Archive for the ‘St. John the Baptist’ Tag
Above: Icon of the Baptism of Christ
Image in the Public Domain
Repentance: The Heart’s Transformation
JANUARY 7, 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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Isaiah 42:1-7
Psalm 45:7-9
Acts 10:34-38
Mark 1:4-11
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Father in heaven, at the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan
you proclaimed him your beloved Son
and anointed him with the Holy Spirit.
Make all who are baptized into Christ
faithful in their calling to be your children
and inheritors with him of everlasting life;
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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Father in heaven, as at the baptism in the Jordan River
you once proclaimed Jesus your beloved Son
and anointed him with the Holy Spirit,
grant that all who are baptized in his name may
faithfully keep the covenant into which they have been called,
boldly confess their Savior,
and with him be heirs of life eternal;
through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 21
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Justice is a theme that unites the readings from the Hebrew Bible. Psalm 45, a wedding text for a Hebrew king, lists the maintenance of justice as a royal duty. Second Isaiah’s servant of God is a personification of the Jewish people–a covenant people’s duties include maintaining and practicing justice, also known as righteousness–right relationship with God, self, others, and creation.
Much of Christian tradition interprets the servant in Isaiah 42:1f as Jesus, of whom we read in the lessons from the New Testament. There we read of sinless Jesus accepting St. John the Baptist’s baptism for repentance–as David Bentley Hart translated the germane word:
the heart’s transformation.
That seems odd, does it not? Why would sinless Jesus do such a thing?
I harbor no objections to competing answers to that question, so long as they remain close to the text. Indeed, as a review of my blogging on the Baptism of Jesus reveals, I have a record of writing about different answers. I let those posts stand. I also take a different path in this post. Why not? More than one answer to the same question may be true.
Those others who accepted the baptism which St. John the Baptist offered needed the transformation of their hearts. This rite was more than a ritual that started his ministry. The baptism of Jesus was more than a ceremony in which he identified with the rest of us. It was more than a way of associating himself with St. John the Baptist’s movement. It was all of the above and more. Jesus revealed who he was in God. Yet throughout the Gospel of Mark, those closest to Jesus remained oblivious to who Christ was. Yet stray evil spirits understood well.
The Gospel of Mark has two bookends about the identity of Jesus in God. We have one in chapter 1. The other bookend is the crucifixion.
The identity of Jesus was in God.
Likewise, my identity, your identity, and our identities are in God. Both collective and individual identities are in God. We human beings are in God. We human beings bear the image of God. Whenever we–collectively or individually–trample groups and individuals, we dishonor the image of God in each other.
Q: What does it mean to be created in the image of God?
A: It means that we are free to make choices: to love, to create, to reason, and to live in harmony with creation and with God.
—The Book of Common Prayer (1979), 845
My regimen of daily prayer includes a petition for all individuals and groups of people, that God’s best for them will be their reality. This is a holistic request; it includes both tangible and intangible aspects of life. I also pray that we will, by grace, cooperate with God in this effort. I understand not cooperating with God in this effort as constituting the definition of sin.
Jesus was–is–the Son of God, with a capital “S.”
I am a son of God, with a lower case “s.” My mother is a daughter of God, with a lowercase “d.” God is the ground of our identities, properly. I need to repent of not grounding my identity solely in God.
I also confess that I frequently experience difficulty recognizing the image of God in many of those with whom I have profound differences. I admit freely that I fall short of spiritual perfection. Yet, by grace, I recognize progress and growth.
I still need transformation of my heart. And I trust in Jesus, who revealed his identity in God at the River Jordan long ago. I trust in Jesus, the full identity of whom in God became apparent, even to many formerly oblivious people, at Calvary.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 3, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE TENTH DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF SAINT KATHARINE DREXEL, FOUNDER OF THE SISTERS OF THE BLESSED SACRAMENT
THE FEAST OF SAINTS ANTONIO FRANCESCO MARZORATI, JOHANNES LAURENTIUS WEISS, AND MICHELE PRO FASOLI, FRANCISCAN MISSIONARY PRIESTS AND MARTYRS IN ETHIOPIA, 1716
THE FEAST OF SAINT GERVINUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT AND SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF HENRY ELIAS FRIES, U.S. MORAVIAN INDUSTRIALIST; AND HIS WIFE, ROSA ELVIRA FRIES, U.S. MORAVIAN MUSICIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT TERESA EUSTOCHIO VERZERI, FOUNDER OF THE INSTITUTE OF THE SACRED HEART OF JESUS
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: Icon of the Baptism of Christ
Image in the Public Domain
A Covenant People
JANUARY 8, 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 42:1-7
Psalm 45:7-9
Acts 10:34-38
Matthew 3:13-17
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Father in heaven, at the baptism of Jesus in the River Jordan
you proclaimed him your beloved Son
and anointed him with the Holy Spirit.
Make all who are baptized into Christ
faithful in their calling to be your children
and inheritors with him of everlasting life;
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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Father in heaven, as at the baptism in the Jordan River
you once proclaimed Jesus your beloved Son
and anointed him with the Holy Spirit,
grant that all who are baptized in his name may
faithfully keep the covenant into which they have been called,
boldly confess their Savior,
and with him be heirs of life eternal;
through Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns
with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 21
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The people of God–Jews and Gentiles–have a divine mandate to be a light to the nations, for the glory of God and the benefit of the people. The ethics of the Law of Moses and the teachings of Jesus value and mandate equity and justice, both collectively and individually, as a matter of conduct and policy.
The servant in Isaiah 42:1-7 is the personification of the people of Israel, in the context of the Babylonian Exile. Yet much of Christian Tradition interprets that servant as Christ. Read Isaiah 42:6-7, O reader:
I have created you, and appointed you
A covenant people, a light of nations–
Opening eyes deprived of light,
Rescuing prisoners from confinement,
From the dungeon those who sit in darkness.
—TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
I have checked this text in five French translations. “You” is singular in all of them, for it refers to the personified servant. Yet 43:6b-7a refers to “a covenant people.”
Possible reasons for Jesus, sinless, taking St. John the Baptist’s baptism for repentance for forgiveness of sins have long filled minds and commentaries. Maybe Jesus was originally a disciple of St. John the Baptist, and authors of the four canonical Gospels attempted to obscure this potentially embarrassing fact. Perhaps Jesus was identifying with sinful human beings. (One may legitimately accept more than one rationale.)
Regardless of how one accounts for the baptism of Jesus, the baptized belong to that covenant people described in Isaiah 42:1-7. To belong to the covenant people is to carry a demanding divine mandate to serve, to live in mutuality, and to keep the Golden Rule. To belong to the covenant people, as Gentiles, is to carry the divine mandate to love like Jesus, for Christ’s sake and glory. To belong to the covenant people is to carry a glorious and crucial calling.
Yet a certain bumper sticker rings true too often. It reads:
JESUS, SAVE ME FROM YOUR FOLLOWERS.
I hear that saying and think:
Yes, I feel like that sometimes.
Perhaps you, O reader, feel like that sometimes, too. Many of the members of the covenant community have behaved badly and betrayed the mandate in Isaiah 42:6b-7a. That is sad, as well as counter-productive to the effort to aid people in their walk with God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 18, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE CONFESSION OF SAINT PETER, APOSTLE
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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Above: St. John the Baptist
Image in the Public Domain
Judgment and Mercy
DECEMBER 11, 2022
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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 35:1-10
Psalm 146
James 5:7-10
Matthew 11:2-11
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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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If I seem like a proverbial broken record, I am. I am like a proverbial broken record because the Bible is one on many points. In this case, the point is the balance of divine judgment and mercy. Divine judgment on the Chaldean/Neo-Babylonian Empire in Isaiah 34 balances divine mercy (via a second exodus) in Isaiah 35. Divine mercy on the faithful balances divine judgment on princes in Psalm 146. Jesus is simultaneously the judge and the advocate in James 5:7-10. Despite divine faithfulness to the pious, some (such as St. John the Baptist, in Matthew 11) suffer and die for their piety. Then God judges the oppressors.
The twin stereotypes of the Hebrew Bible being about judgment and the New Testament being about grace are false. Judgment and mercy balance each other in both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament.
The inclusion of the fate of St. John the Baptist in Advent reminds us that he was the forerunner of Christ in more than one way. About two weeks before December 25, one may prefer not to read or hear such a sad story. Yet we all need to recall that Christmas commemorates the incarnation of Jesus, who suffered, died, then rose. Advent and Christmas are bittersweet. This is why Johann Sebastian Bach incorporated the Passion Chorale into his Christmas Oratorio. This is why one can sing “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing” and “Jesus Christ is Risen Today” to the same tune (EASTER HYMN).
God is active in the world. So are evil and misguided forces, unfortunately. Evil, in the Biblical sense, rejects dependence on God. Evil says:
If God exists, God does not care. Everyone is on his or her own in this world. The ends justify the means.
Evil is amoral. The misguided may be immoral, at best. The results of amorality and immorality may frequently be identical. Yet God remains constant.
That God is constant may constitute good news or bad news, depending on one’s position.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 7, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF FRANÇOIS FÉNELON, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF CAMBRAI
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALDRIC OF LE MANS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF LE MANS
THE FEAST OF JEAN KENYON MACKENZIE, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MISSIONARY IN WEST AFRICA
THE FEAST OF LANZA DEL VASTO, FOUNDER OF THE COMMUNITY OF THE ARK
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUCIAN OF ANTIOCH, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR, 312
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM JONES, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND MUSICIAN
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Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
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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: Icon of the Holy Trinity, by Andrei Rublev
Image in the Public Domain
A Glorious Mystery
DECEMBER 13, 2020
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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 3:14-20
Luke 1:67-80
Philippians 4:4-7
Luke 1:57-66
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St. John the Baptist was the forerunner of Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah. Perhaps one would expect the pericope from the Hebrew Bible to be a messianic prophecy, given the cluster of readings for this Sunday in Advent. One would be mistaken. Zephaniah wrote of a time when God would rule directly on the planet; the prophet did not write of the Messiah. Bishop N. T. Wright picked up on God ruling directly on the planet, as in Zephaniah 3. Wright wrote in Jesus and the Victory of God (1996) that God (YHWH), not Jesus, is the king in Biblical eschatological prophecy, even in the New Testament.
I write and think of the Trinity with all due theological caution; I prefer not to commit any of the plethora of Trinitarian heresies. My reading of the history of Christian theology informs me that well-meaning attempts to explain the Trinity have frequently led to or bolstered heresies. I also know that I have been guilty of entertaining notions bordering on Sabellianism, although I did not know that term when I did so. Yes, I affirm that Jesus of Nazareth (the human being whom Roman officials executed on false allegations in 29 or 30 C.E.) was the incarnated form of the Second Person of the Trinity. In my mind, “Jesus” runs together with “Second Person of the Trinity” after the beginning of the Incarnation. Likewise, I refrain from calling the pre-Incarnation Second Person of the Trinity “Jesus” or “Christ,” due to my chronological manner of thinking. And, when I write “God,” the meaning varies, according to context. Sometimes I mean the Trinity. On other occasions, I narrow to the focus to one of the three Persons (literally, “masks,” in Greek) of the Trinity, especially YHWH. (That is mask, as in a mask a Greek actor used.) Etymology is one issue. How accurate Greek word choices are is another matter. Sometimes language fails us; even our our descriptions cannot always do justice to reality. I do not attempt to explain the Trinity, a glorious mystery.
How can I explain the Trinity when even orthodox Trinitarian theology makes no sense? The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are co-eternal, right? Okay. Then how can the Holy Spirit proceed from the Father or from the Father and the Son? And does one accept or reject the filioque clause? Orthodox Trinitarian theology, established by a series of Ecumenical Councils, is as close to the Trinitarian reality as one can get in this life. Nevertheless, The confusion that results from following orthodox Trinitarian theology proves that one should accept the glorious mystery, refrain from overthinking it, and revel in that mystery. The beautiful reading from Philippians provides some advice for this revelry:
- “Let your tolerance be evident to everyone.”
- Do not worry; trust in God.
- “Fill your minds with everything that is true, everything that is noble, everything that is good and pure, everything that we love and honor, and everything that can be thought virtuous or worthy of praise.”
The context for this counsel is Christian community, of course.
The translation is The Jerusalem Bible (1966).
May we, in the words of the Larger Westminster Catechism,
glorify God, and fully…enjoy Him forever.
The details of Trinitarian theology, Trinitarian reality, and Messianic prophecy will tend to themselves.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 10, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF MARIE-JOSEPH LAGRANGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND BIBLICAL SCHOLAR
THE FEAST OF SAINT AGRIPINNUS OF AUTUN, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; SAINT GERMANUS OF PARIS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; AND SAINT DROCTOVEUS OF AUTUN, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
THE FEAST OF FOLLIOT SANDFORD PIERPOINT, ANGLICAN EDUCATOR, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN OGLIVIE, SCOTTISH ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1615
THE FEAST OF SAINT MACARIUS OF JERUSALEM, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/10/a-glorious-mystery-part-ii/
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Above: The Preaching of St. John the Baptist, by Pieter Brueghel the Elder
Image in the Public Domain
Repentance
DECEMBER 10, 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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Isaiah 40:1-11
Psalm 85:1-2, 8-13
2 Peter 3:8-15a
Mark 1:1-8
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The readings, overall, have toned down and become less daunting since the previous Sunday in the Humes lectionary. Not everything is all puppies and kittens, though.
The readings from the Hebrew Bible flow from the theology that sin led to collective suffering–exile in Isaiah 40 and drought in Psalm 85. Isaiah 40 announces pardon and the imminent end of the Babylonian Exile. Psalm 85 prays for both forgiveness and rain.
Apocalyptic expectations are plain in the reading from 2 Peter. Believing in the return of Jesus Christ is no excuse to drop the ball morally, we read.
The pericope from Mark 1 contains two major themes that jump out at me. The text, which quotes Isaiah 40 and relates it to the Incarnation, indicates the call to repentance and makes plain that St. John the Baptist modeled humility, but not timidity.
Repentance is a recurring theme throughout the Bible. Many devout people are aware of their need to change their minds and ways. Being aware of that necessity is relatively easy. Then the really difficult elements follow. Can we see past our cultural blinders and our psychological defense mechanisms? Are we humble enough to acknowledge our sins? And, assuming that we can and are, changing our ways is difficult. We need not rely on our puny, inadequate power, however.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 6, 2019 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF FRANKLIN CLARK FRY, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA AND THE LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA
THE FEAST OF SAINT CLAUDE OF BESANÇON, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, ABBOT, MONK, AND BISHOP
THE FEAST OF HENRY JAMES BUCKOLL, AUTHOR AND TRANSLATOR OF HYMNS
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM KETHE, PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2019/06/06/repentance-part-v/
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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: Cedars of Lebanon, 1898
Image Source = Library of Congress
Reproduction Number = LC-DIG-matpc-11736
Building Up the Common Good, Part I
DECEMBER 4, 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 11:1-10
Psalm 72:1-7, 18-19
Romans 15:4-13
Matthew 3:1-12
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In TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985) the first word of the reading from Isaiah 11 is “but.” This is an invitation to back up into Isaiah 10, where one reads of God cutting down arrogant Assyrian forces. The metaphor at the end of Isaiah 10 is cutting down the cedars of Lebanon. That makes sense if one knows the background of that portion of scripture.
The prophet uses the term Lebanon trees ironically: Assyrian kings boasted in inscriptions that they cut down these mighty cedars on their heroic journeys to despoil the forests of Lebanon to obtain wood for their building projects in Mesopotamia, but here Assyrians themselves become the ax’s victim.
—The Jewish Study Bible, Second Edition (2014), 789
Then we arrive at our reading from Isaiah 11.
But a shoot shall grow out of the stump of Jesse,
it begins. This is a prophecy of a time when an ideal king will rule justly and the society will be peaceable. This is similar to the high hopes in Psalm 72. Matthew 3:1-12 evokes this prophecy of Isaiah (in spirit, at least) and has St. John the Baptist apply it to Jesus, whom he baptizes in 3:13-17.
Romans 15:12, which follows a call to think about others first ad to work for the common good, quotes Isaiah 11:10. The Pauline point is plain: God seeks for all people to praise, follow, and set their hope on Him. The family of God is diverse; some branches of it dislike other branches–even consider some of them to be heretical at best. Some individuals within that family cannot or will not get along with other members thereof.
This has always been true. Nevertheless, the divine mandate to work for the common good, to put other people before oneself, has never ceased to be relevant. For nearly two millennia we have had a role model–Jesus, who went so far as to die.
May we love one another as we love ourselves, recognizing that the common good is indeed that to which God calls us in society. Building ourselves up by exploiting others violates divine commandments and provokes the anger of God, as it should.
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/building-up-the-common-good-part-i/
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Above: Adam and Eve Expelled from Paradise, by Marc Chagall
Use of Image Permissible According to Fair Use
Our Common Life
JANUARY7, 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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Genesis 3:1-7, 22-24
Isaiah 4:2-6
Acts 15:22-35
John 3:22-30
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The reading from Genesis 3 always prompts me to ask what is wrong with being able to discern between good and evil. I tend to argue with the story. I also recognize an opposite vision in Isaiah 4: the return from exile.
The Bible opens with God creating the world and people messing it up. The sacred anthology concludes with God restoring the world. Genesis and Revelation are the best possible bookends for the Bible, which contains stories about the relationship between God and mere mortals. We should learn, among other lessons, to obey certain ethical teachings, to rely on God completely, to love each other as we love ourselves, and to emphasize God, not ourselves. We, as Christians, must say with St. John the Evangelist,
He must increase
while I must decrease.
–Raymond E. Brown, The Gospel According to John (I-XII) (1966), page 150
When we seek to glorify ourselves, we set out on a fool’s errand. Yet the world praises such men and women. Often these individuals build themselves up at the expense of others, according to the ethic of the old economic theory of mercantilism, according to which there is a finite supply of wealth, hence more for one means less for others. In contrast we consider Jesus, who humbled and sacrificed himself. He was a failure, according to worldly standards of success. Yet we know him to have been successful, do we not? So much for worldly standards!
May we increase in love for God and each other and in our understanding of our complete reliance on God and our interdependence. As The Book of Common Prayer (1979) reminds us:
O God, your unfailing providence sustains the world we live in and the life we live: Watch over those, both night and day, who work while others sleep, and grant that we may never forget that our common life depends upon each other’s toil; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
–Page 134
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MAY 2, 2017 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT SIGISMUND OF BURGUNDY, KING; SAINT CLOTILDA, FRANKISH QUEEN; AND SAINT CLODOALD, FRANKISH PRINCE AND ABBOT
THE FEAST OF SAINT ATHANASIUS OF ALEXANDRIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF JAMES LEWIS MILLIGAN, HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCULF OF NANTEUIL, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOT
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2017/05/02/our-common-life/
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Above: The Fiery Furnace
Image in the Public Domain
Proclaiming God Among the Peoples
DECEMBER 10, 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 3:19-30
Psalm 57:8-11
Revelation 11:15-19
Luke 1:5-20, 57-66
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Wake up, my spirit;
awake, lute and harp;
I myself will waken the dawn.
I will confess you among the peoples, O LORD;
I will sing praise to you among the nations.
For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens,
and your faithfulness reaches the clouds.
Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God,
and your glory over all the earth.
–Psalm 57:8-11, The Book of Common Prayer (1979)
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In Revelation 11 we read the announcement that
Sovereignty over the world has passed to our Lord and his Christ, and he shall reign for ever.
–Verse 15b, The Revised English Bible (1989)
Nevertheless, we must wait until Chapter 21 for that sovereignty to become apparent.
The sovereignty of God is indeed a challenging concept. In the Gospels the Kingdom of God is already partially present. The Roman Empire and its agents, one of whom goes on to order the execution of St. John the Baptist, born in Luke 1, is fully present.
Truly bad people who wield authority always seem to present somewhere. Nebuchadnezzar II, hardly a nice man, is a figure of ridicule in the Book of Daniel. He is fickle and seems unaware of the extent of his authority at times. He is willing to send people to die for refusing to serve the gods, so how nice can he be? He, as monarch, can change the law, too. Later in the Book of Daniel (Chapter 4) he goes insane. Also troubled and in one of the readings (sort of) is King Saul, a disturbed and mentally unwell man. The not attached to Psalm 57 contextualizes the text in 1 Samuel 22-24 and 26, with David leading a group of outlaws while on the run from Saul. In the story David saves the life of the man trying to kill him. (Aside: Chapters 24 and 26 seem to be variations on the same story. The Sources Hypothesis explains the duplication of material.)
One might detect a certain thread common to three of the readings: The lives of the faithful are at risk. That theme is implicit in Luke 1. God will not always deliver the faithful, hence the martyrs in Revelation 14. The sovereignty of God will not always be obvious. But we who claim to follow Christ can do so, by grace, and proclaim God among the peoples in a variety of circumstances.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 29, 2017 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINTS BOSA OF YORK, JOHN OF BEVERLEY, WILFRID THE YOUNGER, AND ACCA OF HEXHAM, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOPS
THE FEAST OF SAINT CATHERINE OF SIENA, ROMAN CATHOLIC NUN
THE FEAST OF TIMOTHY REES, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF LLANDAFF
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2017/04/29/proclaiming-god-among-the-peoples/
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ADVENT, CHRISTMAS, AND EPIPHANY DEVOTIONS 
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