerned, I note that I have never cared about them. Proper refrigeration negates some health concerns, as does thorough cooking. One analysis of the forbidden list says that those animals did not fit nearly into certain categories. Assuming that the analysis is correct, what was the problem? Besides, I like to eat ham and intend to continue to do so.
In Matthew 13 we read a series of mostly agricultural parables: the sower and the seed, the darnel and the mustard seed, the treasure in the field, the merchant and the pearls, and the fish of mixed quality. And, at the end of the chapter, people in Nazareth lack faith him. Perhaps they know too much to realize even more.
From those parables I glean certain lessons:
- One should remain focused on God, not allowing anything or anyone to function as a distraction.
- The good and the bad will grow up together and come mixed together. God will sort everything into the correct categories at the right time. That task does not fall to us, mere mortals.
- Nothing is more important than seeking, finding, and keeping the Kingdom of God.
I detect much thematic overlap between that material and Deuteronomy 13:1-16:22, with the notable absence of commands about when to execute or destroy. Yes, Matthew is more riveting reading than Deuteronomy.
I read the Law of Moses as a Gentile, specifically an Episcopalian who grew up a United Methodist. The Law was like a household servant who raised children, St. Paul the Apostle tells us. Now that Christ has arrived on the scene, I have only two commandments, not over 600. So, as long as I am growing via grace into loving God fully and my neighbor as myself, that ham sandwich should not bother my conscience. And I refuse to execute anyone, for I serve an executed and resurrected Lord and Savior. To him I am loyal. In him, not a law code, do I find my identity.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 7, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT DOMITIAN OF HUY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP
THE FEAST OF HARRIET STARR CANNON, COFOUNDER OF THE COMMUNITYN OF SAINT MARY
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROSE VENERINI, FOUNDER OF THE VENERINI SISTERS
THE FEAST OF SAINT THEODARD OF NARBONNE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP; AND SAINTS JUSTUS AND PASTOR, MARTYRS
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/deuteronomy-and-matthew-part-xiii-loyalty-and-identity/
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Above: Map of the Persian Empire Circa 500 B.C.E.
Nehemiah and 1 Timothy, Part II: Overcoming Opposition the Godly Way
SEPTEMBER 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:
Nehemiah 2:11-20
Nehemiah 4:1-6 (Protestant Versification)/3:33-38 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox Versification)
Psalm 36 (Morning)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening)
1 Timothy 2:1-15
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Restore us, O God of hosts:
show the light of your countenance, and we shall be saved.
–Psalm 80:7, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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I doubt that St. Paul wrote 1 Timothy. Consider, O reader, 2:9-15. Allowing for culturally specific conditions regarding hair, jewelry, and clothing, I still detect the stench of patriarchy. Although St. Paul was a product of his patriarchal context, I contrast 1 Timothy 2:9-15 with the case of Prisca/Priscilla, who taught with the Apostle’s approval. (See Acts 18:2, 18, and 26; Romans 16:3; and 1 Corinthians 16:19). That is not my main point, but I feel the need to articulate it first.
Now, for the main idea….
Jewish exiles residing in their ancestral homeland lived within the Persian Satrapy of Beyond the River. The complicated politics of rebuilding the walls of and Temple at Jerusalem, as told in the Books of Ezra and Nehemiah, lived up to the joke that politics consists of many small, bloodsucking creatures. Although King Artaxerxes I (reigned 464-424 B.C.E.) had authorized Nehemiah for a set of tasks, our hero faced opposition from local interests. Sanballat (the governor of Samaria), Tobiah (the governor of Ammon), and Geshem (the governor of Edom) knew of Nehemiah’s authorization yet tried to stop him anyway. Did our hero’s role threaten their power, at least in their minds? That was a likely scenario. So they resorted to lies and other forms of interference. Yet they failed for divine and human forces (some of the latter armed with lances, shields, swords, and bows) acted. The construction workers did need guards, after all.
First of all, then, I urge that petitions, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone, for sovereigns and for all in high office so that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life, free to practise our religion with dignity.
–1 Timothy 2:1-2, The Revised English Bible
Yes, it is right to pray for everyone, especially those in authority. I note the difference between praying for someone and praying about that person. To pray for a person indicates confidence that he or she can change for the better and remain steadfast in the good. But to pray about a person can reflect an attitude of hopelessness regarding him or her. As good as we who claim to follow God ought to be, we should not be naive because, despite the power of prayer, some people will not change their negative attitudes and corresponding actions. So it is wise to obey our Lord and Savior’s advice to his Apostles:
…be wary as serpents, innocent as doves.
–Matthew 10:16b, The Revised English Bible
May each of us, by grace, maintain that balance.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 6, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCELLINUS OF CARTHAGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
THE FEAST OF ALBRECHT DURER, MATTHIAS GRUNEWALD. AND LUCAS CRANACH THE ELDER, ARTISTS
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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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/28/nehemiah-and-1-timothy-part-ii-overcoming-opposition-the-godly-way/
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Above: Fresco of King Solomon, Elmali Kalise, Cappadocia, Turkey, 1935
Image Source = Library of Congress
Agape, Might, and Right
AUGUST 21 AND 22, 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:
1 Kings 1:1-4, 15-35 (August 21)
1 Kings 2:1-27 (August 22)
Psalm 15 (Morning–August 21)
Psalm 36 (Morning–August 22)
Psalms 48 and 4 (Evening–August 21)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–August 22)
1 Corinthians 12:14-31 (August 21)
1 Corinthians 13:1-13 (August 22)
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There are many spiritual gifts, Paul wrote, but the greatest of them is love, that is, agape–self-sacrificial, unconditional love. This is the kind of love which God has for we humans. I notice a consistent thread running through Chapters 12 and 13: The purpose of spiritual gifts is to build up the faith community, to which every member is essential. There is no proper place for self-promotion at the expense of others.
In contrast, Solomon, new to the throne as sole ruler of the Kingdom of Israel, was in a politically weak position. Adonijah, his older brother and rival for the throne, enjoyed crucial support, which Solomon needed. And Adonijah did not take Solomon’s accession well. So Solomon did what many weakened rulers have done: he conducted a bloody purge. There was no love in that.
Might does not make right; agape does. And maintaining power by means of bloodshed makes one morally unfit to govern and corrupts one’s soul. What can anyone give in exchange for one’s soul?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 25, 2012 COMMON ERA
PROPER 29–THE LAST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST–CHRIST THE KING SUNDAY, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SQUANTO, COMPASSIONATE HUMAN BEING
THE FEAST OF JAMES OTIS SARGENT HUNTINGTON, FOUNDER OF THE ORDER OF THE HOLY CROSS
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/27/agape-might-and-right/
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Above: A Crown
Image Source = Library of Congress
1 Samuel and Acts, Part IV: Positive and Negative Identity
JULY 24-26, 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:
1 Samuel 8:1-22 (July 24)
1 Samuel 9:1-27 (July 25)
1 Samuel 10:1-27 (July 26)
Psalm 15 (Morning–July 24)
Psalm 36 (Morning–July 25)
Psalm 130 (Morning–July 26)
Psalms 48 and 4 (Evening–July 24)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–July 25)
Psalms 32 and 139 (Evening–July 26)
Acts 21:15-36 (July 24)
Acts 21:37-22:16 (July 25)
Acts 22:17-29 (July 26)
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Central to the narrative of 1 Samuel 8-10 is the idea that Israelites were properly different from other nations. Their neighbors had human kings yet the Israelites had God as monarch; “judges,” or chieftains, provided human governance. So the demand for a human king constituted a rejection of God. The people got what they requested, although the beginning of Saul’s reign was promising. In the long term, however, monarchy turned out as Samuel predicted it would.
In the Acts of the Apostles we read of the other, dark side of not being like other nations: It can become a matter of hubris, that which goeth before the fall. Paul worked among Gentiles, to whom he did not apply the Law of Moses. Yet, contrary to rumor, he did not tell Jews to disobey that code, in particular relative to circumcision. But objective reality did not prevent him from getting into trouble.
I propose that an element crucial to understanding the theme of being different is considering that the Jews were a minority population, heirs of a monotheistic tradition in a sea of polytheism. How a member of a minority identifies oneself flows from that minority status. So a certain element of negative identity (“I am not a/an _______.”) is inevitable. But positive identity (“I am a/an ________.”) is preferable.
I, as a nonconformist, often by who the fact of who I am and frequently by choice, understand both forms of identity. I am usually clueless regarding many popular culture-related topics of conversations, for
- I have other interests, and
- I choose not not to consume most popular media. The “join the bandwagon” advertising approach has less of an effect on me than on many other people. I tend to turn away unless I am already interested.
My favorite Fifties music comes from the 1750s and the 1850s, from the European classical tradition, unless one speaks of certain jazz of the 1950s. I am an unapologetic musical snob; somebody has to be. And, if many people go out of the way to be like others and to subsume their identities into the collective, somebody has to go out of his or her way to stand out.
But none of that justifies spreading rumors, threatening innocent people with violence, and rejecting God. None of that makes right writing off most of the human race and contenting oneself with a “God-and-me” relationship.
Speaking of positive identity, each of us, regardless of labels, background, and circumstances, can claim one status with honesty:
I am a bearer of the image of God.
May we think of each other and ourselves accordingly. As we think so we act and are.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 5, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF MOTHER TERESA OF CALCUTTA, ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN
THE FEAST OF GREGORIO AGLIPAY, PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENT CHURCH BISHOP
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/1-samuel-and-acts-part-iv-positive-and-negative-identity/
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Above: The Baptism of the Eunuch, by Rembrandt van Rijn
Joshua and Acts, Part II: Religion and Nationalism
JUNE 27, 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:
Joshua 2:1-24
Psalm 36 (Morning)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening)
Acts 8:26-40
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Among the few named women in the Matthew version of our Lord’s family tree is Rahab, a prostitute of Jericho. Danna Nolan Fewell, in her chapter on the Book of Joshua (pages 63-66) from The Woman’s Bible Commentary (1992), edited by Carol A. Newsom and Sharon H. Ringe, makes much of Rahab’s marginal status. Yet the prostitute recognized Yahweh’s power, and thereby became an insider. Four chapters later, she and her family found refuge in the midst of slaughter.
The notes on page 466 of The Jewish Study Bible (2004) explain how Jewish and Christian interpreters have dealt with a Bible story in which a prostitute is a heroic figure. One tradition says that she converted, married Joshua, and became the mother of prophets. Or perhaps, some have said, she was an innkeeper, not a harlot. They point to the linguistic similarity between two Hebrew words. Yet I think that the scandal of the story is something to accept, not from which to flee.
Another outsider who became an insider was the Ethiopian eunuch who struggled with Isaiah 53 until St. Philip the Evangelist, one of the early deacons, helped him to understand. Of St. Philip we know little, but he did obey God and aid the eunuch in coming to Christ.
These stories point toward the universality of God’s call to we human beings. The old (and yet current) notion of a tribal deity who favors just one nation or country is both inadequate and inaccurate. Unfortunately, that tribal God notion pervades the Book of Joshua, which also contains the Rahab story, which offers a different vision. The concept of a tribal God can prove quite appealing and comforting, for we assume quite often that God is on our side. If, for example, God favors the State of Israel, what about the oppressed Palestinians? (They are people too.) When does one cross a dangerous line and erect a national religion? I am an American. Is God always on the my country’s side in wars? No! My leaders, like those of all other countries, are mere mortals.
In my country’s past the Confederate States of America (CSA) fought for, among other things, the preservation of slavery; its founders said so before they claimed otherwise after the Civil War. The CSA understood God to be on its side. This was a great misapprehension. I have read postwar church documents from the South. In late 1865, for example, the newly-renamed Presbyterian Church in the United States (PCUS), founded four years earlier as the Presbyterian Church in the Confederate States of America (PCCSA), expressed official shock and confusion over Confederate defeat. God could not have been angry about the existence of slavery, for the Bible condoned and commanded that institution, they reasoned. So maybe Southerners had not managed the institution properly, they said. They misunderstood the situation. As Abraham Lincoln said, the real question is not whether God is on our side but whether we are on God’s side.
May we–you, O reader, and I–be on guard against religious nationalism, which misrepresents God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 17, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BENNETT J. SIMS, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF ATLANTA
THE FEAST OF THE MARTYRS OF COMPIEGNE
THE FEAST OF SAINT NERSES LAMPRONATS, ARMENIAN APOSTOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF TARSUS
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM WHITE, PRESIDING BISHOP OF THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/05/03/joshua-and-acts-part-ii-religion-and-nationalism/
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Above: A Blind Man, 1914-1918
Image Source = Library of Congress
Ecclesiastes and John, Part V: Scorned Wisdom
MAY 31 and JUNE 1, 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 8:1-17 (May 30)
Ecclesiastes 9:1-17 (June 1)
Psalm 36 (Morning–May 30)
Psalm 120 (Morning–June 1)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–May 30)
Psalms 32 and 139 (Evening–June 1)
John 9:1-23 (May 30)
John 9:24-41 (June 1)
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A poor man’s wisdom is scorned,
And his words are not heeded.
–Ecclesiastes 9:16b, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
That passage fits the experience of the blind man in John 9. Even with his new vision he understood Jesus more clearly than any of our Lord’s critics. Their ideology blinded them to reality, for they thought that they knew how God worked, and Jesus, by his life and deeds, contradicted that understanding. So, like people who did not want to be confused by facts, they doubled down on their ideology. It was safe and familiar.
Their ferocity in the story reveals something else. Such meanness and anger indicated that these men were trying to convince themselves of what they said. They could not pretend for long that what had happened had not occurred, so they looked for alternative explanations. And they committed injustice in the process.
Among the most dangerous people are defensive ones. I have learned that lesson by living and by monitoring the news. And the combination of defensiveness with a disregard for objective reality is more dangerous, especially in the news media and in the corridors of power. Good decision-making requires, among other things, a firm grounding in objective reality.
As for the rest of us–those not in power–a firm grounding in objective reality matters very much. And how we treat others–cruelly or not–matters to them. May we refrain from harming others to make ourselves feel good or better.
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-v-scorned-wisdom/
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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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ORDINARY TIME DEVOTIONS 
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