Archive for the ‘John 1’ Tag
Above: Archaia Korinthos, Greece
Image Source = Google Earth
Embodied Justice
JANUARY 14, 2024
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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1 Samuel 3:1-10
Psalm 67
1 Corinthians 6:12-20
John 1:43-51
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Lord God, you showed your glory and
led many to faith by the works of your Son.
As he brought gladness and healing to his people,
grant us these same gifts and lead us also to perfect faith in him,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 15
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Almighty and eternal God,
Governor of all things in heaven and on earth,
mercifully hear the prayers of your people,
and grant us your peace in our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 22
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Nathanael said to [Jesus], “How do you know me?” Jesus answered and said to him, “Before Philip called you, I saw you under the fig tree.”
–John 1:48, The New American Bible–Revised Edition
I begin with the proverbial low-hanging fruit: What was amazing about Jesus seeing St. Nathanael sitting under a fig tree? Father Raymond E. Brown, in the first volume of his two-volume commentary on the Gospel of John, lists one interpretation after another in a long endnote. Then he concludes:
We are far from exhausting the suggestions, all of which are pure speculation.
I do not presume to know more about the Gospel of John than Father Raymond E. Brown did.
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We all belong to God. We all need to serve God. Some of us may be so fortunate as (a) to know how to do that in circumstances, and (b) to be able to do that. If one continues to read after 1 Samuel 3:10, one finds that God sometimes tells us uncomfortable truths. Speaking these truths–even in love and tact–may be awkward.
The reading from the First Letter to the Corinthians requires context. Pagan temple prostitution did occur in ancient Corinth. And, given Platonic philosophy regarding the body and the soul, some Corinthian Christians may have excused sexual immorality (as with pagan temple prostitutes) as being justifiable. If the body was only a hindrance to the soul, why not?
Yet what if the body is not a hindrance to the soul? In Hebrew thought, continued in Pauline epistles, the Greek philosophical separation of body and soul does not exist. Rather, “soul” means “essential self,” one with the body. Furthermore, in Pauline theology, the body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19). The body, then, deserves great respect.
Without falling into the trap of fun-damn-mentalism and the excesses of Pietism and Puritanism, I affirm this timeless principle. We, who are in the flesh, serve God with our bodies and how we use them properly. How we treat others, in the flesh, is of great spiritual and moral importance. Whatever good we do to others in the flesh, we do to Jesus. Whatever good we do not to others in the flesh, we do not do to Jesus. Whatever evil we commit to others in the flesh, we do to Jesus.
I do not understand John 1:48, but I grasp this point well. It troubles me, for sins of omission are as real as sins of commission. Pray we me:
God of all mercy,
we confess that we have sinned against you,
opposing your will in our lives.
We have opposed your goodness in each other,
in ourselves, and in the world you have created.
We repent of the evil that enslaves us,
the evil we have done,
and the evil done on our behalf.
Forgive, restore, and strengthen us
through our Savior Jesus Christ;
that we may abide in your love
and serve only your will. Amen.
—Enriching Our Worship (1998), 19
The line about “the evil done on our behalf” indicts me every time. What response does that line elicit from you, O reader?
John 1:51 echoes Genesis 28:12 and reminds us that a better world is possible. Heaven and Earth can be one by divine action. In the meantime, may we, by grace, act both collectively and individually to leave the Earth better and made more just than we found it. The Golden Rule requires that of us.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 9, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE FOURTEENTH DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF HARRIET TUBMAN, U.S. ABOLITIONIST
THE FEAST OF EMANUEL CRONENWETT, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, HYMN WRITER, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF SAINT FRANCES OF ROME, FOUNDER OF THE COLLATINES
THE FEAST OF JOHANN PACHELBEL, GERMAN LUTHERN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT PACIAN OF BARCELONA, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF BARCELONA
THE FEAST OF SAINT SOPHRONIUS OF JERUSALEM, ROMAN CATHOLIC PATRIARCH OF JERUSALEM
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Oak Tree in the Midlands of England, 1865-1890
Image in the Public Domain
Divine Comfort
DECEMBER 17, 2023
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11
Luke 1:46b-55
1 Thessalonians 5:16-24
John 1:6-8, 19-28
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Almighty God, you once called John the Baptist
to give witness to the coming of your Son and to prepare his way.
Grant us, your people, the wisdom to see your purpose today
and the openness to hear your will,
that we may witness to Christ’s coming and so prepare his way;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 13
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Almighty God, through John the Baptist, the forerunner of Christ,
you once proclaimed salvation;
now grant that we may know this salvation and serve you
in holiness and righteousness all the days of our lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 13
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The emphasis in three of the four readings this week is on comfort.
- The context in (Third) Isaiah 61:1-3, 10-11 is the disappointment of many Jewish former exiles regarding the condition of their ancestral homeland.
- The readings from the New Testament share the context of the first century of the Common Era. The Magnificat blends comfort and castigation–comfort for those who need it and castigation for those who deserve it. Divine judgment and mercy remain in balance. As I have read, the purpose of the Gospel is to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. That saying is consistent with the Gospel of Luke, with its theme of reversal of fortune. Indeed, comfort for the afflicted is frequently an affliction for those afflicting them.
Given that the emphasis this week is divine comfort, may we dwell there, too. May we frolic in it and thank God for it. And may we ponder how God is calling us to function as agents of divine comfort. How much better would the world be if more people went out of their way to comfort others instead of ignoring or afflicting them? Receiving grace imposes the obligation to extend it to others. Grace is free, not cheap.
So, O reader, pay attention and look around. How is God calling you to extend comfort?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 1, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE EIGHTH DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANNA OF OXENHALL AND HER FAITHFUL DESCENDANTS, SAINT WENNA THE QUEEN, SAINT NON, SAINT SAMSON OF DOL, SAINT CYBI, AND SAINT DAVID OF WALES
THE FEAST OF EDWARD DEARLE, ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF GEORGE WISHART, SCOTTISH CALVINIST REFORMER AND MARTYR, 1546; AND WALTER MILNE, SCOTTISH PROTESTANT MARTYR
THE FEAST OF RICHARD REDHEAD, ANGLICAN COMPOSER, ORGANIST, AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROGER LEFORT, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF BOURGES
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Icon of Sts. Simon Peter and Michael the Archangel
Image in the Public Domain
Trust in God
JANUARY 15, 2023
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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Isaiah 49:1-6
Psalm 40:1-12 (LBW) or Psalm 92:1-5 (LW)
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-41
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Lord God, you showed your glory and
led many to faith by the works of your Son.
As he brought gladness and healing to his people,
grant us these same gifts and lead us also to perfect faith in him,
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 15
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Almighty and eternal God,
Governor of all things in heaven and on earth,
mercifully hear the prayers of your people,
and grant us your peace in our days;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 22
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We can trust God because of what God has done. In Hebrew theology, God is like what God has done. Consider many texts of the Hebrew Bible, O reader; they recount what God has done then they encourage people to trust God.
What has God done in these readings?
- God has arranged for the Babylonian Exile to end.
- God has protected the people of Israel during that exile.
- God has made the people of Israel a light to the nations.
- God has healed the author of Psalm 40 from a serious illness.
- God has made the author of Psalm 92 happy with His work.
- God has enriched the lives of the Corinthian Christians whom St. Paul the Apostle began to criticize in 1 Corinthians 1:10.
- God has sent the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, incarnate as Jesus of Nazareth.
What items will you, O reader, add to the list of what God has done?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 19, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SARGENT SHRIVER AND HIS WIFE, EUNICE KENNEDY SHRIVER, HUMANITARIANS
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALESSANDRO VALIGNANO, ITALIAN JESUIT MISSIONARY PRIEST IN THE FAR EAST
THE FEAST OF CHARLES WINFRED DOUGLAS, EPISCOPAL PRIEST, LITURGIST, MUSICOLOGIST, LINGUIST, POET, HYMN TRANSLATOR, AND ARRANGER
THE FEAST OF HENRY TWELLS, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: The Tabernacle
Image in the Public Domain
Precious to God
NOT OBSERVED IN 2023
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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Isaiah 61:10-62:3
Psalm 147:13-21 (LBW) or Psalm 147:12-20 (LW)
Ephesians 1:3-6, 15-18
John 1:1-18
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Almighty God, you have filled us with the
new light of the Word who became flesh and lived among us.
Let the light of our faith shine in all that we do;
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), 15
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O God, our Maker and Redeemer,
who wonderfully created and in the incarnation of your Son
yet more wondrously restored our human nature,
grant that we may ever be alive in him who made himself to be like us;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with
you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 19
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The people of God are precious to God. All people are precious to God, of course. I focus on the people of God in this post because that is the axis of the through line in the assigned readings.
The readings from Isaiah and the Psalms, in the context of the Babylonian Exile, speak of the vindication of the Jewish exiles. Reading the first portion of Psalm 147 augments this theme.
Ephesians 1:5 refers to God having predestined certain people through Jesus Christ “for adoption toward him.” Adopted children of God receive an inheritance. The audience in the Epistle to the Ephesians was Gentile Christians.
John 1:14, in the Greek text (not necessarily in most English translations) speaks of the Word (Logos) of God–Jesus–pitching a tent in humankind. This tent is the Tent of the Tabernacle (Exodus 25:8-9). John 1:14 contains echoes of Joel 3:7; Zechariah 2:10; Ezekiel 43:7; Sirach 24:8; and other passages.
When the Prologue proclaims that the Word made his dwelling among men, we are being told that the flesh of Jesus Christ is the new localization of the ancient Tabernacle. The Gospel will present Jesus as the replacement of the Temple (ii.19-22), which is a variation of the same theme.
—Raymond E. Brown, The Gospel According to John I-XII (1966), 33
The verb meaning “to pitch a tent” or “to dwell” occurs also in Revelation 7:15 (to refer to God’s presence in Heaven) and in Revelation 21:3:
He will dwell with them, and they shall be his people.
God is present among us. Do we notice? God may seem thoroughly camouflaged, given the way the world is. Yet God, who has long been present, will not depart. People are precious to God. Do we notice? Do we consider others precious to God? Do we think of ourselves as precious to God?
How we think of ourselves and others dictates how we treat others. This underpins the Golden Rule. This also underpins mutuality, a Biblical virtue.
So, how do we think of ourselves and others?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 16, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE SECOND SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROBERTO DE NOBOLI, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARY IN INDIA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BERARD AND HIS COMPANIONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS IN MOROCCO, 1220
THE FEAST OF EDMUND HAMILTON SEARS, U.S. UNITARIAN MINISTER, HYMN WRITER, AND BIBLICAL SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF EDWARD BUNNETT, ANGLICAN ORGANIST AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT JUANA MARIA CONDESA LLUCH, FOUNDER OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE HANDMAIDS OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION, PROTECTRESS OF WORKERS
THE FEAST OF TIMOTHY RICHARD MATTHEWS, ANGLICAN PRIEST, ORGANIST, AND HYMN TUNE COMPOSER
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Annunciation to the Shepherds, by Rembrandt van Rijn
Image in the Public Domain
Divine Audacity
DECEMBER 24-25, 2023
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According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
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First Service (Christmas Eve)
Isaiah 9:2-7
Psalm 96
Titus 2:11-14
Luke 2:1-20
Second Service (Christmas Dawn)
Isaiah 52:7-10
Psalm 97 (LBW) or Psalm 2 (LW)
Hebrews 1:1-9
John 1:1-14
Third Service (Christmas Day)
Isaiah 62:10-12
Psalm 98
Titus 3:4-7
Luke 2:1-20
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Almighty God, you made this holy night shine with the brightness of the true Light.
Grant that here on earth we may walk in the light of Jesus’ presence
and in the last day wake to the brightness of his glory;
through your only 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), 14
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Almighty God, you have made yourself known in your Son, Jesus, redeemer of the world.
We pray that his birth as a human child will set us free from the old slavery of our sin;
through 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), 14
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O God, as you make us glad by the yearly festival of the birth of your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ,
grant that we, who joyfully receive him as our Redeemer,
may with sure confidence behold him when he comes to be our judge;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 16
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The Christian observance of Christmas began in the West, in the 300s. At Rome, by 336, December 25 had become the beginning of the church year. Pope St. Gregory I “the Great” (d. 604) wrote of three Christmas Masses–at St. Mary Major, at midnight; at St. Anastasia’s Church, at dawn; and at St. Peter’s, during the day.
Luke 2:1-20 is not historical. I, as a student of history, cannot refute the evidence for this conclusion. However, I embrace the prose poetry of Luke 2:1-20, for it speaks of a great truth: Jesus, not the Emperor Augustus, was the Son of God and the savior of the world, regardless of what the Roman government and coinage claimed.
I have the sources and background to parce all the assigned readings. Yet I choose not to do so in this post. Instead, O reader, I invite you to frolic in divine audacity, evident in the incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity as a baby (however that worked). I invite you, O reader, to frolic in divine audacity, which continues to influence lives and societies for the better. I also invite you, O reader, to frolic in the mystery of divine love, to feel comfortable leaving the mystery mysterious, and to respond favorably to God daily, in gratitude.
Merry Christmas!
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 9, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY: THE BAPTISM OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF JULIA CHESTER EMERY, UPHOLDER OF MISSIONS
THE FEAST OF EMILY GREENE BALCH, U.S. QUAKER SOCIOLOGIST, ECONOMIST, AND PEACE ACTIVIST
THE FEAST OF GENE M. TUCKER, UNITED METHODIST MINISTER AND BIBLICAL SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF JOHANN JOZEF IGNAZ VON DÖLLINGER, DISSDENT AND EXCOMMUNICATED GERMAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, THEOLOGIAN, AND HISTORIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT PHILIP II OF MOSCOW, METROPOLITAN OF MOSCOW AND ALL RUSSIA, AND MARTYR, 1569
THE FEAST OF THOMAS CURTIS CLARK, U.S. DISCIPLES OF CHRIST EVANGELIST, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Saint Bartholomew, by Antonio Veneziano
Image in the Public Domain
Salvation and Damnation
JANUARY 23, 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 5:6-15 or Proverbs 1:20-33
Psalm 115:12-18
1 Timothy 2:1-15
John 1:43-51
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Without getting lost on a side trip through cultural context in 1 Timothy 2, I focus on the core, unifying theme this week: We reap what we sow.
Now they must eat the fruit of their own way,
and with their own devices be glutted.
For the self-will of the simple kills them,
the smugness of fools destroys them.
But he who obeys me dwells in security,
in peace, without fear of harm.
–Proverbs 1:33, The New American Bible (1991)
The crucifixion of Jesus, the blood of the martyrs, and the suffering of the righteous contradicts the last two lines. O, well. The Book of Proverbs is excessively optimistic sometimes. The Book of Ecclesiastes corrects that excessive optimism.
Righteousness is no guarantee against suffering in this life. Nevertheless, we will reap what we sow. Some of the reaping must wait until the afterlife, though.
The New Testament readings point to Jesus, as they should. 1 Timothy gets into some cultural details that do not reflect the reality of Athens, Georgia, in December 2020. I denounce the male chauvinism evident in 1 Timothy 1:9-15. That sexism is of its time and place. I focus instead on God desiring that people find salvation. They do not, of course. Many of them are like the disobedient people in Amos 5 and Proverbs 1.
The divine mandate of economic justice present in Amos 5 remains relevant. It is a mandate consistent with the teachings of Jesus and the ethos of Second Temple Judaism. That divine mandate, built into the Law of Moses, is crucial in Covenantal Nomism. According to Covenantal Nomism, salvation is via grace–birth into the covenant. One drops out of the covenant by consistently and willfully neglecting the ethical demands of the covenant.
In other words, damnation is via works and salvation is via grace.
The reading from John 1 requires some attempt at an explanation. The parts of John 1:35-43 that need to be clear are clear. But, after consulting learned commentaries, I still have no idea what amazed St. Bartholomew/Nathanael the Apostle about Jesus seeing him under a fig tree. I recall having read very educated guesses, though. The crucial aspect of that story is the call to follow Jesus. Also, John 1:43 links Jacob’s Ladder/Staircase/Ramp (Genesis 28:10-17) to the crucifixion (“lifting up”) of Jesus. The Johannine theme of the exaltation of Christ being his crucifixion occurs in Chapter 1, too. The crucifixion of Jesus was the gate of Heaven, according to John 1:43.
That gate is sufficiently narrow to exclude those who exclude themselves. Those who carry with them the luggage of bribery cannot enter. Those who haul along the bags of exploitation of the poor cannot pass. No, those who exclude themselves have done injustice to God and Jesus while exploiting “the least of these.” Those who have excluded themselves must eat the fruit of their own way.
C. S. Lewis wrote that the doors to Hell are locked from the inside.
Think about that, O reader.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 29, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FIFTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS
THE FEAST OF THE HOLY INNOCENTS (TRANSFERRED)
THE FEAST OF JOHN BURNETT MORRIS, SR., EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND WITNESS FOR CIVIL RIGHTS
THE FEAST OF PHILIPP HEINRICH MOLTHER, GERMAN MORAVIAN MINISTER, BISHOP, COMPOSER, AND HYMN TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF SAINT THOMAS BECKET, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, AND MARTYR, 1170
THE FEAST OF THOMAS COTTERRILL ENGLISH PRIEST, HYMN WRITER, AND LITURGIST
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/29/salvation-and-damnation-part-ii/
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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: Icon of St. John the Baptist
Image in the Public Domain
God With Us
DECEMBER 19, 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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Zechariah 2:10-13 (Protestant and Anglican)/Zechariah 2:14-17 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Psalm 122
1 John 5:1-11
John 1:19-28
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The readings from Zechariah and the Psalms overlap thematically. First Zechariah (Chapters 1-8) is a section concerned with the rebuilding of of the Jewish community after the return from the Babylonian Exile. The legitimization of the Second Temple is a major theme in support of that goal. In the context of the establishment of an ideal Zion, we read that God will dwell in the midst of the people.
First Zechariah also overlaps with First John thematically. Both agree that love of God entails keeping divine commandments. One may think also of another verse:
If you love me, you will keep my commandments.
–John 14:15, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
In our scheduled portion of the Gospel of John, we read of St. John the Baptist pointing to Jesus, not himself. This is a good reading to pair with the verses from Zechariah 2. God has come to dwell among the people.
God still dwells among us. The Holy Spirit is present, of course. God also works through people. The face of Jesus someone may see today may be your face, O reader. Likewise, the face of Jesus I see today may be someone in public, as we go about our lives. God dwells among us. We will recognize that truth if we know where to look.
May the image of God in you, O reader, greet the image of God in those around you.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 26, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE SECOND DAY OF CHRISTMAS
THE FEAST OF SAINT STEPHEN, DEACON AND MARTYR
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/26/god-with-us-part-vi/
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Above: Detail from The Creation of Adam, by Michelangelo Buonarroti
Image in the Public Domain
Respecting the Image of God in Others
DECEMBER 12, 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 1:26-2:3
Psalm 24
1 John 4:1-21
John 1:14-18
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Genesis 1:26f tells us that human beings bear the image of God. This is not a physical description. No, the meaning of of “image of God” is profound.
Dr. Richard Elliott Friedman, a Jewish scholar of the Bible, tells us:
Whatever it means, though, it implies that humans are understood here to share in the divine in a way that a lion or cow does not….The paradox, inherent in the divine-human relationship, is that only humans have some element of the divine, and only humans would, by their very nature, aspier to the divine, yet God regularly communicates with them means of commands. Although made in the image of God, they remain subordinates. In biblical terms, that would not bother a camel or a dove. It would bother humans a great deal.
—Commentary on the Torah, with a New English Translation and the Hebrew Text (2001), 12
The commandment to do love to each other, especially the vulnerable and the marginalized, has long been a controversial order. That this has been and remains so speaks ill of people.
Dr. Robert D. Miller, II, a professor at The Catholic University of America, and a translator of The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011), adds more to a consideration to the image of God. The Hebrew word of “image” is tselem. It literally means “idol.”
When Genesis 1 says that humanity is the tselem of God, it’s saying if you want to relate to God, relate to your fellow man?
—Understanding the Old Testament–Course Guidebook (Chantilly, VA: The Great Courses, 2019), 9
Biblical authors from a wide span of time hit us over the head, so to speak, with this message. If we do not understand it yet, we must be either dense or willfully ignorant.
John 1 offers us the flip side of Genesis 1: The Second Person of the Trinity outwardly resembles us. Moreover, as one adds other parts of the New Testament, one gets into how Jesus, tempted yet without sin, can identify with us and help us better because of experiences as Jesus of Nazareth, in the flesh. The theology of the Incarnation, with Jesus being fully human and fully divine, is profound and mysterious. I know the history of Christian theology well enough to understand that Trinitarian heresies originated with attempts to explain the Trinity rationally. I prefer to relish the mystery of the Trinity.
We bear the intangible image of God. Jesus bore the physical image of human beings. We reach out for God, who reaches out to us. These are thoughts worthy of every day of the year, but especially during Advent and Christmas.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 25, 2020 COMMON ERA
CHRISTMAS DAY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/12/25/respecting-the-image-of-god-in-others-part-iii/
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ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS 
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