According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)

Above:  Icon of the Crucifixion

Image in the Public Domain

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Zechariah 9:9-10

Psalm 31:1-5, 9-16 (LBW) or Psalm 92 (LW)

Philippians 2:5-11

Mark 14:1-15:47 or Mark 15:1-39

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Almighty God, you sent your Son, our Savior Jesus Christ,

to take our flesh upon him and to suffer death on the cross. 

Grant that we may share in his obedience to your will

and in the glorious victory of his resurrection;

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), 19

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Almighty and everlasting God the Father,

who sent your Son to take our nature upon him

and to suffer death on the cross

that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility,

mercifully grant that we may both follow

the example of our Savior Jesus Christ in his patience

and also have our portion in his resurrection;

through Jesus Christ, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 39

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Sometimes I stand back from my standard format for posts such as these and produce short devotions.  Doing that now and again is appropriate.  I have two tall bookcases full of Bibles, commentaries, and other reference materials.  I use these volumes.  Yet today I opt to stand back in awe and refrain from becoming too analytical, not that I object to analysis.

Above:  My Biblical Studies Library, March 17, 2023

Photographer = Kenneth Randolph Taylor

I, as an active Episcopalian, belong to a denomination that understands the power of rituals and liturgies.  The rites for Palm Sunday are especially powerful.  By the end of the dramatic reading of the assigned Passion narrative, the congregation is in stunned, reverent silence.  Such silence is appropriate at that time.

I invite you, O reader, to sit in stunned, reverent silence and awe after reading these assigned passages, especially the Markan Passion narrative.  I also encourage you to move into the next stage as the Holy Spirit leads you.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 17, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE TWENTY-FIRST DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT PATRICK, APOSTLE OF IRELAND

THE FEAST OF EBENEZER ELLIOTT, “THE CORN LAW RHYMER”

THE FEAST OF HENRY SCOTT HOLLAND, ANGLICAN HYMN WRITER AND PRIEST

THE FEAST OF SAINT JAN SARKANDER, SILESIAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND “MARTYR OF THE CONFESSIONAL,” 1620

THE FEAST OF JOSEF RHEINBERGER, GERMANIC ROMAN CATHOLIC COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF SAINT MARIA BARBARA MAIX, FOUNDER OF THE SISTERS OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  St. Augustine in His Study, by Vittore Carpaccio

Image in the Public Domain

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Jeremiah 31:31-34

Psalm 51:11-16

Hebrews 5:7-9

John 12:20-33

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Almighty God, our redeemer, in our weakness we have failed

to be your messengers of forgiveness and hope in the world. 

Renew us by your Holy Spirit, that we may follow your commands

and proclaim your reign of love;

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), 19

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Almighty and eternal God, because it was your will that your Son

should bear the pains of the cross for us

and thus remove from us the power of the adversary,

help us so to remember and give thanks for our Lord’s Passion

that we may receive remission of our sins

and redemption from everlasting death;

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 38

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Lent is a penitential season, and these are readings suited for Lent.  They are especially suitable for the penultimate Sunday of the season.

One theme in the canonical Gospels is the priority of following Jesus.  “Hate” is an unfortunate translation choice in John 12:25.   The meaning is to “love less than,” not to hate, as we first understand “hate.”  Therefore, John 12:25 should read:

Whoever loves his life more than me loses it, and whoever loves me more than his life (or loves his life less than me) in their world will preserve it for eternal life.

Jesus (suitable for his purpose–the meaning of “perfect” in Hebrews 5:9) had the credentials to demand and to command so high a priority.

The covenant written on hearts is possible.  The Pauline tradition affirms this; the Holy Spirit makes such a covenant possible.  This thread continues into the writings of St. Augustine of Hippo, who wrote at length and exercised logic.  A terribly simplistic reduction of paragraphs from St. Augustine of Hippo reads:

Love God and do as you please.

When one reads the full, germane text carefully, one sees the logic, lifted from St. Paul the Apostle’s discourses about natural/unspiritual people and spiritual people in 1 Corinthians 2.  In Pauline terms, spiritual people–who share the will of God–can do what they please, for they want what God wants.

That is an advanced spiritual state–one I do not pretend to have reached.  Yet I continue to muddle through each day, trying to live well in God, in whom I trust.  That is something, anyway.  Jesus can use it and multiply it, fortunately.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 16, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE TWENTIETH DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT ADALBALD OF OSTEVANT, SAINT RICTRUDIS OF MARCHIENNES, AND THEIR RELATIONS

THE FEAST OF SAINT ABRAHAM KIDUNAIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT; AND SAINT MARY OF EDESSA, ROMAN CATHOLIC ANCHORESS

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN CACCIAFRONTE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK, ABBOT, BISHOP, AND MARTYR, 1183

THE FEAST OF SAINT MEGINGAUD OF WURZBURG, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND BISHOP

THE FEAST OF THOMAS WYATT TURNER, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SCIENTIST, EDUCATOR, AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST; FOUNDER OF FEDERATED COLORED CATHOLICS

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM HENRY MONK, ANGLICAN ORGANIST, HYMN TUNE COMPOSER, AND MUSIC EDUCATOR

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  The Brazen Serpent, by James Tissot

Image in the Public Domain

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Numbers 21:4-9

Psalm 27:1-9 (10-18)

Ephesians 2:4-10

John 3:14-21

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God of all mercy, by your power to hear and to forgive,

graciously cleanse us from all sin and make us strong;

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), 18

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Almighty God, our heavenly Father,

your mercies are new every morning,

and though we have in no way deserved your goodness,

you still abundantly provide for all our wants of body and soul. 

Give us, we pray, your Holy Spirit

that we may heartily acknowledge your merciful goodness toward us,

give thanks for all your benefits,

and serve you in willing obedience;

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 37

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Before the seraphim became a class of angels in Hebrew thought, they were venomous snakes.  This helps to explain why the vision in Isaiah 6 was terrifying; Isaiah ben Amoz reported a vision of venomous snakes.  The snakes in Numbers 21:4-9 were seraphim, too.  And the cure for their bites was sympathetic magic–in this case, gazing upon a copper representation of such a seraph.

Numbers 21:4-9 offers another story I find theologically troubling.  My concept of God–modeled on Jesus–does not mesh with YHWH sending venomous snakes to bite ungrateful, murmuring Hebrews in a desert.  Yet I acknowledge that at least one Biblical author attributed that action to God.

During the Hellenistic period, a Jewish author, writing as Solomon, also accepted that YHWH had sent the seraphim, among other natural punishments (locusts and flies) at different times.  That author wrote, in part:

For when the dire venom of beasts came upon them

and they were dying from the bite of the crooked serpents,

your anger endured not to the end.

But as a warning, for a short time they were terrorized,

though they had a sign of salvation, to remind them of the precept of your law.

For the one who turned toward it was saved,

not by what was seen,

but by you, the savior of all.

–Wisdom of Solomon 16:5-7, The New American Bible–Revised Edition

Divine judgment and mercy remain in balance.  What is that balance?  Sometimes we wrongly blame or ascribe credit for misfortune to God.  We need to be careful about what we say and write about God, even reverently.  Otherwise, we may depict God as a monster, one whose face we would quake and tremble to seek.  Yet God is not a warm fuzzy, of course.

Judgment is real.  God sends nobody to Hell, though.  No, as C. S. Lewis wrote, the doors to Hell are locked from the inside.  People condemn themselves.  Salvation comes by grace; damnation comes by free will.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 16, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE TWENTIETH DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT ADALBALD OF OSTEVANT, SAINT RICTRUDIS OF MARCHIENNES, AND THEIR RELATIONS

THE FEAST OF SAINT ABRAHAM KIDUNAIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT; AND SAINT MARY OF EDESSA, ROMAN CATHOLIC ANCHORESS

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN CACCIAFRONTE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK, ABBOT, BISHOP, AND MARTYR, 1183

THE FEAST OF SAINT MEGINGAUD OF WURZBURG, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND BISHOP

THE FEAST OF THOMAS WYATT TURNER, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SCIENTIST, EDUCATOR, AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST; FOUNDER OF FEDERATED COLORED CATHOLICS

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM HENRY MONK, ANGLICAN ORGANIST, HYMN TUNE COMPOSER, AND MUSIC EDUCATOR

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  Moses with the Ten Commandments, by Rembrandt van Rijn

Image in the Public Domain

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Exodus 20:1-17

Psalm 19:7-14

1 Corinthians 1:22-25

John 2:13-22

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Eternal Lord, your kingdom has broken into our troubled world

through the life, death, and resurrection of your Son. 

Help us to hear your Word and obey it,

so that we become instruments of your redeeming love;

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), 18

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Almighty God, because you know

that we of ourselves have no strength,

keep us both outwardly and inwardly that we may be defended

from all adversities that may happen to the body

and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul;

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 36

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Anti-intellectualism, rife in segments of the Christian tradition, is unfortunate and destructive.  I, as an intellectual, recall being int the presence of professing Christians who have spoken dismissively of education and of having a faith allegedly superior to those of educated people.  I also recall hearing to my face that I will go to Hell for asking too many questions and thinking too much.  I bristle whenever I sense that anyone is even getting close to this attitude.

Willful ignorance is not a saving work.  Neither is it a theological virtue.

The wisdom in 1 Corinthians 1:22-25 is speculative, philosophical wisdom of the Greek variety.  As much as I value the Greek philosophical foundations of Western civilization, I do not mistake them for anything salvific.  In context in 1 Corinthians, the message of St. Paul the Apostle is that salvation via Christ violates expectations, whether from Jewish tradition or Greek philosophy.  In other words, God refuses to fit into our theological and philosophical boxes.

Instead of speculative wisdom, we have a covenant with God.  We have a covenant into which God invites us–Jesus and Gentiles alike.  Actually, the Jews have the older covenant.  The Gentiles have a separate covenant.  Both covenants lead to the same result.  Both covenants impose moral demands upon those in covenant relationship with God.  Those moral demands pertain to how we treat each other, both individually and collectively.  Those moral demands boil down to the Golden Rule.

So, Jews and Gentile Christians alike can say, with equal conviction:

The LORD’s teaching is perfect,

restoring to life.

The LORD’s pact is steadfast,

it makes the fool wise.

The LORD’s precepts are upright;

delighting the heart.

–Psalm 19:8-9a, Robert Alter

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 16, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE TWENTIETH DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT ADALBALD OF OSTEVANT, SAINT RICTRUDIS OF MARCHIENNES, AND THEIR RELATIONS

THE FEAST OF SAINT ABRAHAM KIDUNAIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC HERMIT; AND SAINT MARY OF EDESSA, ROMAN CATHOLIC ANCHORESS

THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN CACCIAFRONTE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK, ABBOT, BISHOP, AND MARTYR, 1183

THE FEAST OF SAINT MEGINGAUD OF WURZBURG, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND BISHOP

THE FEAST OF THOMAS WYATT TURNER, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC SCIENTIST, EDUCATOR, AND CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST; FOUNDER OF FEDERATED COLORED CATHOLICS

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM HENRY MONK, ANGLICAN ORGANIST, HYMN TUNE COMPOSER, AND MUSIC EDUCATOR

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  Jacob’s Ladder, by William Blake

Image in the Public Domain

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Genesis 28:10-17 (18-22)

Psalm 115:1, 9-18 (LBW) or Psalm 142 (LW)

Romans 5:1-11

Mark 8:31-38

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Heavenly Father, it is your glory always to have mercy. 

Bring back all who have erred and strayed from your ways;

lead them again to embrace in faith

the truth of your Word and hold it fast;

through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

or

God our Father, your Son welcomed

an outcast woman because of her faith. 

Give us faith like hers,

that we also may trust only in our Love for us

and may accept one another as we have been accepted by you;

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), 18

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O God, whose glory is always to have mercy,

be gracious to all who have gone astray from your ways,

and bring them again with penitent hearts and steadfast faith

to embrace and hold fast the unchangeable truth of your Word;

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 34

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People reach out to God in the assigned psalms.  God, however, reaches out to people in the other readings.  The assigned psalms also acknowledge that God has reached out.  Reaching extends in both directions.

Divine reaching out is grace.  Grace, by definition, is unmerited, free, and not cheap.  It costs God much.  We can read the canonical Passion narratives and learn what it cost Jesus.  And grace imposes demands upon its recipients.  Sometimes the cross one bears may be close to literal, not metaphorical.  The long line of martyrs attests to a variety of crosses those who have died for the faith have carried.

Regardless of what grace demands of one, it transforms its recipients.  Priorities change, for example.  Even just that matter leads to consequences, which may be unpleasant or worse.  This is a truth which many members of the original audiences of the canonical Gospels understood.  One may reasonably imagine such people nodding their heads knowingly at stories of Jesus speaking of suffering for the sake of righteousness and of enduring rejection from relatives.

Those of us fortunate enough not to suffer any of those consequences can still attest that grace has transformed us.  Grace has been transforming me for as long as I can remember–since early childhood.  It has been transforming me since before I can remember, actually.  Grace is a divine initiative; God is the lead actor, so to speak.

If grace should do nothing else, it should make one more gracious.  Perhaps you, O reader, know of or know someone who became more difficult and perhaps intolerable following his or her conversion experience.  If a conversion experience makes a person obnoxious, something has gone wrong.

Grace transformed Jacob from a trickster into a patriarch and confirmed the covenantal promise applied to him.

How might grace transform you, O reader?

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 15, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE NINETEENTH DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT ZACHARY OF ROME, BISHOP OF ROME

THE FEAST OF SAINTS JAN ADALBERT BALICKI AND LADISLAUS FINDYSZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIESTS IN POLAND

THE FEAST OF JEAN BAPTISTE CALKIN, ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF OZORA STEARNS DAVIS, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF VETHAPPPAN SOLOMON, APOSTLE TO THE SOLOMON ISLANDS

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  The Sacrifice of Isaac, by Caravaggio

Image in the Public Domain

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Genesis 22:1-18

Psalm 6

Romans 8:31-39

Mark 1:12-15

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O Lord God, you led your ancient people through the wilderness

and brought them to the promised land. 

Guide now the people of your Church, that, following our Savior,

we may walk through the wilderness of this world

toward the glory of the world to come;

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, our strength,

the battle of good and evil rages within and around us,

and our ancient foe tempts us with his deceits and empty promises. 

Keep us steadfast in your Word, and,

when we fall, raise us again and restore us

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), 17-18

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O almighty and eternal God, we implore you

to direct, sanctify, and govern our hearts and bodies

in the ways of your laws and the works of your laws

and the works of your commandments

that through your mighty protection, both now and ever,

we may be preserved in body and soul;

through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns

with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 33

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I know an Episcopal priest who handles well one’s claim not to believe in God.  He asks those who claim not to believe in God to describe the deity in whom they do not believe.  Invariably, that person describes a total bastard deity in whom the priest does not believe either.

Biblically and creedally, belief in God is trust in God.  Of course, the most popular understanding of “believe in God” may be to affirm the existence of God.  Therefore, for the sake of clarity, my answer to whether I believe in God begins with,

What do you mean?

Once I hear the answer to that question, I continue with my reply.  For the record, I always affirm the existence of God and usually trust in God.

The portrayal of God in Genesis 22:1-18 is that of a total bastard deity in whom I do not believe, regardless of how one defines belief in God.  That portrayal of God is of a vicious, monstrous deity.

No, I do not believe in that God.  I do, however, believe–trust–in God, who is love from whom nothing can separate us.  I do believe–trust–in God, who is on our side in the midst of troubles and persecution.  I do believe–trust–in God, whose kingdom breaks into our troubled world.  I do believe–trust–in God, who comforts–not afflicts–the faithful.

The Lord’s Prayer contains a petition for God to

save us from the time of trial.

Divine testing of the faithful is a Biblical concept.  The Wisdom of Solomon 3:5-6 tells us of the righteous deceased:

Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good,

because God tested them and found them worthy of himself;

like gold in the furnace he tried them,

and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them.

—Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition

Trusting is one matter; abuse is another.  I believe–trust–in God, who tests, not abuses.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

MARCH 15, 2023 COMMON ERA

THE NINETEENTH DAY OF LENT

THE FEAST OF SAINT ZACHARY OF ROME, BISHOP OF ROME

THE FEAST OF SAINTS JAN ADALBERT BALICKI AND LADISLAUS FINDYSZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIESTS IN POLAND

THE FEAST OF JEAN BAPTISTE CALKIN, ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER

THE FEAST OF OZORA STEARNS DAVIS, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, AND HYMN WRITER

THE FEAST OF VETHAPPPAN SOLOMON, APOSTLE TO THE SOLOMON ISLANDS

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  Icon of the Crucifixion

Image in the Public Domain

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Isaiah 52:13-53:12 or Hosea 6:1-6

Psalm 22:1-23 (LBW) or Psalm 22:1-24 (LW)

Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

John 18:1-19:42 or John 19:17-30

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Almighty God, we ask you to look with mercy on your family;

for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed

and to be given over to the hands of sinners

and to suffer death on the cross;

who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, forever and ever.  Amen.

OR

Lord Jesus, you carried our sins in your own body

on the tree so that we might have life. 

May we and all who remember this day find new life

in you now and in the world to come,

where you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,

now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 20

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Almighty God, graciously behold this your family,

for whom our Lord Jesus Christ was willing to be betrayed,

to be given into the hands of sinners,

and to suffer death on the cross;

who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 45

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Words and rituals have power.  (That is a quintessential Lutheran theological statement.)  In my denomination, The Episcopal Church, the liturgy for Good Friday is powerful and solemn.  It concludes with people leaving in silence.

Sometimes one should be silent.  I invite you, O reader, to read the assigned portions of scripture aloud or to listen to them.  Let them sink in.  Let them exercise their power over you.  And digest them in silence.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

APRIL 15, 2022 COMMON ERA

GOOD FRIDAY

THE FEAST OF SAINT OLGA OF KIEV, REGENT OF KIEVAN RUSSIA; SAINT ADALBERT OF MAGDEBURG, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; SAINT ADALBERT OF PRAGUE, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP AND MARTYR, 997; AND SAINTS BENEDICT AND GAUDENTIUS OF POMERANIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS, 997

THE FEAST OF SAINTS DAMIEN AND MARIANNE OF MOLOKAI, WORKERS AMONG LEPERS

THE FEAST OF SAINT FLAVIA DOMITILLA, ROMAN CHRISTIAN NOBLEWOMAN; AND SAINTS MARO, EUTYCHES, AND VICTORINUS OF ROME, PRIESTS AND MARTYRS, CIRCA 99

THE FEAST OF SAINT HUNNA OF ALSACE, THE “HOLY WASHERWOMAN”

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  The Last Supper, by Leonardo da Vinci

Image in the Public Domain

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Exodus 12:1-14 (Year A)

Exodus 24:3-11 (Year B)

Jeremiah 31:31-34 (Year C)

Psalm 116:10-17 (Years A. B, and C)

1 Corinthians 11:17-32 or 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 (Year A)

1 Corinthians 10:16-17 (18-21) (Year B)

John 13:1-17, 34 (Year A)

Mark 14:12-26 (Year B)

Luke 22:12-26 (Year C)

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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

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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

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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

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  Judas Iscariot, by James Tissot

Image in the Public Domain

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Isaiah 50:4-9a

Psalm 70:1-2 4-6 (LBW) or Psalm 18:21-30 (LW)

Romans 5:6-11

Matthew 26:14-25

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Almighty God, your Son our Savior suffered at the hands of men

and endured the shame of the cross. 

Grant that we may walk in the way of his cross

and find it the way of life and peace;

through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 20

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Merciful and everlasting God the Father,

who did not spare your only Son

but delivered him up for us all that he might bear our sins on the cross;

grant that our hearts may be so fixed with steadfast faith in our Savior

that we may not fear the power of any adversaries;

through Jesus Christ, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 43

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In context, Isaiah 50:4-9a is an odd lection to read on this Sunday.  The speaker–the prophet/servant (Second Isaiah)–is pious yet merely human, therefore, sinful.  He believes that the suffering of the exiles during the Babylonian Exile has been justified.  Yet he also anticipates the divine vindication of that exiled population, for the glory of God.  Applying this reading to sinless Jesus (who suffered an unjust execution as an innocent man) requires astounding theological gymnastics.

Judas Iscariot played an essential role in a divine plan.  The writers of the four canonical Gospels portrayed him negatively, for one major obvious reason.  The Gospel of John added that Judas was an embezzler (John 12:6).  Despite all this, Judas was not outside the mercy of God.  And he had not committed the unpardonable sin–blasphemy against the Holy Spirit (Matthew 12:32; Mark 3:28; Luke 12:10).  Judas may have thought that he knew what he was doing, but he did not.  Recall Luke 23:24, O reader:

Then Jesus said, “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.”

—The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)

I do not pretend to know the ultimate fate of Judas Iscariot.  I am not God.  I do, however, repeat my position that the only people in Hell are those who have condemned themselves.  God sends nobody to Hell.  Divine mercy and judgment exist in a balance I cannot grasp, for I am not God.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

APRIL 12, 2022 COMMON ERA

HOLY TUESDAY

THE FEAST OF HENRY SLOANE COFFIN, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR; AND HIS NEPHEW, WILLIAM SLOANE COFFIN, JR., U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND SOCIAL ACTIVIST

THE FEAST OF SAINT DAVID URIBE-VELASCO, MEXICAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1927

THE FEAST OF SAINT JULIUS I, BISHOP OF ROME

THE FEAST OF SAINT ZENO OF VERONA, BISHOP

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Adapted from this post

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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)

Above:  Icon of Christ Pantocrator

Image in the Public Domain

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Isaiah 49:1-6

Psalm 71:1-12 (LBW) or Psalm 18:1-7, 17-20 (LW)

1 Corinthians 1:18-25

John 12:20-36

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Lord Jesus, you have called us to follow you. 

Grant that our love may not grow cold in your service,

and that we may not fail or deny you in the hour of trial.  Amen.

—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 19

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Almighty and everlasting God,

grant us grace so to pass through this holy time of our Lord’s Passion

that we may receive the pardon of our sins;

through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,

who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever.  Amen.

—Lutheran Worship (1982), 42

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In context, the identity of servant in Isaiah 49:1-6 is vague.  The servant is probably the personification of a faithful subset of the exiled population during the Babylonian Exile.  I do not look for Jesus in the Hebrew Bible as if he is Waldo in a Where’s Waldo? book.  Therefore, I conclude that linking Isaiah 49:1-6 to Jesus so as to identify him as the servant in that text requires extraordinary theological gymnastics.

Salvation is a process, not an event.  To be precise, salvation is a process the Church mediates via the sacraments.  That statement indicates the influence of Roman Catholicism in my theology.  (And I grew up a Methodist!)  Read 1 Corinthians 1:18 again, O reader:

…but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

—The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)

The divine passive indicates that God is doing the saving.  God is the central actor.  Human selfishness places people in the center of theology.  (Now I sound like Karl Barth.)

As we barrel toward the crucifixion of Jesus, we read John 12:25:

Those who love their life will lose it, and those who hate their live in this world will keep it for eternal life.

—The New Revised Standard Version (1989)

Eternal life, in Johannine theology, is know God via Jesus.  Johannine eternal life may begin in this life.

“Hate” is an unfortunate translation choice in John 12:25. The operative Greek word means “love less than.”  Reading John 12:25 in the context of John 12:26, 12:25 should read:

…and those who love their life in this world less than me (Jesus) will keep it for eternal life.

In the four canonical Gospels, we read of Jesus issuing individualized calls to discipleship, depending on circumstances.  Yet the common thread is subordinating everything to Jesus.

Why not?  Jesus gave himself.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

APRIL 9, 2022 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF DIETRICH BONHOEFFEFR, GERMAN LUTHERAN MARTYR, 1945

THE FEAST OF JOHANN CRUGER, GERMAN LUTHERAN ORGANIST, COMPOSER, AND HYMNAL EDITOR

THE FEAST OF JOHN SAMUJEL BEWLEY MONSELL, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND POET; AND RICHARD MANT, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF DOWN, CONNOR, AND DROMORE

THE FEAST OF LYDIA EMILIE GRUCHY, FIRST FEMALE MINISTER IN THE UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA

THE FEAST OF MIKAEL AGRICOLA, FINNISH LUTHERAN LITURGIST, BISHOP OF TURKU, AND “FATHER OF FINNISH LITERARY LANGUAGE”

THE FEAST OF WILLIAM LAW, ANGLICAN PRIEST, MYSTIC, AND SPIRITUAL WRITER

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Adapted from this post

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