Archive for the ‘Lent’ Tag
Above: Ecce Homo, by Luca Giordano
Image in the Public Domain
Peer Pressure
APRIL 10, 2022
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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:
Procession of the Palms
John 12:12-16
Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29
Liturgy of the Word
Isaiah 50:4-9a
Psalm 31:9-16
Philippians 2:1-13
John 19:1-42
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I offer, O reader, a few thoughts I hope will prove useful to you. They, nevertheless, can never match the power of the assigned portions of scripture.
Inserting oneself into a Biblical story can be helpful. Ask yourself, O reader,
Who would I have been in this story? What would I have said or done?
The answer may be either pleasant or distressing.
We know from psychology and sociology, as well as from experience, that people will commit some actions and utter some words in a crowd they will not do alone. The group dynamic and the pressure to conform are powerful. Satirists, such as the Yes Men and Sacha Baron Cohen, know this. They use it to peal back the masks concealing the ugly, dark side of human nature, often to the displeasure of their subjects.
Ask yourself, O reader, how easily you, in a world, would have joined in the cry,
Crucify him!
Then ask yourself if you would, a few days earlier, in a different crowd, just as easily have shouted,
Hosanna!
What do your honest answers reveal about you?
Peer pressure has a relatively weak pull on me. I have spent my life resisting peer pressure. Some of my fellow students (my “peers”) bullied me for this reason when I was a youth in public schools in southern Georgia, U.S.A. Some people still criticize me for being rebellious in this way. That is their failing, not mine. “Conformity” is the most profane word in the English language.
Despite my rebellious ways regarding peer pressure, I am not immune to it. I cannot honestly tell you, O reader, that I know I would have resisted the peer pressure to shout,
Crucify him!
That disturbs me.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 8, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT THORFINN OF HAMAR, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF A. J. MUSTE, DUTCH-AMERICAN MINISTER, LABOR ACTIVIST, AND PACIFIST
THE FEAST OF ARCHANGELO CORELLI, ROMAN CATHOLIC MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF NICOLAUS COPERNICUS AND GALILEO GALILEI, SCIENTISTS
THE FEAST OF HARRIET BEDELL, EPISCOPAL DEACONESS AND MISSIONARY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/08/peer-pressure/
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Above: Jesus Before Pilate, First Interview, by James Tissot
Image in the Public Domain
Human Agents of God
APRIL 3, 2022
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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:
Hosea 14:1-9 (Protestant and Anglican)/Hosea 14:2-10 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Psalm 34
Colossians 3:12-4:6
John 18:28-40
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He who is wise will consider these words,
He who is prudent will take note of them.
For the paths of the LORD are smooth;
The righteous can walk on them,
while sinners stumble on them.
–Hosea 14:10, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
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I would feel better about Colossians 3:12-4:6 if it did not accept slavery.
Repent and return to God, Hosea 14, urges. Accept divine forgiveness and act accordingly. Forgive each other. After all, everybody needs forgiveness. And, although grace is free, it is not cheap. Become a vehicle of grace. Remain a vehicle of grace. And do not be an in instrument of injustice, as Pontius Pilate was. That is my composite summary of the four readings.
And, of course, never accept cultural practices that run afoul of the Golden Rule.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 8, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT THORFINN OF HAMAR, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF A. J. MUSTE, DUTCH-AMERICAN MINISTER, LABOR ACTIVIST, AND PACIFIST
THE FEAST OF ARCHANGELO CORELLI, ROMAN CATHOLIC MUSICIAN AND COMPOSER
THE FEAST OF NICOLAUS COPERNICUS AND GALILEO GALILEI, SCIENTISTS
THE FEAST OF HARRIET BEDELL, EPISCOPAL DEACONESS AND MISSIONARY
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/08/human-agents-of-god-part-ii/
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Above: The Taking of Christ, by Jacques de l’Ange
Image in the Public Domain
Loving Like Jesus
MARCH 20, 2022
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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:
Hosea 6:1-11
Psalm 103:1-18
Colossians 2:6-19
John 18:1-14
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Looking for Jesus is a theme in the readings from the New Testament. The germane question is why one seeks him–to control or arrest him, with ultimate lethal intent or to follow him. One can never control Jesus, of course. But one can follow him. Doing so entails repentance–actions, not just words or intentions. Fortunately, God seems to like repentance.
Aspects of the readings from Hosea 6 and Colossians 2 require unpacking. Hosea 6:4-11 condemns mistaking sacred rituals for talismans. The Law of Moses, of which the Book of Hosea is fond, mandates certain rituals, but does not mistake them for talismans. Obey the Law of Moses, with its moral obligations and keep the rituals, Hosea 6 teaches. Likewise, there are Hellenistic cultural contextual issues at work in Colossians 2. May you, O reader, and I never repeat the error of the General Assembly of the old Presbyterian Church in the United States (the “Southern Presbyterian Church”), which approved the following resolution:
There is no warrant for the observance of Christmas and Easter as holy days, but rather the contrary (see Galatians iv. 9-11; Colossians ii. 16-21), and such observance is contrary to the principles of the Reformed faith, conducive to will-worship, and not in harmony with the simplicity of the gospel in Jesus Christ.
The theme of the reading from Colossians 2 is the proper use of Christian liberty. We are free in Christ to follow him. The worldly distractions you, O reader, and I may contend with may be quite different from those for the original audience of the Letter to the Colossians. May we not mistake culturally specific examples of timeless principles for those principles.
Loving one’s neighbor as one loves oneself can get one in deep trouble. Obeying the moral obligations of divine commandments can be perilous. Of course, the servant is not greater than the master.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 7, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF FRANÇOIS FÉNELON, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF CAMBRAI
THE FEAST OF SAINT ALDRIC OF LE MANS, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP
THE FEAST OF SAINT ANGELA OF FOLIGNO, PENITENT AND HUMANITARIAN
THE FEAST OF SAINT GASPAR DEL BUFALO, FOUNDER OF THE MISSIONARIES OF THE PRECIOUS BLOOD
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUCIAN OF ANTIOCH, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR, 312
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/07/loving-like-jesus-part-iv/
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Above: Icon of the Crucifixion
Image in the Public Domain
Loving Like Jesus
MARCH 13, 2022
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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:
Hosea 2:2-23 (Protestant and Anglican)/Hosea 2:4-25 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Psalm 33
Colossians 1:15-29
John 13:18-38
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The commandment of Jesus in the Gospel reading is that we love one another as he has loved us. Keep in mind, O reader, that the love of Jesus took him to the cross. I consider that every time I hear my bishop, Robert C. Wright, of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, tell people to “love like Jesus.” Bishop Wright is well-acquainted with the Passion Narratives in the Gospels.
God is the only, universal deity. The message of salvation is for all human beings with a pulse. Divine judgment and mercy, ever in balance, are also on the menu. Love has to be voluntary. “Yes” can mean anything only if “no” is a feasible option.
The love of Christ impels us.
That is the slogan of the Claretians, a Roman Catholic order whose members perform many good works in the name of Jesus. The love of Christ impelled St. Paul the Apostle and the original surviving disciples of Jesus. It continues to impel people, faith communities, and religious orders. May it compel more individuals, communities, and religious orders as time rolls on. After all, we never see Jesus face to face in this life except in the faces of other human beings.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 6, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/06/loving-like-jesus-part-iii/
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Above: Hosea
Image in the Public Domain
Idolatry
MARCH 6, 2022
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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:
Hosea 1:1-11 (Protestant and Anglican)/Hosea 1:1-2:2 (Jewish, Roman Catholic, and Eastern Orthodox)
Psalm 25
Colossians 1:1-14
John 12:20-36
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The word of the LORD that came to Hosea son of Beeri in the days of Uzziah, Ahaz, Hezekiah, kings of Judah and in the days of Jeroboam son of Joash king of Israel.
–Hosea 1:1, Robert Alter, The Hebrew Bible (2019)
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The reading from Hosea provides a timeframe. Dates of reigns are approximate, on the B.C.E.-C.E. scale, due to the use of relative dating in antiquity. Furthermore, if one consults three sources, one may find three different sets of dates for the reigns of the listed monarchs. With that caveat, I cite The Jewish Study Bible to tell you, O reader, the following regnal spans:
- Azariah (Uzziah) of Judah: 785-733 B.C.E.
- Jotham of Judah: 759-743 B.C.E.
- Ahaz of Judah: 743-735-727/715 B.C.E.
- Hezekiah of Judah: 727/715-698-687 B.C.E.
- Jeroboam II of Israel: 788-747 B.C.E.
- Fall of Samaria: 722 B.C.E.
The chronological problem is obvious: Kings Ahaz and Hezekiah of Judah do not belong in Hosea 1:1. However, one may know that the decline of the northern Kingdom of Israel followed the death of King Jeroboam II, just as the decline of the southern Kingdom of Judah began during the reign of King Hezekiah. The beginning of a kingdom’s decline informs the reading of Hosea, set in the northern Kingdom of Israel. One may reasonably conclude that the lessons of this book were also for subjects in the Kingdom of Judah.
Divine judgment is a prominent theme in this reading from Hosea. Divine forgiveness will come up in Chapter 2. For now, however, the emphasis is on judgment. In that context, one reads that idolatry is a form of spiritual adultery and prostitution.
All the LORD’s paths are mercy and forgiveness,
for those who keep his covenant and commands.
–Psalm 25:10, The Revised New Jerusalem Bible (2019)
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Whoever serves me, must follow me,
and my servant will be with me wherever I am.
–John 12:26a, The New Jerusalem Bible (1985)
The invitation in Lent is to walk out of the darkness and into the light. The invitation is not to let the darkness overtake one. The invitation is to follow Jesus in the shadow of the cross.
The most enticing form of idolatry may not involve statues or anything else tangible. No, the most enticing form of idolatry may be the temptation to think of God as being manageable. God is not manageable. God is not domesticated. And God is not a vending machine. God judges. God shows mercy. God forgives the sins of the penitent. And God deserves more love than anyone and anything else in our lives.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JANUARY 6, 2021 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE EPIPHANY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2021/01/06/idolatry-part-iv/
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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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Above: The Denial of Saint Peter, by Caravaggio
Image in the Public Domain
Loving Like Jesus
MARCH 14, 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 4:1-7
Psalm 137
Jude
Luke 22:54-65
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I detect two different moods in the set of readings for this Sunday. On one hand, we have judgments, as in Psalm 137 and Jude. On the other hand, we have Jesus almost certainly looking compassionately at St. Simon Peter, who had just denied knowing him. We also read of an ideal future in Micah 4:1-7, in which the nations will seek religious instruction in Jerusalem. That prophecy contradicts Micah 5:14, in which some nations will remain disobedient and suffer the consequences, however.
With which side of that divide do we identify? Do we really want to bash our enemies’ babies’ heads against rocks? Or do we really seek to be like Jesus? My bishop, Robert C. Wright, says to “love like Jesus.” I affirm that standard. I also know how Jesus loved–so much that he died. Loving like Jesus is a difficult challenge.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 26, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT MARGARET CLITHEROW, ENGLISH ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR, 1586
THE FEAST OF FLANNERY O’CONNOR, U.S. ROMAN CATHOLIC WRITER
THE FEAST OF GEORGE RUNDLE PRYNNE, ANGLICAN PRIEST, POET, AND HYMN WRITER
THE FEAST OF JAMES RENDEL HARRIS, ANGLO-AMERICAN CONGREGATIONALIST THEN QUAKER BIBLICAL SCHOLAR AND ORIENTALIST; ROBERT LUCCOCK BENSLY, ENGLISH BIBLICAL TRANSLATOR AND ORIENTALIST; AGNES SMITH LEWIS AND MARGARET DUNLOP SMITH GIBSON, ENGLISH BIBLICAL SCHOLARS AND LINGUISTS; SAMUEL SAVAGE LEWIS, ANGLICAN PRIEST AND LIBRARIAN OF CORPUS CHRISTI COLLEGE; AND JAMES YOUNG, SCOTTISH UNITED PRESBYTERIAN MINISTER AND LITERARY TRANSLATOR
THE FEAST OF SAINT LUDGER, ROMAN CATHOLIC BISHOP OF MUNSTER
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/26/loving-like-jesus-part-ii/
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Above: Icon of Micah
Image in the Public Domain
Opposing Corruption
MARCH 7, 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 3:5-12
Psalm 63:1-8
Titus 3:1-15
Luke 22:1-6, 39-53
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Psalm 63 is a royal text. Titus 3:1 instructs Christians to obey civil authorities. Yet in Luke 22 and Micah 3, the authorities (civil and religious) are corrupt. The stance of faith is to confront corruption, not to support it or accept its bribes.
In full disclosure, the founders of my country rebelled against the British Empire. I think of a line from Man of the Year (2006):
If dissent were unpatriotic, we would still be British.
Furthermore, nuances regarding obedience to the civil magistrate exist in Christian theology. For obvious reasons, when to resist and when to obey civil authority has been a question in segments of German theology since 1933. One may think, for example, of the great Karl Barth (1886-1968) and the Theological Declaration of Barmen (1934), anti-Nazi. Nevertheless, extreme law-and-order-affirming Christian theology exists. One historical prime example of this attitude I found during research into conservative Presbyterianism (the Presbyterian Church in America, or PCA, to be precise) comes from The Presbyterian Journal, the magazine that midwifed the birth of the PCA in 1973. In the October 30, 1974, issue, the editor agreed with a letter-writer, one Joan B. Finneran, “an elect lady of Simpsonville, Maryland.” Finneran wrote that God establishes governments and commands people to obey earthly authority, therefore
When a Herod or a Hitler comes into power, we must thereby assume this is the LORD’s plan; He will use even such as these to put His total plan into effect for the good of His people here on earth.
Finneran needed to read the Theological Declaration of Barmen.
What should we do in good conscience when systems are corrupt and inhumane? Corruption leads to collective ruin, after all. Timeless principles are useful, but they are also vague. Proper applications of them varies according to circumstances. If I say,
Oppose corruption and work against the exploitation of the poor and the powerless,
I sound like the Law of Moses, various Hebrew prophets, and Jesus. I also provide no guidance about how best to follow that counsel. Proper application of timeless principles depends upon circumstances–who, when, and where one is.
That guidance must come from the Holy Spirit.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 25, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF THE ANNUNCIATION OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST
THE FEAST OF SAINT DISMAS, PENITENT BANDIT
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/25/opposing-corruption/
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Above: Icon of Habakkuk
Image in the Public Domain
Maintaining Faith During Difficult Times
FEBRUARY 28, 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:
Habakkuk 3:1-19
Psalm 27
Titus 2:1-15
Luke 19:45-20:8
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For the record, I drafted this post in longhand on December 22, 2019, before Coronavirus/COVID-19 spread across the planet. Certain statements are always true, but especially cogent at particular times.
The Letter to Titus is a mixed bag. On one hand, it insults all inhabitants of Crete (1:13) and does not oppose slavery (2:9-10). I cringe when I read those verses. On the other hand, the epistle offers sound advice about how to live: live in such a matter that opponents and enemies will put themselves to shame when making negative statements “about us.”
There is never a shortage of people willing to lie and distort, to cherry-pick and to blow out of proportion, to repeat unsubstantiated rumors, or to start them, thereby shaming themselves. assuming that they have the capacity to feel shame. They do, however, show their bad character while attacking those of good character. These people of bad character are the ones whose skulls cracks open, as in Habakkuk 3:13. (Who says the Book of Habakkuk uses no violent imagery?)
In the meantime, the righteous remain vulnerable to the dastardly, the unjust, and the wicked. Wait for God, Psalm 27 tells us. In the midst of rampant injustice, do we share the attitude of Habakkuk?
Yet I will rejoice in the LORD,
Exult in the God who delivers me.
The Lord GOD is my strength:
He makes my feet like the deer’s
and lets me stride upon the heights.
–Habakkuk 3:18-19, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures (1985)
This can be a difficult attitude to maintain. It is faith.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
MARCH 24, 2020 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF SAINT OSCAR ROMERO, ROMAN CATHOLIC ARCHBISHOP OF SAN SALVADOR; AND THE MARTYRS OF EL SALVADOR, 1980-1992
THE FEAST OF SAINT DIDACUS JOSEPH OF CADIZ, CAPUCHIN FRIAR
THE FEAST OF PAUL COUTURIER, APOSTLE OF CHRISTIAN UNITY
THE FEAST OF THOMAS ATTWOOD, “FATHER OF MODERN CHRISTIAN MUSIC”
THE FEAST OF WILLIAM LEDDRA, BRITISH QUAKER MARTYR IN BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS BAY COLONY, 1661
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https://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2020/03/24/maintaining-faith-during-difficult-times/
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LENTEN AND EASTER DEVOTIONS 
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