Archive for the ‘John 20’ Tag
Above: Pentecost, by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld
Image in the Public Domain
Forgiveness
APRIL 7, 2024
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Acts 3:13-15, 17-26
Psalm 148
1 John 5:1-6
John 20:19-31
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Almighty God, we have celebrated with joy
the festival of our Lord’s resurrection.
Graciously help us to show the power of the resurrection
in all that we say and do;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 21
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant, almighty God,
that we who have celebrated the mystery of the Lord’s resurrection
may by the help of your grace bring forth
the fruits thereof in our life and conduct;
through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 50
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Biblical authors did not always define certain words the same way. For example, “sin” meant a moral failing in Matthew 18:18 yet a theological failing in John 20:22-23. In the Johannine theological context, sin was the failure to recognize the revelation of God in Jesus. Hence, a Christian did not sin, in Johannine theological terms (1 John 3:6). Also, forgiving sins was a task for the faith community empowered by the Holy Spirit. This faith community, empowered by the Holy Spirit, continued the work of Jesus.
The First Epistle of John tells us that the love of God entails keeping divine commandments, which are not burdensome. The Gospel of John has Jesus say that those who love him will keep his commandments (14:23). The most basic commandment of Jesus is the Golden Rule. That should not be burdensome, should it?
God forgives sins, whichever definition one uses. So should the communities of the people of God. Repentance must precede forgiveness, especially if one defines sins as moral failings. Forgiveness without prior repentance is cheap grace–something meaningless and not transformative.
Just as repentance must precede forgiveness for forgiveness to mean anything, truth must precede reconciliation, something else Jesus brings and God grants. In the Johannine lexicon, truth means “activated integrity.” It is not a philosophical abstraction; no truth is something lived. The hard work of being honest must precede the graces of reconciliation and forgiveness. This is a lesson which many people–including certain politicians and many of their supporters–prefer to ignore. They seek to brush difficulties of the collective and/or individual past under the proverbial rug. They seek the cheap graces of painless forgiveness and faux reconciliation without prior repentance and the acknowledgment of reality. And they often do so in the name of Jesus, unfortunately. They, therefore, mock God, truth, forgiveness, and reconciliation.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 20, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF SEBASTIAN CASTELLIO, PROPHET OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTY
THE FEAST OF CHRISTOPHER WORDSWORTH, HYMN WRITER AND ANGLICAN BISHOP OF LINCOLN
THE FEAST OF ELLEN GATES STARR, U.S. EPISCOPAL THEN ROMAN CATHOLIC SOCIAL ACTIVISTS AND REFORMER
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARIA JOSEFA SANCHO DE GUERRA, FOUNDER OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE SERVANTS OF THE POOR
THE FEAST OF SAMUEL RODIGAST, GERMAN LUTHERAN ACADEMIC AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SIMON WILLIAM GABRIEL BRUTÉ DE RÉMUR, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF VINCENNES
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: The Angel in the Tomb
Image in the Public Domain
Hope and Fear, Part II
MARCH 31, 2024
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Isaiah 25:6-9
Psalm 118:1-2, 15-24
1 Corinthians 15:19-28
John 20:1-9 (10-18) or Mark 16:1-8
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O God, you gave your only Son
to suffer death on the cross for our redemption,
and by his glorious resurrection
you delivered us from the power of death.
Make us die every day to sin,
so that we may live with him forever in the joy of the resurrection;
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), 20-21
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Almighty God the Father, through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ,
you have overcome death and opened the gate of everlasting life to us.
Grant that we,
who celebrate with joy the day of our Lord’s resurrection,
may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 47
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Isaiah 24-27, part of Third Isaiah, is a proto-apocalypse. Daniel contains a fully fully-developed apocalypse in chapters 7-12, which date to the Hasmonean period. Revelation (the Apocalypse of John) and some pseudepigraphal works are fully-developed apocalypses, too. Isaiah 24-27 contains many of the features of those later writings.
The apocalyptic genre is optimistic, for it proclaims that God will win in the end. The proto-apocalypse in Isaiah 24-27 is optimistic in so far as it speaks of the metaphorical resurrection of Judah while using the language of destroying death and reviving corpses.
The assigned readings, taken together, speak of an illness. A conquered people may move into a better future. And the resurrection of Jesus makes renewed individual and collective life in God possible.
As I write these words, I live in troubled, cynical times. Anti-democratic forces, competing in elections around the world, have much popular support. Sometimes they win elections. Many candidates who speak favorably of family values engage in political bullying and celebrate cruelty and insensitivity. Many such candidates frequently win elections, too. The great web of mutuality that protects members of society–the most vulnerable ones, especially–continues to fray under the assault by a selfish variety of individualism. The morally neutral act of remaining informed regarding current events becomes an occasion of inviting excessive stress into one’s life. Hope seems to be in short supply. Positive statements about the Kingdom of God may ring hollow. One may feel like the women at the empty tomb of Jesus–afraid. I do.
And, when we turn our attention to death itself, we may experience the depths of despair and the harsh reality of someone’s loss. The light may go out of our lives, as it did for Theodore Roosevelt on February 12, 1884, when his mother and first wife died.
I understand my grief well enough to know not to resort to platitudes. I comprehend that death stings. I know from the past and from current events that the world has long been and continues to be rife with delusion and injustice. I, as a student of history, grasp that history does not repeat itself, but that history rhymes. It rhymes because many people fail to learn the lessons of the past.
Yet the Christian hope teaches me that the Reverend Doctor Maltbie Davenport Babcock (1858-1901) was correct:
This is my Father’s world,
O let me ne’er forget
That though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world:
The battle is not done,
Jesus who died shall be satisfied,
And earth and heaven be one.
–Quoted in The Hymnal (1933), #70
Happy Easter!
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 18, 2023 COMMON ERA
THE TWENTY-SECOND DAY OF LENT
THE FEAST OF SAINT LEONIDES OF ALEXANDRIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR, 202; ORIGEN, ROMAN CATHOLIC THEOLOGIAN; SAINT DEMETRIUS OF ALEXANDRIA, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP; AND SAINT ALEXANDER OF JERUSALEM, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT CYRIL OF JERUSALEM, BISHOP, THEOLOGIAN, AND LITURGIST
THE FEAST OF ELIZA SIBBALD ALDERSON, POET AND HYMN WRITER; AND JOHN BACCHUS DYKES, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT PAUL OF CYPRUS, EASTERN ORTHODOX MARTYR, 760
THE FEAST OF ROBERT WALMSLEY, ENGLISH CONGREGATIONALIST HYMN WRITER
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Pentecost Dove
Image Scanned from a Church Bulletin
The Nature and Character of God
MAY 28, 2023
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Joel 2:28-29
Psalm 104:25-34 or Veni Creator Spiritus
Acts 2:1-21
John 20:19-23
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
as you sent upon the disciples the promised gift of the Holy Spirit,
look upon your Church and open our hearts to the power of the Spirit.
Kindle in us the fire of your love,
and strengthen our lives for service in your kingdom;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
OR
God our creator, earth has many languages,
but your Gospel announces your love
to all nations in one heavenly speech.
Make us messengers of the good news that,
through the power of your Spirit,
everyone everywhere may unite in one song of praise;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 23
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O God, on this day you once taught the hearts of your faithful people
by sending them the light of your Holy Spirit.
Grant us in our day the same Spirit
to have a right understanding in all things
and evermore to rejoice in his holy consolation;
through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you in communion with the Holy Spirit,
now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 59
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
VENI CREATOR SPIRITUS
Come, Holy Spirit;
send down from heaven’s heigh
your radiant light.
Come, lamp of every heart,
come, parent of the poor,
all gifts ar yours.
Comforter beyond all comforting,
sweet unexpected guest,
sweetly refresh.
Rest in hard labour;
coolness in heavy heat,
hurt souls’ relief.
Refill the secret hearts
of your faithful,
O most blessed light.
Without your holy power
nothing can bear your light,
nothing is free from sin.
Wash all that is filthy,
water all that is parched,
heal what is hurt within.
Bend all that is rigid,
warm all that has frozen hard,
lead back the lost.
Give to your faithful ones,
who come in simple trust,
your sevenfold mystery.
Give virtue its reward,
give, in the end, salvation
and joy that has no end.
–Original Latin text by Rabanus Maurus, 800s C.E.; translation courtesy of The Church of England, Common Worship: Daily Prayer (2005), 642
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Pentecost is the fiftieth and last day of the season of Easter. The baptismal connection to this feast is strong. The alternative name, Whitsunday (White Sunday) refers to the white garments of the newly baptized.
The divine nature exceeds human comprehension. Orthodox theology offers partial answers, the best we mere mortals can receive. Receiving those answers does not guarantee comprehending them, though. So be it. Christianity is not Gnosticism; salvation depends on grace, not knowledge. With all this in mind, we can still utilize useful language, much of which may be theological poetry, not theological prose. God is with us. God empowers us. Christian language for this truth is “the Holy Spirit.”
However, I seek to avoid committing modalism, an ancient Trinitarian heresy. This heresy denies the permanent existence of the members of the Holy Trinity and focuses on allegedly transitory distinctions, defined by functions. Know, O reader, that I am not a modalist. I merely acknowledge that the full nature of God is too much for a human mind to grasp and that we mere mortals experience God in certain ways.
I like the Jewish way of explaining the divine nature and character, as much as doing so is possible. That method is recalling what God has done. This method pervades the Hebrew Bible. Think, O reader, what God has done that you have noticed. Ask yourself what these divine actions tell you about the nature and character of God.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 26, 2022 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM COWPER, ANGLICAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF SAINT ADELARD OF CORBIE, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND ABBOT; AND HIS PROTÉGÉ, SAINT PASCAHSIUS RADBERTUS, FRANKISH ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK, ABBOT, AND THEOLOGIAN
THE FEAST OF ROBERT HUNT, FIRST ANGLICAN CHAPLAIN AT JAMESTOWN, VIRGINIA
THE FEAST OF RUGH BYLLESBY, EPISCOPAL DEACONESS IN GEORGIA
THE FEAST OF SAINT STANISLAW KUBITSA, ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1940; AND SAINT WLADYSLAW GORAL, POLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP AND MARTYR, 1945
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM STRINGFELLOW, EPISCOPAL ATTORNEY, THEOLOGIAN, AND SOCIAL ACTIVIST
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Tango Postcard, 1920
Image in the Public Domain
A Daring Dance with God
APRIL 16, 2023
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Acts 2:14a, 22-32
Psalm 105:1-7
1 Peter 1:3-9
John 20:19-31
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Almighty God, we have celebrated with joy
the festival of our Lord’s resurrection.
Graciously help us to show the power of the resurrection
in all that we say and do;
through your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Book of Worship (1978), 21
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Grant, almighty God,
that we who have celebrated the mystery of the Lord’s resurrection
may by the help of your grace bring forth
the fruits thereof in our life and conduct;
through Jesus Christ, your Son, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 50
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Given that I have written lectionary-based devotions for more than a decade, I choose not to use this post to focus on a passage that may not seem like the obvious bullseye.
John 20:30-31 is probably the original conclusion to the Fourth Gospel. That conclusion ends:
…that through this belief [that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God] you may have life in his name.
—The New American Bible–Revised Edition (2011)
This theme, present also in the readings from Acts and 1 Peter, is where I dwell today, instead of defending St. Thomas the Apostle again. Two words attract my attention:
- Belief, in the full, Biblical sense, is trust. Whenever someone asks me if I believe in God, I ask what that person means. In vernacular English, “believe” indicates acceptance of a preposition. In the English-language vernacular, to believe in God is to affirm the existence of God. I always affirm the existence of God. I usually trust in God. Likewise, to believe that Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God is to trust that he is both of those.
- “Life” refers to eternal life. In Johannine theology, eternal life is knowing God via Jesus. Logically, beginning with Johannine theological assumptions, to trust that Jesus is the Messiah and the Son of God leads to eternal life. If x, then y.
These are articles of faith; we have no evidence for them or against them. When trust in God is required, the quest for certainty constitutes idolatry. Certainty feels comforting. We can be certain of much, either by proving or disproving propositions. Yet much falls into the gray zone of faith; we have it or lack it. That uncertainty may unnerve us. Fundamentalism undercuts trust in God by offering the crutch of false certainty.
Somewhere, years ago, I heard an intriguing spiritual metaphor–performing a daring dance with God. That daring dance is the dance of trust, of faith. It is daring from a human perspective. May God have this dance?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 18, 2022 COMMON ERA
MONDAY IN EASTER WEEK
THE FEAST OF ROGER WILLIAMS, FOUNDER OF RHODE ISLAND; AND ANNE HUTCHINSON, REBELLIOUS PURITAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT CORNELIA CONNELLY, FOUNDER OF THE SOCIETY OF THE HOLY CHILD JESUS
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARY ANNA BLONDIN, FOUNDER OF THE CONGREGATION OF THE SISTERS OF SAINT ANNE
THE FEAST OF MARY C. COLLINS, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MISSIONARY AND MINISTER
THE FEAST OF SAINTS MURIN OF FAHAN, LASERIAN OF LEIGHLIN, GOBAN OF PICARDIE, FOILLAN OF FOSSES, AND ULTAN OF PERONNE, ABBOTS; SAINTS FURSEY OF PERONNE AND BLITHARIOUS OF SEGANNE, MONKS
THE FEAST OF SAINT ROMAN ARCHUTOWSKI, POLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND MARTYR, 1943
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Easter Celtic Cross
Image Scanned from a Church Bulletin
Happy Easter!
APRIL 9, 2023
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
According to the Inter-Lutheran Commission on Worship (ILCW) Lectionary (1973), as contained in the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978) and Lutheran Worship (1982)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Acts 10:34-43
Psalm 118:1-2, 15-24
Colossians 3:1-4
John 20:1-9 (10-18) or Matthew 28:1-10
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
O God, you gave your only Son
to suffer death on the cross for our redemption,
and by his glorious resurrection
you delivered us from the power of death.
Make us die every day to sin,
so that we may live with him forever in the joy of the resurrection;
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), 20-21
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Almighty God the Father, through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ,
you have overcome death and opened the gate of everlasting life to us.
Grant that we,
who celebrate with joy the day of our Lord’s resurrection,
may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
—Lutheran Worship (1982), 47
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I have been writing lectionary-based devotions for more than a decade. In that time, I have exhausted what I can write for the main service of Easter Day.
So be it. Trying to explain the resurrection is pointless. (I have heard people debate the mechanics of it, pointlessly.) One may read an attempt by St. Clement I of Rome, circa 96 C.E., in his Epistle to the Corinthians (1 Clement). That attempt is pious yet inadequate. No explanation is adequate.
Therefore, O reader, I refer you to the assigned readings (especially from the New Testament) and wish you a happy Easter–all fifty days of it.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
APRIL 16, 2022 COMMON ERA
HOLY SATURDAY
THE FEAST OF SAINT BERNADETTE OF LOURDES, ROMAN CATHOLIC VISIONARY
THE FEAST OF CALVIN WEISS LAUFER, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND HYMNODIST
THE FEAST OF ISABELLA GILMORE, ANGLICAN DEACONESS
THE FEAST OF MIKAEL SUMA, ALBANIAN ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST, FRIAR, AND MARTYR, 1950
THE FEAST OF PETER WILLIAMS CASSEY, AFRICAN-AMERICAN EPISCOPAL DEACON; AND HIS WIFE, ANNIE BESANT CASSEY, AFRICAN-AMERICAN EPISCOPAL EDUCATOR
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Link to the corresponding post at BLOGA THEOLOGICA
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Paul and Barnabas at Lystra, by Jacob Pynas
Image in the Public Domain
Cultural Blinders
APRIL 24, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Acts 14:8-20
Psalm 1
2 Thessalonians 1:1-12
John 20:19-31
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Culture conditions human perceptions. One may see, for example, a man (such as St. Paul the Apostle) heal a man by the power of God. Then one may perceive that agent of divine healing as a deity. Being devout, by some definition, does not guarantee accurate perception of the divine. One can misunderstand and be lost, therefore.
I, having defended the skeptical St. Thomas the Apostle (my favorite saint and Biblical character) many times, let my defense of him stand as I move along from the reading from John 20. Some people see and perceive accurately. Then they act accordingly. They are like the man (yes, “man,” in the Hebrew text of Psalm 1. They are like a tree planted beside streams of water. They bear fruit in season. Their foliage never fades.
How good are you, O reader, at seeing past your cultural blinder? How good am I at that?
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 10, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN THE GOOD, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF MILAN
THE FEAST OF ALLEN WILLIAM CHATFIELD, ANGLICAN PRIEST, HYMN WRITER, AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF IGNATIOUS SPENCER, ANGLICAN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND APOSTLE OF ECUMENICAL PRAYER; AND HIS PROTEGÉE, ELIZABETH PROUT, FOUNDRESS OF THE SISTERS OF THE CROSS AND PASSION
THE FEAST OF MARY LUNDIE DUNCAN, SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM GAY BALLANTINE, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, EDUCATOR, SCHOLAR, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/10/cultural-blinders/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of the Resurrection
Image in the Public Domain
The Resurrection of Christ and Our Atonement
APRIL 17, 2022
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Acts 10:34-43 or Job 19:7-27c
Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24
1 Corinthians 15:35-50
John 20:1-18
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
I am usually at a loss for many words at Easter. In this case, the readings are mostly self-explanatory. For my comments on Job 19:7-17c, however, read the germane posts at this weblog.
Whenever I hear someone go on and on about the crucifixion of Jesus, especially regarding the Atonement, I have a critique. That critique is to keep going. Do not stop at the death of Jesus. Dead Jesus cannot save anyone from anything. No, the Resurrection completed the Atonement.
Christ is alive! It’s true! It’s true!
Happy Easter! Enjoy all 50 days of the season.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 10, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FIRST SUNDAY AFTER THE EPIPHANY, YEAR B
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN THE GOOD, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF MILAN
THE FEAST OF ALLEN WILLIAM CHATFIELD, ANGLICAN PRIEST, HYMN WRITER, AND TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF IGNATIOUS SPENCER, ANGLICAN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC PRIEST AND APOSTLE OF ECUMENICAL PRAYER; AND HIS PROTEGÉE, ELIZABETH PROUT, FOUNDRESS OF THE SISTERS OF THE CROSS AND PASSION
THE FEAST OF MARY LUNDIE DUNCAN, SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIAN HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM GAY BALLANTINE, U.S. CONGREGATIONALIST MINISTER, EDUCATOR, SCHOLAR, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/10/the-resurrection-of-christ-and-our-atonement/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Icon of the Resurrection
Image in the Public Domain
Christ, Violence, and Love
APRIL 9, 2023
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
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
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Exodus 34:27-28 (29-35) or Deuteronomy 9:8-21
Psalms 71:15-24 or Psalm 75 or Psalm 76
John 21:20-25 or Luke 24:36-49 or John 20:19-31
2 Corinthians 3:7-11 (4:16-5:1) 5:2-5 (6-10) or Revelation 1:1-3 (4-8) 9-20
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Once again we read of the coexistence of divine judgment and mercy. This time the emphasis is on mercy, given the context of the assigned lessons. The bleakest reading comes from Genesis 34, where we learn of two brothers committing violence (including honor killings) in reaction to either the rape of their sister (Dinah) by a foreign man or to her consensual non-marital sexual relations with a foreigner. This story contrasts with the crucifixion of Jesus, in which those complicit in that act of violence unambiguously targeted an innocent man.
We who call ourselves Christians have a responsibility to follow Jesus–Christ crucified, as St. Paul the Apostle wrote. St. Paul, as Saul of Tarsus, had approved of the execution of at least one Christian, St. Stephen (Acts 7:54-8:1a). Saul of Tarsus had also dragged other Christians to prison (Acts 8:1b-3).
We who call ourselves Christians also have a responsibility to follow Jesus, the resurrected one. May we die to our sins. May we die to our desires to commit or condone violence against those we find inconvenient and/or who threaten our psychological safety zones. May we die to the desire to repay evil for evil. May we die to the thirst for revenge. And may God raise us to new life in the image of Christ. May we seek to glorify God alone and succeed in that purpose, by grace.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
OCTOBER 10, 2016 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF JOHANN NITSCHMANN, SR., MORAVIAN MISSIONARY AND BISHOP; DAVID NITSCHMANN, JR., THE SYNDIC, MORAVIAN MISSIONARY BISHOP; AND DAVID NITSCHMANN, THE MARTYR, MORAVIAN MISSIONARY AND MARTYR
THE FEAST OF CECIL FRANCES ALEXANDER, POET AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF CHRISTIAN LUDWIG BRAU, NORWEGIAN MORAVIAN TEACHER AND POET
THE FEAST OF SAINTS JOHN LEONARDI, FOUNDER OF THE CLERKS REGULAR OF THE MOTHER OF GOD OF LUCCA; AND JOSEPH CALASANCTIUS, FOUNDER OF THE CLERKS REGULAR OF RELIGIOUS SCHOOLS
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2016/10/10/christ-violence-and-love/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: A Jesus Bookmark
Image scanned by Kenneth Randolph Taylor
The Corporeal and the Spiritual
APRIL 13-15, 2023
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Collect:
Almighty and eternal God,
the strength of those who believe and the hope of those who doubt,
may we, who have not seen,
have faith in you and receive the fullness of Christ’s blessing,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and forever. Amen.
–Evangelical Lutheran Worship (2006), page 32
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Assigned Readings:
Song of Songs 2:8-15 (5th Day)
Song of Songs 5:9-6:3 (6th Day)
Song of Songs 8:6-7 (7th Day)
Psalm 16 (All Days)
Colossians 4:2-5 (5th Day)
1 Corinthians 15:1-11 (6th Day)
John 20:11-20 (7th Day)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
My heart, therefore, is glad, and my spirit rejoices;
my body also shall not rest in hope.
–Psalm 16:9, Book of Common Worship (1993)
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The Song of Songs, I heard growing up, is about the relationship between Christ and the Church. Balderdash! There is also a Jewish allegorical interpretation which claims that the book is about the relationship between God and Israel. I do not accept that either. No, the Song of Songs is exactly what it appears to be–a series of poetic texts about a love affair between a man and a woman who may or may not be married to each other but who are in danger because of their love.
Hence the Song of Songs is about human erotic relationships. And it belongs in the Canon of Jewish and Christian Scripture. As J. Coert Rylaardsdam writes in Volume 10 (1964) of The Layman’s Bible Commentary:
Its [the Song of Songs’] respect for life is expressed in the savoring of it; and it is this that makes it a very important commentary on the meaning of the confession that God is the Creator of all things. The presence of the Song in Scripture is a most forceful reminder that to confess God as Creator of all things visible and invisible is to deny that anything is “common” (see Acts 10:9-16) or, to use the cliché of today, “secular.” This book teaches that all life is holy, not because we, as Christians, make it so, but because it is made and used by the living God.
–page 140
If that analysis seems odd to one, that fact indicates a different worldview than the Song’s authors had. As Rylaardsdam writes on page 138:
The people who wrote the Bible had no equivalent of our notion of the “secular”; they did not separate the natural from the sacred as we often do, for they took very seriously the confession of God as Creator of all.
As Dr. Amy-Jill Levine says in her 2001 Teaching Company Course, The Old Testament, much of what was normative in biblical times has ceased to be so. That is certainly true for those of us in the global West, shaped by the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment. Modernity differs greatly from antiquity, in ways both good and bad.
Much of the Christian tradition–including the legacy of St. Paul the Apostle, a great evangelist who suffered much, to the point of martyrdom–contains discomfort with the corporeal. Human bodies can be messy and otherwise unpleasant, to be sure, but their potential for temptation has attracted much attention. Much of Christian tradition has obsessed about the latter fact excessively, even encouraging a universal, false dichotomy between the flesh and the spirit–a dichotomy absent from the Song of Songs.
That frequent and erroneous distrust of the flesh has influenced the Christology of many people negatively, leading them to commit heresy. To say that Jesus was fully human and fully divine is easy. To deal with the “fully divine” aspect of that formulation can prove relatively uncontroversial. Yet to unpack the “fully human” aspect holds the potential–often realized–to upset people. In the early 1990s, for example, my father said in a sermon in southern Georgia, U.S.A., that Jesus had a sense of humor. One lady, a longtime member of the congregation, took offense, claiming that he had insulted her Jesus.
Yet the Incarnation is about both the corporeal and the spiritual. And the resurrected Jesus was no phantom, for he had a physical form. The Incarnation means several things simultaneously. Among them is an affirmation of the goodness of creation, including human physicality. If that physicality makes us uncomfortable–if we perceive it as antithetical to spiritual well-being–we have a spiritual problem, one of erroneous categories and at least on false dichotomy.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
DECEMBER 14, 2013 COMMON ERA
THE FOURTEENTH DAY OF ADVENT, YEAR A
THE FEAST OF SAINT VENANTIUS HONORIUS CLEMENTIUS FORTUNATUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF POITIERS
THE FEAST OF CARL PHILIPP EMANUEL BACH, COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MYSTIC
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2014/01/20/the-corporeal-and-the-spiritual/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Above: Lamb of God
Seeking the Peace of God
APRIL 24, 2022
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
THE FIRST READING
Acts 5:27-32 (New Revised Standard Version):
When the temple police had brought the apostles, they had them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them, saying,
We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man’s blood on us.
But Peter and the apostles answered,
We must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.
THE RESPONSE: OPTION #1
Psalm 118:14-29 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
14 The LORD is my strength and my song,
and he has become my salvation.
15 There is a sound of exultation and victory
in the tents of the righteous:
16 ”The right hand of the LORD has triumphed!
the right hand of the LORD is exalted!
the right hand of the LORD has triumphed!”
17 I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD.
18 The LORD has punished me sorely,
but he did not hand me over to death.
19 Open for me the gates of righteousness;
I will enter them;
I will offer thanks to the LORD.
20 ”This is the gate of the LORD;
he who is righteous may enter.”
21 I will give thanks to you, for you answered me
and have become my salvation.
22 The same stone which the builders rejected
has become the chief cornerstone.
23 This is the LORD’s doing,
and it is marvelous in our eyes.
24 On this day the LORD has acted;
we will rejoice and be glad in it.
25 Hosanna, LORD, hosanna!
LORD, send us now success.
26 Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord;
we bless you from the house of the LORD.
27 God is the LORD; he has shined upon us;
form a procession with branches up to the horns of the altar.
28 ”You are my God, and I will thank you;
you are my God, and I will exalt you.”
29 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his mercy endures for ever.
THE RESPONSE: OPTION #2
Psalm 150 (1979 Book of Common Prayer):
1 Hallelujah!
Praise God in his holy temple;
praise him in the firmament of his power.
2 Praise him for his mighty acts;
praise him for his excellent greatness.
3 Praise him with the blast of the ram’s-horn;
Praise him with lyre and harp.
4 Praise him with timbrel and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe.
5 Praise him with resounding cymbals;
praise him with loud-clanging cymbals.
6 Let everything that has breath
praise the LORD.
Hallelujah!
THE SECOND READING
Revelation 1:4-8 (New Revised Standard Version):
John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first born of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and freed us from our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Look! He is coming with the clouds;
every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him;
and on his account all the tribes of the earth will wait.
So it is to be. Amen.
I am the Alpha and the Omega,
says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.
THE GOSPEL READING
John 20:19-31 (New Revised Standard Version):
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said,
Peace be with you.
After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again,
Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.
When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.
But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him,
We have seen the Lord.
But he said to them,
Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said,
Peace be with you.
Then he said to Thomas,
Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.
Thomas answered him,
My Lord and my God!
Jesus said to him,
Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.
Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ’s Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; 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/2011/02/27/prayer-of-praise-and-adoration-for-the-second-sunday-of-easter/
Prayer of Dedication:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/02/27/prayer-of-dedication-for-the-second-sunday-of-easter/
Prayer:
http://gatheredprayers.wordpress.com/2011/02/27/prayer-for-the-second-sunday-of-easter/
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.
–John 20:22b-23, New Revised Standard Version
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Jesus had returned from the dead, a death which human authorities had ordered. So, in Acts 5:27, St. Simon Peter could defy human authority in good conscience. (That adds a wrinkle to an argument I made here. Back in time, closer to the Resurrection, Jesus comforted his surviving eleven Apostles, saying
Peace be with you.
The Apostles’ task was to spread that peace to others.
What, then, does John 20:22b-23 mean? In other words, who retains unforgiven sins?
Recently I watched The Twenty (2010), an independent movie which deals with that question. The three main characters loathe themselves. The recovering alcoholic who has been sober for just a few weeks before resuming drinking detests himself. The pedophile who has apologized to his victims and lived as a recluse for twenty-two years is ashamed of himself. Two of his three victims have forgiven him. The third victim, now a bar waitress and a devout person, has yet to find a way to live with herself either. The lack of forgiveness of others and of self causes problems for all three characters. And all these lives intersect because of a message on a twenty-dollar bill, hence the title of the movie.
The film ends ambiguously. Will the self-exiled pedophile confess his sins in public? Will the bar waitress force him to do so? Will the recovering alcoholic save his fragile marriage? Will anybody forgive himself or herself and find a way to live with the person in the mirror? And will anybody forgive anybody else?
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world,
grant us your peace.
—A New Zealand Prayer Book (1989), page 426
Amen.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JUNE 3, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MORAND OF CLUNY, ROMAN CATHOLIC MONK AND MISSIONARY
THE FEAST OF SAINTS LIPHARDUS OF ORLEANS AND URBICIUS OF MEUNG, ROMAN CATHOLIC ABBOTS
THE FEAST OF THE MARTYRS OF UGANDA
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/03/01/seeking-the-peace-of-god/
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
LENTEN AND EASTER DEVOTIONS 
You must be logged in to post a comment.