Archive for the ‘Psalm 99’ Tag
Above: The Transfiguration
Image in the Public Domain
Judgment and Mercy
FEBRUARY 14, 2021
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Malachi 3:19-24/4:1-6
Psalm 99
2 Corinthians 3:12-4:2
Luke 9:18-36
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
How well can we understand the judgment and mercy of God? Christianity dwells on divine mercy yet the New Testament contains plenty of judgment. Need I remind anyone of Revelation? Furthermore, anger and fantasies of violence recur throughout the Psalms. We read of the Day of the LORD in Malachi. In that passage we read, according to TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985), that the faithful will
trample the wicked to a pulp.
Who do we say God is? Who do we say Jesus is? We cannot escape all spiritual veils, for we know in part and carry cultural blinders. Yet we can, by grace, recognize Jesus sufficiently to follow him to Jerusalem, so to speak.
God will tend to judgment and mercy.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 22, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FOURTH SUNDAY IN LENT, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT DEOGRATIAS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF CARTHAGE
THE FEAST OF EMMANUEL MOURNIER, PERSONALIST PHILOSOPHER
THE FEAST OF JAMES DE KOVEN, EPISCOPAL PRIEST
THE FEAST OF THOMAS HUGHES, BRITISH SOCIAL REFORMER AND MEMBER OF PARLIAMENT
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM EDWARD HICKSON, ENGLISH MUSIC EDUCATOR AND SOCIAL REFORMER
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/22/judgment-and-mercy-part-xvi/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: The Vision of Cornelius the Centurion, by Gerbrand van den Eeckhout
Image in the Public Domain
God’s Surprises
FEBRUARY 24-26, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Holy God, mighty and immortal, you are beyond our knowing,
yet we see your glory in the face of Jesus Christ.
Transform us into the likeness of your Son,
who renewed our humanity so that we may share in his divinity,
Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit,one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 26
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Deuteronomy 9:1-5 (Thursday)
Deuteronomy 9:6-14 (Friday)
Deuteronomy 9:15-24 (Saturday)
Psalm 99 (All Days)
Acts 3:11-16 (Thursday)
Acts 10:1-8 (Friday)
Luke 10:21-24 (Saturday)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The LORD is King;
let the people tremble;
he is enthroned upon the cherubim;
let the earth shake.
–Psalm 99:1, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The ways in which God works frequently surprise many people. Declaring the Hebrews, who rebelled against God repeatedly, to be the Chosen People was one example. Working through St. Simon Peter, an impetuous man, and St. Cornelius the Centurion, a Roman soldier, were two more examples. The Incarnation of the Second Person of the Trinity as Jesus of Nazareth was unique. And what about hiding wonders
from the learned and the clever and revealing them to little children?
–Luke 10:21b, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
God chooses to work in ways, many of which surprise or scandalize many mere mortals. Certain heroic figures in the Hebrew Bible were also scoundrels. Oblivious Apostles in the Gospels became great leaders of nascent Christianity. The circumstances of our Lord and Savior’s conception and birth led to decades of whispering behind his back and to his face. Some Gentiles were closer to God than certain prominent Jews. Standard labels might not apply when God is acting. If we have spiritual and/or emotional difficulty with that reality, we need to confess that sin to God, to apologize, and to repent, by grace.
Simply put, if one is St. Simon Peter in an analogy, who is the St. Cornelius whose invitation will lead to an epiphany. And is one willing to have an epiphany?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 28, 2015 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS SIMON AND JUDE, APOSTLES AND MARTYRS
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2015/10/28/gods-surprises-2/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, Covington, Georgia, August 28, 2011
Image Source = Bill Monk, Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta
Job and John, Part XII: Taking Offense at God
FEBRUARY 18 and 19, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 everlasting 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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Job 13:13-28 (February 18)
Job 14:1-22 (February 19)
Psalm 51 (Morning–February 18)
Psalm 54 (Morning–February 19)
Psalms 85 and 47 (Evening–February 18)
Psalms 28 and 99 (Evening–February 19)
John 6:22-40 (February 18)
John 6:41-59 (February 19)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Job argued that God was omnipotent and was, in his case, abusing power. His alleged friends agreed with him that God was omnipotent yet insisted that there was no abuse of power, for Job must have deserved such grave suffering. Jesus, in John 6, spoke of his flesh as being
the living bread which has come down from heaven…for the life of the world (verse 51, The New Jerusalem Bible)
This comparison ran afoul of Jewish sensibilities. God does offend us from time to time.
Job was correct; he did not deserve such grave suffering. That reality “did not compute” with his alleged friends. I argue that Job was correct to take offense at God, given the narrative the Book of Job provides for me to read and ponder. As for sensibilities surrounding flesh and blood, the language in John 6 does seem similar to cannibalism, does it not? But I affirm Transubstantiation, so I trust that I take the body and blood of Jesus into my body each week. I have learned not to take offense.
Taking offense at God is a difficult situation. When is it excusable or appropriate? This, I suppose, is a question one needs to address on a case-by-case basis. Usually, however, I propose that it is inappropriate.
Until the next segment of our journey….
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 26, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS REMACLUS OF MAASTRICHT, THEODORE OF MAASTRICHT, LAMBERT OF MAASTRICHT, HUBERT OF MAASTRICHT AND LIEGE, AND FLORIBERT OF LIEGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS; LANDRADA OF MUNSTERBILSEN, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBESS; AND OTGER OF UTRECHT, PLECHELM OF GUELDERLAND, AND WIRO, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARIES
THE FEAST OF CHRISTINA ROSSETTI, POET
THE FEAST OF SAINT PASCHASIUS RADBERTUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF ROBERT HUNT, FIRST ANGLICAN CHAPLAIN AT JAMESTOWN, VIRGINIA
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/11/06/job-and-john-part-xii-taking-offense-at-god/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Church of the Transfiguration, Mount Tabor
Image Source = Library of Congress
Transfigurations
FEBRUARY 27, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Exodus 34:29-35 (Richard Elliott Friedman, 2001):
And it was when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai, and the two tablets of the Testimony were in Moses’s hand when he was coming down from the mountain. And Moses had not known that the skin of his face was transformed when He was speaking with him. And Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses; and, here, the skin of his face was transformed, and they were afraid of going over to him. And Moses called to them. And Aaron and all the chiefs in the congregation came back to him, and he spoke to them. And after that all the children of Israel went over. And he commanded them everything that YHWH had spoken with him in Mount Sinai. And Moses finished speaking with them, and he put a veil on his face. And when Moses would come in front of YHWH to speak with Him, he would turn away the veil until he would go out; and he would go out and speak to the children of Israel what had been commanded. And the children of Israel would see Moses’ face, that the skin of Moses’ face was transformed, and Moses would put back the veil on his face until he would come to speak with Him.
Psalm 99 (New Revised Standard Version):
The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
The LORD is great in Zion;
he is exalted over all the peoples.
Let them praise your great and awesome name.
Holy is he!
Mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity;
you have executed justice
and righteousness in Jacob.
Extol the LORD our God;
worship at his footstool.
Holy is he!
Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called on his name.
They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
they kept his decrees,
and the statutes that he gave them.
O LORD our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them,
but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
Extol the LORD our God,
and worship at his holy mountain;
for the LORD our God is holy.
2 Corinthians 3:12-4:6 (An American Translation):
So since I have such a hope, I speak with great frankness, not like Moses, who used to wear a veil over his face, to keep the Israelites from gazing at the fading of the splendor from it. Their minds were dulled. For to this day, the same veil remains unlifted, when the read the old agreement, for only through union with Christ is it removed. Why, to this day, whenever Moses is read, a veil hangs over their minds, but
whenever a man turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.
Now the Lord here means the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And all of us, reflecting the splendor of the Lord in our unveiled faces, aer being changed into likeness of him, from one degree of splendor to another, for this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.
So since by the mercy of God I am engaged in this service, I never lose heart. I disown disgraceful, underhanded ways. I refuse to practice cunning or to tamper with God’s message. It is by the open statement of truth that I would commend myself to every human conscience in the sight of God. If the meaning of my preaching of the good news is veiled at all, it is so only in the case of those who are on the way to destruction. In their case, the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep the light of the good news of the glorious Christ, the likeness of God, from dawning upon them. For it is not myself but Christ Jesus that I am proclaiming as Lord; I am only a slave of yours for Jesus’ sake. For the God who said,
Let light shine out of darkness,
has shone in my heart, to give me the light of the knowledge of God’s glory, that is on the face of Christ.
Luke 9:28-42a (New Revised Standard Version):
About eight days after Peter had acknowledged Jesus as the Christ of God, Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him. They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem. Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him. Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus,
Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah
–not knowing what he said. While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud. Then from the cloud came a voice that said,
This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!
When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.
On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him. Just then a man from the crowd shouted,
Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child. Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him. I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not.
Jesus answered,
You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.
While he was coming, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father. And all were astounded at the greatness of God.
The Collect:
O God, who before the passion of your only begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Some Related Posts:
Prayer of Praise and Adoration:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/01/07/prayer-of-praise-and-adoration-for-the-last-sunday-after-epiphany/
Prayer of Confession:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/01/07/prayer-of-confession-for-the-last-sunday-after-epiphany/
Prayer of Dedication:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/01/07/prayer-of-dedication-for-the-last-sunday-after-epiphany/
O Wondrous Type! O Vision Fair:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/03/05/o-wondrous-type-o-vision-fair/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I like this Sunday, for its readings match up nicely. Exodus and 2 Corinthians refer to Moses wearing a veil after communing with God, a counterpart to the never veiled Jesus during the Transfiguration. This is a prime example of why lectionaries are useful.
The presentation of Yahweh in the Torah is awe-inspiring. One ought not look too closely, for to do so would be dangerous. And Moses had an incredibly shiny face from communing with God. (All Charlton Heston got was streaked hair!) But, for most people, there was a certain distance, and Moses found a veil necessary in public.
The Transfiguration revealed our Lord’s true nature. But notice that there was no veil in the area. Part of the meaning of the Incarnation is God’s approachability, indeed God’s approaching. There is always a mystery there, but it is one which seeks us out.
I suspect that there is much poetry–perhaps more than literal truth–in the Exodus and Luke accounts. This does not trouble me, for poetry and metaphor are frequently better at conveying deep truth than are any straight-forward reports. As we moderns read the Bible, may we not abandon religious imagination, often the most memorable and profound aspect of certain texts. In religious imagination we encounter God in beauty, something mere facts cannot convey. How will our encounters with God in such beauty change us and be obvious to others?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 14, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT FULBERT OF CHARTRES, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF EDWARD THOMAS DEMBY, EPISCOPAL SUFFRAGAN BISHOP OF ARKANSAS, AND HENRY BEARD DELANY, EPISCOPAL SUFFRAGAN BISHOP OF NORTH CAROLINA
THE FEAST OF GEORGE FREDERICK HANDEL, COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT WANDREGISILUS OF NORMANDY, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT, AND SAINT LAMBERT OF LYONS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND BISHOP
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/11/05/transfigurations/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: The Prophet Joel
Stereotypes of God
JANUARY 21 and 22, 2024
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 everlasting 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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Joel 1:1-20 (January 21)
Joel 2:1-17 (January 22)
Psalm 51 (Morning–January 21)
Psalm 54 (Morning–January 22)
Psalms 85 and 47 (Evening–January 21)
Psalms 28 and 99 (Evening–January 17)
Romans 10:1-21 (January 21)
Romans 11:1-24 (January 22)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Rend your hearts
Rather than your garment,
And turn back to the LORD, your God.
For He is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger, abounding in kindness,
And renouncing punishment.
Who knows but He may turn and relent,
And leave a blessing behind
For meal offering and drink offering
To the LORD your God?
–Joel 2:13-14, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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….
–Romans 11:17, The New Jerusalem Bible
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
THE FEAST OF JOHN DONNE, POET AND ANGLICAN PRIEST
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/10/05/stereotypes-of-god/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Saint John in the Wilderness, by Thomas Cole
Great Expectations and Great Disappointments
JANUARY 5, 2024
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 everlasting 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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 65:8-25
Psalm 99 (Morning)
Psalms 96 and 110 (Evening)
Luke 3:1-20
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
For behold! I am creating
A new heaven and a new earth;
The former things shall not be remembered,
They shall never come to mind.
Be glad, then, and rejoice forever
In what I am creating….
–Isaiah 65:17-18a, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
New creation was the order of the day at the end of the Babylonian Exile. After so much destruction, what else could there be but something better? This is a Biblical pattern: Grace for the remnant follows judgment. Restoration follows destruction. The forms of grace and restoration might not be those we expect; they might be better.
John the Baptist proclaimed the arrival of Jesus, the incarnate Son of God. This was not the variety of Messiah many people expected. As a matter of fact, there were Judaisms in First Century CE Palestine, with a range of messianic expectations, from none to military leader to spiritual savior. Yet is accurate to say that Jesus disappointed certain people in his faith tradition. He was simultaneously something very new and very old.
The ideal kingdom which Isaiah 65:16-25 describes has not become reality, despite the coming and going of Jesus twenty centuries ago. So the promise of Isaiah 65:16-25 remains for the future. How and when will God bring it to fruition? I do not know, but may each of us do our part(s) to bring our reality closer to that vision. This is possible, for society consists of people. Social conditions are what people have made them. People can change them.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 23, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT WILLIGIS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF MAINZ, AND SAINT BERNWARD, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF HILDESHEIM
THE FEAST OF SAINT DOSITHEUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
THE FEAST OF SAINT POLYCARP, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF SMYRNA
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL WOLCOTT, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/great-expectations-and-great-disappointments/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Saint John the Baptist
True Liberation
JANUARY 1, 2024
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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 everlasting 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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Isaiah 61:1-11
Psalm 97 (Morning)
Psalms 99 and 8 (Evening)
Luke 1:57-80
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The spirit of the LORD is upon me,
Because the LORD has anointed me;
He has sent me as a herald of joy to the humble,
To bind up the wounded of heart,
To proclaim release to the captives,
Liberation to the imprisoned;
To proclaim a year of the LORD’s favor
And a day of vindication by our God….
–Isaiah 61:1-2, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The text from Luke 1 echoes Isaiah 61. In each case a prophet will proclaim a message from God, who “has visited his people” and liberated them (Luke 1:67, New Jerusalem Bible). This seems like an excellent time to point out the obvious: Post-Exilic Judea was part of the Persian Empire and Post-Hasmonean Judea was part of the Roman Empire. The Persians were generally more friendly that the Romans, at least.
So what kind of liberation was this? It was not political autonomy or independence. No, this was spiritual liberation–freedom (with rules) to love and follow God in daily practices and attitudes. Any lack of liberty–such as slavish legalism–was self-imposed. This spiritual liberation did not–and does not–depend on outside political or legal forces. In other words, this is an internalized liberation. Many martyrs have exhibited it under great stress. I have been writing hagiographies for my SUNDRY THOUGHTS weblog lately. Again and again I have encountered examples of this pattern. These martyrs still died, but they died as free men and women, even though they were prisoners.
Regardless of your circumstances, O reader, may you be free.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
FEBRUARY 22, 2012 COMMON ERA
ASH WEDNESDAY
THE FEAST OF ERIC LIDDELL, SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIAN MISSIONARY TO CHINA
THE FEAST OF SAINT PRAETEXTATUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF ROUEN
THE FEAST OF RASMUS JENSEN, LUTHERAN MISSIONARY TO CANADA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS THALASSIUS, LIMNAEUS, AND AND MARON, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONKS
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/08/11/true-liberation/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Mount Tabor, Traditional Site of the Transfiguration
Jesus, Consistent with the Law and the Prophets
FEBRUARY 19, 2023
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Exodus 24:12-18 (New Revised Standard Version):
The LORD said to Moses,
Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction.
So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. To the elders he had said,
Wait here for us, until we come to you again; for Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them.
Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.
THEN THIS PSALM
Psalm 2 (New Revised Standard Version):
Why do the the nations conspire,
and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together,
against the LORD and his anointed, saying,
Let us burst their bonds asunder,
and cast their cords from us.
He who sits in the heavens laughs;
the LORD has them in derision.
Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
and terrify them in his fury, saying,
I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.
I will tell of the decree of the LORD:
He said to me,
You are my son;
today I have begotten you.
Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.
You shall break them with a rod of iron,
and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.
Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
be warned, O rulers of the earth.
Serve the LORD with fear,
with trembling kiss his feet,
or he will be angry, and you will perish in the way;
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Happy are all who take refuge in him.
OR THIS PSALM
Psalm 99 (New Revised Standard Version):
The LORD is king; let the peoples tremble!
He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake!
The LORD is great in Zion;
he is exalted over all the peoples.
Let them praise your great and awesome name.
Holy is he!
Mighty King, lover of justice,
you have established equity;
you have executed justice
and righteousness in Jacob.
Extol the LORD our God;
worship at his footstool.
Holy is he!
Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called on his name.
They cried to the LORD, and he answered them.
He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud;
they kept his decrees,
and the statutes that he gave them.
O LORD our God, you answered them;
you were a forgiving God to them,
but an avenger of their wrongdoings.
Extol the LORD our God,
and worship at his holy mountain;
for the LORD our God is holy.
THEN THE EPISTLE READING
2 Peter 1:16-21 (New Revised Standard Version):
We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying,
This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.
We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.
So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.
THEN THE GOSPEL READING
Matthew 17:1-9 (New Revised Standard Version):
Six days after Peter had acknowledged Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the Living God, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus,
Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.
While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said,
This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!
When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. But Jesus came and touched them, saying,
Get up and do not be afraid.
And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone.
As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them,
Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead
The Collect:
O God, who before the passion of your only begotten Son revealed his glory upon the holy mountain: Grant to us that we, beholding by faith the light of his countenance, may be strengthened to bear our cross, and be changed into his likeness from glory to glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
When I read about events such as the Ascension and the Transfiguration I suspect that more happened than I read in texts. I do not doubt the veracity of the accounts, but I suspect that words were inadequate to the full scope of events in question. One just had to be there to get the full effect, and I am about 2,000 years too late for that.
The Transfiguration was a revelatory experience for the accompanying apostles. They glimpsed the true nature of Jesus, which entails being consistent with the Law (Moses) and the Prophets (Elijah). [A true story: Recently Beth Long, my Rector, repeated a question a child in the parish asked. How, this young person queried, did the apostles recognize Moses and Elijah? Beth replied that she did not know. Indeed, that is an intriguing question and a plot hole, but it does not distract me from the point of having Jesus, Moses, and Elijah together briefly.] Yet Peter–”God bless him,” as we say in the U.S. South–wanted to remain in the moment and institutionalize it. This reaction, although well-intentioned, was misguided, for Jesus and the apostles needed to move along.
They were headed for Jerusalem, where the Passion Narrative would unfold. The Gospel of Luke contains another account of the Transfiguration. Just a few verses after that passage, Jesus “turned his face toward Jerusalem,” and his impending death. (Luke 9:51) This is an important turning point in the Gospel of Luke, and one should read verses before it and after it in its context. With that in mind, I propose that the Transfiguration was also a “booster shot” for Jesus, who was about the embark on a difficult, yet necessary, course.
When pondering the calendar of the Christian Church, one needs to remember that the earliest feast Christians observed was Easter. Even Christmas (the observance of which developed later) exists in the shadow of Easter. And the Transfiguration does, also.
The placement of the Transfiguration on this Sunday is appropriate because the next season in the Christian year is Lent, and the next Sunday will be the First Sunday in Lent. At the end of that 40-days season is Holy Week. So we Christians need to set our faces toward Jerusalem, too.
KRT
Written for SUNDRY THOUGHTS OF KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR on June 16, 2010
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/jesus-consistent-with-the-law-and-the-prophets/
ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS 
You must be logged in to post a comment.