Archive for the ‘Idolatry’ Tag
Above: The Pool of Bethesda
Image in the Public Domain
Rich in Good Deeds
NOT OBSERVED IN THE SEASON AFTER THE EPIPHANY 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Zephaniah 1:1-18 or Proverbs 25:6-22
Psalm 119:73-77, 103-105
1 Timothy 6:9-21
John 5:1-18
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Idols abound. They include wealth, power, prestige, and foreign religions. Even the most well-meaning people are vulnerable to these temptations.
As we read in 1 Timothy 6, we should be rich in good deeds. As we read in Psalm 119, we should delight in the Law of God. And, as even much of Second Temple Judaism affirmed, performing a good deed on the Sabbath is acceptable.
Those who criticized Jesus for healing on the Sabbath in John 5:16f seemed not to have cared about that final detail. Sabbath laws were flexible in Second Temple Judaism, or at least in portions thereof. There were schools of Judaism. And, within each school, personal agendas informed how some people responded and reacted to various deeds on the Sabbath.
None of this should surprise us–especially Gentiles. I recall a saying from my formative years (as a United Methodist) in southern Georgia, U.S.A., in the Bible Belt:
There are Baptists, then there are Baptists.
So, may we lay aside the stereotype of Second Temple Judaism as a legalistic religion with works-based righteousness. May we do so as we follow the advice (from 1 Timothy 6) to be rich in good works. After all, one knows a tree by its fruits.
We can take nothing with us when we die. We can, at that time, however, leave a legacy of faithful, active love. We can leave a legacy of trust in God, love of God, and love of our fellow human beings. We can leave the world better than we found it. We can leave this life rich in good deeds.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 4, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE ELEVENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS
THE FEAST OF SAINT ELIZABETH ANN SETON, FOUNDRESS OF THE AMERICAN SISTERS OF CHARITY
THE FEAST OF FELIX MANZ, FIRST ANABAPTIST MARTYR, 1527
THE FEAST OF SAINTS GREGORY OF LANGRES, TERTICUS OF LANGRES, GALLUS OF CLERMONT, GREGORY OF TOURS, AVITUS I OF CLERMONT, MAGNERICUS OF TRIER, AND GAUGERICUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS
THE FEAST OF JOHANN LUDWIG FREYDT, GERMAN MORAVIAN COMPOSER AND EDUCATOR
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https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2021/01/04/devotion-for-proper-7-year-d-humes/
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/04/rich-in-good-deeds/
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Above: Jesus and the Samaritan Woman at the Well of Jacob
Image in the Public Domain
Judgment and Mercy
NOT OBSERVED IN THE SEASON AFTER THE EPIPHANY 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Amos 9:8-15 or Proverbs 22:1-23
Psalm 119:33-48
1 Timothy 6:1-8
John 4:1-42
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First, I condemn all forms of slavery at all times and places. The acceptance of slavery in 1 Timothy 6:1-2 is false doctrine.
With that matter out of the way, I focus on my main point. 1 Timothy 6:7 is correct; we came into this world with nothing. We, likewise, can take nothing with us when we die. Greed is a form of idolatry.
The reading from Proverbs 22 includes harsh words for those who oppress the poor. To oppress to the poor is to get on God’s bad side. Oppression of the poor is a topic in the Book of Amos. That practice is one of the stated causes of the fall of the northern Kingdom of Israel.
Judgment and mercy exist in balance in Amos 9. The destruction, we read, will not be thorough. Then restoration will follow. This restoration remains in future tense, given the scattering of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel.
LORD, let your mercy come upon me,
the salvation you have promised.
–Psalm 119:41, The Revised New Jerusalem Bible (2019)
Jesus knew how to use harsh language. He used none with the Samaritan woman at the well in John 4, though. He had a long conversation with a woman–a Samaritan woman. Jesus surprised even his closest associates by doing so. Christ offered grace and no judgment. Many exegetes, preachers, and Sunday School teachers have judged the woman, though. They should never have done so.
The woman at the well was different from the condemned people in Amos 9 and the false teachers in 1 Timothy 6. She was receptive to God speaking to her when she realized what was happening. That Samaritan woman gained insight. She also acquired a good name, something more desirable than great riches.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 3, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE TENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS
THE FEAST OF EDWARD CASWALL, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF EDWARD PERRONET, BRITISH METHODIST PREACHER
THE FEAST OF GLADYS AYLWARD, MISSIONARY IN CHINA AND TAIWAN
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM ALFRED PASSAVANT, SR., U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, HUMANITARIAN, AND EVANGELIST
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https://ordinarytimedevotions.wordpress.com/2021/01/03/devotion-for-proper-6-year-d-humes/
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/03/judgment-and-mercy-part-xx/
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Above: Icon of Amos
Image in the Public Domain
Mutuality in God
JANUARY 16, 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Amos 3:1-8 or Proverbs 1:1-19
Psalm 115:1-11
1 Timothy 1:1-2, 12-17
John 1:35-42
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The Humes lectionary provides two options for the First Reading. I will write about both of them.
Amos 3:1-8 includes a variation on the old saying that great responsibility accompanies great privilege. Grace is free, not cheap. One can never purchase it, but accepting it entails taking on duties. To tie Proverbs 1:1-19 into that principle, one has a duty to show love for God by doing love to one’s fellow human beings. Elsewhere in Amos, we read of greedy, exploitative people, as we do in Proverbs 1:8-19.
These men lie in wait for their own blood,
they set a trap for their own lives.
This is the fate of everyone greedy of loot:
unlawful gain takes away the life of him who acquires it.
–Proverbs 1:18-19, The New American Bible (1991)
Whatever we do to others, we do also to ourselves.
The audience in Amos 3 is collective; it is the people of Israel. To be precise, it is the people of Israel during the reigns of King Azariah (Uzziah) of Judah (785-733 B.C.E.) and King Jeroboam II of Israel (788-747 B.C.E.). The Deuteronomic theology of the Book of Amos teaches that actions have consequences. Obey the Law of Moses, please God, and reap the benefits. Alternatively, disobey the Law of Moses, displease God, and reap the negative consequences. Many of those commandments pertain to social justice, especially economic justice.
Our Western culture, with its pervasive individualism, easily overlooks collective responsibility. Politically, the Right Wing emphasizes individual responsibility. Meanwhile, the Left Wing stresses collective responsibility. Both sides err in so far as they give short shrift to or ignore either type of responsibility. Just as divine judgment and mercy exist in balance, so do individual and collective responsibility. Mutuality holds them in balance.
Psalm 115 condemns idolatry. The real idols are ideas, not objects. A statue of a god, for example, can be a work of art to display in a museum. Idolatry is about misplaced, disordered love, to go Augustinian on you, O reader. In the case of the greedy people in Proverbs 1, their idol was attachment to wealth.
The reading from 1 Timothy 1 reminds us that God embraces repentance. Remorse is an emotion that enables repentance, a series of actions.
Regardless of who wrote or dictated the First Letter to Timothy (probably not St. Paul the Apostle), St. Paul seemed unlikely to have become what he became in God. Saul of Tarsus certainly did not expect it. And, to turn to John 1:35-42, calling St. Simon “Peter,” or “Rock,” may have seemed ironic at first. But Jesus recognized potential in him. St. Simon Peter eventually grew into that potential. St. Paul the Apostle grew into his potential, as well.
If we are to grew into our potential individually, we need the help of God and other people. St. Paul had Ananias. St. Simon Peter had Jesus. Who do you have, O reader?
Likewise, if we are to grow into our potential collectively, we need the help of God and other groups of people. We live in a web of mutuality. We know this, do we not? Globalization, at least, should have taught us that the communities and nation-states can affect the fates of our communities and nation-states.
Will we work for the common good? Or will we persist in delusions of amoral rugged individualism and isolationism?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 28, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FOURTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN THE EVANGELIST (TRANSFERRED)
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/28/mutuality-in-god-v/
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Above: The Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch by the Deacon Philip, by Lambert Sustris
Image in the Public Domain
The Kingdom of God
JANUARY 9, 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Isaiah 12:1-6
Psalm 29
Acts 8:26-39
John 1:29-34
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Isaiah 12:1-6 flows from Chapter 11. The two chapters are the final section of a poem about the ideal king in a peaceful future. As elsewhere in the Bible, divine judgment and mercy remain in balance.
Psalm 29 praises God. It is also an adaptation of a hymn to Baal Peor, the Canaanite storm god. Rewriting pagan stories and texts for Jewish theological purposes was a fairly common practice. Doing so was one way of asserting the sovereignty of God and affirming faith in the one true deity. Rewriting pagan texts also constituted an argument against the original texts’ validity. In this case, rewriting a hymn in praise of Baal Peor was rebutting the legitimacy of his cultus.
Acts 8:26-39 and John 1:29-34 point to Jesus, as they should.
The ideal future remains an unfulfilled prophecy. Nevertheless, I, as a Christian, affirm that the Incarnation was a game changer. I hold that the reality of God’s presence became obvious in a way it was not previously obvious.
The presence of God is evident in many ways in our deeply flawed societies. There are no gods; there is God. God is sovereign, despite all appearances to the contrary.
May we–you, O reader, and I–keep the faith and work to make the world resemble more closely the fully realized Kingdom of God. Only God can save the world and usher in the fully realized Kingdom of God, of course. Yet we–you, O reader, and I–have a divine mandate to leave the world better than we found it.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 27, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER CHRISTMAS, YEAR B
THE THIRD DAY OF CHRISTMAS
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/27/the-kingdom-of-god-part-vii/
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This is post #550 of ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS.
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Above: Saint John the Evangelist, by Peter Paul Rubens
Image in the Public Domain
Idolatry and Tribalism
DECEMBER 5, 2021
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Genesis 1:14-25
Psalm 146
1 John 2:7-12; 3:1-3
John 1:6-13
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Genesis 1 divides the first six days of creation into two groups–the creation of generalities and domains (the first three days’ work) and the creation of the specifics or the inhabitants of those domains (the work of the fourth, fifth, and sixth days). The seventh day is the time of the creation of the sabbath. The sovereignty of God is a theme that pervades this great myth.
God also deserves much love. As the other three readings tell us, that love (or absence thereof) is manifest in how we behave toward other human beings. These other human beings also bear the image of God (Genesis 1:27). I know I am getting ahead of the continuous readings in Genesis. I am staying on topic, though.
Whoever says he is in the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness. Whoever loves his brother remains in the light, and there is nothing in him to cause a fall. Whoever hates his brother is in darkness; he walks in darkness and does not know where he is going because darkness has blinded his eyes.
–1 John 2:9-11, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
That text explains itself.
According to a story that may be apocryphal, the elderly St. John the Evangelist was due to visit a congregation somewhere. The members gathered in great anticipation on the appointed day. They watched as men carried the infirmed apostle into the space and sat him down in front of the congregation. Then St. John said,
My children, love one another.
Immediately, he motioned for the men to carry him out. One member of the congregation ran after St. John and asked, in so many words,
That’s all you came here to say?
The apostle replied,
When you have done that, I will tell you more.
Loving one another can be very difficult. Deciding to love one another can also prove challenging, albeit easier than effectively acting on the goal. We need grace to succeed, of course. Yet grace requires our desire to love one another. Free will and grace are partners.
I write this post during a period of prolonged and intensified political polarization. Even the definition of objective reality, as in X caused Y, and Z happened, is often contentious. More so than in the past, many disagreements start at the point of assuming that those who differ from one are bad, if not evil. The more generous judgment that that those who disagree are probably good yet misinformed and misguided is increasingly rare.
I notice this unfortunate pattern in topics that range far beyond science, religion, and politics. I detect this regarding science fiction (one of my favorite topics), too.
Do you enjoy that series? Do you not enjoy that movie? What kind of person are you? You certainly aren’t a real fan. I’m a real fan!
Many criteria can define tribalism.
Whenever we erect idols, whether tangible or intangible, we set ourselves up for this. We do this to ourselves and each other. We can choose never to do this. We can also choose to cease and desist from doing this. We can opt to repent of our idolatry and tribalism.
May we do so. May we love God. May we love ourselves and each other.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 24, 2020 COMMON ERA
CHRISTMAS EVE
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/24/idolatry-and-tribalism/
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Above: Job and His Alleged Friends
Image in the Public Domain
The Idol of Certainty
FEBRUARY 4, 2024
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Job 8:8-22 or Deuteronomy 11:18-28
Psalm 42
James 2:18-26
Mark 2:1-12
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In the perfect moral universe of Bildad the Shuhite and those who think like him, piety is a shield against misfortune. This is an attitude present in parts of the Book of Psalms. That book also contradicts the attitude, however, for certain psalms acknowledge that innocent people suffer.
Jesus, without ignoring that the suffering of many resulted partially from their sins, did not state that all human suffering resulted from the sins of the suffering. His sinless life testified to a different reality, that sometimes we suffer because of the sins of others, and piety sometimes leads to persecution and/or death.
Certainty can become an idol, as in the cases of Bildad (Job 8) and the accusers of Jesus (Mark 2). Idols abound; certainty is one of the most popular ones. I refer to false, misplaced certainty, not to confirmed knowledge, such as 2 + 2 = 4. No, I refer to certainty that fills voids meant for faith in God. The human psyche craves certainty. Unfortunately, false certainty leads to conspiracy theories, to other denial of reality, and to idolatry. In reality, what we do not know outweighs what we do know, and humility is in order; certainty be damned much of the time.
May we walk the path of faith in Christ without ignoring that of which we can objectively be certain. May God grant us the wisdom to recognize the difference between matters in which we need faith and those in which we can reasonably have certainty.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 15, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHN ELLERTON, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF CARL HEINRICH VON BOGATSKY, HUNGARIAN-GERMAN LUTHERAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF DOROTHY FRANCES BLOMFIELD GURNEY, ENGLISH POET AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT LANDELINUS OF VAUX, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT; SAINT AUBERT OF CAMBRAI, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; SAINT URSMAR OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND MISSIONARY BISHOP; AND SAINTS DOMITIAN, HADELIN, AND DODO OF LOBBES, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2019/06/15/honest-faith-versus-false-certainty-ii/
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Above: St. Joseph, by William Dyce
Image in the Public Domain
Proclaiming Jesus the Son of God
DECEMBER 18, 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Isaiah 7:10-17
Isaiah 12 (at least verses 2-6)
Romans 1:1-7
Matthew 1:18-24
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Ahaz, King of Judah (reigned 743/735-727/715 B.C.E.) was hardly a pious monotheist. In fact, he practiced idolatry openly. 2 Kings 16 and 2 Chronicles 28 gave him scathing reviews. Ahaz, confronted with an alliance of Israel and Aram against him, chose to rely on Assyria, not God. That was a really bad decision. Nevertheless, God sent a sign of deliverance; a young woman of the royal court would have a baby boy. God would not only protect Judah but judge it also.
Surely God is our salvation, but how often do we take the easy way out and not trust in God? When God arrives in the form of a helpless infant, as in Matthew 1, one might not recognize the divine presence. What we expect to see might prevent us from seeing what is in front of us for what it is. God approaches us in many guises, many of them unexpected.
At first reading Romans 1:4 might seem surprising, perhaps even similar to the Adoptionist heresy.
…and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spirit of holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord….
—The New Revised Standard Version (1989)
One might think of John 1:1-18, which declares that the Son is co-eternal with the Father. One might also ponder the baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3:13-17; Mark 1:9-11; Luke 3:21-22; John 1:32-34) as well as the preceding testimony of St. John the Baptist in each Gospel. One might even recall the Transfiguration (Mark 9:2-8; Matthew 17:1-13; Luke 9:28-36).
The proclamation mentioned in Romans 1:4 need not contradict those other proclamations. No, one should interpret it as a subsequent proclamation that Jesus was the Son of God. One should notice the theological context in Romans 1: Easter as the beginning and foretaste of the prophesied age of divine rule on Earth.
“Kingdom of God” has more than one meaning in the New Testament. Usually, though, it indicates divine rule on Earth. This kingdom is evident in the ministry of Jesus in the Gospels, written after the death of St. Paul the Apostle. The Kingdom of God is both present and future; it is here, yet not fully.
As we, being intellectually honest readers of scripture, acknowledge the existence of certain disagreements regarding the dawning of the age of God, according to St. Paul and the authors of the canonical Gospels, may we also never cease to trust in God, regardless of how much evil runs rampant and how much time has elapsed since the times of Jesus and St. Paul. God keeps a schedule we do not see.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 15, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT ZACHARY OF ROME, POPE
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JAN ADALBERT BALICKI AND LADISLAUS FINDYSZ, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIESTS IN POLAND
THE FEAST OF OZORA STEARNS DAVIS, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, THEOLOGIAN, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF VETHAPPAN SOLOMON, APOSTLE TO THE NICOBAR ISLANDS
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2018/03/15/proclaiming-jesus-the-son-of-god/
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Above: Icon of the Second Coming
Image in the Public Domain
Preparation for the Second Coming
NOVEMBER 27, 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Isaiah 2:1-5
Psalm 122
Romans 13:11-14
Matthew 24:36-44
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The thematic unity of the pericopes is evident. One reads mainly of the future, when God will engage in creative destruction then set the world right. In the meantime, one reads, one has moral imperatives to follow.
The pairing of Isaiah 2:-15 and Psalm 122 works well. In Isaiah 2, Gentiles make pilgrimage to Jerusalem in the future; they seek instruction. In that future God also settles disputes nonviolently. In Psalm 122 Jews make pilgrimage to Jerusalem in what was then their present. If one continues to read Isaiah 2 after the fifth verse, one finds a text of divine judgment against the proud and the arrogant, against those who commit idolatry, against those who glorify humankind, not God. It is a message as pertinent in 2018, when I write this post, as it was during the lifetime of First Isaiah.
We read in Matthew that nobody–not even Jesus–knows when the Second Coming will occur, but that one should, for one’s sake, remain alert and be prepared. It is obvious from Romans 13 that St. Paul the Apostle, in 56-57 C.E., expected that event to occur sooner rather than later relative to his present day. Not one of we mere mortals knows any more about the actual timing of the Second Coming than St. Paul did, but his advice to live honorably is always germane.
This is a devotion for the First Sunday of Advent, a season with eschatological overtones and concerned with preparation for the coming of Christ. Given the fact that Advent precedes the season of Christmas, one might expect an emphasis on the First Coming. There is some of that, yes. Nevertheless, we ought never to forget the aspect of the preparation for the Second Coming, as is evident in this set of readings.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 14, 2018 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF FANNIE LOU HAMER, PROPHET OF FREEDOM
THE FEAST OF ALFRED LISTER PEACE, ORGANIST IN ENGLAND AND SCOTLAND
THE FEAST OF HARRIET KING OSGOOD MUNGER, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF NEHEMIAH GOREH, INDIAN ANGLICAN PRIEST AND THEOLOGIAN
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2018/03/14/preparation-for-the-second-coming/
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Above: A Checklist
Image in the Public Domain
Compassion, Not Checklists
JANUARY 2, 2022
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Isaiah 57:14-19
Psalm 106:47-48
1 John 3:11-14a; 4:1-6
Luke 1:1-4
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The assigned readings for this Sunday, taken together, speak of the importance of knowing God. Those who love God keep divine commandments, or at least attempt to do so. One can succeed by grace, fortunately. The faithful who receive the crown of martyrdom are still more fortunate than those who trust in idols.
Discerning divine commandments does seem difficult sometimes. As I read 1 John 3:14b-24, I find some guidance regarding that topic:
- Do not hate.
- Love each other so much as to be willing to die for each other.
- Help each other in financial and material ways.
- Do not mistake lip service for sincerity.
Those instructions are concrete, not abstract. And, by acting accordingly, we demonstrate the presence of the Holy Spirit within ourselves.
I notice the emphasis on compassion, not checklists. Legalism is a powerful temptation. Indeed, many who fall into that trap do so out of the sincere desire to honor God. Yet they wind up fixating on minor details and forgetting compassion frequently instead of remembering the big picture: compassion, such as that of the variety that Jesus modeled all the way to the cross.
Living compassionately is far more rigorous a standard than is keeping a moral checklist.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 30, 2017 COMMON ERA
THE THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF JAMES MONTGOMERY, HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHN ROSS MACDUFF AND GEORGE MATHESON, SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIAN MINISTERS AND AUTHORS
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2017/04/30/compassion-not-checklists/
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Above: The Dream of Nebuchadnezzar
Image in the Public Domain
Acknowledging One’s Complete Dependence on God
DECEMBER 3, 2023
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy Scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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Daniel 2:24, 31-49
Psalm 38:15-22
Revelation 3:14-22
Mark 11:12-14, 20-25
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For in you, O LORD, have I fixed my hope;
you will answer me, O Lord my God.
For I said, “Do not let them rejoice at my expense,
those who gloat over me when my foot slips.
Truly, I am on the verge of falling,
and my pain is always with me.
I will confess my iniquity
and be sorry for my sin.
Those who are my enemies without cause are mighty,
and many in number are those who wrongfully hate me.
Those who repay evil for good slander me,
because I follow the course that is right.
O LORD, do not forsake me;
be not far from me, O my God.
Make haste to help me,
O Lord of my salvation.
–Psalm 38:15-22, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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At first glance the readings David Ackerman has appointed for the First Sunday of Advent do not fit well together. However, upon further reflection, one might realize that they do. The message is that we–individuals, institutions, societies–ought to rely on God, not on our own devices.
In David 2 we have an interpretation of a dream. There are four successive empires–traditionally Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian, Median, Persian, and Macedonian–of declining value. The fifth in the sequence is the divided empire of the late Alexander the Great. At the end of that sequence, according to Daniel 2, God’s reign on earth will commence.
O, if only it had!
The Roman Empire is the power in Mark 11. Jesus curses a fig tree for producing no figs. The text notes that this happened outside of fig season. The story, however, is symbolic. It follows directly from the Triumphal Entry of Jesus and wraps around the cleansing of the Temple. The fig tree relates to the Temple. Just as the fig tree is producing just leaves and not small green figs (as it ought to do), the Temple is barren of anything of spiritual worth. The fig tree is also a recurring Biblical symbol of Israel itself, as in Jeremiah 8:13, Hosea 9:10, Joel 1:7, and Micah 7:1. One can therefore reasonably read the cursing of the fig tree as a scathing critique of the religious life of Israel.
When we turn to the Church at Laodicea in Revelation 3 we find another scathing critique. The congregation relies on its wealth, not on God, who literally vomits (although many translations render the verb “spits”) that church out. The church has succumbed to the temptation to convert material wealth into an idol.
The text from Psalm 38 explains itself.
In Beyond the Lectionary (2013) Ackerman emphasizes
the importance of awakening the insights that God provides
(page 8).
Those insights tell us both individually and collectively not to trust in military forces, in governments, in wealth, or in imagined righteousness when we ought to acknowledge our complete dependence on God. To do anything other than to rely completely on God is to commit idolatry. That is a difficult and strong statement, I know. I also acknowledge that I have long been guilty of this idolatry and continue to be so. I confess this sin here, in this post, readily. Fortunately, grace abounds, so all of us have hope.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 28, 2017 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT PETER CHANEL, PROTOMARTYR OF OCEANIA
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2017/04/28/acknowledging-ones-complete-dependence-on-god/
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ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS 
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