Archive for the ‘John 13’ Category
Above: The Last Supper, by Leonardo da Vinci
Image in the Public Domain
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Exodus 12:1-14
Psalm 116:10-17
1 Corinthians 11:17-32 or 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
John 13:1-17, 34
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Holy God, source of all love, on the night of his betrayal,
Jesus gave his disciples a new commandment:
To love one another as he had loved them.
By your Holy Spirit write this commandment in our hearts;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
OR
Lord God, in a wonderful Sacrament
you have left us a memorial of your suffering and death.
May this Sacrament of your body and blood so work in us
that the way we live will proclaim the redemption you have brought;
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 20
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Lord Jesus, since you have left us
a memorial of your Passion in a wonderful sacrament,
grant, we pray,
that we may so use this sacrament of your body and blood
that the fruits of your redeeming work
may continually be manifest in us;
for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 44
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
In Exodus, the blood of the Passover lambs protected the Hebrew slaves from the sins of Egyptians. The Gospel of John, mentioning three Passovers during the ministry of Jesus, placed the crucifixion of Jesus on Thursday, not Friday, as in the Synoptic Gospels. The Fourth Gospel made clear that Christ was the Passover lamb that third Passover of his ministry. In the Johannine Gospel, Jesus died while sacrificial lambs were dying at the Temple.
We read of the Last Supper in 1 Corinthians 11. That is good, for John refers to it only in passing.
Jesus modeled humility and self-sacrificial love.
These are timeless principles. The nature of timeless principles is that how one lives them depends upon circumstances–who, when, and where one is. Certain commandments in the Bible are culturally-specific examples of keeping timeless principles. Legalism results from mistaking culturally-specific examples for timeless principles. Bishop Robert C. Wright, of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, says:
Love like Jesus.
To that I add:
Be humble like Jesus.
Circumstances dictate how living according to these maxims looks where and when you are, O reader. By grace, may you succeed more often than you fail, for the glory of God and the benefit of your neighbors in God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 14, 2022 COMMON ERA
HOLY/MAUNDY THURSDAY
THE FEAST OF EDWARD THOMAS DEMBY AND HENRY BEARD DELANY, EPISCOPAL SUFFRAGAN BISHOPS FOR COLORED WORK
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANTHONY, JOHN, AND EUSTATHIUS OF VILNIUS, MARTYRS IN LITHUANIA, 1347
THE FEAST OF SAINT WANDREGISILUS OF NORMANDY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; AND SAINT LAMBERT OF LYONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT ZENAIDA OF TARSUS AND HER SISTER, SAINT PHILONELLA OF TARSUS; AND SAINT HERMIONE OF EPHESUS; UNMERCENARY PHYSICIANS
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Holy Eucharist
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For Maundy/Holy Thursday, Year 2
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Lectionary from A Book of Worship for Free Churches (The General Council of the Congregational Christian Churches in the United States, 1948)
Collect from The Book of Worship (Evangelical and Reformed Church, 1947)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Lord God, who hast left unto us in a wonderful Sacrament a memorial of thy passion:
grant, we beseech thee, that we may so use this Sacrament of thy Body and Blood that,
the fruits of thy redemption may continually be manifest in us;
who livest and reignest with the Father, and the Holy Spirit,
ever One God, world without end. Amen.
—The Book of Worship (1947),161
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Isaiah 50:4-11
Psalm 56
1 Corinthians 11:17-34
John 13:1-15
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The choice of Isaiah 50:4-11 as a reading for Maundy Thursday is interesting and ironic. The figure there is the personification of those deported during the Babylonian Exile. The theology of the text holds that their suffering was justifiable, that they suffered the consequences of their sins. Yet, in Christian theology, Jesus was sinless.
The choice of Psalm 56 today is also ironic.
Repay them, O God, for their crimes;
in your wrath, bring down the peoples,
is a far cry from,
Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.
The readings from the New Testament remind us in concrete terms to care for one another. Love is active. Love does not care if it looks unseemly or beneath one’s preferred social status. Love does practice mutuality. Love also hopes for the repentance of enemies and stubborn sinners.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 9, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT PEPIN OF LANDEN, SAINT ITTA OF METZ, THEIR RELATIONS, SAINTS AMAND, AUSTREGISILUS, AND SULPICIUS II BOURGES, FAITHFUL CHRISTIANS ACROSS GENERATIONAL LINES
THE FEAST OF EMILY GREENE BALCH, U.S. QUAKER SOCIOLOGIST, ECONOMIST, AND PEACE ACTIVIST
THE FEAST OF JULIA CHESTER EMERY, UPHOLDER OF MISSIONS
THE FEAST OF SAINT PHILIP II OF MOSCOW, METROPOLITAN OF MOSCOW AND ALL RUSSIA, AND MARTYR, 1569
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM JONES, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND MUSICIAN
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of the Crucifixion
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Hosea 2:2-23 (Protestant and Anglican)/Hosea 2:4-25 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Psalm 33
Colossians 1:15-29
John 13:18-38
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The commandment of Jesus in the Gospel reading is that we love one another as he has loved us. Keep in mind, O reader, that the love of Jesus took him to the cross. I consider that every time I hear my bishop, Robert C. Wright, of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, tell people to “love like Jesus.” Bishop Wright is well-acquainted with the Passion Narratives in the Gospels.
God is the only, universal deity. The message of salvation is for all human beings with a pulse. Divine judgment and mercy, ever in balance, are also on the menu. Love has to be voluntary. “Yes” can mean anything only if “no” is a feasible option.
The love of Christ impels us.
That is the slogan of the Claretians, a Roman Catholic order whose members perform many good works in the name of Jesus. The love of Christ impelled St. Paul the Apostle and the original surviving disciples of Jesus. It continues to impel people, faith communities, and religious orders. May it compel more individuals, communities, and religious orders as time rolls on. After all, we never see Jesus face to face in this life except in the faces of other human beings.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 6, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2021/01/06/devotion-for-the-second-sunday-in-lent-year-d-humes/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of the Crucifixion
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For Holy/Maundy Thursday, Year 1, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Christ, who washed the feet of the disciples on the night of thy betrayal:
wash from us the stains of our sin, that we may not fail thee in the hour of danger,
but follow thee through every trial and confess thee to the world; for thine own sake. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 122
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O God: your love lived in Jesus Christ, who washed disciples’ feet on the night of his betrayal.
Wash from us the stain of sin, so that, in hours of danger,
we may not fail, but follow your Son through every trial,
and praise him to the world as Lord and Christ, to whom be glory now and forever. Amen.
—The Worshipbook–Services and Hymns (1972), 146
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Hebrews 8:1-6
John 13:1-17
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Often the Bible repeats themes. Here is one of those: the way to true greatness is the path of humble service, not the quest for self-glorification. Jesus is a role model.
The difficulty in writing this post is in not being too repetitive. My writing schedule on Saturday, October 27, 2018 (the day I drafted this post), being what it is, this is the seventh consecutive post I have drafted. By now the theme of service and the caution against seeking greatness via ego is familiar content from the previous six posts alone.
So, without becoming excessively redundant, here is a challenge appropriate for any day, but especially Maundy Thursday: value being compassionate more highly than being right, according to your self-image, O reader. I need to pursue that challenge, too.
Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works.
–Hebrews 10:24, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
That will glorify God, will it not?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 13, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF HENRY MARTYN DEXTER, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER AND HISTORIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT ABBO OF FLEURY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF SAINT BRICE OF TOURS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT NICHOLAS TAVELIC AND HIS COMPANIONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Ministry of the Apostles
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 70
Hebrews 12:1-3
John 13:21-32
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
As I read Isaiah 50:4-9a, I realized that I had, very recently, written about that passage in the post for Palm/Passion Sunday. I have decided not to duplicate the essence of that analysis here, but rather to provide a link.
Likewise, a portion of Psalm 70 reminded me of Psalm 71:13, about which I wrote in the post for Tuesday of Holy Week. I have therefore provided a link to that post also.
Now for Hebrews 12:1-3 and John 13:21-32….
The audience for the poorly named Letter to the Hebrews (actually a treatise) was Gentile Christians. The author encouraged them to derive courage from the example of Jesus. Those who crucified Christ intended his execution as a method of disgrace and extermination, but it became, as the Gospel of John stated so well, his glorification (12:23). Jesus gave the commandment, first to his Apostles (minus Judas Iscariot), to love one another as he loved them. That commandment has come to apply to Christians.
Jesus loved sacrificially and unconditionally. He loved all the way to his death.
That is a daunting challenge. Being a Christian is about serving people, not lording over them. Many Christians are fortunate; they will never be in a position to face the possibility or reality of martyrdom. Others are less fortunate, though. The annals of Christian history are replete with the sacrifices of martyrs. But all of us must, if we are to follow Christ, love one another as he loved his Apostles–sacrificially and unconditionally. This, possible via grace, is a mandate, not a recommendation.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 27, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR B: TRINITY SUNDAY
THE FEAST OF PAUL GERHARDT, GERMAN LUTHERAN MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF ALFRED ROOKER, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST PHILANTHROPIST AND HYMN WRITER; AND HIS SISTER, ELIZABETH ROOKER PARSON, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF AMELIA BLOOMER, U.S. SUFFRAGETTE
THE FEAST OF SAINT LOJZE GROZDE, SLOVENIAN ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2018/05/27/devotion-for-wednesday-of-holy-week-years-a-b-c-and-d-humes/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of Haggai
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Haggai 1:1-15a
Psalm 136
John 13:21-38
Ephesians 5:21-33; 6:1-9 (10-20) 21-24
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The thanksgiving for divine mercy in Psalm 136 and the teaching about domestic love and respect (including some awkward sexism and the lack of a condemnation of slavery) contrast with the predicted betrayal of Jesus in John 13. The gratitude to God in Psalm 136 also stands in contrast to the criticized attitude in Haggai 1. Some people, having departed Babylon for their ancestral home and settled there, have built new houses yet oppose rebuilding the Temple. God insists that not only has the time to rebuild the Temple come, but it has arrived already. The matter is one of respect.
If we respect God as we ought, we will want to behave in certain ways, including the care of houses of worship and the treatment of our fellow human beings. We will even oppose slavery and stand against the execution of the innocent.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 20, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE TWENTY-FOURTH DAY OF ADVENT
THE FEAST OF SAINT DOMINIC OF SILOS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF ARCHIBALD CAMPBELL TAIT, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER CANISIUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM JOHN BLEW, ENGLISH PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2016/12/20/devotion-for-proper-21-year-d/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Isaiah
Image in the Public Domain
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 1:(1) 2-9 (10-20)
Psalm 25:11-22
John 13:(1-17) 18-20
Titus 1:1-16
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
We (both individually and collectively) should know better than we do spiritually. In Isaiah 1 we read another instance of God complaining about rituals (inherently not bad) rendered moot and irritating by rampant collective disregard for social justice, especially that of the economic variety. As often as the Bible repeats condemnations of idolatry, social injustice–especially judicial corruption and economic exploitation–and a generalized lack of trust in God, we (both individually and collectively) should know better than we do.
Psalm 25 picks up the themes of humiliation and of trust in God. Jesus, while assuming the role of a servant in the Gospel, does not humiliate himself; that is a timeless lesson. His example is a counterpoint to the targets of criticism in the Letter to Titus. Humility is literally being down to earth, which is to say, the opposite of being puffed up. Jesus is our role model in this and other regards.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 18, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE FOURTH SUNDAY OF ADVENT: THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY OF ADVENT
THE FEAST OF MARC BOEGNER, ECUMENIST
THE FEAST OF SAINT GIULIA VALLE, ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN
THE FEAST OF SAINT ISAAC HECKER, FOUNDER OF THE MISSIONARY SOCIETY OF SAINT PAUL THE APOSTLE
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2016/12/18/devotion-for-proper-20-year-d/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Christ Blessing, by Nardo di Cione
Image in the Public Domain
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Almighty God, you have taught us in your Son that love fulfills the law.
Inspire us to love you with all our heart, our soul, our mind, and our strength,
and teach us how to love our neighbors as ourselves,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 51
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Micah 6:1-8
Psalm 51
John 13:31-35
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Create in me a clean heart, O God:
and renew a right spirit within me.
–Psalm 51:10, The Alternative Service Book 1980
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
He has told you, O man, what is good,
And what does the LORD require of you:
Only to do justice
And to love goodness,
And to walk humbly with your God;
Then your name will achieve wisdom.
–Micah 6:8, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.
–John 13:34-35, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
These three passages speak for themselves, so there is little I can add to them without being redundant. They, taken together, proclaim a message contrary to that which dominates in many cultures and subcultures. In many tough neighborhoods, for example, the dominant ethos says to strike back and not to seem “soft” or vulnerable. Yet, if one follows the advice in Micah 6:8 and John 13:34-35, one will be that way. Jesus did die on a cross, after all.
When we love we make ourselves vulnerable. When we walk humbly with God and seek justice for our fellow human beings we make ourselves targets of those who oppose our efforts toward those purposes. When we strive to be good, not feared, we make ourselves vulnerable to amoral and immoral people who would harm us. But Jesus did all of the above, and the student is not greater than the teacher.
Shall the pilgrimage with Jesus continue, despite the risks?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 5, 2015 COMMON ERA
PROPER 9: THE SIXTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SAINT ANTHONY MARY ZACCARIA, FOUNDER OF THE BARNABITES AND THE ANGELIC SISTERS OF SAINT PAUL
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ADALBERO AND ULRIC OF AUGSBURG, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS
THE FEAST OF H. RICHARD NIEBUHR, UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST THEOLOGIAN
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2015/07/05/devotion-for-wednesday-after-proper-26-year-b-elca-daily-lectionary/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of Samuel
Image in the Public Domain
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Sovereign God, you turn your greatness into goodness for all the peoples on earth.
Shape us into willing servants of your kingdom,
and make us desire always and only your will,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 50
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
1 Samuel 12:1-25
Psalm 37:23-40
John 13:1-17
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When your steps are guided by the Lord
and you delight in his way,
Though you stumble, you shall not fall headlong,
for the Lord holds you fast by the hand.
–Psalm 37:23-24, Common Worship (2000)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
This post flows naturally from its predecessor, in which Jesus identified the servant as the greatest person in the Kingdom of God. He acted on that principle in John 13. Long before then, elsewhere, the prophet Samuel never used his office to benefit himself. Actually, sometimes he placed himself at risk while performing his duties.
In 1 Samuel 12, early in King Saul’s reign, the population (as a whole) had rejected God’s rule. Yet God had not rejected the people:
For the sake of His great name, the LORD will never abandon His people, seeing that the LORD undertook to make you His people.
–1 Samuel 12:22, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Since God has remained faithful, so should we. This is possible by grace. One aspect of this fidelity to God in Christ is following our Lord and Savior’s example of service and humility daily. Details will vary according to circumstances, but the principle is constant and timeless. Recognizing the image of God in others and extending them the respect consistent with that ethic requires one to lay aside certain preconceptions and illusions of self-importance one might harbor. That can prove to be difficult, but it is necessary and proper. And, if one professes to follow Jesus, not to pursue that course of action increases one’s hypocrisy.
To be faithful in this way has long been a challenge for me. Challenges, however, are possible to meet; they are difficult. Fortunately, I have noticed much progress, for which I give thanks to God. The room for improvement contains much potential for spiritual growth. I welcome that growth.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 4, 2015 COMMON ERA
INDEPENDENCE DAY (U.S.A.)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2015/07/04/devotion-for-wednesday-after-proper-24-year-b-elca-daily-lectionary/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Slave Galleries, St. John’s Church, Providence, Rhode Island, 1937
Historic American Buildings Survey
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = HABS RI,4-PROV, 104–3
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
You are great, O God, and greatly to be praised.
You have made us for yourself, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.
Grant that we may believe in you, call upon you, know you, and serve you,
through your Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 41
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 13:1-11
Psalm 131
John 13:1-17
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O Israel, wait upon the LORD,
from this time forth for evermore.
–Psalm 131:4, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Scene #1: In a symbolic act the prophet Jeremiah makes a statement that the people of the Kingdom of Judah should have clung only to God.
Scene #2: In another symbolic act Jesus, not standing on ceremony, acts as a servant. Thus he sets a powerful example of mutuality consistent with the spirit of the best of the Law of Moses: we are all responsible to and for each other.
How often have we–you and I, O reader, clung not to God or only to God–perhaps to ego instead–and thought ourselves better than other people? We are not all equal in abilities, of course, but the wide range of abilities allows for the meeting of many needs, so why should anyone object? And how often have we clung to false ideas? It is not wonder that we have missed the mark, sinned!
Jesus said and demonstrated that the greatest one in the Kingdom of God is the servant of all. Biblical prophets condemned economic and judicial exploitation of people. The underlying ethic of much of the Law of Moses was mutuality, which precluded exploitation. Yet how often have people and corporations sought to improve their conditions by harming those of others? And how often have other institutions, some of them religious, been complicit in exploiting vulnerable and powerless people? How often, also, have religious institutions aided and abetted social injustices, such as racism and slavery?
But they would not listen.
–Jeremiah 13:11, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
May God have mercy on us all.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 13, 2014 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ANTONY OF PADUA, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
THE FEAST OF G. K. (GILBERT KEITH) CHESTERTON, AUTHOR
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Adapted from This Post:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2014/06/13/devotion-for-wednesday-after-proper-9-year-a-elca-daily-lectionary/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
You must be logged in to post a comment.