I begin with definitions, for the meanings of words matter to me very much. The question of factual accuracy is vital, especially when building a subjective case. One might disagree with my opinion, but may my facts be iron-clad. As the late U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan said, everybody is entitled to his own opinion but not his own facts. So, courtesy of The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, here are some definitions.
Clerical.adj.2. Of, relating to, or characteristic of the clergy or a clergyman.
Celibacy. n. The condition of being unmarried, especially by reason of religious vows.
Continent.adj. 2. Partially or completely abstaining from sexual activity.
A person can be celibate while not being sexually continent. And two people can be married while being sexually continent, as in the case of “white marriages.” So sexual continence (often paired with celibacy) pertains more to the case I will make than does celibacy.
I support widespread and affirmed sexual continence among members of the clergy of various denominations. This might be an ironic case for me to make, one might argue. I am, after all, a Preacher’s Kid, albeit one who predates his father’s clergy status. My experiences explain why I affirm clerical continence, for I know what it is like to live under unrealistic expectations of lay people. And I do not argue for mandatory continence, for allegedly one-size-fits-all solutions do not work for all affected people. Yet I do state that nobody should look askance at a member of the clergy who has chosen to live as a single and continent person.
Some people do look askance at them. Many Evangelical and Fundamentalist congregations expect their pastors to be married. So many single Evangelical ministers have difficulty getting hired. Homophobia plays a role in some of these attitudes, for the suspicion among some is a single man of a certain age must be a homosexual. But another factor is acclimation to a certain religious subculture, complete with a certain common pattern of human relationships.
Marriage is a sacrament, one to which many members of the clergy have a vocation. But many also have the opposite vocation. Both come from God. I will not chase a rabbit too long here and now, but the biblical teachings regarding sexual activities are not a clear-cut as many people think. Read Genesis 38, for example. And, for orders to stone people who have committed various sexual infractions, read Deuteronomy 22:13-30.
I grew up in a series of United Methodist parsonages in rural southern Georgia. Each house was more like a fishbowl than a home. The expectations of many church members was that I ought to be super holy. (It is difficult to grow up with those unrealistic expectations.) And people volunteered me for more Christmas plays and other church activities than I counted. Would it have been too much to ask that people ask me, not assume?
Even worse, the frequent moving (about every two or three years) was devastating. The causes were issues pertaining entirely neither to my father or to certain lay people, but I did know of some individuals who had been primarily responsible for moving successive ministers. Having to start at a new school and to meet new people was painful for me, an introvert. So I withdrew into my own head after a little while; life was easier that way. I have spent the last few years unlearning those emotional self-defense tactics I adopted as a child and adolescent. They had their time and places; what else was I supposed to do?
Yet circumstances have changed. As I type these words I have lived in the same town for almost seven years. I have lived in Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, longer than I have lived anywhere else. And I want to remain as long as that is prudent, which will hopefully be for a long time to come.
These have been my reflections; I have spoken only for myself. My mother had a different yet overlapping set of issues, to which I do not presume to speak. When I reached adulthood I flirted briefly with clergy status. For a time I pondered the Episcopal priesthood. Indeed, I would be more likely to succeed as an Episcopal priest than as a United Methodist minister, especially in Georgia–and especially in the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, as opposed to the more conservative and less cosmopolitan Diocese of Georgia. But I chose not to pursue the clergy path, even as an Episcopal deacon. The liberation of being among the laity has long appealed to me.
My most basic argument for widespread and affirmed clerical continence is that is generally better that parsonage families not exist than that they do. The price members of parsonage families pay is too high. That has been my experience.
The statistical likelihood is that you, O reader, are a lay person if you are a Christian. (Indeed, this blog is unapologetically Christian.) I hope that, if your priest or pastor is married, you will consider these perspectives from a Preacher’s Kid and act toward your parsonage or rectory family as an angel, not one who lays unrealistic expectations on them. They face challenges with which you might not be able to identify. Yet you can support your parsonage or rectory family with words, deeds, and prayers. And you can prevent some needless relocations. Please do that in any situation. An unnecessary move is rough on a family and a single person alike.
I conclude with a reading recommendation. For a glimpse into being a collar-wearing member of the clergy read Barbara Brown Taylor’s Leaving Church. It describes another set of challenges to which I do not presume to speak. Yet, based on my experiences, I relate to the memoir.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 28, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHN H. W. STUCKENBERG, LUTHERAN PASTOR AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF SAINT LANFRANC OF CANTERBURY, ARCHBISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARGARET POLE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
Above: The Royal Family of Gilboa with Captain David Shepherd
Image Source = NBC
KINGS (2009)
Starring
The Royal Family and Close Relations:
Ian McShane as King Silas Benjamin
Susanna Thompson as Queen Rose Cross Benjamin
Allison Miller as Princess Michelle Benjamin
Sebastian Stan as Prince Jonathan “Jack” Benjamin
Dylan Baker as William Cross
Macaulay Culkin as Andrew Cross
Sarita Choudhury as Helen Pardis
Other Principal Characters:
Chris Egan as Captain David Shepherd
Becky Ann Baker as Jessie Shepherd
Eamonn Walker as Reverend Ephram Samuels
Wes Studi as General Linus Abner
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The Bible is full of excellent stories ripe for modern adaptations, not just costume dramas. The former is frequently the best way to go, I am convinced, for such an approach makes the story in question fresher than it would be otherwise. Consider, for example the power of Clarence Jordan’s Cotton Patch versions of New Testament books, including Gospels. Transplanting the world of first century CE Roman-occupied Palestine to the U.S. South of the twentieth century works well.
To that column we can add Kings (2009), a short-lived (a two-hour pilot plus eleven other episodes) series from NBC. The writers and producers rearranged elements from 1 Samuel and 2 Samuel (mostly from the former) and set the series in the Kingdom of Gilboa, based on the Kingdom of Israel yet resembling the United States of America. Gilboa, in its current form, is a new nation, just three decades old. Its new capital city, a gleaming metropolis complete with skyscrapers, is the rebuilt Shiloh, which resembles a CGI-altered New York City. (The series did film in the Big Apple.) Silas Benjamin, once a general, united three kingdoms–Gilboa, Carmel, and Selah–via war. He is now the absolute monarch. Yet he is not all powerful. His brother-in-law, industrialist William Cross, is a leader in the military-industrial complex and an ardent opponent for peace with the neighboring Republic of Gath. Peace is bad for business. Yes, this is the story of Saul and David updated and told with allusions to the Second Iraq War. There are even allusions to the Israel-Palestine conflict, for a land-for-peace deal is a plot element throughout the series’ brief run.
In the pilot episode, Goliath, we meet David Shepherd, a farm boy whose father died in the Unification War. David is in military uniform during a follow-up border war with Gath when he rescues the captured Prince Jonathan “Jack” Benjamin from the forces of Gath and destroys a Gath tank, a Goliath, with a well-thrown wrench. This is a retelling of sorts of 1 Samuel 17. David, now a national hero, goes to Shiloh and becomes an unwilling pawn in the hands of King Silas, whose glory, he is stealing. And David falls in love with Princess Michelle (1 Samuel 18:17-30) and even plays the piano. (The biblical David played the lyre in 1 Samuel 16:14-23.) The troubled Silas-David relationship in the series ends with David having to flee to Gath (1 Samuel 27:1-28:2) for fear of his life. The story would have continued had the network not cancelled the series. (The ratings were low.)
Other interesting parallels occur in the series. Silas makes an unlawful sacrifice, as in 1 Samuel 13:1-22, but in the show the sacrifice is allowing soldiers to die needlessly. So the Reverend Ephram Samuels, who helped Silas forge the united Gilboa and install him in power, relates God’s rejection of the monarch. And Silas has a mistress, Helen Pardis, as Saul had a concubine, Rizpah (2 Samuel 3:7). Instead of the spirit of Samuel (1 Samuel 28:3-25) Silas consults the deposed King of Carmel, officially dead yet imprisoned at a location code-named Gehenna. Furthermore, the head of the military is General Linus Abner, a warmonger who betrays Silas and dies by the monarch’s hand. (Joab killed Abner in 2 Samuel 3:22-39).
There is a Jonathan analog, but Prince Jack in the series is more like Absalom than the biblical Jonathan in some ways. This Jonathan, like his biblical counterpart, has a troubled relationship with his father. In the series he resents his father, who dislikes the fact that the crown prince is a homosexual. That would be acceptable in a second son, Silas says, but those who would have power must surrender what they want. And Jack is not willing to do that. The Prince Jack of the series is also a sulking, back-stabbing character who is willing to kill innocents and to frame David for treason–until he is not. But the guiding rule for Prince Jack is his perceived best interest.
I encourage you, O reader, to find the series and watch it legally. So I will not reveal all the plot lines. I also urge you to think deeply about the moral implications of decisions the characters make. The characters in Kings are flawed; David Shepherd is especially flawed while being very heroic. These characters make bad decisions. Sometimes they reap the consequences of these decisions; on other occasions other people do. But God still acts through many of these same characters.
King Silas, in the pilot episode, tells Reverend Samuels, who has just announced God’s rejection of the monarch,
To hell with God.
In the last episode Silas informs the ghost of Samuels (Silas does not know that he is speaking to the Reverend’s spirit) that he (Silas) and God are at war. Silas, the rejected chosen one of God, has embraced his rebellion against God. He does not even labor under the illusion of being on God’s side. And, with actor Ian McShane playing the part, the scenes are a pleasure to watch. Yet that pleasure comes mixed with the knowledge that the monarch’s fate did not have to come down to this.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 17, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT PASCHAL BAYLON, FRANCISCAN
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM CROSWELL DOANE, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF ALBANY
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM HOBART HARE, EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF SOUTH DAKOTA
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.
Revelation 18:1-2, 21-19:3, 9 (Revised English Bible):
After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven; he possessed great authority and the earth shone with his splendour. In a mighty voice he proclaimed,
Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, for every unclean and loathsome bird….
Then a mighty angel picked up a stone like a great millstone and hurled it into the sea, saying,
Thus shall Babylon, the great city, be sent hurling down, never to be seen again! The sound of harpists and minstrels, flute-players and trumpeters, shall no more be heard in you; no more shall craftsmen of any trade be found in you, or the sound of the mill be heard in you; no more shall the light of the lamp appear in you, no more shall the voices of the bridegroom and bride be heard in you! Your traders were once the merchant princes of the world, and with your sorcery you deceived all the nations.
The blood of the prophets and of God’s people was found in her, the blood of all who had been slain on earth. After this I heard what sounded like a vast throng in heaven shouting:
Hallelujah! Victory and glory and power belong to our God, for true and just are his judgements! He has condemned the great whore who corrupted the earth with her fornication; he has taken vengeance on her for the blood of his servants.
Once more they shouted:
Hallelujah! The smoke from her burning will rise for ever!
…
The angel said to me,
Write this: ”Happy are those who are invited to the wedding banquet of the Lamb!”
He added,
These are the very words of God.
Revelation 20:1-4, 11-21:4 (Revised English Bible):
I saw an angel coming down from heaven with the key to the abyss and a great chain in his hand. He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent who is the Devil, or Satan, and chained him up for a thousand years; he threw him into the abyss, shutting and sealing it over him,so that he might not seduce the nations again till the thousand years were ended. After that he must be let loose for a little while.
I saw thrones, and on them sat those to whom judgement was committed. I saw the souls of those who, for the sake of God’s word and their witness to Jesus, had been beheaded, those who had not worshipped the beast and its image or received its mark on forehead or hand. They came to life again and reigned with Christ for a thousand years….
I saw a great, white throne, and the One who sits upon it. From his presence earth and heaven fled away, and there was no room for then any more. I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne; and books were opened. Then another book, the book of life, was opened. The dead were judged by what they had done, as recorded in these books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and Death and Hades gave up the dead in their keeping. Everyone was judged on the record of his deeds. Then Death and Hades were flung into the lake of fire. This lake of fire is the second death; into it were flung any whose names were not to be found in the book of life.
I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had vanished, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, made ready like a bride adorned for her husband. I heard a loud voice proclaiming from the throne:
Now God has made his dwelling with mankind! He will dwell among them and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them. He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There shall be an end to death, and to mourning and crying and pain, for the old order has passed away!
Revelation 22:1-7 (Revised English Bible):
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the city’s street. On either side of the river stood a tree of life, which yields twelve crops of fruit, one for each month of the year. The leaves of the trees are for the healing of the nations. Every accursed thing shall disappear. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be there, and his servants shall worship him; they shall see him face to face and bear his name on their foreheads. There shall be no more night, nor will they need the light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will give them light; and they shall reign for ever.
He said to me,
These words are trustworthy and true. The Lord God who inspires the prophets has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place. And remember, I am coming soon!
Psalm 100 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Be joyful in the LORD, all you lands;
serve the LORD with gladness
and come before his presence with a song.
2 Know this: The LORD himself is God;
he himself has made us, and we are his;
we are the sheep of his pasture.
3 Enter his gates with thanksgiving;
go into his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and call upon his name.
4 For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting;
and his faithfulness endures from age to age.
Psalm 84 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 How dear to me is your dwelling, O LORD of hosts!
My soul has a desire and longing for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh rejoice in the living God.
2 The sparrow has found her a house
and the swallow a nest where she may lay her young;
by the side of your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my King and my God.
3 Happy are they who dwell in your house!
they will always be praising you.
4 Happy are the people whose strength is in you!
whose hearts are set on the pilgrims’ way.
5 Those who go through the desolate valley will find it a place of springs,
for the early rains have covered it with pools of water.
6 They will climb from height to height,
and the God of gods will reveal himself in Zion.
7 LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
hearken, O God of Jacob.
8 Behold our defender, O God;
and look upon the face of your Anointed.
9 For one day in your courts is better than a thousand in my own room,
and to stand in the threshold of the house of my God
than to dwell in the tents of the wicked.
10 For the LORD is both sun and shield;
he will give grace and glory;
11 No good thing will the LORD withhold
from those who walk with integrity.
12 O LORD of hosts,
happy are they who put their trust in you!
Psalm 95:1-7 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Come, let us sing to the LORD;
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving
and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
3 For the LORD is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the caverns of the earth,
and the heights of the hills are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands have molded the dry land.
6 Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee,
and kneel before the LORD our Maker.
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!
Luke 21:20-36 (Revised English Bible):
[Jesus continued,]
But when you see Jerusalem encircled by armies, then you may be sure that her devastation is near. Then those who are in Judaea must take to the hills; those who are in the city itself must leave it and those who are out in the country must not return; because this is the time of retribution, when all that stands written is to be fulfilled. Alas for women with child in those days, and for those who have children at the breast! There will be great distress in the land and a terrible judgement on this people. They will fall by the sword; they will be carried captive into all countries; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by Gentiles until the day of the Gentiles has run its course.
Portents will appear in sun and moon and stars. On earth nations will stand helpless, not knowing which way to turn from the roar and surge of the sea. People will faint with terror at the thought of what is coming upon the world; for the celestial powers will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When all this begins to happen, stand upright and hold your heads high, because your liberation is near.
Jesus told them a parable:
Look at the fig tree, or at any other tree. As soon as it bud, you can see for yourselves that summer is near. In the same way, when you see all this happening, you may know that the kingdom of God is near.
Truly I tell you: the present generation will live to see it all. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Be on your guard; do not let your minds be dulled by dissipation and drunkenness and worldly cares so that the great day catches you suddenly like a trap; for that day will come on everyone, the whole world over. Be on the alert, praying at all times for strength to pass safely through all that is coming and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man.
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The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
The Book of Revelation culminates with the destruction of the city (and empire) of Rome and the establishment of God’s order, the New Jerusalem. The Empire had persecuted Christians and destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple there. The latter was a recent memory for many members of the original audience of both Revelation and Luke. In fact, as I read Luke 21, I perceive that memories of those traumas influenced the telling of the contents. How could they not? We humans tell the past in the context of our present and recent history.
There is good news after all. Revelation is an essentially optimistic book.
“…and night shall be no more….”
–Revelation 22:5a, Revised Standard Version
Part of the text from Revelation reminded me of an anthem my church choir has sung:
Peace be to you and grace from Him who freed us from our sins,
who loved us all and shed his blood that we might saved be.
Sing holy, holy to our Lord, the Lord Almighty God,
who was and is and is to come,
sing holy, holy Lord.
Rejoice on earth, ye saints below, for Christ is coming soon.
E’en so, Lord Jesus, quickly come and night shall be more.
They need no light, no lamp, nor sun, for Christ will be their all.
In 1954, Paul and Ruth Manz struggled emotionally through the serious (threatening to be fatal) illness of their three-year-old son, John. Paul, a Lutheran church organist and composer, set words his wife had adapted from Revelation to music. John recovered and became a minister. He presided at his father’s funeral in November 2009.
Those of us who have lived for a sufficiently long time understand the darkness of anguish. I refer not to mere childhood and adolescent alleged emergencies. No, I mean potentially soul-shattering grief. In such circumstances, one wonders how one can carry on. Christ, who suffered grievously, did more than persist–he triumphed, even over death itself. The power which made that possible can enable us to survive, continue, rebuild, and thrive. Yew, we can carry one, in Christ, of course.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 18, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT HILDA OF WHITBY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBESS
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.
I looked, and there on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him were a hundred and forty-four thousand who had his name and the name of his Father written on their foreheads. I heard a sound from heaven like a mighty torrent or a great peal of thunder; what I heard was like harpists playing on their harps. They were singing a new song before the throne and the four living creatures and the elders, and no one could learn it except the hundred and forty-four thousand ransomed from the earth. These are men who have kept themselves chaste and have not defiled themselves with women; these follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They have been ransomed as the firstfruits of mankind for God and the Lamb. No lie was found on their lips; they are without fault.
Revelation 14:14-20 (Revised English Bible):
As I looked there appeared a white cloud, on which was seated a figure like a man; he had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. Another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud:
Put in your sickle and reap, for harvest time has come and earth’s crop is fully ripe.
So the one who sat on the cloud swept over the earth with his sickle and the harvest was reaped.
Another angel came out of the heavenly sanctuary, and he also had a sharp sickle. Then from the altar came yet another, the angel who has authority over fire, and he called aloud to the one with the sharp sickle:
Put in your sickle, and gather in earth’s grape harvest, for its clusters are ripe.
So the angel swept over the earth with his sickle and gathered in its grapes, and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. The winepress was trodden outside the city, and for a distance of two hundred miles blood flowed from the press to the height of horses’ bridles.
Revelation 15:1-4 (Revised English Bible):
Then I saw in heaven another great and astonishing sign: seven angels with seven plagues, the last plagues of all, for with them the wrath of God was completed.
I saw what looked like a sea of glass shot through with fire. Standing beside it and holding the harps which God had given them were those who had been victorious against the beast, its image, and the number of its name.
They were singing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb:
Great and marvellous are your deeds,
O Lord God, sovereign over all;
just and true are your ways,
O King of the ages.
Who shall not fear you, Lord,
and do homage to your name?
For you alone are holy.
All nations shall come and worship before you,
for your just decrees stand revealed.
Psalm 24:1-6 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it,
the world and all who dwell therein.
2 For it is who founded it upon the seas
and made it firm upon the rivers of the deep.
3 “Who can ascend the hill of the LORD?
and who can stand in his holy place?”
4 “Those who have clean hands and a pure heart,
who have not pledged themselves to falsehood,
nor sworn by what is a fraud.
5 They shall receive a blessing from the LORD
and a just reward from the God of their salvation.”
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob.
Psalm 96 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the whole earth.
2 Sing to the LORD and bless his Name;
proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations
and his wonders among all peoples.
4 For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised;
he is more to be feared than all gods.
5 As for the gods of the nations, they are but idols;
but it is the LORD who made the heavens.
6 Oh, the majesty and magnificence of his presence!
Oh, the power and the splendor of his sanctuary!
7 Ascribe to the LORD, you families of the peoples;
ascribe to the LORD honor and power.
8 Ascribe to the LORD the honor due his Name;
bring offerings and come into his courts.
9 Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness;
let the whole earth tremble before him.
10 Tell it out among the nations: ”The LORD is King!
he has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
let the sea thunder and all that is in it;
let the field be joyful and all that is therein.
12 Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy
before the LORD when he comes,
when he comes to judge the earth.
13 He will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with his truth.
Psalm 98 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
2 With his right hand and his holy arm
has he won for himself the victory.
3 The LORD has made known his victory;
his righteousness has he openly shown in the sight of the nations.
4 He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel,
and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
5 Shout with joy to the LORD, all you lands;
lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
6 Sing to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and the voice of song.
7 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
shout with joy before the King, the LORD.
8 Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it,
the lands and those who dwell therein.
9 Let the rivers clap their hands,
and the hills ring out with joy before the LORD,
when he comes to judge the earth.
10 In righteousness shall he judge the world
and the peoples with equity.
Luke 21:1-19 (Revised English Bible):
As Jesus looked up and saw rich people dropping their gifts into the chest of the temple treasury, he noticed a poor widow putting in two tiny coins.
I tell you this,
he said:
this poor widow has given more than any of them; for those others who have given had more than enough, but she, with less than enough, has given all she had to live on.
Some people were talking about the temple and the beauty of its fine stones and ornaments. Jesus said,
These things you are gazing at–the time will come when not one stone will be left upon another; they will all be thrown down.
They asked,
Teacher, when will that be? What will be the sign that these things are about to happen?
He said,
Take care that you are not misled. For many will come claiming my name and saying, “I am he,” and “The time has come.” Do not follow them. And when you hear of wars and insurrections, do not panic. These things are bound to happen first, but the end does not follow at once.
Then Jesus added,
Nation will go to war against nation, kingdom against kingdom; there will be severe earthquakes, famines, and plagues in many places, and in the sky terrors and great portents.
But before all this happens they will seize you and persecute you. You will be handed over to synagogues and put in prison; you will be haled before kings and governors for your allegiance to me. This will be your opportunity to testify. So resolve not to prepare your defence beforehand, because I myself will give you such words and wisdom as no opponent can resist or refute. Even your parents and brothers, your relations and friends, will betray you. Some of you will be put to death; and everyone will hate you for your allegiance to me. But not a hair of your head will be lost. By standing firm you will win yourselves life.
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The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Revelation 12 and 13 contain an allegory of evil (Satan) trying and failing to destroy good. The Book of Revelation identifies the Roman Empire with the earthly minions of evil; 13:13 refers to Emperor Nero. Yet, as we read in Chapter 14, Jesus (the Lamb) is with the martyrs on Mount Zion, a scene reminiscent of Micah 4:6-8. These martyrs have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb. They are on the side of God, the side which, in Chapter 14, begins the process of destroying evil and its earthly minions, identified with the Roman Empire.
Jesus says in Luke 21 that hardships will come upon the faithful. He says this in the context of his impending death. The faithful will face persecution because of their righteousness, so their hardships will not constitute divine punishment for sin. Family members will even turn on each other some of the time.
But not a hair on your head will win yourselves life.
–Luke 21:18-19, Revised English Bible
The Canadian Anglican lectionary I am following does a good job of covering the main points of Revelation in twelve days. Yet sometimes it atomizes the text too much, making writing a good devotion for each day difficult. Yet, if I stand back and stack blocks on top of each other sometimes, I see connections among them clearly. This is what I perceive as the great lesson for Monday-Wednesday: Evil might seem to have triumphed, but God will win. If one is on the side of righteousness, this is encouraging news. If not, however….
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 18, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT HILDA OF WHITBY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBESS
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.
In the first year that Belshazzar was king of Babylon, a dream and visions came to Daniel as he lay on his bed. Then he wrote down the dream, and here his account begins.
In my vision during the night while I, Daniel, was gazing intently I saw the Great Sea churned up by the four winds of heaven, and four great beasts rising out of the sea, each one different from the others.
The first was like a lion, but it had an eagle’s wings. I watched until its wings were plucked off from the ground and made to stand on two feet as if it were a human being.
Then I saw another, a second beast, like a bear. It had raised itself on one side, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. The command was given to it: ”Get up and gorge yourself with flesh.”
After this as I gazed I saw another, a beast like a leopard with four wings like those of a bird on its back; this creature had four heads, and it was invested with sovereign power.
Next in the night visions I saw a fourth beast, fearsome and grisly and exceedingly strong, with great iron teeth. It devoured and crunched, and it trampled underfoot what was left. It was different from all the beasts which went before it, and had ten horns.
While I was considering the horns there appeared another horn, a little one, springing up among them, and three of the first horns were uprooted to make room for it. In this horn were eyes like human eyes, and a mouth that uttered bombast. As I was looking,
thrones were set in place
and the Ancient in Years took his seat;
his robe was white as snow,
his hair like lamb’s wool.
His throne was flames of fire
and its wheels were blazing fire;
a river of fire flowed from his presence.
Thousands upon thousands served him
and myriads upon myriads were in attendance.
The court sat, and the books were opened.
Then because of the bombast the horn was mouthing, I went on watching until the beast was killed; its carcass was destroyed and consigned to the flames. The rest of the beasts, though deprived of their sovereignty, were allowed to remain alive until an appointed time and season. I was watching in visions of the night and I saw one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven; he approached the Ancient in Years and was presented to him. Sovereignty and glory and kingly power were given to him, so that all people and nations of every language should serve him; his sovereignty was to be an everlasting sovereignty which was not to pass away; and his kingly power was never to be destroyed.
My spirit within me was troubled; and, dismayed by the visions which came into my head, I, Daniel, approached one of those who were standing there and enquired what all this really signified; and he made known to me its interpretation,
These great beasts, four in number,
he said,
are four kingdoms which will arise from the earth. But the holy ones of the Most High will receive the kingly power and retain possession of it always, for ever and ever.
Then I wished to know what the fourth beast really signified, the beast that was different from all the others, exceedingly fearsome with its iron teeth and bronze claws, devouring and crunching, then trampling underfoot what was left. I wished also to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn which sprang up at whose coming three of them fell, the horn which had eyes and a mouth uttering bombast and which in its appearance was more imposing than the others. As I watched, this horn was waging war on holy ones and proving too strong for them until the Ancient in Years came. Then judgement was pronounced in favor of the holy ones of the Most High, and the time came when the holy ones gained possession of kingly power.
The explanation he gave was this:
The fourth beast signifies a fourth kingdom which will appear on earth. It will differ from the other kingdoms; it will devour the whole earth, treading it down and crushing it. The ten horns signify ten kings who will rise from this kingdom; after them will arise another king, who will be different from his predecessors; and he will bring low three kings. He will hurl defiance at the Most High and wear down the holy ones of the Most High. He will have it in mind to alter the festival seasons and religious laws; and the holy ones will be delivered into his power for a time, and times, and half a time. But when the court sits, he will be deprived of his sovereignty, so that it may be destroyed and abolished for ever. The kingly power, sovereignty, and greatness of all the kingdoms under heaven will be given to the holy people of the Most High. Their kingly power will last for ever, and every realm will serve and obey them.
THE TWO OPTIONS FOR THE FRIDAY RESPONSE:
Canticle 12, Part II (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Part of the Song of the Three Young Men)
Let the the earth glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O mountains and hills,
and all that grows upon the earth,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O springs of water, seas, and streams,
O whales and all that move in the waters.
All birds of the air, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O beasts of the wild,
and all you flocks and herds.
O men and women everywhere, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Psalm 97 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The LORD is King;
let the earth rejoice;
let the multitude of the isles be glad.
2 Clouds and darkness are round about him,
righteousness and justice are the foundations of his throne.
3 A fire goes before him
and burns up his enemies on every side.
4 His lightnings light up the world;
the earth sees it and is afraid.
5 The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the LORD,
at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth.
6 The heavens declare his righteousness,
and all the peoples see his glory.
7 Confounded be all who worship carved images
and delight in false gods!
Bow down before him, all you gods.
8 Zion hears and is glad, and the cities of Judah rejoice,
because of your judgments, O LORD.
9 For you are the LORD,
most high over all the earth;
you are exalted far above all gods.
10 The LORD loves those who hate evil;
he preserves the lives of the saints
and delivers them from the hand of the wicked.
11 Light has sprung up for the righteous,
and joyful gladness for those who are truehearted.
12 Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous,
and give thanks to his holy Name.
THE TWO OPTIONS FOR THE SATURDAY RESPONSE:
Canticle 12, Part III (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Part of the Song of the Three Young Men)
Let the people of God glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him forever.
Glorify the Lord, O priests and servants of the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O spirits and souls of the righteous,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
You that are holy and humble of heart, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Psalm 95:1-7 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Come, let us sing to the LORD;
let us shout for joy to the Rock of our salvation.
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving
and raise a loud shout to him with psalms.
3 For the LORD is a great God,
and a great King above all gods.
4 In his hand are the caverns of the earth,
and the heights of the hills are his also.
5 The sea is his, for he made it,
and his hands have molded the dry land.
6 Come, let us bow down, and bend the knee,
and kneel before the LORD our Maker.
7 For he is our God,
and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
Oh, that today you would hearken to his voice!
THE GOSPEL READING:
Luke 21:29-36 (Revised English Bible):
Jesus told them a parable:
Look at the fig tree, or at any other tree. As soon as it bud, you can see for yourselves that summer is near. In the same way, when you see all this happening, you may know that the kingdom of God is near.
Truly I tell you: the present generation will live to see it all. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Be on your guard; do not let your minds be dulled by dissipation and drunkenness and worldly cares so that the great day catches you suddenly like a trap; for that day will come on everyone, the whole world over. Be on the alert, praying at all times for strength to pass safely through all that is coming and to stand in the presence of the Son of Man.
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The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Daniel 7 dates to the Hasmonean-Seleucid period, despite the claims of 7:1, which place it centuries before that. In this chapter we have the imagery of cosmic war. The text speaks of four Gentile kingdoms, most likely, in order, the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire, the Median Confederacy, the Persian Empire, and the Macedonian Empire of Alexander the Great. The ten horns are probably Seleucid kings, with Antiochus IV Epiphanes, who usurped three people to become king and who imposed a Hellenization policy on Jews in his realm, as the little horn. And the Archangel Michael is almost certainly the “one like a human being.” He is clearly subservient to God, who dispenses judgment in favor the holy ones.
History tells us that the Hasmoneans rebelled against Antiochus IV Epiphanes and established an independent Jewish state, which lasted for nearly a century, until 63 B.C.E., when the Roman Republic, a de facto empire soon to be a de jure one, assumed control. This brings me to Luke 21, written after the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 C.E. The text places a prediction of the Second Coming of Jesus within the lifetimes of some of the original audience of the Lukan Gospel in the mouth of our Lord.
Yes, Antiochus IV Epiphanes died painfully and the Hasmonean revolt succeeded afterward. Yes, there was a time of Judean independence. But the Romans took over. And, late in the First Century C.E., they destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. This must have seemed like the end of the world to many people at the time. Yet Jesus did not return before the original members of Luke’s audience died.
We want to think that we are God’s holy ones, and that, in the cosmic war, God might deign to act as and when we predict. Thus many people have not only longed for, but predicted the return of Jesus on specific dates for nearly two thousand years. Each time, our Lord has not appeared and the world has not ended. The rapture did not occur on May 21, 2011, as Harold Camping predicted. I act on the assumption that his second date, October 21, 2011, the alleged end of the world, will come and go in the same manner. We want God to take us away from our troubles, and some cling to doomsday dates in their desperation for deliverance and meaning.
Advent, or the season for preparing for Christmas, begins on the day after the Week of Proper 29: Saturday. One of the major themes of Advent is that God is with us in the here and the now. God does not always take us away from our problems; no, sometimes God joins us amid them. And when God does this, the form of the Incarnation might not be what we expected. Jesus did not arrive as a conquering hero, expelling the Roman forces; he came as a helpless infant and died via the most humiliating, prolonged, and painful form of public execution the empire used. But there was a Resurrection, was there not?
Yet the Roman Empire remained in power for centuries after that.
Other times, when some people think they are involved in cosmic warfare and on the side of light, they take matters into their own hands. This is very much part of the ideology of radical Islamic terrorism, despite the fact that the Koran condemns murder. Or, to use an example from Christian history, authorities drew on the cosmic warfare defense to justify the persecution and execution of Jews, Muslims, and accused heretics. I wonder who the real heretics were. There is no passage in which Jesus says,
Find those who believe differently from you and exterminate them!
No, we ought to leave the cosmic battle to God, who is full of surprises. May we embrace them and love our neighbors as ourselves, as our Lord told us to do.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 1, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PAMPHILUS OF CAESAREA, BIBLE SCHOLAR AND TRANSLATOR; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF SAINT JUSTIN MARTYR, APOLOGIST
THE FEAST OF SIMEON OF SYRACUSE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
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.
It pleased Darius to appoint a hundred and twenty satraps to be in charge of his kingdom, and over them three chief ministers, to whom the satraps were to submit their reports so that the king’s interests might not suffer; of these three ministers, Daniel was one. Daniel outshone the other ministers and the satraps because of his exceptional ability, and it was the king’s intention to appoint him over the whole kingdom. Then the ministers and satraps began to look round for some pretext to attack Daniel’s administration of the kingdom, but they failed to find any malpractice on his part, for he was faithful to his trust. Since they could discover neither negligence nor malpractice, they said,
We shall not find any ground for bringing a charge against this Daniel unless it is connected with his religion.
These ministers and satraps, having watched for an opportunity to approach the king, said to him,
Long live King Darius! We, the ministers of the kingdom, prefects, satraps, courtiers, and governors, have taken counsel and are agreed that the king should issue a decree and bring into force a binding edict to the effect that whoever presents a petition to any god or human being rather than the king during the next thirty days is to be thrown into the lion-pit. Now let your majesty issue the edict and have it put in writing so that it becomes unalterable, for the law of the Medes and the Persians may never be revoked.
Accordingly the edict was signed by King Darius.
When Daniel learnt that this decree had been issued, he went into his house. It had in the roof-chamber windows open towards Jerusalem; and there he knelt down three times a day and offered prayer and praises to his God as was his custom. His enemies, on the watch for an opportunity to catch him, found Daniel at his prayers making supplication to his God. Then they went into the king’s presence and reminded him of the edict.
Your majesty,
they said,
have you not issued an edict that any person who, within the next thirty days, presents a petition to any god or human being other than your majesty is to be thrown into the lion-pit?
The king answered,
The matter has been determined in accordance with the law of the Medes and the Persians, which may not be revoked.
So they said to the king,
Daniel, one of the Jewish exiles, has disregarded both your majesty and the edict, and is making petition to his God three times a day.
When the king heard this, he was greatly distressed; he was greatly distressed; he tried to think of a way to save Daniel, and continued his efforts till sunset. The men watched for an opportunity to approach the king, and said to him,
Your majesty must know that by the law of the Medes and Persians no edict or decree issued by the king may be altered.
Then the king gave the order for Daniel to be brought and thrown into the lion-pit; but he said to Daniel to be brought and thrown into the lion-pit; but he said to Daniel,
Your God whom you serve at all times, may he save you.
A stone was brought and put over the mouth of the pit, and the king sealed it with his signet and with the signets of his nobles, so that no attempt could be made to rescue Daniel.
The king went to his palace and spent the night fasting; no woman was brought to him, and sleep eluded him. He was greatly agitated and, at the first light of dawn, he rose and went to the lion-pit. When he came near he called anxiously,
Daniel, servant of the living God, has your God whom you serve continually been able to save you from the lions?
Daniel answered,
Long live the king! My God sent his angel to shut the lions’ mouths and they have not injured me; he judged me innocent, and moreover I had done your majesty no injury.
The king was overjoyed and gave orders that Daniel should be taken up out of the pit. When this was done no trace of injury was found on him, because he had put his faith in his God. By order of the king those who out of malice had accused Daniel were brought and flung into the lion-pit along their children and their wives, and before they reached the bottom the lions were upon them and devoured them, bones and all.
King Darius wrote to all peoples and nations of every language throughout the whole world:
May your prosperity increase! I have issued a decree that in all my royal domains everyone is to fear and reverence the God of Daniel,
for he is the living God, the everlasting,
whose kingly power will never be destroyed;
whose sovereignty will have no end–
a saviour, a deliverer, a worker of signs and wonders
in heaven and on earth,
who has delivered Daniel from the power of the lions.
Prosperity attended Daniel during the reigns of Darius and Cyrus the Persian.
THEN RESPONSE #1:
Canticle 12, Part I (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Part of the Song of the Three Young Men)
Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord,
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord,
Praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, every shower of rain and fall of dew,
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and summer, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold,
drops of dew and and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O nights and days,
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
OR RESPONSE #2:
Psalm 99 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The LORD is King;
let the people tremble;
he is enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth shake.
2 The LORD is great in Zion;
he is high above all peoples.
3 Let them confess his Name, which is great and awesome;
he is the Holy One.
4 “O mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity;
you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob.”
5 Proclaim the greatness of the LORD our God
and fall down before his footstool;
he is the Holy One.
6 Moses and Aaron among his priests,
and Samuel among those who call upon his Name,
they called upon the LORD, and he answered them.
7 He spoke to them out of the pillar of cloud;
they kept his testimonies and the decree that he gave them.
8 “O LORD our God, you answered them indeed;
you were a God who forgave them,
yet punished them for their evil deeds.”
9 Proclaim the greatness of the LORD our God
and worship him upon his holy hill;
for the LORD our God is the Holy One.
THEN THE GOSPEL READING:
Luke 21:20-28 (Revised English Bible):
[Jesus continued,]
But when you see Jerusalem encircled by armies, then you may be sure that her devastation is near. Then those who are in Judaea must take to the hills; those who are in the city itself must leave it and those who are out in the country must not return; because this is the time of retribution, when all that stands written is to be fulfilled. Alas for women with child in those days, and for those who have children at the breast! There will be great distress in the land and a terrible judgement on this people. They will fall by the sword; they will be carried captive into all countries; and Jerusalem will be trampled underfoot by Gentiles until the day of the Gentiles has run its course.
Portents will appear in sun and moon and stars. On earth nations will stand helpless, not knowing which way to turn from the roar and surge of the sea. People will faint with terror at the thought of what is coming upon the world; for the celestial powers will be shaken. Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. When all this begins to happen, stand upright and hold your heads high, because your liberation is near.
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The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
I must attend to some history before I get to my main point. Here is a partial list of Persian kings and other crucial dates, courtesy of The Jewish Study Bible (Oxford University Press, 2004):
Reign of Cyrus II (the Great) = 559-530 B.C.E.
Capture of Babylon = 539 B.C.E.
Reign of Cambyses = 530-522 B.C.E.
Reign of Darius I = 522-486 B.C.E.
Reign of Xerxes I = 486-465 B.C.E.
Reign of Artaxerxes I = 465-424 B.C.E.
Reign of Darius II = 423-405 B.C.E.
Reign of Artaxerxes II = 405-359 B.C.E.
Exiles begin to return from Babylonia in 538 B.C.E.
These are troubling readings. This day’s lesson from Luke 21 is part of the small apocalypse from that gospel. The horrific images and dark warnings were past tense for the original audience of that book, written after the Roman destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 C.E. And, as for Daniel 6, I understand that, according to Deuteronomy 19:16-19, the penalty for bearing false witness is to suffer the same potential fate as the one of whom a person lied, but what did the wives and children do? Furthermore, Darius/Cyrus was the most powerful man in the empire; he could have lifted the original edict at any time.
Yet there is hope in dark times. Yes, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70 C.E., but the Jews and their religion have survived. Yes, the Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians demolished the Kingdom of Judah in 587 B.C.E., but the Persians conquered them, allowed Jewish exiles to go home, and facilitated the construction of the Second Temple. Yes, Daniel got in trouble because he did his job better than some jealous peers, who manipulated the king into trying to execute him, but God saved Daniel. And even when one dies for one’s Christian faith, the blood of the martyrs waters the church.
The readings take a dark turn toward the end of the church year, but the darkness has not extinguished all light. In a few days I will, God willing, begin writing devotions for Advent. (I am working a few months ahead of schedule, obviously.) Advent is about preparing the birth of our Lord Jesus, the Messiah. As the Revised English Bible (1989) renders John 1:1-5,
In the beginning the Word already was. The Word was in God’s presence, and what God was, the Word was. He was with God in the beginning, and through him all things came to be; without him no created thing came into being. In him was life, and that life was the light of mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has never mastered it.
Amen.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 1, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PAMPHILUS OF CAESAREA, BIBLE SCHOLAR AND TRANSLATOR; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF SAINT JUSTIN MARTYR, APOLOGIST
THE FEAST OF SIMEON OF SYRACUSE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
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.
King Belshazzzar gave a grand banquet for a thousand of his nobles and he was drinking wine in their presence. Under the influence of the wine, Belshazzar gave orders for the vessels of gold and silver which his father Nebuchadnezzar had taken from the temple at Jerusalem to be fetched, so that he and his nobles, along with his concubines and courtesans, might drink from them. So those vessels belonging to the house of God, the temple at Jerusalem, were brought, and the king, the nobles, and the concubines and courtesans drank from them. They drank their wine and they praised their gods of gold, silver, bronze, iron, wood, and stone.
Suddenly there appeared the fingers of a human hand writing on the plaster of the palace wall opposite the lamp, and the king saw the palm of the hand as it wrote. At this the king turned pale; dismay filled his mind, the strength went from his leg, and his knees knocked together.
…
Daniel was then brought into the royal presence, and the king addressed him:
So you are Daniel, one of the Jewish exiles whom my royal father brought from Judah. I am informed that the spirit of the gods resides in you and that you are known as a man of clear insight and exceptional wisdom. The wise men, the exorcists, have just been brought before me to read this writing and make its interpretation known to me, but they have been unable to give its meaning. I am told that you are able to furnish interpretations and unravel problems. Now, if you can read this writing and make known the interpretation, you shall be robed in purple and have a gold chain hung round your neck, and you shall rank third in the kingdom.
Daniel replied,
Your majesty, I do not look for gifts from you; give your rewards to another. Nevertheless I shall read your majesty the writing and make known to you its interpretation.
My lord king, the Most High God gave a kingdom with power, glory, and majesty to your father Nebuchadnezzar; and, because of the power he bestowed on him, all peoples and nations of every language trembled with fear before him. He put to death whom he would and spared whom he would, he promoted them at will and at will abased them. But, when he became haughty and stubborn and presumptuous, he was deposed from his royal throne and stripped of his glory. He was banished from human society, and his mind became like that of an animal; he had to live with the wild asses and to feed on grass like oxen, and his body was drenched with the dew of heaven, until he came to acknowledge that the Most High God is sovereign over the realm of humanity and appoints over whom he will. But although you knew all this, you, his son, Belshazzar, did not humble your heart. You have set yourself up against the Lord of heaven; his temple vessels have been fetched for you and your nobles, your concubines, and courtesans to drink from them. You have praised gods fashioned from silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which cannot see or hear or know, and you have not given glory to God, from whom comes your every breath, and in whose charge are all your ways. That is why he sent the hand and why it wrote this inscription.
The words inscribed were: ”Mene mene tekel u-pharsin.” Their interpretation is this: mene, God has numbered the days of your kingdom and brought you to an end; tekel, you have been weighed in the balance and found wanting; u-pharsin, your kingdom has been divided and given to the Medes and the Persians.
Then at Belshazzar’s command Daniel was robed in purple and a gold chain hung round his neck, and proclamation was made that he should rank third in the kingdom.
That very night Belshazzar king of the Chaldaeans was slain, and Darius the Mede took the kingdom, being then about sixty-two years old.
THEN RESPONSE #1:
Canticle 12, Part I (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Part of the Song of the Three Young Men)
Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord,
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord,
Praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, every shower of rain and fall of dew,
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and summer, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold,
drops of dew and and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O nights and days,
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
OR RESPONSE #2:
Psalm 98 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Sing to the LORD a new song,
for he has done marvelous things.
2 With his right hand and his holy arm
has he won for himself the victory.
3 The LORD has made known his victory;
his righteousness has he openly shown in the sight of the nations.
4 He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel,
and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God.
5 Shout with joy to the LORD, all you lands;
lift up your voice, rejoice, and sing.
6 Sing to the LORD with the harp,
with the harp and the voice of song.
7 With trumpets and the sound of the horn
shout with joy before the King, the LORD.
8 Let the sea make a noise and all that is in it,
the lands and those who dwell therein.
9 Let the rivers clap their hands,
and let the hills ring out with joy before the LORD,
when he comes to judge the earth.
10 In righteousness shall he judge the world
and the peoples with equity.
THEN THE GOSPEL READING:
Luke 21:10-19 (Revised English Bible):
Then Jesus added,
Nation will go to war against nation, kingdom against kingdom; there will be severe earthquakes, famines, and plagues in many places, and in the sky terrors and great portents.
But before all this happens they will seize you and persecute you. You will be handed over to synagogues and put in prison; you will be haled before kings and governors for your allegiance to me. This will be your opportunity to testify. So resolve not to prepare your defence beforehand, because I myself will give you such words and wisdom as no opponent can resist or refute. Even your parents and brothers, your relations and friends, will betray you. Some of you will be put to death; and everyone will hate you for your allegiance to me. But not a hair of your head will be lost. By standing firm you will win yourselves life.
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The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
First I must deal with raw, documented history. Historians from ancient times from the present agree that Cyrus II (“the Great”) became King of the Persians the Medes in the year we call 559 B.C.E., and that his forces conquered the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in 539 B.C.E. Cyrus, being born circa 600 B.C.E., was approximately sixty-two years old at the time of the conquest. Thus his age matches that of the mysterious “Darius the Mede” from the end of Daniel 5. In point of fact, the Book of Daniel is the only ancient source to mention “Darius the Mede” as an immediate predecessor of Cyrus II, who succeeded Cambyses I immediately, almost twenty years before the setting of this story. There is a simple explanation: The author of this part of the Book of Daniel was confused as to Persian royal succession.
Belshazzar was a son of and the viceroy of Nabonidus (reigned 556-539 B.C.E.), the last Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian king. He (Belshazzar) was a powerful prince and a person with whom to reckon, but not a regnal monarch. History records that he died when the Persian forces, commanded by General Gobyras, captured Babylon. Gobyras went on to become Cyrus the Great’s governor in Babylon, so some have speculated that Gobyras was “Darius the Mede.” This seems like a stretch to me, given my propensity for the historical-critical method and my preference for Ockham’s Razor. It is, however, one way for those who prefer discredited theories of inerrancy and infallibility to explain away a minor (and irrelevant) inaccuracy in the text.
As Galileo Galilei observed in the 1600s, the Bible is not a science book. And, in certain minor and occasional historical matters, it gets some quibbling and irrelevant details wrong. This is to be expected, for people wrote many of these texts down a long time after the events the texts describe. So some out-of-chronological-order references crept into the narrative. C’est la vie. Such inaccuracies do not bother me, for I am far from a Biblical literalist. I prefer instead to focus on the main point of such texts, not permitting minor historical quibbles to become distractions from great spiritual truths. As a spiritual mentor of mine asked of any Biblical text,
What is really going on here?
That is where I place my emphasis.
Let us consider the story from Daniel 5 as it is. The son and viceroy of the last Chaldean king commits sacrilege with confiscated vessels from the late Jerusalem Temple. He sees a disembodied hand write a text on a wall. All the viceroy”s usual advisors cannot interpret the text, but Daniel can. Belshazzar promises Daniel a promotion in exchange for an accurate reading, but the faithful Daniel says that such a nice act is not necessary; he is willing to interpret the text and retain his current standing. Daniel delivers the bad news. Belshazzar, much to his credit, promotes Daniel anyway. The viceroy dies that night, during the Persian conquest.
This is a story about God acting to deliver his people. History records that the Jews fared much better under the Persians than they did under the Assyrians or the Chaldeans/Neo-Babylonians. I have covered this ground already, beginning with this post: http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/04/01/week-of-proper-20-monday-year-1/. It was not always a pleasant political situation, and not all Persian kings were favorably disposed toward Jewish interests, but the Persian Empire did facilitate the building of the Second Temple.
The reading from Luke 21 spoke of circumstances many Christians at the time of the writing that gospel experienced. Indeed, with a few minor changes in terminology, it speaks of circumstances many Christians face today. But, Jesus says, persecution is an opportunity to testify to him, himself a persecuted one. By enduring, our Lord says, we will win our lives, even if we die. Or, as Paul wrote, if we suffer with Christ, we will reign with Christ.
These are the kinds of passages which cause me to wonder how prosperity theologians can say what they do. These men and women sell theological snake oil to those who either choose not to investigate their claims or lack enough Biblical knowledge to know where to begin. It is rather discouraging, is it not?
This day we have two readings which speak of God acting during times of great difficulty. In the first the good guys live, but in the second they almost certainly die. Yet they live with God. The Bible, in both the Old and New Testaments, is honest: Sometimes faithfulness leads to persecution, even torture and death. It is unjust, I grant you, but not entirely unexpected. If we do not grasp this message, it is not because of false advertising in the sacred anthology we call the Bible.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 1, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS PAMPHILUS OF CAESAREA, BIBLE SCHOLAR AND TRANSLATOR; AND HIS COMPANIONS, MARTYRS
THE FEAST OF SAINT JUSTIN MARTYR, APOLOGIST
THE FEAST OF SIMEON OF SYRACUSE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
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.
[Daniel addressed King Nebudchadnezzar II, saying,]
As you watched, there appeared to your majesty a great image. Huge and dreading, it stood before you, fearsome to behold. The head of the image was of fine gold, its chest and arms of silver, its belly and thighs of bronze, its legs of iron, its feet part iron and part clay. While you watched, you saw a stone hewn from a mountain by no human hand; it struck the image on its feet of iron and clay and shattered them. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were all shattered into fragments, as if they were chaff from a summer threshing-floor the wind swept them away until no trace of them remained. But the stone which struck the image grew and became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.
This was the dream; now we shall relate to your majesty its interpretation. Your majesty, the king of kings, to whom the God of heaven has given the kingdom with its power, its might, and its honour, in whose hands he has placed mankind wherever they live, the wild animals, and the birds of the air, granting you sovereignty over the whole world. After you will arise another kingdom, inferior to yours, then a third kingdom, of bronze, which will will have sovereignty over the whole world. There will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron; just as iron shatters and breaks all things, it will shatter and crush the others. As in your vision the feet and toes were part potter’s clay and part iron, so it will be a divided kingdom, and just as you saw iron mixed with clay from the ground, so it will have in it something of the strength of iron. The toes being part iron and part clay means that the kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. As in your vision the iron was mixed with the clay, so there will be a mixing of families by intermarriage, but such alliances will not be stable: iron does not mix with clay. In the times of those kings the God of heaven will establish a kingdom which will never be destroyed, nor will it ever pass to another people; it will shatter all these kingdoms and make and end of them, while it will itself endure for ever. This is meaning of your vision of the stone being hewn from a mountain by no human hand, and then shattering the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A mighty God has made known to your majesty what is to be hereafter. The dream and its interpretation are true and trustworthy.
THEN RESPONSE #1:
Canticle 12, Part I (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Part of the Song of the Three Young Men)
Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord,
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord,
Praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, every shower of rain and fall of dew,
all winds and fire and heat.
Winter and summer, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O chill and cold,
drops of dew and and flakes of snow.
Frost and cold, ice and sleet, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
Glorify the Lord, O nights and days,
O shining light and enfolding dark.
Storm clouds and thunderbolts, glorify the Lord,
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
OR RESPONSE #2:
Psalm 96 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Sing to the LORD a new song;
sing to the LORD, all the whole earth.
2 Sing to the LORD and bless his Name;
proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day.
3 Declare his glory among the nations
and his wonders among all peoples.
4 For great is the LORD and greatly to be praised;
he is more to be feared than all gods.
5 As for the gods of the nations, they are but idols;
but it is the LORD who made the heavens.
6 Oh, the majesty and magnificence of his presence!
Oh, the power and the splendor of his sanctuary!
7 Ascribe to the LORD, you families of the peoples;
ascribe to the LORD honor and power.
8 Ascribe to the LORD the honor due his Name;
bring offerings and come into his courts.
9 Worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness;
let the whole earth tremble before him.
10 Tell it out among the nations: ”The LORD is King!
he has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved;
he will judge the peoples with equity.”
11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad;
let the sea thunder and all that is in it;
let the field be joyful and all that is therein.
12 Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy
before the LORD when he comes,
when he comes to judge the earth.
13 He will judge the world with righteousness
and the peoples with his truth.
THEN THE GOSPEL READING:
Luke 21:5-9 (Revised English Bible):
Some people were talking about the temple and the beauty of its fine stones and ornaments. Jesus said,
These things you are gazing at–the time will come when not one stone will be left upon another; they will all be thrown down.
They asked,
Teacher, when will that be? What will be the sign that these things are about to happen?
He said,
Take care that you are not misled. For many will come claiming my name and saying, “I am he,” and “The time has come.” Do not follow them. And when you hear of wars and insurrections, do not panic. These things are bound to happen first, but the end does not follow at once.
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
I like maps, especially old ones. Two of the books in my library are Longmans’ New School Atlas (1901) and Hammond’s New Era Atlas of the World (1945). The latter comes with a supplement reflecting the post-World War II borders. The maps of Europe and Asia changed quite a bit more than once from 1901 to 1945. The Russian Empire became the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. The German Empire shrank slightly into the Weimar Republic, which transformed into the Third Reich, which expanded and shrank greatly, becoming two Germanies. Austria-Hungary broke up. Yugoslavia was born. Poland was reborn, but its borders shifted greatly from 1919 to 1945. And, in Asia, Japan engulfed many colonies and nations, only to lose the territory. Furthermore, the Ottoman Empire finally collapsed, leaving Turkey and former colonies in its wake. Since 1945, two Germanies have become one, the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia have crumbled, Czechoslovakia has divided, and European colonial empires have fallen. The British used to boast that the sun never set on their empire. It was the literal truth; there was daylight somewhere in the British Empire at any given time. The jealous Germans, of course, grumbled that God did not trust the British in the dark. Now the sun never sets on the Falkland Islands and small Atlantic and Pacific islands.
Empires and nation-states rise and fall, but God is always in charge. This lesson is part of the reading from Daniel. Reputable scholars of the Bible have read the interpretation of Nebudachnezzar II’s dream and detected references to his Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire plus the Persian Empire, the Macedonian Empire of Alexander the Great, the Seleucid Empire, and the Roman Republic/Empire. The Persians conquered the Chaldeans, but Alexander defeated the Persians. The Seleucid Empire arose from the ashes of Alexander’s Macedonian Empire, but the Romans conquered the weakened Seleucids. Rome, of course, divided east-west, with the Western Empire fading away by 476 C.E. and the Ottomans putting the remains of the Eastern Empire out of their misery in 1453. All of these were mighty empires, each in its own day, but are no more.
Proper 29, the Last Sunday after Pentecost (http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/29/proper-29-year-a/), was Christ the King Sunday. A few days ago, I wrote the following post (http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/26/week-of-proper-28-wednesday-year-1/), in which I dwelt on the theme that “God is the ruler yet.” The mountain of God (to borrow an analogy from Daniel 2) shatters kingdoms and stands forever. Yet cults of personality have arisen and persisted. Members of the German military swore loyalty to Adolf Hitler, not the German state or constitution. To this day many virulent racists celebrate the Fuhrer’s birthday. There is a bizarre cult of personality surrounding the deceased founder of the ruling Kim family in North Korea. And the cult of personality surrounding Joseph Stalin, despite some setbacks, has never died, unlike Stalin. Yet “God is the ruler yet.” May we remember this always, ordering our priorities accordingly.
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.
In the third year of the reign of King Jehoiakim of Judah, Nebuchadnezzar, the Babylonian king, came and laid siege to Jerusalem. The Lord handed King Jehoiakim over to him, together with all that was left of the vessels from the house of God; and he carried them off to the land of Shinar, to the temple of his god, where he placed the vessels in the temple treasury.
The king ordered Ashpenaz, his chief eunuch, to bring into the palace some of the Israelite exiles, members of their royal house and of the nobility. They were to be young men free from physical defect, handsome in appearance, well-informed, intelligent, and so fitted for service in the royal court; and he was to instruct them in the writings and language of the Chaldaeans. The king assigned them a daily allowance of fine food and wine from the royal table; and their training was to last for three years ; at the end of that time they would enter his service. among them were certain Jews: Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. To them the master of the eunuchs gave new names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah Shadrach, Michael Meshach, and Azariah Abed-nego.
Daniel determined not to become contaminated with the food and wine from the royal table, and begged the master of the eunuchs to excuse him from touching it. God caused the master to look on Daniel with kindness and goodwill, and to Daniel’s request he replied,
I am afraid of my lord the king: he has assigned you food and drink, and if he were to see you looking miserable compared with the other young men of your age, my head would be forfeit.
Then Daniel said to the attendant whom the master of the eunuchs had put in charge of Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, and himself,
Submit us to the this test for ten days: give us only vegetables to eat and water to drink; then compare our appearance with that of the young men who have lived on the kings’ food, and be guided in your treatment of us by what you see for yourself.
He agreed to this proposal and submitted them to this test. At the end of the ten days they looked healthier and better nourished than any of the young men who had lived on the food from the king. So the attendant took away the food assigned to them and the wine they were to drink, and gave them vegetables only.
To all four of these young men God gave knowledge, understanding of books, and learning of every kind, and Daniel had a gift for interpreting visions and dreams of very kind. At the time appointed for the king for introducing the young men to court, the master of the eunuchs brought them into the presence of Nebuchadnezzar. The king talked with them all, but found none of them to compare with Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah; so they entered the royal service. Whenever the king consulted them on any matter, he found them ten times superior to all the magicians and exorcists in his whole kingdom.
THEN RESPONSE #1:
Canticle 13 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
(Song of the Three Young Men 29-34 plus the Trinitarian formula)
Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers;
you are worthy of praise; glory to you.
Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name;
we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.
Glory to you in the splendor of your temple;
on the throne of your majesty, glory to you.
Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim;
we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.
Glory to you, beholding the depths;
in the high vault of heaven, glory to you.
Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit;
we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever.
OR RESPONSE #2:
Psalm 24:1-6 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The earth is the LORD’s and all that is in it,
the world and all who dwell therein.
2 For it is who founded it upon the seas
and made it firm upon the rivers of the deep.
3 “Who can ascend the hill of the LORD?
and who can stand in his holy place?”
4 “Those who have clean hands and a pure heart,
who have not pledged themselves to falsehood,
nor sworn by what is a fraud.
5 They shall receive a blessing from the LORD
and a just reward from the God of their salvation.”
6 Such is the generation of those who seek him,
of those who seek your face, O God of Jacob.
THEN THE GOSPEL READING:
Luke 21:1-4 (Revised English Bible):
As Jesus looked up and saw rich people dropping their gifts into the chest of the temple treasury, he noticed a poor widow putting in two tiny coins.
I tell you this,
he said:
this poor widow has given more than any of them; for those others who have given had more than enough, but she, with less than enough, has given all she had to live on.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
Last week we read about one way of handling attempted assimilation into a Gentile culture: insurrection. However, in Daniel 1, we have an example of nonviolent resistance on a small scale.
The Chaldeans, a.k.a. Neo-Babylonians, had consigned the Kingdom of Judah to history in 587 B.C.E. Daniel and his fellows found themselves forced into the service of King Neuchadnezzar II against their will, but they made the most of a bad situation. In the process they retained their Jewish identities despite Chaldean attempts to the contrary. Consider the renaming, for example. Daniel, or “El has judged,” became Belteshazzar, or “Protect the king.” Hananiah, whose name meant “Yah has been gracious,” received the name Shadrach, which was probably Persian for “shining.” Mishael, literally, “Who is what El is?,” became Meshach, a name derived from the Zoroastrian deity Mithras. And Azariah, whose name meant “Yah has helped,” became Abed-nego, or “Servant of Nabu,” Nabu being the Babylonina God of Wisdom.
There were royal power plays at work. Changing the mens’ names signified not only assimilation but dependence on the king, as did assigning food and wine from the king’s table. Yet these four men followed an invisible and more powerful king, who enabled them to survive in difficult circumstances.
Now I turn toward the lesson from Luke.
I have already covered the Markan version of this story and provided a link to that post. Yet a grasp of the Lukan telling requires me to back up a few verses, into Luke 20:45-47, immediately before 21:1-4.
In the hearing of all the people Jesus said to his disciples: ”Beware of the scribes, who like to walk up and down in long robes, and love to be greeted respectfully in the street, to have the chief seats in synagogues and places of honour at feasts. These are the men who eat up the property of widows, while for appearance’ sake they say long prayers; the sentence they receive will be all the more severe.”
Now read Luke 21:1-4 again.
The widow put two lepta into an offering box at the Temple. A lepta was 1/128 of a day’s wage, or a denarius. So the widow was really poor. Now reconsider the words of Jesus; did the praise the widow or lament her action? The text does not indicate his tone of voice, but lament seems to be the more likely dominant option. Certainly he did not want her to starve. And her meager offering helped support the Temple system off which the corrupt religious establishment lived and from which it derived its power. Yet the widow did trust God and practice religion piously, as she understood it. One can, with justification, understand Jesus to have praised her humble piety, which stood in stark contrast to the false holiness of those he had just condemned.
Let us be clear. Luke 21:1-4 is no more an instruction to give away all the money one has to pay bills and buy food than Daniel 1 is a vegetarian tract. Yet a common thread runs through them: We must trust and follow God. This is easy when times are good, but difficult when circumstances are harsh. Certainly exile following the destruction of one’s nation is harsh. Truly grinding poverty is harsh. ”Woe to those who create and maintain such harsh conditions,” Biblical prophets said again and again. ”God loves the orphans and the widows,” they said; and the author of Luke-Acts did, too. Open an unabridged concordance of the Bible and look up “widow” and “widows,” focusing on Luke and Acts. Then read those passages.
With this post I near the end of this series of devotions. It will end with “Week of Proper 29: Saturday, Year 1,” after which I will return to ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS and blog there for a few months. I mention this because the temporal relationship of this post to Advent is germane. During Advent we will focus on the approaching Incarnation of God in human form, Jesus of Nazareth. His birth constituted, among other things, an affirmation of the dignity of human beings, including the poor and the downtrodden, such as today’s widow.
Regardless of your economic situation, O reader, I encourage you to trust and follow God. By the way, I hope for your sake and that of your family, if you have one, that your economic situation is excellent and improving. This is a prayer I say for everyone: May all have all that they need and the good judgment to use it properly. And may they thank God for it in words, deeds, and attitudes. Furthermore, may we function as agents of God in helping each other achieve and retain this reality.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 30, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT EUSEBIUS OF CAESAREA, HISTORIAN AND ROMAN CATHOLIC OF BISHOP
THE FEAST OF APOLO KIVEBULAYA, ANGLICAN EVANGELIST
THE FEAST OF JOACHIM NEANDER, GERMAN REFORMED MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER
Now these are the last words of David: The oracle of David, son of Jesse, the oracle of the man whom God exalted, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the favorite of the Strong One of Israel:
The spirit of the LORD speaks through me,
his word is upon my tongue.
The God of Israel has spoken,
the Rock of Israel has said to me:
One who rules over people justly,
ruling in the fear of God,
is like the light of morning,
like the sun rising on a cloudless morning,
gleaming from the rain on the grassy land.
Is not my house like this with God?
For he has made with me an everlasting covenant,
ordered in all things and secure.
Will he not cause to prosper
all my help and my desire?
But the godless are all like thorns that are thrown away;
for they cannot be picked up with the hand;
to touch them one uses an iron bar
or the shaft of a spear.
And they are entirely consumed in fire on the spot.
Psalm 132:1-3, (14-19) (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 LORD, remember David,
and all the hardships endured;
2 How he swore an oath to the LORD
and vowed a vow to the Mighty One of Jacob:
3 ”I will not come under the roof of my house,
nor climb up into my bed….”
14 For the LORD has chosen Zion;
he has desired her for his habitation:
15 ”This shall be my resting-place for ever;
here will I dwell, for I delight in her.
16 I will surely bless her provisions,
and satisfy her poor with bread.
17 I will clothe her priests with salvation,
and her faithful people will rejoice and sing.
18 There will I make the horn of David flourish;
I have prepared a lamp for my Anointed.
19 As for his enemies, I will clothe them with shame;
but as for him, his crown will shine.”
FIRST READING AND PSALM: OPTION #2
Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 (Revised English Bible):
As I was looking,
thrones were set in place
and the Ancient in Years took his seat;
his robe was white as snow,
his hair like lamb’s wool.
His throne was flames of fire
and its wheels were blazing fire;
a river of fire flowed from his presence.
Thousands upon thousands served him
and myriads upon myriads were in attendance.
The court sat, and the books were opened.
…
I was watching in visions of the night and I saw one like a human being coming with the clouds of heaven; he approached the Ancient in Years and was presented to him. Sovereignty and glory and kingly power were given to him, so that all people and nations of every language should serve him; his sovereignty was to be an everlasting sovereignty which was not to pass away; and his kingly power was never to be destroyed.
Psalm 93 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 The LORD is King;
he has put on splendid apparel;
the LORD has put on his apparel
and girded himself with strength.
2 He has made the whole world so sure
that it cannot be moved;
3 Ever since the world began, your throne has been estabished;
you are from everlasting.
4 The waters have lifted up, O LORD,
the waters have lifted up their voice;
the waters have lifted up their pounding waves.
5 Mightier than the sound of many waters,
mightier than the breakers of the sea,
mightier is the LORD who dwells on high.
6 Your testimonies are very sure,
and holiness adorns your house, O LORD,
SECOND READING
Revelation 1:4b-8 (New Revised Standard Version):
Grace to you and peace from him who is and was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first born of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Look! He is coming with the clouds;
every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wait.
So it is to be. Amen.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
GOSPEL READING
John 18:33-37 (New Revised Standard Version):
Then Pilate entered the headquarters again, summoned Jesus, and asked him,
Are you the King of the Jews?
Jesus answered,
Do you ask this on your own, or did others tell you about me?
Pilate replied,
I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests have handed you over to me. What have you done?
Jesus answered,
My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.
Pilate asked him,
So you are a king?
Jesus answered,
You say that I am a king. For this I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, the King of kings and Lord of lords: Mercifully grant that the peoples of the earth, divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his most gracious rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
God’s ways and those dominant in many societies contradict each other. Look around. Listen. Pay attention. Then consider the following:
The first will be last and the last will be first.
The person who serves is the greatest of all.
The Beatitudes in the Gospel of Matthew
The Beatitudes and Woes in the Gospel of Luke
This Sunday’s readings from Revelation and John
This is Christ the King Sunday, the last Sunday in the Western Church year. The next Sunday will inaugurate Advent, the time of preparation for Christmas. Already we read of the return of Christ, which is par for the course at this time in the Western Church year. Only God knows the details of the parousia, so do not believe anyone who claims to have worked them out. Unfortunately, such alleged experts have given books such as Daniel and Revelation a bad name among many Christians and others.
I have no obsession with matters eschatological, but neither do I find Daniel and Revelation frightening or intimidating. They are dense, but that fact creates a challenge. I can deal effectively with a challenge, or at least try to do so. My main task as a Christian, however, is to follow Jesus, not to fixate on the seven seals or the four horsemen of the apocalypse. I do not look forward to the end of the world. Rather, I seek to leave my corner of the world better than I found it. How can I function as a divine agent so that God’s order will become more evident in the world, or at least my corner of it? How can I, for example, help those who mourn to laugh, those who hunger to have their fill, those who weep to rejoice, and those who seek God to find God? How may I serve God most effectively and show Jesus to those whom I encounter? These are my responsibilities; prophesy conferences are irrelevant.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 17, 2011 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ROSE-PHILIPPINE DUCHESENE, ROMAN CATHOLIC CONTEMPLATIVE
THE FEAST OF SAINT HUGH OF LINCOLN, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROQUE GONZALEZ DE SANTA CRUZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST
BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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