Archive for the ‘Atheism’ Tag
Above: U.S. Highway 93, Near Ely, Nevada
Image Source = Google Earth
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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Isaiah 40:1-10
Psalm 85 (LBW) or Psalm 19 (LW)
2 Peter 3:8-14
Mark 1:1-8
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Stir up in our hearts, O Lord, to prepare the way for your only Son.
By his coming give us strength in our conflicts
and shed light on our path through the darkness of the world;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 13
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Stir up our hearts, O Lord, to make ready the way of your only-begotten Son
that at his second coming we may worship him in purity;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 11
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The assigned readings for this week, taken together, are more positive in tone than last week’s readings. God forgives us, both individually and collectively. In Isaiah 40, the focus is on the impending end of the Babylonian Exile, followed by a second Exodus. Yet none of this absolves us–individually and collectively–of our obligations to God and each other. The seeming delay in divine actions is to our advantage, we read. We–individually and collectively–need to use this gift of time well. And, when God does act, the manner of that action may not be what we–individually and collectively–expect. So, we may miss it if we are not properly attentive.
Expectations can be tricky. They establish a standard of human satisfaction or disappointment. This standard may be unfair. We human beings are entitled to our informed opinions. Alas, many expectations flow from uninformed opinions. Therefore, we may unwittingly set ourselves–individually and collectively–up for disappointment. Then we complain to God, as if God is responsible for our disappointment.
Arguing faithfully with God is my second favorite aspect of Judaism. (Monotheism is my first.) I, as a Christian, embrace arguing with God as part of my inheritance from Judaism. Yet I grasp that arguing faithfully differs from merely arguing. Merely arguing can function as a distraction from admitting how little I know.
Isaiah 40:8, in Robert Alter’s translation, reads:
Grass dries up, the flower fades,
but the word of our God stands forever.
The “word,” in this case, means what God says, not any particular canon of scripture. The word of God, whom we can describe partially and never fully understand, stands forever. In other words, God is faithful forever. And God refuses to fit inside any theological box.
Does that disappoint us? If so, it is our problem, not God’s.
I know an Episcopal priest who deals deftly with people who tell him they do not believe in God. He asks these individuals to describe the God in whom they do not believe. They invariably describe a deity in whom the priest does not believe either.
God created us in the divine image. We have imagined God in our image. Then we have become disappointed with this false image of God while mistaking it for God. This is one of those forms of “unperceived guilt” (Psalm 19:13, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures) of which we need God to clear us.
By grace, may we perceive and frolic in the gracious surprises of God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 28, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE SEVENTH DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF ANNA JULIA HAYWARD COOPER AND ELIZABETH EVELYN WRIGHT, AFRICAN-AMERICAN EDUCATORS
THE FEAST OF MARY LYON, U.S. CONGREGRATIONALIST FEMINIST AND EDUCATOR
THE FEAST OF JOSEPH BADGER, SR., U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST AND PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER; FIRST MISSIONARY TO THE WESTERN RESERVE
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL SIMON SCHMUCKER, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, AND SOCIAL REFORMER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JOHN CASSIAN AND JOHN CLIMACUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS AND SPIRITUAL WRITERS (TRANSFERRED FROM FEBRUARY 29)
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUIS DE LEON, SPANISH ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND THEOLOGIAN (TRANSFERRED FROM FEBRUARY 29)
THE FEAST OF PATRICK HAMILTON, FIRST SCOTTISH PROTESTANT MARTYR, 1528 (TRANSFERRED FROM FEBRUARY 29)
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Adapted from this post
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READING THE BOOK OF PSALMS
PART LXXI
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Psalms 120 and 123
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Psalms 120 and 123 are similar to each other.
Psalms 120-134 are songs of ascents. As you, O reader, read these texts, imagine a caravan of devout Jews making a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem. Then you will be in the correct frame of mind for getting the most out of the texts.
Psalms 120 and 123 concern the perils of the negative attitudes and words of others. These perils may be individual or collective. That words matter is a point I have made many times at this weblog and already in this series. So, I hereby repeat the headline (“WORDS MATTER”) and decline to unpack it again in this post.
Psalm 120 does require some explanation, though.
Woe to me, for I have sojourned in Meshach,
dwelled among the tents of Kedar.
–Psalm 120:5, Robert Alter
Poetry does not have to be literal. Meshach and Kedar are far-flung places far away from each other. Meshach (Genesis 10:2; Ezekiel 32:26; 38:2-3; 39:1-3) is in northwestern Asia Minor (now Turkey), between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Kedar (Genesis 25:13) is on the Arabian Peninsula. They symbolize barbaric, warlike peoples on the edge of the known world. Robert Alter explains the poetic imagery this way:
…it may be plausible to understand them as metaphors for living among people who behave like strangers, even if those people were within a stone’s throw of Jerusalem (as someone today might say, “I felt as though I were in Siberia or Timbuktu.”
—The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary, Vol. 3, The Writings (2019), 292
The germane note in The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014) concludes:
The psalmist feels as if he lives, metaphorically, among these far-away, militant people (v.6); he is alienated from his own society.
–1412
Imagine, O reader, a caravan of devout Jews from a village making their pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem, for one of the major festivals. Then ask yourself why they would sing that psalm.
Psalm 123 begins as an individual prayer (“To You I lift up my eyes”) and concludes as a collective lament. Notice the words “our” and “us,” in verses 2-4, O reader.
Grant us grace, LORD, grant us grace,
for we are sorely sated with scorn.
Surely has our being been sated
with the contempt of the smug,
the scorn of the haughty.
–Verses 3-4, Robert Alter
Psalm 123, unlike other psalms, which complain about slander and libel, reflects frustration with arrogant scorn and contempt. “We” take that complaint to God.
What was happening close to home, for members of a pious caravan to sing Psalm 123 en route to the Temple in Jerusalem?
One need not stretch one’s imagination to grasp additional meanings of these texts for Jews of the Diaspora.
A psalm carries different meanings at different times and in various places. A text composed in one period with one meaning or set of meanings in mind may, therefore, remain germane elsewhere and long after composition. A psalm is a living text.
So, I propose a new context for relating to Psalms 120 and 123. The global Western cultures are becoming increasingly secular, with a growing strain of antitheism. Do not misunderstand me, O reader; I favor the separation of church and state, mainly to prevent the church from become an arm of the state, thereby losing its prophetic, moral edge. Yet the increasingly secular societies, combined with the rise of fashionable atheism and antitheism, heap scorn upon piety and the pious. The devout may, against their will, find themselves alienated from their own society and even from religious establishments which endorse bigotry and Christian or Jewish nationalism. Taking this sense of alienation and spiritual fatigue to God makes sense.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 14, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ABRAHAM OF CARRHAE, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF CHRISTOPH CARL LUDWIG VON PFEIL, GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS CYRIL AND METHODIUS, APOSTLES TO THE SLAVS
THE FEAST OF FRANCIS HAROLD ROWLEY, NORTHERN BAPTIST MINISTER, HUMANITARIAN, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHANN MICHAEL ALTENBURG, GERMAN LUTHERAN PASTOR, COMPOSER, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF VICTOR OLOF PETERSEN, SWEDISH-AMERICAN LUTHERAN HYMN TRANSLATOR
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READING THE BOOK OF PSALMS
PART XIII
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Psalms 14 and 53
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Psalms 14 and 53 are nearly identical, hence their pairing in this blog post. The record of interpretation provides a list of proposed geographical and temporal origins of Psalms 14 and 53. According to the most likely hypothesis, Psalm 14 comes from the southern Kingdom of Judah and Psalm 53 comes from the northern Kingdom of Israel. The textual evidence of YHWH in Psalm 14 and Elohim in Psalm 53 supports this theory.
Sometimes a literal translation does not convey the meaning of the words in a different context. A meaning clear to a Jew millennia ago in the Near East may not be obvious to a Gentile Christian in North America in late 2022.
The scoundrel has said in his heart,
“There is no God.”
–Psalm 14:1a and Psalm 53:2, from Robert Alter’s translation
The point Alter makes in a note is a matter that TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985, 1999) makes partially clear in translation:
The benighted man thinks,
“God does not care.”
I will take each line in order.
The standard English translation describes this person as a fool. Alter’s “scoundrel” is a better rendering, based on the following verses. Yet I prefer “benighted man.” As a note in The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014) tells me, “benighted” carries moral overtones, as in the rape of Tamar (2 Samuel 13:13) by her half-brother, Amnon. “Scoundrel” seems like a tame understatement.
The fool/scoundrel/benighted man is a practical atheist, not a dogmatic one. Psalms 14 and 53 come from a time and a place in which dogmatic atheism was rare yet practical atheism was commonplace. For evidence, consult the Hebrew prophetic denunciations of the poor and other vulnerable people, O reader. Such malefactors still exist. The attitude that leads to senseless violence and exploitation is timeless, sadly. Such malefactors do not fear retribution.
Psalms 14 and 53 are about people who think of God as an apathetic and absent landlord. Thus, we can read Mitchell J. Dahood’s translation of Psalm 53, in which the fool thinks in his heart that
God is not present.
TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures gets more to the point; this malefactor imagines vainly that
God does not care.
A note in The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition gets to the point:
The claim of this benighted individual would invalidate two of the basic assumptions of Psalms: the ability of God to hear prayers, and the ability of God to hear prayers, and the ability of God to punish the human wrongs that various psalmists lament.
–1281
And, as Alter tells us in one of his notes, the scoundrel lacks a conscience and acts with impunity.
As the entirety of the Jewish Bible and the various Christian canons of scripture attest, God cares deeply and is present. God can also hear prayers and punish human wrongs.
Nobody can flee from the reality of God. Hence it is foolish to attempt to do so. Such an attempt must necessarily end in moral corruption; for it is the fruit of disobedience which results in the inability to do that which is good. Where there is no sense of duty to God, there man goes astray and experiences already by that very fact that the hand of God the Judge is upon him, and he cannot escape.
–Artur Weiser, The Psalms: A Commentary (1962), 165
My cultural context is one of the rise of fashionable agnosticism and atheism, accompanied by the decline in religious observance. Meanwhile, bigotry, fascism, and Christian nationalism are openly part of vocal segments of the church. The rise of agnosticism and atheism are partially backlashes against the latter point.
An Episcopal priest I know has a positive method of responding to people who tell him that they do not believe in God. Father Dann asks them to describe the God in whom they do not believe. He always hears a version of God in which he does not believe either.
I do not pretend to have formulated the definitive concept of God. My faith is complicated, for I am complicated. I cannot fathom having a simple faith, for I am who I am. Anyhow, I affirm with the authors of Psalms 14 and 53 that God is present, that God cares, that God hears prayers, and that God can punish human wrongs. And I have a conscience. I pray that God may direct and, as necessary, reshape that conscience, for I have moral blind spots.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 25, 2022 COMMON ERA
CHRISTMAS DAY
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Above: King Hazael of Aram
Image in the Public Domain
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READING 1-2 SAMUEL, 1 KINGS, 2 KINGS 1-21, 1 CHRONICLES, AND 2 CHRONICLES 1-33
PART LXXXVII
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2 Kings 8:1-15
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If you do a kindness, know to whom you do it,
and you will be thanked for your good deeds.
Do good to a godly man, and you will be repaid–
if not by him, certainly by the Most High.
–Ecclesiasticus/Sirach 12:1-2, Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition (2002)
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King Ben-Hadad I of Aram (Reigned 880-842 B.C.E.)
King Hazael of Aram (Reigned 842-806 B.C.E.)
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2 Kings 8:1-6 is a sequel to 2 Kings 4:8-37. The juxtaposition of the two stories in 2 Kings 8:1-15 reveals (not uniquely–see 2 Kings 6:1-23, too) Elisha’s concern for individuals and geopolitics alike.
Back in 1 Kings 19:15, God had commanded Elijah to anoint Hazael as King of Aram. Elisha fulfilled that order in 2 Kings 8:7-15. God’s choice grieved Elisha, properly. King Hazael came to the throne via murder and went on to oppress Israel from 2 Kings 9 to 2 Kings 13.
The second story invites us to ponder uncomfortable questions about divine purposes. In following that lead, I seek to strike a balance. On one hand, I want to acknowledge that God refuses to fit into human theological boxes and categories. Any God concept that does fit into them is merely an idol and an example of creating God in one’s own image. On the other hand, I strike to be careful not to depict God as a callous figure. Whenever I hear many people’s statements that a terrible event must have been the will of God, I cringe at the God of their faith. No wonder many people reject belief in God! If I thought that God was like that, I would seek solace in atheism, too.
Theological balance is essential. I strive for it without knowing where it is sometimes. Fortunately, I need not rely on my own powers in these matters; grace abounds. Besides, I doubt that one must pass a canonical examination to receive salvation. Faith and false certainty are opposites. Faith leaves much room for many unanswered questions.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 30, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF HUGH O’FLAHERTY, “SCARLET PIMPERNEL OF THE VATICAN”
THE FEAST OF SAINTS MARCELLUS THE CENTURION AND CASSIAN OF TANGIERS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS, 298
THE FEAST OF SAINT OLEKSA ZARYTSKY, UKRAINIAN GREEK CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1963
THE FEAST OF WALTER JOHN MATHAMS, BRITISH BAPTIST THEN PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, AUTHOR, AND HYMN WRITER
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Above: The Parable of the Sower
Image in the Public Domain
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For the Eighth Sunday after the Epiphany, Year 1, according to the U.S. Presbyterian lectionary of 1966-1970
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Grant, we beseech thee, merciful God, that thy church,
being gathered together in unity by thy Holy Spirit,
may manifest thy power among all peoples, to the glory of thy name;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with thee and
the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
—The Book of Common Worship–Provisional Services (1966), 120
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Amos 8:11-12
1 Peter 2:1-6
Luke 8:4-15
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Hell is real–a reality, not a place with geography and coordinates–I affirm. I also argue that God sends nobody there. No, people send themselves there.
The reading from Amos 8 is one of the more difficult passages of the Bible. Divine punishment is in full strength, punishing collective disregard for God with divine silence. The divine judgment consists of giving people in times of trouble what they desire in times of affluence and spiritual indifference. In other words, be careful what you wish for; you may receive it.
The word of God (what God says) is readily available. It is proverbial seed in the story usually called the Parable of the Sower yet properly the Parable of the Four Soils. The sower sows seeds in the usual manner for that time and place. The emphasis in the parable is on the types of soil and on the fate of the weeds cast upon them. The story encourages us to be good soil, to be receptive to the words of God.
Being good soil entails focusing on God, not on distractions, or idols. The definition of “idol” is functional; if an object, activity, or idea functions as an idol in one’s life, it is an idol for once.
Perhaps the major idol these days is apathy. In much of the world the fastest-growing religious affiliation is “none.” Atheism and its militant variation, antitheism (to use Reza Aslan’s word) are chic. Ironically, many atheists and antitheists know more about certain religions and holy books than many adherents of those religions, with their corresponding sacred texts. These atheists and antitheists also understand less simultaneously.
God remains in charge, though. Whether that ultimately comforts or terrifies one depends on one.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 2, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ALL SOULS/THE COMMEMORATION OF ALL FAITHFUL DEPARTED
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Above: Saul Consults the Spirit of Samuel
Image in the Public Domain
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The Collect:
O God, the protector of all who trust in you,
without you nothing is strong, nothing is holy.
Embrace us with your mercy, that with you as our ruler and guide,
we may live through what is temporary without losing what is eternal,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 53
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The Assigned Readings:
1 Samuel 28:3-19 (Thursday)
2 Samuel 21:1-14 (Friday)
Psalm 98 (Both Days)
Romans 1:18-25 (Thursday)
2 Thessalonians 1:3-12 (Friday)
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In righteousness shall he judge the world
and the peoples with equity.
–Psalm 98:10, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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Judgment and mercy exist in balance (as a whole) in the Bible, but God seems bloodthirsty in 1 Samuel 15 and 28 and in 2 Samuel 21.
The divine rejection of Saul, first King of Israel, was due either to an improper sacrifice (1 Samuel 13:8-14) or his failure to kill all Amelikites (1 Samuel 15:2f), depending upon the source one prefers when reading 1-2 Samuel (originally one composite book copied and pasted from various documents and spread across two scrolls). 1 Samuel 28 favors the second story. In 2 Samuel 21, as we read, David, as monarch, ended a three-year-long drought by appeasing God. All the king had to do was hand seven members of the House of Saul over to Gibeonites, who “dismembered them before the LORD” on a mountain.
The readings from the New Testament are not peace and love either, but at least they are not bloody. Their emphasis is on punishment in the afterlife. In the full context of scripture the sense is that there will be justice–not revenge–in the afterlife. Justice, for many, also includes mercy. Furthermore, may we not ignore or forget the image of the Holy Spirit as our defense attorney in John 14:16.
I know an Episcopal priest who, when he encounters someone who professes not to believe in God, asks that person to describe the God in whom he or she does not believe. Invariably the atheist describes a deity in whom the priest does not believe either. I do not believe in the God of 1 Samuel 15 and 28 and 2 Samuel 21 in so far as I do not understand God in that way and trust in such a violent deity. No, I believe–trust–in God as revealed in Jesus of Nazareth, who would not have ordered any genocide or handed anyone over for death and dismemberment.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 6, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF FRANKLIN CLARK FRY, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA AND THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CLAUDE OF BESANCON, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MONK, ABBOT, AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF HENRY JAMES BUCKOLL, AUTHOR AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM KETHE, PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2016/06/06/devotion-for-thursday-and-friday-before-proper-28-year-c-elca-daily-lectionary/
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Above: A Slum in Washington, D.C., November 1937
Photographer = John Vachon
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = LC-USF33-T01-001048-M3
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The Collect:
God of heaven and earth,
before the foundation of the universe and the beginning of time
you are the triune God:
Author of creation, eternal Word of creation, life-giving Spirit of wisdom.
Guide us to all truth by your Spirit,
that we may proclaim all that Christ has revealed
and rejoice in the glory he shares with us.
Glory and praise to you,
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 37
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The Assigned Readings:
Numbers 6:22-27
Psalm 20
Mark 4:21-25
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Some put their trust in chariots and some in horses,
but we will call upon the Name of the LORD our God.
They will collapse and fall down,
but we will arise and stand upright.
–Psalm 20:7-8, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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The rich rule the poor,
And the borrower is a slave to the lender.
He who sows injustice shall reap misfortune;
His rod of wrath shall fail.
The generous man is blessed,
For he gives of his bread to the poor.
–Proverbs 22:7-9, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
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The rich get richer while the poor get poorer. That statement applies today; it has done so since antiquity. This is not a matter as simple as hard work leading to prosperity and sloth leading to poverty, for some of the hardest workers have been and are poor. No, certain rich people have developed and maintained systems which perpetuate income inequality and favor some people yet not most.
In the Kingdom of God, however, spiritual principles work differently than much of human economics:
Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.
–Galatians 6:7-10, The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
Present conduct determines the future. A positive relationship with God is a wonderful thing, but sitting on it, as if one has a “Jesus and me” relationship, is negative. Sharing one’s faith is the only way to gain more, but hoarding it will lead to losing it. In other words, the more one gives away spiritually, the more one will receive.
A related text comes from 2 Esdras 7:21-25:
For the Lord strictly commanded those who come into the world, when they come, what they should do to live, and what they should do to avoid punishment. Nevertheless they were not obedient and spoke against him:
they devised for themselves vain thoughts,
and proposed to themselves wicked frauds;
they even declared that the Most High does not exist,
and they ignored his ways.
They scorned his law,
and denied his covenants;
they have been unfaithful to his statutes,
and have not performed his works.
That is the reason, Ezra, that empty things are for the empty, and full things are for the full.
–The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
The atheism mentioned in the passage is practical atheism, that which acknowledges the existence of God while rejecting the ideas that God has an active and effective role in the world and that God’s commandments should have any influence on one’s life. It is, quite simply, Deism. Atheism, in the sense that one hears of it frequently in modern Western societies, was rare in antiquity. That which Reza Aslan calls anti-theism, or hostility to theism (not just the rejection of it), was even more rare. Thus, when we consider Psalm 14, the most accurate rendering of the opening lines is not that fools say “there is no God” (the standard English translation), but that fools say, “God does not care,” as TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985) renders the passage.
For more verses about the consequences of disobedience, consult Matthew 13:12 and Luke 8:18.
The Aaronic Blessing (Numbers 6:24-26), a familiar text and an element of many liturgies, precedes an important verse:
Thus they shall link My name with the people of Israel, and I will bless them.
–Numbers 6:27, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
Receiving blessings from God obligates one to function as a vehicle for others to receive blessings from God. Grace is free (for us), but never cheap. In the context of Numbers 6, there is also a mandate to obey the Law of Moses, which contains an ethic of recognizing one’s complete dependence on God, one’s dependence upon other human beings, one’s responsibility to and for others, and the absence of the right to exploit anyone.
Thus the conclusion of this post echoes the beginning thereof. We have a mandate to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Obeying that commandment can prove to be difficult and will lead us to change some of our assumptions and related behaviors, but that is part of the call of God upon our lives. We ought to respond positively, out of love for God and our neighbors, but the principle that our present conduct will determine our future hangs over us.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 14, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MATHILDA, QUEEN OF GERMANY
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Adapted from this post:
https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2015/03/14/devotion-for-wednesday-after-trinity-sunday-year-b-elca-daily-lectionary/
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Above: Jacob Wrestling with the Angel, by Rembrandt Van Rijn
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The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 31:27-34 and Psalm 119:97-104
or
Genesis 32:22-31 and Psalm 121
then
2 Timothy 3:14-4:5
Luke 18:1-8
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, in Christ you have revealed your glory among the nations: Preserve the works of your mercy, that your Church throughout the world may persevere with steadfast faith in the confession of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
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You shall appoint magistrates and officials for your tribes, in all the settlements that the LORD your God is giving you, and they shall govern the people with due justice. You shall not judge unfairly: you shall show no partiality; you shall not take bribes, for bribes blind the eyes of the discerning and upset the plea of the just. Justice, justice you shall pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that the LORD your God is giving to you.
–Deuteronomy 16:18-20, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
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Through your commandments I gain understanding;
Therefore I hate every lying way.
–Psalm 119:104, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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A judge was supposed to issue impartial rulings, but the woman in the parable from Luke 18:1-8 had to resort to threats of physical violence (slapping the judge in the face or giving him a black eye), to get justice. Extraordinary circumstances required extraordinary methods. But God, as Jesus tells us, is impartial. Deuteronomy 10:17-19 agrees and imposes a set of obligations on the people:
For the LORD your God is God supreme and Lord supreme, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who shows no favor and takes no bribe, but upholds the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and befriends the stranger, providing him with food and clothing. You too must befriend the stranger, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt. (TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures)
There is a profound link between how we regard God and how we act toward one another, not that Atheists cannot be moral people and agents of what the Lutheran confessions of faith call civic righteousness. Yet, if we love God, we will love one another actively.
Another theme in the readings for this Sunday is persistence in prayer. But what is prayer? The Book of Common Prayer (1979) defines it as
…responding to God, by thought and deeds, with or without words. (page 856)
Christian prayer, according to the same page of the same volume, is
…response to God the Father, through Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer is a state of being. It is how we think and therefore act. Prayer is far more than the definition I heard in children’s Sunday School:
talking to God.
No, prayer is really about the covenant God has written on our hearts.
So, according to that definition, how is your prayer life? You might struggle with God, O reader, but that is fine. In Islam people submit to Allah, but in Judaism they struggle and argue with God. I, being a strong-minded person, enjoy that part of my religious heritage. At least there is a relationship with God through all that struggling. And a transformed state awaits each of us at the end. A trickster came to play a prominent role in salvation history. And one gains much valuable understanding through the struggles.
May we persist in our struggles with God and in our efforts to behave justly, for the glory of God and the benefit of others. The process will transform us, making us better. That is one valid way to understand the efficacy of prayer.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 8, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BENEDICT II, BISHOP OF ROME
THE FEAST OF DAME JULIAN OF NORWICH, SPIRITUAL WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT MAGDALENA OF CANOSSA, FOUNDER OF THE DAUGHTERS OF CHARITY AND THE SONS OF CHARITY
THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER OF TARENTAISE, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP
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Adapted from this post:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2013/05/08/proper-24-year-c/
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Above: Sheep and Shepherds
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-10045
Image Source = Library of Congress
(http://www.loc.gov/pictures/item/mpc2005001751/PP/)
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The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 4:11-12, 22-28 and Psalm 14
or
Exodus 32:7-14 and Psalm 51:1-11
then
1 Timothy 1:1-12
Luke 15:1-10
The Collect:
O God, because without you we are not able to please you mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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Some Related Posts:
Proper 19, Year A:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/03/20/proper-19-year-a/
Proper 19, Year B:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/10/20/proper-19-year-b/
Prayer of Praise and Adoration:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/24/prayer-of-praise-and-adoration-for-the-seventeenth-sunday-after-pentecost/
Prayer of Confession:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/24/prayer-of-confession-for-the-seventeenth-sunday-after-pentecost/
Prayer of Dedication:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/24/prayer-of-dedication-for-the-seventeenth-sunday-after-pentecost/
Exodus 32:
http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2010/10/28/twenty-sixth-day-of-lent/
http://lenteaster.wordpress.com/2012/06/08/devotion-for-the-fourteenth-day-of-easter-lcms-daily-lectionary/
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/02/proper-23-year-a/
1 Timothy 1:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/03/17/week-of-proper-18-friday-year-1/
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/03/18/week-of-proper-18-saturday-year-1/
Luke 15:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2011/05/18/week-of-proper-26-thursday-year-1/
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The benighted man thinks,
“God does not care.”
–Psalm 14:1, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
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Changing God conceptes in the Bible interest me. Yahweh, in Genesis and Exodus, is willing to annihilate sinful populations. But God, in Jeremiah 4, holds back the worst of judgment for sins. And God, as characters in parables in Luke 15:1-10, finds lost, sinful people precious, even necessary to find and to redeem.
I like the translation of Psalm 14:1 from TANAKH: The Holy Scripures. The standard English translation from the Hebrew text into English is that a fool claims that God does not exist. But, as Atheism was rare in the original context of that psalm,
God does not care
works well as what the fool says. The fool acknowledges the existence of God while being a practical Atheist. This rendering of the verse reminds me of the Deist concept of God as a watchmaker who refuses to intervene in events.
The God of the Bible–whichever understanding of that deity from which one speaks–cares deeply. And I, as a Christian, affirm that the Second Person of the Trinity became incarnate as Jesus of Nazareth, who died and rose again, defeating perfidious schemes and conquering evil. And, if each of us is precious to God, how precious should we be to each other?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 24, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE SECOND SUNDAY IN LENT, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF SAINT MATTHIAS THE APOSTLE, MARTYR
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Adapted from this post:
http://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2013/02/24/proper-19-year-c/
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Above: Richard Hooker, Who Gave Us the Anglican Three Legged Stool: Scripture, Tradition, and Reason
Image in the Public Domain
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I have observed over the years how, particularly in Bible Belt, my geographical context, many people suspend critical thinking in matters of faith and religion. This is an unfortunate human tendency. We are the species Homo sapiens sapiens. Our Latin name indicates that we think. So, why do so many of us choose not to do this?
One reason is the power of tradition, doctrine, and dogma, which combine to induce the fear of an unpleasant afterlife in many. A common characteristic of many religions is the injunction to believe X, Y, and Z…or else. This, I think, is mostly a social control mechanism of human origin.
I do not say, however, that we should believe just anything. My library contains many books that contain theology I describe charitably as “interesting” because that term is polite compared to my actual opinion. (“B.S.” is the abbreviation for my actual opinion of certain theology.) The Book of Mormon, for example, is “interesting.” Also, it contradicts archeology. I side with the archeologists. Yet one aspect of Mormonism is the downplaying of critical thinking (and the emphasizing of having faith) in cases of conflicts between Mormon teaching with science and history.
I cannot divorce faith and reason, however. So I reject The Book of Mormon as rubbish and a bad forgery. So I accept the reality of the biological processes of evolution through natural selection. So I accept the fossil record and recognize that the beginning of Genesis is not a science text. (The first few chapters of Genesis teach me profound truths about human nature and divine nature–that God is one and possessed of a stable personality; that we bear the image of God, with some free will–and that is wonderful. )
The Episcopal Church, to which I belong, has a poster bearing an image of Jesus. It says, “He died to take away your sins, not your mind.” This summarizes much of what I like about my adopted denomination. Anglican teaching rejects the broad meaning Sola Scriptura, or scripture alone, the (false) standard of many Protestants. Rather, we learn that we must use tradition and reason in addition to scripture. I agree with this position, consistent with the narrow meaning of Sola Scriptura: Nothing outside of scripture is necessary for salvation.
My intellect constitutes an essential element of my life of faith. There I recognize part of the image of God within myself. There I see what separates me from many other sentient species. So I refuse to discount the importance of the intellect in relation to tradition, scripture, dogma, doctrine, or emotion, the latter of which is especially popular among many Evangelicals.
No, I prefer a cooler, more intellectual Christianity, in contrast to an ecstatic, experience-oriented variety. This is who I am. Here I stand. I will do no other. I can do no other.
Faith and reason are different ways of knowing. Reason carries me far–to the foot the cross, in fact. There faith takes over. The resurrection of Jesus is an essential element of Christianity. Without it I would have belong to another tradition. I cannot prove that the resurrection occurred, nor can I prove that it did not occur. It resides in the jurisdiction of faith. Through faith I believe–I trust–that it happened. Through faith I interpret its meaning. The fact that the resurrection is a matter of faith, not documented history, does not bother me.
I have harbored more doubts that certain answers for years. This does not concern me, for asking questions increases the probability of finding answers. And even if I do not find certain answers that is fine, too, for I do not need to know everything or most things. God knows them, and I am content with that.
Years ago, when I was an undergraduate at Valdosta State College, Valdosta, Georgia, two dorm mates (of Evangelical persuasions) told me that I think too much. I should be content to believe–just believe–they said. One of these individuals informed me that my excessive thinking was sending me to Hell. I restrained my tongue and did not offer to save her a seat, but I had no more substantial conversations with her. I had nothing else to say to her.
I reject all forms of fundamentalism. They shut down debate and ignore evidence that runs afoul of the fundamentalists’ established worldview. Religious fundamentalism is just as bad as atheistic fundamentalism, such as that of Christopher Hitchens, Bill Maher, or Richard Dawkins. All these varieties represent extremes, and truth, I have found, is seldom at the extremes.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 29, 2009
Published originally at SUNDRY THOUGHTS OF KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
BLOGA THEOLOGICA 
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