Archive for the ‘A Four-Year Lectionary (Humes) Year C’ Category
Above: Pentecost Dove
Scanned from a Bulletin, Saint Gregory the Great Episcopal Church, Athens, Georgia
The Spirit of Truth
MAY 23, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Joel 2:21-32
Psalm 104:24-34, 35b
Acts 2:1-21
John 14:8-17, 25-27
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John 14:8-17, 25-27 is the only one of the four readings not common to Pentecost on all four years of the Humes lectionary. I choose, therefore, to focus on that lesson in this post.
The Jesus of the Synoptic Gospels acts more and speaks less. The Jesus of the Johannine Gospel, however, speaks more and acts less. Therefore, we have chapter upon chapter of material, in the mouth of Jesus, addressing his Apostles during Holy Week. The setting of John 14 is the Wednesday of Holy Week, after the Last Supper. (Yes, in the Gospel of John, Jesus was the Passover Lamb, crucified on Thursday, the day of Passover, as sacrificial animals went to death at the Temple.) We read that Jesus was about to go away, but that the Apostles would not be alone. The Holy Spirit would teach them in Christ’s absence and give them divine peace.
I am cautious about any attempt to parse the Trinity, for I do not want to commit a Trinitarian heresy. The Trinity is a great and glorious mystery; I prefer to treat it as such. Nevertheless, I affirm that remains active in the world. The label for God, active in the world, is the Holy Spirit, in Christian theology. The same Holy Spirit available to those Apostles remains available to all of us.
Happy Pentecost!
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 11, 2020 COMMON ERA
HOLY SATURDAY
THE FEAST OF HEINRICH THEOBALD SCHENCK, GERMAN LUTHERAN PASTOR AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHARLES STEDMAN NEWHALL, U.S. NATURALIST, HYMN WRITER, AND CONGREGATIONALIST AND PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER
THE FEAST OF GEORGE AUGUSTUS SELWYN, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF NEW ZEALAND, PRIMATE OF NEW ZEALAND, AND BISHOP OF LICHFIELD; MISSIONARY
THE FEAST OF GEORGE ZABELKA, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MILITARY CHAPLAIN, AND ADVOCATE FOR CHRISTIAN NONVIOLENCE
THE FEAST OF HENRY HALLAM TWEEDY, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, LITURGIST, AND HYMN WRITER
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/11/the-spirit-of-truth/
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Above: Saint Paul and Saint Barnabas at Lystra, by Alessandro Salucci
Image in the Public Domain
Building Up Each Other in Christ
MAY 16, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 13:14-16, 26-48
Psalm 114
1 Thessalonians 5:12-28
Luke 15:21-37
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We need to be careful not to read the text from Acts 123 in an anti-Semitic manner.
- To do so is sinful.
- Sts. Paul and Barnabas were Jewish.
- Many of their supporters were Jewish.
- “The Jews” refers to hostile Jews.
Also, Psalm 114 fits well with St. Paul’s full address, portions of which the lection from Acts 13 omits.
The Lukan apocalypse is one of the Synoptic apocalypses in the context of Holy Week. The wrath of God will come and the new world order of God will replace the current world order. All of this is solely in the divine domain.
In the meantime, we have a mandate to build up each other and to leave the world better than we found it. We can start by never repaying evil with evil, and by refraining from every kind of evil.
Writing those words is easy, but living according to them can be difficult. Even when we seek to live according to the Golden Rule, we may inadvertently commit evil. Weakness and ignorance are formidable foes.
May we start by seeking to live according to the Golden Rule and by trusting in God to guide us in understanding what that means (in detail) in various circumstances. The Golden Rule is a timeless principle, but the proper application of timeless principles varies according to context, including who, when, and where one is.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 10, 2020 COMMON ERA
GOOD FRIDAY
THE FEAST OF PIERRE TEILHARD DE CHARDIN, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, SCIENTIST, AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT FULBERT OF CHARTRES, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF HENRY VAN DYKE, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF HOWARD THURMAN, U.S. PROTESTANT THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM LAW, ANGLICAN PRIEST, MYSTIC, AND SPIRITUAL WRITER
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/10/building-up-each-other-in-christ-part-iv/
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Above: The Return of the Prodigal Son, by James Tissot
Image in the Public Domain
The Scandal of Grace VIII
MAY 9, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 13:1-12
Psalm 67
1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11
Luke 15:11-32
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Therefore, encourage one another and build one another up, as indeed you do.
–1 Thessalonians 5:11, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
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That verse is a fitting counterpoint to the attitude of the elder brother in the story traditionally called the Parable of the Prodigal Son. Or is it the Parable of the Resentful Older Brother? Or is it the Parable of the Lost Son? If so, which son was lost? Or is the Parable of the Loving Father? The text is too rich for one label to describe it adequately. Psalm 67 begins, in the translation of Mitchell J. Dahood, S.J.:
May God have pity on us and bless us;
may he cause his face to shine,
may he come to us.
That fits well with the parable. On the other hand, it does not mesh with the blinding of Elymar the sorcerer in Acts 13.
Back to the father with two sons, a formula for trouble since Cain and Abel…
Which son was really lost? The younger one–the wastrel–came to his senses and acted accordingly. The resentful, dutiful older son–a character easy with whom to identify–played by the rules and expected commensurate rewards. Yet could he not have rejoiced that his brother had returned? Perhaps the older brother was the lost one.
The parable ends with unresolved tension. The ambiguous conclusion invites us to ask ourselves what we would do in the place of the older brother.
Grace is scandalous. It does not seem fair, by our standards, much of the time. It violates our definition of fairness frequently. Grace may not be fair, but it is just.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 9, 2020 COMMON ERA
MAUNDY THURSDAY
THE FEAST OF DIETRICH BONHOEFFER, GERMAN LUTHERAN MARTYR, 1945
THE FEAST OF JOHANN CRUGER, GERMAN LUTHERAN ORGANIST, COMPOSER, AND HYMNAL EDITOR
THE FEAST OF JOHN SAMUEL BEWLEY MONSELL, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND POET; AND RICHARD MANT, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF DOWN, CONNOR, AND DROMORE
THE FEAST OF LYDIA EMILIE GRUCHY, FIRST FEMALE MINISTER IN THE UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA
THE FEAST OF MIKAEL AGRICOLA, FINNISH LUTHERAN LITURGIST, BISHOP OF TURKU, AND “FATHER OF FINNISH LITERARY LANGUAGE”
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/09/the-scandal-of-grace-viii/
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Above: The Lost Piece of Silver,by John Everett Millais
Image in the Public Domain
Jesus and the Lost
MAY 2, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 12:1-19
Psalm 148
1 Thessalonians 3:1-4:2
Luke 15:1-10
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The Gospel of Luke establishes the context for the Parables of the Lost Sheep/Good Shepherd and the Lost Coin:
Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear [Jesus]. And the Pharisees and the scribes murmured, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.”
–Luke 15:1-2, Revised Standard Version–Second Catholic Edition (2002)
Do you, O reader, identify with the Pharisees and scribes or with the tax collectors and sinners in that passage? Should not anyone be glad that Jesus was spending time in the company of those who knew they needed him? The best translation of the first beatitude (Matthew 5:3) is not,
Blessed are the poor in spirit…,
but
Blessed are those who know their need for God….
God desires us, fortunately for us.
Psalm 148 invites all of creation to praise God. The text never qualifies that principle or says, “unless….” Indeed, times of affliction (as in the readings from Acts and 1 Thessalonians) are times to praise God.
If that principle confused you, O reader, I understand your confusion. Praising God in times of joy and plenty is relatively easy. Yet difficult times cast the blessings of God in stark contrast to what surrounds them. Blessings become easier to recognize. Nevertheless, one is in difficult circumstances. Anxiety, uncertainty, and grief erect high walls to praising God. Yet God is with us in our doldrums. God seeks us, for we are valuable because God says we are.
That is a reason to rejoice and to praise God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 8, 2020 COMMON ERA
WEDNESDAY IN HOLY WEEK
THE FEAST OF HENRY MELCHIOR MUHLENBERG, PATRIARCH OF AMERICAN LUTHERANISM; HIS GREAT-GRANDSON, WILLIAM AUGUSTUS MUHLENBERG, EPISCOPAL PRIEST, HYMN WRITER, AND LITURGICAL PIONEER; AND HIS COLLEAGUE, ANNE AYRES, FOUNDRESS OF THE SISTERHOOD OF THE HOLY COMMUNION
THE FEAST OF SAINT DIONYSIUS OF CORINTH, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT HUGH OF ROUEN, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP, ABBOT, AND MONK
THE FEAST OF SAINT JULIE BILLIART, FOUNDRESS OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE SISTERS OF NOTRE DAME
THE FEAST OF TIMOTHY LULL, U.S. LUTHERAN MINISTER, SCHOLAR, THEOLOGIAN, AND ECUMENIST
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/08/jesus-and-the-lost/
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Above: St. Barnabas
Image in the Public Domain
Son of Encouragement
APRIL 25, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 11:19-30
Psalm 23
1 Thessalonians 2:9-20
Luke 14:15-24
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A few themes converge in this set of readings. Divine judgment and mercy exist in balance. Only divine love may pursue the faithful in Psalm 23, but the enemies have pronounced judgment on themselves. Indeed, one may understand the wrath of God as proverbial chickens to roost. Accepting an invitation to the divine banquet then making bad excuses for not attending is a bad option. On the other hand, encouraging others in the faith, as St. Joseph Barnabas did to and with St. Paul the Apostle, is a wise course of action.
“Barnabas” means “Son of Encouragement.” That is a fitting name for the saint.
May each of us be a ____ of encouragement–a son, daughter, brother, sister, uncle, father, mother, neighbor, friend, et cetera–of encouragement. The emphasis belongs on “of encouragement.” May we encourage each other in Christ, so that we all may achieve our full stature in Christ, not pronounce judgment on ourselves.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 7, 2020 COMMON ERA
TUESDAY IN HOLY WEEK
THE FEAST OF SAINT TIKHON OF MOSCOW, RUSSIAN ORTHODOX PATRIARCH
THE FEAST OF SAINT GEORGE THE YOUNGER, GREEK ORTHODOX BISHOP OF MITYLENE
THE FEAST OF JAY THOMAS STOCKING, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS MONTFORD SCOTT, EDMUND GENNINGS, HENRY WALPOLE, AND THEIR FELLOW MARTYRS, 1591 AND 1595
THE FEAST OF RANDALL DAVIDSON, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/07/son-of-encouragement/
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Above: St. Simon Peter
Image in the Public Domain
Not Standing in God’s Way
APRIL 18, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 11:1-18
Psalm 30
1 Thessalonians 2:1-8
Luke 24:36-53
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The four assigned readings share the context of an uneasy situation. We read a prayer of thanksgiving of a person who has recovered from a potentially fatal illness in Psalm 30. The slime in the pit of Sheol will not praise God, but a living person does. We also read of St. Simon Peter defending his actions (from Acts 10) to his fellow Jewish Christians, whom he persuades. We read of past suffering in 1 Thessalonians 2. And we read of Jesus comforting and empowering frightened Apostles in Luke 24.
My keynote for this post comes from Acts 11:17b:
How could I stand in God’s way?
—The Revised English Bible (1989)
When God refuses to fit into or respect the categories that provide psychological comfort to us and reinforce our defense mechanisms, how do we respond or react? Do we respond or do we react? (Yes, those words have different definitions.) Many of us, regardless of where we fall on the liberal-conservative scale overall and on each issue, identify ourselves as insiders and others as outsiders. Outsiders exist, of course, but God’s criteria for defining insiders and outsiders differ from ours. And what if one who imagines oneself to be an insider is actually an outsider?
No devout person tries to stand in God’s way, I suppose. Yet many do, sometimes. We humans frequently mistake our standards for those of God. We may do our best, according to what we know or think we know, but we can and do err.
May we, by grace, never stand in God’s way.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 6, 2020 COMMON ERA
MONDAY IN HOLY WEEK
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARCELLINUS OF CARTHAGE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR, 413
THE FEAST OF BENJAMIN HALL KENNEDY, GREEK AND LATIN SCHOLAR, BIBLE TRANSLATOR, AND ANGLICAN PRIEST
THE FEAST OF DANIEL G. C. WU, CHINESE-AMERICAN EPISCOPAL PRIEST AND MISSIONARY
THE FEAST OF EMIL BRUNNER, SWISS REFORMED THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF MILNER BALL, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER, LAW PROFESSOR, WITNESS FOR CIVIL RIGHTS, AND HUMANITARIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT NOKTER BALBULUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/06/not-standing-in-gods-way/
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Above: Supper at Emmaus, by Caravaggio
Image in the Public Domain
Regarding Faith and Reason
APRIL 11, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 10:1-20
Psalm 150
1 Thessalonians 1
Luke 24:13-25
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Easter is a season with eight Sundays, the last one being Pentecost. Take heart, O reader; we have much more Easter to celebrate.
One theme in this Sunday’s readings is that the Jewish-Christian God is the universal deity, not a tribal god. Yes, Gentiles are welcome at the party of salvation, too. That salvation is possible because of the other theme, the resurrection of Jesus. In the context of Luke 24, this is a truth two small groups of people announced to St. Simon Peter in one day. Furthermore, these two groups had not coordinated their stories, as criminals rehearse the false alibis.
We who live nearly two millennia after these events have a challenge first-hand witnesses lacked. We either accept the resurrection on faith or we reject it on lack of faith. We can neither prove nor disprove it. I choose to accept it.
This is not as big a leap of faith for me as it is for many others. Yes, I embrace reason and accept science. I recognize much merit in the Enlightenment, which influences how I think. I am a modernist, not a postmodernist. I also know from experience that Enlightenment and scientific categories, as we usually define them, do not account for everything. Reason is a gift from God. I, as a practicing Episcopalian, incorporate reason into my faith. I also understand that reason takes me far, but not all the way to the empty tomb. Reason is a tool in my toolbox of faith; it is not an idol.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 5, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE SUNDAY OF THE PASSION: PALM SUNDAY, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF ANDRÉ, MAGDA, AND DANIEL TROCMÉ, RIGHTEOUS GENTILES
THE FEAST OF EMILY AYCKBOWM, FOUNDRESS OF THE COMMUNITY OF THE SISTERS OF THE CHURCH
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARIANO DE LA MATA APARICIO, ROMAN CATHOLIC MISSIONARY AND EDUCATOR IN BRAZIL
THE FEAST OF PAULINE SPERRY, MATHETMATICIAN, PHILANTHROPIST, AND ACTIVIST; AND HER BROTHER, WILLARD LEAROYD SPERRY, CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, ETHICIST, THEOLOGIAN, AND DEAN OF HARVARD LAW SCHOOL
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM DERHAM, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND SCIENTIST
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/05/regarding-faith-and-reason-iii/
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Above: The Angel in the Tomb
Image in the Public Domain
Death, Grief, and Resurrection
APRIL 4, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Acts 3:12-26 or Job 19:7-27c
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
1 Corinthians 15:19-28
Luke 24:1-12
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There is a tradition of reading Hebrew Bible texts not about the Messiah as if they were about Jesus. Consider the reading from Job 19, O reader. Job, who has lost most of his family, claims God as his kinsman-redeemer, who will defend him against enemies. Ironically, in Job 1 and 2, we read that God has allowed Job to suffer. The Book of Job is a composite work, and what we call Job 19 predates what we call Job 1 and Job 2. Interpreting the Book of Job can be a complicated matter.
The reading from 1 Corinthians 15 should back up by a few verses. In context, the resurrection of the dead is linked to the resurrection of Jesus. One must be true for the other one to be true. Without the resurrection of Jesus, Christian faith is in vain, Christians are still in their sins, and those who have died have perished. Therefore,
If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are the most pitiable people of all.
–1 Corinthians 15:19, The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
Death packs a powerful punch. One can, at best, imagine how those closest to Jesus felt after he died. Perhaps only a mother can begin to guess with some degree of accuracy how St. Mary of Nazareth felt. Consider, then, O reader, the fortitude required for the women to go to the tomb. Grief can sad one’s energy level and cause inaction. Yet we read of women walking to the tomb.
We can also only imagine how the three women felt when they learned of the resurrection.
Their hope was not in vain.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 4, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT BENEDICT THE AFRICAN, FRANCISCAN FRIAR AND HERMIT
THE FEAST OF ALFRED C. MARBLE, JR., EPISCOPAL BISHOP OF MISSISSIPPI THEN ASSISTING BISHOP OF NORTH CAROLINA
THE FEAST OF ERNEST W. SHURTLEFF, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR., U.S. CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER, AND MARTYR, 1968
THE FEAST OF SIDNEY LOVETT, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER AND CHAPLAIN OF YALE UNIVERSITY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/04/04/death-grief-and-resurrection/
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Above: A Crucifix
Photographer = Kenneth Randolph Taylor
Innocence
MARCH 28, 2011
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Liturgy of the Palms:
Luke 19:28-44
Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29
Liturgy of the Word:
Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 31:9-16
Philippians 2:1-13
Luke 23:1-56
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Some texts are standard for Palm/Passion Sunday on the Humes lectionary. The account of the Triumphal Entry varies from year to year; each of the four versions gets its year. Likewise, the Gospel reading varies each year. It is always the Passion, though. The readings from Psalm 31, Psalm 118, Isaiah 50, and Philippians 2 are evergreen, though.
I focus on Luke 23:1-56 in this post.
The Gospel of Luke hits us over the head with Jesus’s innocence. Christ’s innocence is a theme in 23:4, 14-15, 22, 40-42, and 47. Whenever the Bible keeps repeating a theme, we need to pay attention to that theme.
The execution of Jesus was a travesty and an example of judicial murder.
There is an interesting moral and legal question: Is it better for a court to convict an innocent person or to acquit a guilty person? The answer is obvious: the latter. Innocence should always lead to the absence of a conviction, incarceration, and execution. I gaze with moral horror at those who would ever approve of convicting any innocent person.
The crucifixion of Jesus has more than one meaning. It is, for example, a component of the atonement; the resurrection equals the final act. The crucifixion of Christ should also spur us on to affirm that convicting and punishing the innocent is never acceptable.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 29, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FIFTH SUNDAY IN LENT, YEAR C
THE FEAST OF CHARLES VILLIERS STANFORD, COMPOSER, ORGANIST, AND CONDUCTOR
THE FEAST OF DORA GREENWELL, POET AND DEVOTIONAL WRITER
THE FEAST OF JOHN KEBLE, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND POET
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JONAS AND BARACHISUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS, 327
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/29/innocence/
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Above: A Timeless Principle Applicable Both Individually and Collectively
Image Source = Google Earth
Individual and Collective Responsibility
MARCH 21, 2021
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The Collect:
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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The Assigned Readings:
Micah 6:1-8
Psalm 126
Philemon
Luke 22:66-23:25
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He has told you, O man, what is good,
And what does the LORD require of you:
Only to do justice,
And to love goodness,
And to walk modestly with your God.
Then your name will achieve wisdom.
–Micah 6:8-9a, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
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The Letter to Philemon has long been a misunderstood book of the Bible. The text is not, as St. John Chrysostom (349-407) insisted, a mandate to reunite masters and their fugitive slaves. Furthermore, the epistle does not indicate that Onesimus was either a thief or a fugitive. And verse 16 should read, in part,
as if a slave,
not the usual English-language translation,
as a slave.
Whether one thinks Onesimus was a slave may depend on how one interprets a Greek tense in one verse.
The Letter to Philemon and a portion of the Gospel reading pertain to individual responsibility. Act compassionately. Treat the other person, who may or may not have stolen from you, as a sibling in Christ. Do not knowingly send an innocent man to die, and to do so horribly. (The Gospel of Luke emphasizes the innocence of Christ in its Passion narrative.)
The other readings pertain to collective responsibility. How should we-not I, not you–we respond to grace? We should be grateful? We should do justice. We should love goodness. We should walk modestly with our God. Then our name will achieve wisdom.
My Western culture tends to fixate on individual responsibility and p;lace too little emphasis on collective responsibility. This is an error. We need to strike and maintain that balance, for the glory of God and the benefit of all members of our culture, as well as the rest of the world.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 27, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF CHARLES HENRY BRENT, EPISCOPAL MISSIONARY BISHOP OF THE PHILIPPINES, BISHOP OF WESTERN NEW YORK, AND ECUMENIST
THE FEAST OF SAINTS NICHOLAS OWEN, THOMAS GARNET, MARK BARKWORTH, EDWARD OLDCORNE, AND RALPH ASHLEY, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYRS, 1601-1608
THE FEAST OF ROBERT HALL BAYNES, ANGLICAN BISHOP OF MADAGASCAR
THE FEAST OF SAINT RUPERT OF SALZBURG, APOSTLE OF BAVARIA AND AUSTRIA
THE FEAST OF STANLEY ROTHER, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, MISSIONARY, AND MARTYR IN GUATEMALA, 1981
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/27/individual-and-collective-responsibility/
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LENTEN AND EASTER DEVOTIONS 
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