Archive for July 2019
Above: The Statue of Liberty
Image in the Public Domain
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Deuteronomy 26:1-11
Psalm 126
Philippians 1:3-11
Mark 10:28-31
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Torah piety teaches the following, among other truths:
- We depend entirely on God.
- We depend on each other.
- We are responsible to each other.
- We are responsible for each other.
- We have no right to exploit each other.
The selection of readings indicates the immigrant experience in the United States of America, going back to colonial times. In the United States, we are all immigrants or descendants of immigrants. Even indigenous people descend from those who, long ago, in prehistory, migrated to the what we now call the Americas. I descend primarily from people who left the British Isles. My family tree also includes Germans, French Protestants, and Oklahoma Cherokees. The Cherokee DNA is outwardly more obvious in other members of my family. Nevertheless, I hear occasionally from people who say I look Greek, Jewish, or somewhat Native American.
I have hopes and dreams for my country. I want polarization to end. I want the politics of bigotry to become unacceptable, as measured via votes in elections and legislatures. I want us, individually and collectively, to be compassionate. I want high principles to define both ideals and policies. I want the rhetoric of religion to justify the best of human conduct and government policy, not the worst of both.
That is what Thanksgiving Day means to me.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/27/devotion-for-thanksgiving-day-u-s-a-year-b-humes/
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Above: Jesus and the Woman of Canaan, by Michael Angelo Immenraet
Image in the Public Domain
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For the Eighth (and Last) Sunday of the Season of God the Father, Year 2, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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Almighty and everlasting God, who dost graciously give us the fruits of the earth in their season:
we offer thee humble and hearty thanks for these thy bounties,
beseeching thee to give us grace rightly to use them to thy glory and for the relief of those in need;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 128
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Jeremiah 23:5-6
James 4:1-10
Matthew 15:21-28
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I refer you, O reader, to the post for Proper 17, Year B (Humes) for my interpretation of the story of Jesus and the Syro-Phoenician Woman.
Jeremiah 23 condemns bad kings–shepherds, metaphorically. In the ideal future, we read, the ideal Davidic monarch, called
The LORD is our Vindicator
or
The LORD is our righteousness,
will govern.
The kingdom of the world is not yer the fully-realized Kingdom of God. In the Kingdom of God, the poor are blessed, the meek inherit the earth, the hungry are full, and those weep laugh. In the Kingdom of God, categories that make us feel good about ourselves are meaningless. In the Kingdom of God, supposed outsiders can be insiders, and visa versa. In the Kingdom of God, the distinction between Jews and Gentiles does not exist.
May the Kingdom of God come.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Above: Icon of Christ Pantocrator
Image in the Public Domain
God is the Ruler Yet
NOVEMBER 22, 2020
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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2 Samuel 23:1-7
Psalm 100
Revelation 1:4b-8
Mark 15:16-20
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The mockery of Jesus by the soldiers in Mark 15:16-20 is gut-wrenching to read. It also contrasts with the depiction of Jesus in Revelation 1:4b-8. Not all the earth hails God and acknowledges the Son of David. Yet Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega.
The Festival of Christ the King is about a century old. Originally set by Pope Pius XI on what Lutherans and Presbyterians called Reformation Sunday, Christ the King Sunday occupies the Last Sunday after Pentecost, five Sundays before December 25. It occupies this place in the Western Christian calendar because of the revision of the Roman Catholic calendar in 1969 and the subsequent revisions of Anglican and Protestant calendars.
The theology of Christ the King Sunday is sound. As Presbyterian minister Maltbie Davenport Babcock (1858-1901) wrote after one of his nature hikes, in a poem published posthumously and transformed into the hymn, “This is My Father’s World,”
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
May we never forget this truth.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/27/devotion-for-christ-the-king-sunday-year-b-humes/
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Above: The Wrath of Elihu, by William Blake
Image in the Public Domain
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For the Seventh Sunday of the Season of God the Father, Year 2, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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O God, who hast promised for those who love thee such good things as pass man’s understanding:
pour into our hearts such love toward thee, that we, loving thee above all things,
may obtain thy promises, which exceed all that we can desire;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 128
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Job 28:12-28
James 3:1-13
Luke 12:22-34
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Reading the Book of Job with proper understanding requires paying close attention. For example, as in the poetic portion, one needs to keep in mind who is speaking. If one of the alleged friends is speaking, read the words with more than a few grains of salt, so to speak.
In Chapter 27, Job complained that God had deprived him of justice. This was consistent with Chapters 1 and 2, in which God permitted “the Satan,” in the Book of Job, God’s loyalty tester–an employee–to test Job. Two posts ago in this series, we read James 1:12-18, in which the author insisted that God does not tempt/test anyone. In Job 1 and 2, God permitted the testing of Job. Was this a distinction without a difference?
Elihu (alleged friend #4) replied with conventional piety in Chapter 28. The alleged friends assumed that Job must have sinned, for they thought that God would not permit the innocent to suffer. In Job 28, Elihu compared God to a miner and likened wisdom to silver. The beautiful prose about the preciousness of wisdom, meant to condemn Job as a fool and a sinner, actually defined the titular character as a sage, ironically:
[God] said to man,
“See! Fear of the Lord is wisdom;
To shun evil is understanding.”
Words matter.
The words of Elihu and other three alleged friends of Job were part of an intervention. They meant well, but were wrong.
To mean well is insufficient. Good results are the proof in the proverbial pudding.
May we seek to use our words for the glory of God and the spiritual benefit of others–to build them up, not to tear them down. There is room for strong criticism, a practice in which Jesus engaged. As we seek to use our words for good effect, may we succeed, by grace. May we trust in God, on whom we rely entirely, and not imagine that we must deprive others to help ourselves.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Above: Caduceus
Image in the Public Domain
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Numbers 21:4-9 or Malachi 3:19-24/4:1-6
Psalm 74:1-2, 10-17
Hebrews 13:1-16, 20-21
Mark 12:35-44
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The promise of divine punishment for evil and of divine deliverance of the oppressed and righteous on the great Day of the LORD is one example of judgment and mercy being like sides of a coin. The deliverance of the oppressed is very bad news for the oppressors, who are, in a way, victims of themselves.
If we behave as we should–revere God, take care of each other, et cetera–we will not have to fear punishment from God for not doing so. We may incur punishment from human authorities, as in Tobit 1, but God did not promise a peaceful life in exchange for righteousness.
Two stories require more attention.
The cure in Numbers, cited also in John 3:14-15, in the context of the crucifixion of Jesus, our Lord and Savior’s glorification, according to the Fourth Gospel, is a textbook case of sympathetic magic. It is related to Egyptian imagery of kingship, divinity, and protection from cobra saliva. A commonplace visual echo is the caduceus, the medical symbol.
Pay attention to what precedes and follows Mark 12:41-44. Our Lord and Savior’s condemnation of those who, among other things,
eat up the property of widows,
precedes the account of the widow giving all she had to the Temple. Immediately in Chapter 13, we read a prediction of the destruction of the Temple. I conclude that Jesus found the widow’s faith laudable yet grieved her choice.
May our lives bring glory to God and lead others to faith and discipleship. May we, in our zeal, not go off the deep end and embarrass God and/or accidentally drive people away from God or get in the way of evangelism. And may we never mistake an internal monologue for a dialogue with God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/27/devotion-for-proper-28-year-b-humes/
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Above: The Parable of the Rich Fool
Image in the Public Domain
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For the Sixth Sunday of the Season of God the Father, Year 2, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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O God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our only Savior, the Prince of Peace:
give us grace seriously to lay to heart the great dangers we are in by our divisions.
Take away all hatred and prejudice, and whatever else may hinder us from godly union and concord;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 128
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Genesis 9:8-17
1 Timothy 6:6-19
Luke 12:13-21
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People who long to be rich are a prey to trial; they get trapped into all sorts of foolish and harmful ambitions which plunge people into ruin and destruction. The love of money is the root of all evils and there are some who, pursuing it, have wandered away from the faith and so given their souls any number of fatal wounds.
–1 Timothy 6:9-10, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
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One theme this week is greed.
Money and, more generally, wealth, are morally neutral. How one relates to them is not, however. The Bible contains more verses about money and wealth than about sexual desire and activities, but the latter conveniently receives more attention in sermons and lessons that the former. I propose that ranking our moral concerns according to Biblical priority is a good idea.
A bigger idea than greed is the lack of trust in God that greed indicates. We want security blankets, so to speak. Radical discipleship does not permit them, however. Trust in God becomes evident in one’s actions, just as lack of trust in God does. Whenever we turn against each other for selfish purposes, we reveal our lack of trust in God. We are en route to evil when we do so.
According to a note in The Jewish Study Bible, an excellent resource, especially for a Gentile, the Talmud teaches that all Gentiles who observe the
seven commandments of the descendants of Noah
will meet with full divine approval. Jews have 613 commandments, but Gentiles have just the following:
- To establish courts of justice,
- To avoid blaspheming the God of Israel,
- To refrain from committing idolatry,
- To refrain from committing sexual perversion,
- To refrain from committing bloodshed,
- To refrain from committing robbery, and
- To avoid eating meat cut from a living animal.
Most of these seven commandments relate to how we relate to God and each other. Those two relationships are akin, after all. One cannot love God and habitually tear others down for our immediate benefit. Besides, when we harm others, we really damage ourselves, too. This may become clear to us only with the passage of time, but the principles remain true.
Do we trust God enough to love our neighbors as we love ourselves?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Above: Icon of Jesus Cursing the Fig Tree
Image in the Public Domain
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Numbers 14:1-27 or Malachi 1:1; 2:1-10
Psalm 73:12, 15-23
Hebrews 12:1-9, 22-24, 28-29
Mark 11:12-33
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What is the chief and highest end of man?
Man’s chief and highest end is to glorify God, and fully to enjoy him forever.
–The Westminster Larger Catechism, quoted in Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), The Book of Confessions (2007), 195
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We read of the opposite behavior in today’s readings, with pious material in Psalm 73, if one consults the complete text. Priests are supposed to lead people to God. A fig tree is supposed to show evidence of figs in development outside of fig season. People are supposed to trust God, especially after witnessing dramatic, mighty divine deeds and manifestations.
The two-part story of the cursed fig tree bookends the Temple Incident, as scholars of the New Testament like to call the Cleansing of the Temple. The literary-theological effect of this arrangement of material is to comment on corruption at the Temple just a few days prior to the crucifixion of Jesus. One does well to apply the condemnation to corruption anywhere.
Perhaps we usually think of punishment as something we do not want. This makes sense. In legal systems, for example, probation, fines, and incarceration are forms of punishment. Parents sometimes punish children by grounding them. However, the punishment of which we read in Numbers 14 (comprehension of which depends on having read Chapter 13) was to give the the fearful, faithless people what they wanted–never to enter the Promised Land. As an old saying tells us, we ought to be careful what we wish for because we may get it.
What do we really want and what do we really need? May God grant us what we really need. May we be grateful for it.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 27, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF BROOKE FOSS WESTCOTT, ANGLICAN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND BISHOP OF DURHAM; AND FENTON JOHN ANTHONY HORT, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN HENRY BATEMAN, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHAN NORDAHL BRUN, NORWEGIAN LUTHERAN BISHOP, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND RENEWER OF THE CHURCH; AND HIS GRANDSON, WILLIAM REED HUNTINGTON, U.S. ARCHITECT AND QUAKER PEACE ACTIVIST
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/27/devotion-for-proper-27-year-b-humes/
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Above: Saint John on Patmos, by the Limbourg Brothers
Image in the Public Domain
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 24
Revelation 7:9-17
John 11:32-44
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Three of the four readings for this day come from the context of tribulation. The other reading (Psalm 24) is a text composed for the procession of the Ark of the Covenant.
God is the King of Glory, as Psalm 24 attests, but appearances contradict that truth much of the time. The apocalyptic tone on Isaiah 25:6-9 and Revelation 7:9-17 confirms the discrepancy between appearances and reality. In John 11, with the story of the raising of Lazarus, immediately precedes the Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem (John 12). Furthermore, the Gospel of John tells us, the raising of Lazarus was the last straw before the decision to execute Jesus (John 11:47f).
Despite the violence and other perfidy of the world, we read, God will remain faithful to the righteous and will defeat evil. That will be a day of rejoicing and the beginning of a new age. To be precise, it will be a day of rejoicing for the righteous and of gnashing of teeth for the unrighteous.
That day seems to be far off, does it not? Perhaps it is. I dare not add my name to the long list of those who have predicted the date of the parousia. I do, however, rejoice that the Church Triumphant exists and constitutes that great cloud of witnesses surrounding the Church Militant.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 26, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANNE AND JOACHIM, PARENTS OF SAINT MARY OF NAZARETH
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/26/devotion-for-all-saints-day-year-b-humes/
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Above: The Parable of the Lost Coin, by John Everett Millais
Image in the Public Domain
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For the Fifth Sunday of the Season of God the Father, Year 2, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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O Lord Jesus, good shepherd of the sheep, who came to seek and to save the lost:
so lead thy church that we may show thy compassion to the helpless,
rescue those in peril, and bring home the wanderers in safety to thee. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 127
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Genesis 8:13-22
James 1:12-18
Luke 15:1-10
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To repent is to change one’s mind, literally. A person repents when he or she changes his or her mind regarding a particular sin or set of sins, thereby resolving not to repeat it or them. We read of God changing the divine mind–usually away from judgment and toward mercy–throughout the Bible, especially the Hebrew Bible, as in Genesis 8:21-22.
If we imagine that we are not lost, we need a spiritual awakening. If we think we do not need to repent, we have to repent of that, as well as of our other sins. You, O reader, and I are the lost sheep in Luke 15:4-7 and the precious coin (worth about one day’s wages) on the earthen floor of the small, windowless house in Luke 15:8-10. We are precious to God.
Is God precious to us?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 26, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANNE AND JOACHIM, PARENTS OF SAINT MARY OF NAZARETH
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Above: Christ Giving Sight to Bartimaeus, by William Blake
Image in the Public Domain
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Numbers 13:1-2, 17-32 or 2 Kings 5:1-17
Psalm 71:1-12
Hebrews 11
Mark 10:46-52
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Proper faith is optimistic, not foolish. It acknowledges difficulties and trusts in God. Proper faith casts out improper fear.
The story of blind Bartimaeus (Son of Timaeus, literally) is instructive. In the context of the Gospel of Mark, it immediately precedes the Triumphal Entry of Jesus into Jerusalem (Mark 11). One may state that Bartimaeus to follow Jesus at a very difficult time. The character’s physical blindness functions as a commentary on the spiritual blindness of the Apostles earlier in Chapter 10. One may conclude that, for Jesus, healing physical blindness was easier than healing the spiritual blindness of people around him.
The most basic commandment of Jesus to take one’s cross and follow him. The details of that order vary person to person, depending on who, where, and when one is. The principle is timeless, though.
May God forgive all of us for our spiritual blindness and heal us, so that we may follow him as well as possible.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 26, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANNE AND JOACHIM, PARENTS OF SAINT MARY OF NAZARETH
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2019/07/26/devotion-for-proper-26-year-b-humes/
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BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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