Underpinning much of the Bible is an ethos of mutuality and of recognition of complete human dependence on God. We are responsible to each other and for each other. We are supposed to support each other in vocations from God, not seek to advance on the proverbial ladder by kicking other people off that ladder. And we ought to act based on the knowledge that everything we have comes from God. There is no such being as a self-made person.
St. Paul the Apostle, writing in Romans 12, likened Christian community to the body of Christ. He meant what he wrote plainly–that Christians are members of each other and that all spiritual gifts are necessary. Nobody in the body of Christ is insignificant and no gift is too small.
God has equipped all people for a productive role or roles in society. One vital function of each person is to help others to fulfill their vocation or vocations as the opportunities to do so present themselves. Whenever I read about a person who has accomplished much, I notice that others helped him or her along the way to one accomplishment or another. Such helpers tend not to receive the credit they should, but they are always essential.
Nehemiah, who left a position in the Persian royal court, was able, with the help of King Artaxerxes I (reigned 465-424 B.C.E.) and many others, most of whose names have not come down to us, to help rebuild Jerusalem. The efforts of those whose labors supported Nehemiah’s project were no less important than Nehemiah’s zeal. The visionary and his helpers were essential, for one without the other would have accomplished nothing.
In the spirit of mutuality we ought to help each other spiritually. Each of us has blind spots in spiritual matters, but others can tell us what occupies them. We also need encouragement to continue to do the right things the right ways. Positive reinforcement is also crucial to maintaining good practices. A third category of mutual spiritual help is providing feedback in the middle ground between “keep doing that” and “stop doing the other thing.” Sometimes we are moving in the right direction yet require advice in how to pursue that path more effectively. Often we have difficulty recognizing our deficiencies in that category also.
A true friend is one who says and does that which one needs, not necessarily what one wants. A “yes man” is not a true friend. Within the bounds of social and ecclesiastical friendship we ought to be true friends to each other. How many of us will fulfill that vocation?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 3, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE EVE OF THE FEAST OF SAINT FRANCIS OF ASSISI: PROPER FOR THE GOODNESS OF CREATION
THE FEAST OF THEODOR FLIEDNER, PIONEER OF THE DEACONESS MOVEMENT IN THE LUTHERAN CHURCH
THE FEAST OF GEORGE KENNEDY ALLEN BELL, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF CHICHESTER
THE FEAST OF JOHN RALEIGH MOTT, ECUMENICAL PIONEER
Almighty God, by grace alone you call us and accept us in your service.
Strengthen us by your Spirit, and make us worthy of your call,
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 23
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The Assigned Readings:
Jeremiah 19:1-15 (Thursday)
Jeremiah 20:7-13 (Friday)
Jeremiah 20:14-18 (Saturday)
Psalm 65:5-12 (All Days)
Revelation 18:11-20 (Thursday)
2 Peter 3:1-7 (Friday)
Luke 10:13-16 (Saturday)
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Those who dwell at the ends of the earth tremble at your marvels;
the gates of the morning and evening sing your praise.
–Psalm 65:7, Common Worship (2000)
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The prophet Jeremiah would have been thrilled for that statement to have applied to Jerusalem. Alas, some people there even sacrificed their children to pagan gods at the valley whose name became the source for the label “Gehenna,” a place of suffering in the afterlife. Jeremiah condemned such idolatrous and violent practices and pronounced divine punishment. For his trouble he faced flogging and imprisonment. Yet those who mistreated him would, he said, die as exiles in Babylon. That prediction came true.
A common expectation in New Testament times was that Jesus would return quite soon. It was an age of apocalyptic hopes that God would end the violent and exploitative rule of the Roman Empire, set the world right, and that the divine order would govern the planet. In that context a lack of repentance was especially bad, as in Luke 10:13-16. In Revelation 18 the Roman Empire had fallen (within the Johannine Apocalypse only), but the imperium survived well beyond the first century of the Common Era. Discouragement and scoffing had become evident by the 80s and 90s, the timeframe for the writing of 2 Peter. Yet the calls to repentance remained applicable.
Divine time and human time work differently, but some things remain the same. Fearful theocrats react badly to honest prophets. The realization that God has not met a human schedule leads to bad spiritual results. Violent, oppressive, and exploitative governments continue to exist. And the promise that God will destroy the evil order then replace it with a holy and just one remains a future hope. In the meantime we would do well to consider the moral lessons of Revelation 18. For example, do we benefit from any violent, oppressive, and/or exploitative system? If so, what is the “Babylon” or what are the “Babylons” to which we have attached ourselves, from which we benefit, and whose passing we would mourn?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 23, 2014 COMMON ERA
PROPER 29–CHRIST THE KING SUNDAY–THE LAST SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF JOHN KENNETH PFOHL, SR., U.S. MORAVIAN BISHOP; HIS WIFE, HARRIET ELIZABETH “BESSIE” WHITTINGTON PFOHL, U.S. MORAVIAN MUSICIAN; AND THEIR SON, JAMES CHRISTIAN PFOHL, SR., U.S. MORAVIAN MUSICIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT CLEMENT I OF ROME, BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT COLUMBAN, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF MIGUEL AUGUSTIN PRO, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR
The readings for these three days tell of faithfulness to God, of faithlessness, and of vindication. Along the way we read of two different Sauls.
Hannah was childless. For this her husband’s other wife mocked her. But Elkanah loved Hannah, his wife. And God answered Hannah’s prayer for a child, giving her the great prophet Samuel. He, following divine instructions, anointed two kings of Israel–Saul and David, both of whom went their own sinful ways. Yet Saul, no less troublesome a figure than David, faced divine rejection. Saul’s attempts at vindication–some of them violent–backfired on him.
Saul of Tarsus, who became St. Paul the Apostle, had to overcome his past as a persecutor of the nascent Christian movement as well as strong opposition to his embrace of the new faith and to his mission to Gentiles. Fortunately, he succeeded, changing the course of events.
And Jesus, who dined with notorious sinners, brought many of them to repentance. He, unlike others, who shunned them, recognized the great potential within these marginalized figures. For this generosity of spirit our Lord and Savior had to provide a defense to certain respectable religious authorities.
Sometimes our quests for vindication are self-serving, bringing benefit only to ourselves. Yet, on other occasions, we have legitimate grounds for vindication. When we are in the right those who cause the perceived need for vindication–for whatever reason they do so–ought to apologize instead.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
SEPTEMBER 6, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ALLAN CRITE, ARTIST
THE FEAST OF CHARLES ELLIOTT FOX, ANGLICAN MISSIONARY
Liturgical time matters, for it sacramentalizes days, hours, and minutes, adding up to seasons on the church calendar. Among the frequently overlooked seasons is the Season after Epiphany, the first part of Ordinary Time. The Feast of the Epiphany always falls on January 6 in my tradition. And Ash Wednesday always falls forty days (excluding Sundays) before Easter Sunday. The Season after Epiphany falls between The Feast of the Epiphany and Ash Wednesday. In 2013 the season will span January 7-February 12.
This season ought to be a holy time, one in which to be especially mindful of the imperative to take the good news of Jesus of Nazareth to others by a variety of means, including words when necessary. Words are meaningless when our actions belie them, after all. Among the themes of this season is that the Gospel is for all people, not just those we define as insiders. No, the message is also for our “Gentiles,” those whom we define as outsiders. So, with that thought in mind, I encourage you, O reader, to exclude nobody. Do not define yourself as an insider to the detriment of others. If you follow this advice, you will have a proper Epiphany spirit.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
NOVEMBER 9, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF MARTIN CHEMNITZ, GERMAN LUTHERAN THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF BARTON STONE, COFOUNDER OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH (DISCIPLES OF CHRIST)
Now suppose that some branches were broken off, and you are wild olive, grafted among the rest to share with the others the rich sap of the olive tree….
Sometimes a lectionary is too choppy. At such occasions extended readings are appropriate. Such is the case with the readings for January 21 and 22 on the daily lectionary from the Lutheran Service Book (2006).
The Book of Joel, from the Persian period (539-332 B.C.E.) of Jewish history, opens with frightening images. Read the first chapter, O reader of this post, for full effect. Locusts, flames, and other forces have devastated the land. And, as Chapter 2 opens, the terrifying Day of the LORD approaches. The earth trembles, the sky shakes, and stars go dark. Yet even then there is the possibility of forgiveness, assuming repentance, or turning around.
Paul spends Romans 10 and 11 dealing with the question of Jews who have rejected Jesus. In this context he likens Gentiles to branches grafted onto the tree of Judaism. Gentiles, he advises, ought not to become proud and dismissive. As much as there is divine mercy, there is also divine judgment–for Jews and Gentiles alike.
There is an often repeated misunderstanding about God as He comes across in the Hebrew Scriptures. The God of the Old Testament, we hear, is mean, violent, and vengeful. This is a gross oversimplification–read Joel 2 for evidence of that statement. I am convinced that some of the violent imagery and some of the stories containing it result from humans projecting their erroneous assumptions upon God. Yet I refuse to say that all–or even most–of such incidents flow from that practice. I seek, O reader, to avoid any stereotype–frightful or cuddly–about God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 31, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARIA SKOBTSOVA, ORTHODOX MARTYR
THE FEAST OF SAINT BENJAMIN, ORTHODOX DEACON AND MARTYR
THE FEAST OF FRANCIS ASBURY, U.S. METHODIST BISHOP
Above: Commander William Adama, from the Second Season of Battlestar Galactica
(A screen capture I took via PowerDVD)
Showing Mercy
JANUARY 21, 2022
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Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints (2010), of The Episcopal Church, contains an adapted two-years weekday lectionary for the Epiphany and Ordinary Time seasons from the Anglican Church of Canada. I invite you to follow it with me.
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1 Samuel 24:2-20 (Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition):
Then Saul took three thousand chosen men out of all Israel, and went to seek David and his men in front of the Wildgoats’ Rocks. And he came to the sheepfolds by the way, where there was a cave; and Saul went in to relieve himself. Now David and his men were sitting in the innermost parts of the cave. And the men of David said to him,
Here is the day of which the LORD said to you, “Behold, I will give your enemy into your hand, and you shall do to him as it shall seem to you.”
Then David arose and stealthily cut off the skirt of Saul’s robe. And afterward David’s heart struck him, because he had cut off Saul’s skirt. He said to his men,
The LORD forbid that I should do this thing to my lord, the LORD’s anointed, to put forth my hand against him, seeing that he is the LORD’s anointed.
So David persuaded his men with these words, and did not permit them to attack Saul. And Saul rose up and left the cave, and went upon his way.
Afterward David also arose, and went out of the cave, and called after Saul,
My lord the king!
And when Saul looked behind him, David bowed with his face to the earth, and did obesiance. And David said to Saul,
Why do you listen to the words of men who say, “Behold, David seeks your hurt”? Behold, this day your eyes have seen how the LORD gave you today into my hand in the cave and some bade me to kill you, but I spared you. I said, “I will not put forth my hand against my lord; for he is the LORD’s anointed. See, my father, see the skirt of your robe in my hand; for by the fact that I cut off the skirt of your robe, and did not kill you, you may know and see that there is no wrong or treason in my hands. I have not sinned against you, though you hunt my life to take it. May the LORD judge between me and you, may the LORD avenge me upon you; but my hand shall not be against you. After whom has the king of Israel come out? After whom do you pursue? After a dead dog! After a flea! May the LORD therefore be judge, and give sentence between me and you, and see to it, and plead my cause, and deliver me from your hand.
When David had finished speaking these words to Saul, Saul said,
Is this your voice, my son David?
And Saul lifted up his voice and wept. He said to David,
You are more righteous than I; for you have repaid me good, where as I have repaid you evil. And you have declared this day how you have dealt well with me, in that you did not kill me when the LORD put me into your hands. For if a man finds his enemy, will he let him go away safe? So may the LORD reward you with good for what you have done to me this day. And now, behold, I know you shall surely be king, and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established in your hand….
Psalm 57 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful,
for I have taken refuge in you;
in the shadow of your wings will I take refuge
until this time of trouble has gone by.
2 I will call upon the Most High God,
the God who maintains my cause.
3 He will send from heaven and save me;
he will confound those who trample upon me;
God will send forth his love and his faithfulness.
4 I lie in the midst of lions that devour the people;
their teeth are spears and arrows,
their tongue is a sharp sword.
5 They have laid a net for my feet,
and I am bowed low;
they have dug a pit before me,
but they have fallen into it themselves.
6 Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God,
and your glory over all the earth.
7 My heart is firmly fixed, O God, my heart is fixed;
I will sing and make melody.
8 Wake up, my spirit;
awake, lute and harp;
I myself will waken the dawn.
9 I will confess you among the peoples, O LORD;
I will sing praise to you among the nations.
10 For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens,
and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.
11 Exalt yourselves above the heavens, O God,
and your glory over all the earth.
Mark 3:13-19 (Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition):
And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he desired; and they came to him. And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach and have authority to cast out demons: Simon whom he surnamed Peter; James the son of Zebedee and John the brother of James, whom he surnamed Boanerges, that is, sons of thunder; Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddeus, and Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.
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The Collect:
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
The lesson to forgive one’s enemies and leave judgment to God is consistent with the Bible. However, like other Biblical lessons, it has insincere echoes on tee-shirts and bumper stickers. So, in the same vein as “DO UNTO OTHERS BEFORE THEY DO UNTO YOU,” one might read, “FORGIVE YOUR ENEMIES–NOTHING ANNOYS THEM MORE.” I prefer the Biblical version.
Saul had tried to kill David more than once. When 1 Samuel 24 began, David found Saul in a rather vulnerable position in a cave and chose not to kill him or even to harm him. David did, however, inform Saul of what he would have done, had he been inclined to do so. This did not end the conflict between the two men, but it did have at least a momentary affect on the troubled monarch.
It can be difficult to choose not to wield the sword or another weapon; some might even call it being “soft,” as in “soft on defense.” There are subcultures where being “hard,” as in the opposite of “soft,” is considered a virtue. (Prisons and jails come to mind immediately.) But consider this: David, in 1 Samuel 24, was not being passive. Nevertheless, he did choose not to assassinate his king and father-in-law, who had tried to murder him more than once. David acted properly and informed Saul, thereby appealing to the conscience of the king.
As Commander William Adama said in Resurrection Ship, Part II, an episode of the reimagined Battlestar Galactica, “It’s not enough to survive; one must be worthy of surviving.” How much suffering would not have occurred in human history had someone, in a certain time and place, shown restraint and therefore broken the cycle of violence? How much suffering might one prevent in contemporary times by demonstrating similar restraint? I wonder.
Holy Women, Holy Men: Celebrating the Saints (2010), of The Episcopal Church, contains an adapted two-years weekday lectionary for the Epiphany and Ordinary Time seasons from the Anglican Church of Canada. I invite you to follow it with me.
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Hebrews 9:2-3, 11-14 (Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition):
For a tent was prepared, the outer one, in which were the lampstand and the table and the bread offering; it is called the Holy Place. Behind the second curtain stood a tent called the Holy of Holies….
But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once and for all into the Holy Place, taking not the blood of goats and calves but not his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. For if the sprinkling of defiled persons with the blood of goats and bulls and with the ashes of a heifer sanctifies for the purification of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify your conscience from dead works to serve the living God.
Psalm 47 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Clap your hands, all you peoples;
shout to God with a cry of joy.
2 For the LORD Most High is to be feared;
he is the great King over all the earth.
3 He subdues the peoples under us,
and the nations under our feet.
4 He chooses our inheritance for us,
the pride of Jacob whom he loves.
5 God has gone up with a shout,
the LORD with the the sound of the ram’s horn.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
7 For God is King of all the earth;
sing praises with all your skill.
8 God reigns over all the nations;
God sits upon his holy throne.
9 The nobles of the peoples have gathered together
with the people of the God of Abraham.
10 The rulers of the earth belong to God,
and he is highly exalted.
John 8:51-59 (Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition):
Jesus said,
Truly, truly, I say to you, if any one keeps my word, he will never see death.
The Jews said to him,
Now we know that you have a demon. Abraham died, as did the prophet; and you say, ‘If any one keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you claim to be?
Jesus answered,
If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing; it is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say that he is your God. But you have not known him; I know him. If I said, I do not know him, I should be a liar like you; but I do know him and I keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he was to see my day; he saw it and was glad.
The Jews then said to him,
You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?
Jesus said to them,
Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.
So they took up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself, and went out of the temple.
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The Collect:
Almighty God, whose Son our Savior Jesus Christ is the light of the world: Grant that your people, illumined by your Word and Sacraments, may shine with the radiance of Christ’s glory, that he may be known, worshipped, and obeyed to the ends of the earth; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who with you and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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John Marsh, in his commentary on the Johannine Gospel (Pelican Books, 1968), labels the John 8:48-59 section “Demented or Divine?” Indeed, if Jesus were not divine, he would have been demented. I grew up with the canonical Gospels, so I understand them accordingly; I take some theological propositions for granted. Yet, when I hear people relatively new to Christianity discuss these books, I hear a different take; Jesus would seem presumptuous at best and demented at worst if he were not speaking truthfully. Ideas such as the deity of Jesus are “old hat” to me, and I see no reason to look at that hat twice. I just wear the hat.
A few explanatory notes are in order:
Leviticus 24:16 calls for the stoning of a blasphemer.
Jesus referred to rabbinical interpretations of Abrahamic prophecies. The citations are Genesis 15:8-21 and 17:17.
Let us take note of the vitriol embedded in the Fourth Gospel, the last of the canonical Gospels written. The Johannine Gospel dates from a time of Jewish-Christian conflict, which Christians were losing. The Christians, then still technically Jews, were sufficiently marginalized that they referred to orthodox Jews as “the Jews.”
Now, back to our regularly scheduled programming….
The Jesus of Mark (which we read most of the time on this lectionary) is unlike the Christ of John. In Mark Jesus orders people not to say who and what he is; he maintains his Messianic Secret until the end. In John, however, he broadcasts who and what he is, even using the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew “I AM” in reference to himself. All the Gospels are theological works grounded in history. Mark, I suspect, is closer to history than is John. None of this bothers me, for I am not and have never been a biblical literalist.
Anyhow, as the authors of Hebrews and John remind us, Jesus was no ordinary sage or prophet. The author of Hebrews employs Greek philosophy to make the point that Jesus is the unblemished, sacrificial lamb. The author of John understands the crucifixion Jesus as the exaltation and glorification of Jesus. In the Johannine Gospel the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior occurs on Thursday, at the same time priests at the Temple are sacrificing animals. The point is clear: Jesus did not celebrate Passover that year; he was the Passover.
He was much more than a prophet.
And what will we do with this? As the title of this post makes clear, this is an Epiphany devotion. The theme of the season of Epiphany is taking the message of Jesus to the Gentiles. We have a great treasure in Jesus, and we need to share it, not sit on it. Even the calmest, most intellectual and well-reasoned explanation of Christianity can sound demented to someone from a different background. It might sound demented to me had I not grown up within it. Yet good catechetical pedagogy, combined with a life of faith and love of God, can prove effective in many cases. May we try, at least. We will not succeed with everybody; not even Jesus did. Yet he succeeded well enough, did he not?
Let Us Emphasize Our Common Ground and Build On It
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From Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), the hymnal of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
Isaiah 2:2-4
Psalm 122
Ephesians 4:1-6
John 17:15-23
God our Father, your Son Jesus Christ prayed that his followers might be one. Make all Christians one with him as he is one with you, so that in peace and concord we may carry to the world the message of your love, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.
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Now, for my thoughts….
We Christians have divided ourselves into competing theological and liturgical tribes since the earliest decades of the Jesus movement. For confirmation of this, read the New Testament epistles. Sometimes these divisions are silly or based on ego gratification. Other times, however, the matters are weightier. Yet the tragedy of schism remains, even after stated issues which people used to justify the schism have become moot points or ceased to points of contention. Inertia preserves a high degree of divisiveness within Christianity.
Sometimes schisms remain insurmountable. Yet this fact should not prevent Christians of good will from reaching across boundaries to identify and build upon common ground, to do something positive and for the glory of God together. I do not expect the Anabaptists and Roman Catholics to reconcile, but they can cooperate. Last Sunday afternoon I listened to a Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) radio interview with a Mennonite pastor who maintains a close faith-based relationship with nearby Catholic monks, often praying with them.
And I believe that when two or more denominations cease to have good reasons to remain separate they should open negotiations to unite organically. But when issues, such as baptismal theology, prevent a merger, the groups can still cooperate on other matters. We Christians have more in common with each other than not. May we build on that.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 11, 2010
THE FEAST OF ST. BARNABAS THE APOSTLE
THE FEAST OF THE REVEREND VERNON JOHNS, U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS PIONEER
ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS 
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