Above: Ambassador Delenn, from Rising Star, a 1997 Episode of Babylon 5 (1994-1998)
A screen capture I took via PowerDVD and a legal DVD
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The Collect:
Stir up the wills of your faithful people, Lord God,
and open our ears to the words of your prophets,
that, anointed by your Spirit, we may testify to your light;
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 19
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The Assigned Readings:
Habakkuk 2:1-5 (Thursday)
Habakkuk 3:2-6 (Friday)
Habakkuk 3:13-19 (Saturday)
Psalm 126 (All Days)
Philippians 3:7-11 (Thursday)
Philippians 3:12-16 (Friday)
Mathew 21:28-32 (Saturday)
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Restore our fortunes, O LORD,
like the watercourses of the Negev.
Those who sowed with tears
will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping, carrying the seed,
will come in again with joy, shouldering their shears.
–Psalm 126:5-7, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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The readings for these three days combine to constitute a tapestry of hope, faith, violence, and judgment.
The lessons from Habakkuk complain to God about persistent injustice and report a divine reply that (A) God will settle scores one day, and (B) the righteous must remain faithful during trying times. Some of the material is disturbing:
You tread the earth in rage,
You trample nations in fury.
You have come forth to deliver Your people,
To deliver Your anointed.
You will smash the roof of the villain’s house,
Raze it from foundation to top.
You will crack [his] skull with Your bludgeon;
Blown away will be his warriors,
Whose delight is to crush me suddenly,
To devour a poor man in an ambush.
–Habakkuk 3:12-14, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Happier is the end of the book:
Though the fig tree does not bud
And no yield is on the vine,
Though the olive crop has failed
And the fields produce no grain,
Though sheep have vanished from the fold
And no cattle are n the pen,
Yet will I rejoice in the LORD,
Exult in the God who delivers me.
My Lord GOD is my strength:
He makes my feet like the deer’s
And lets me stride upon the heights.
–Habakkuk 3:17-19, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
As I have written many times, I understand the reality that some oppressors will not cease oppressing until someone forces them to do so. Thus a rescue mission becomes necessary. This is good news for the oppressed and a catastrophe for the oppressors. Yet the imagery of God cracking open skulls bothers me.
The note of judgment continues in Matthew 21:28-32, set in the context of the final days leading up to our Lord and Savior’s crucifixion.
Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
–Matthew 21:31b-32, New Revised Standard Version (1989)
The bad news for chief priests and elders, beneficiaries of the Temple system, comes amid a series of controversies in the Gospel of Matthew. The Parable of the Wicked Tenants (Matthew 21:33-45) follows on the heels of those harsh words, for example.
St. Paul the Apostle picks up the theme of remaining faithful during difficult times in Philippians. His reference to the righteous living by faith echoes a line from Habakkuk–a nice touch, which the lectionary amplifies. Faith, in the Pauline sense of that word, is inherently active, compelling one to do something. In contrast, the definition of faith in the Letter of James is intellectual, hence that author’s insistence on pairing works with faith. So no disagreement between Sts. Paul and James regarding faith and works exists. Maintaining that active faith under great pressure is both difficult and crucial, as St. Paul knew well.
When times and circumstances challenge our trust in God, may we say with St. Paul:
But even beyond that, I consider everything a loss in comparison to the superior value of knowing Jesus Christ my Lord. I have lost everything for him, but whatever I have lost I think of as sewer trash, so that I might gain Christ and be found with him.
–Philippians 3:8-9a, Common English Bible (2008)
Faith (in the Pauline sense) functions in the absence of proof for or against a given proposition. As Ambassador Delenn, a character from Babylon 5 (1994-1998), one of my favorite science fiction series, said,
Faith manages.
(Indeed, that was one of the major themes of the series.) Faith keeps one on the proper path when, as Habakkuk wrote, the crops have failed and the livestock have vanished. If we give up, we have decided to act in a way which will create a more negative future. Yet if we persist, we act based on hope. Such hope as overcome incredible odds many times, from ancient to contemporary times. Many people have suffered and died so that members of subsequent generations can lead better lives.
Advent is a season of hope and violence. Some of the violence is contemporary. Other violence comes from the texts we read. For example, St. Mary of Nazareth, the mother of our Lord and Savior, would have died by stoning if not for the graciousness of St. Joseph. Faith manages during times of doubt, despair, and suspicion. It persists during protracted periods of whisper campaigns and rumor-mongering, such as Jesus and his mother had to endure.
May we, by grace, have healthy faith from God in God, in whom both judgment and mercy exist. And may we leave the judgment to God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 26, 2014 COMMON ERA
PROPER 25: THE TWENTIETH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALFRED THE GREAT, KING OF THE WEST SAXONS
THE FEAST OF SAINT CEDD, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF LONDON
THE FEAST OF DMITRY BORTNIANSKY, COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF PHILLIP NICOLAI, JOHANN HEERMANN, AND PAUL GERHARDT, HYMN WRITERS
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Adapted from this post:
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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