THE COLLECT Proper 16 Grant, O merciful God, that your Church, being gathered together in unity by your Holy Spirit, may show forth your power among all peoples, to the glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. The Collect Proper 16 The petition for the Proper 16 collect is “Grant, O merciful God, that your Church, being gathered together in unity by your Holy Spirit, may show forth your power among all peoples, to the glory of your Name. . .” The petition in the collect seems to be a bit obscure the themes of unity and Israel's role as beacon to the world seem most apparent. The OT lessons for RCL A, B and C all show times of unity. In B, Solomon’s assembly of elders and in the B Alternate, Joshua’s unifying reaffirmation of loyalty to God are times of Unity. The RCL C reading from Isaiah about rebuilding the nation and In RCL A the birth story of Moses who united the entire nation all speak the theme of unity. RCL A though seems to meet this collect head on with Paul’s observation in Romans that the Church has one body with many members. The passage in Matthew’s Gospel that names Peter as the rock on which the Church is to be built all speak mightily to both the collects unity theme and the Church as beacon to the world. In a time when the Christian Church is so divided, a call for unity seems so far from the possible. Jeremiah 1:4-10 The word of the LORD came to me saying, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations." Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy." But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a boy'; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you, Jeremiah 1:4-10 Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD." Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the LORD said to me, "Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant." The Superscription Jeremiah 1:1-3 1 The words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, of the priests who were in Anathoth in the land of Benjamin, 2 to whom the word of the LORD came in the days of King Josiah son of Amon of Judah, in the thirteenth year of his reign. 3 It came also in the days of King Jehoiakim son of Josiah of Judah, and until the end of the eleventh year of King Zedekiah son of Josiah of Judah, until the captivity of Jerusalem in the fifth month. Jeremiah The Superscription tells us that the book relates the ‘words’ of Jeremiah, but the word used can mean both words or deeds. So the sentence could mean the acts of Jeremiah! The book covers Jerusalem from 627 BC until the fall of the city in 587 BC. And includes materials about the prophet in both Judah and Egypt after the fall! This was the last period that Judah was an independent state. Jeremiah and his times The book Jeremiah depicts a man who consistently protested against political and religious policies that sealed the fate of his country. The opposite of his positions were the political orthodoxy of his time. To the establishment he was both traitor and heretic. Had he not turned out to be right we would be reading the Book of Hananiah now. Exactly what are we reading now? In the book as we have it the style, topics and events change unpredictably. Some incidents are repeated with slight variations, some passages are repeated. The ‘book’ is likely a set of collected writings as the prophet was a preacher and not a writer. The oral statements were preserved with the addition of biographical details purportedly by his aide Baruch. Call Narrative The section we have today is the ‘call narrative’ and describes the Lord’s invitation and command to speak. As is normal the prophet is depicted as reluctant but obedient. What’s the lesson in Jeremiah? Is he like Mr. Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes – the great dissenter of the U S Supreme court in the first two decades of the 20thCentury? Who in our present day spouts heretical positions and is called a Traitor or just a nut? Psalm 71:1-6, Page 683 BCP
In te, Domine, speravi 1 In you, O LORD, have I taken refuge; *
let me never be ashamed. 2 In your righteousness, deliver me and set me free; * incline your ear to me and save me. 3 Be my strong rock, a castle to keep me safe; *
you are my crag and my stronghold. Psalm 71:1-6, Page 683 BCP
In te, Domine, speravi 4 Deliver me, my God, from the hand of the wicked, * from the clutches of the evildoer and the oppressor. 5 For you are my hope, O Lord GOD, *
my confidence since I was young. 6 I have been sustained by you ever since I was born; from my mother's womb you have been my strength; *
my praise shall be always of you. Psalm 71:1-6 Psalm 71 as we have it today is the first 6 of 24 Verses. The Psalm is by an aged worshiper’s prayer for deliverance from personal enemies. The plea for help as an old man, now weak, from his enemies is omitted and we are left with the introductory statement of reliance. This could have been David! Isaiah 58:9b-14 If you remove the yoke from among you, the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil, if you offer your food to the hungry and satisfy the needs of the afflicted, then your light shall rise in the darkness and your gloom be like the noonday. The LORD will guide you continually, and satisfy your needs in parched places, and make your bones strong; and you shall be like a watered garden, like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58:9b-14 Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt; you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; you shall be called the repairer of the breach, the restorer of streets to live in. If you refrain from trampling the Sabbath, from pursuing your own interests on my holy day; if you call the Sabbath a delight and the holy day of the LORD honorable; if you honor it, not going your own ways, serving your own interests, or pursuing your own affairs; Isaiah 58:9b-14 then you shall take delight in the LORD, and I will make you ride upon the heights of the earth; I will feed you with the heritage of your ancestor Jacob, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken. Introduction to Isaiah The reading for today is from the section of Isaiah known as second Isaiah written long after the first section. The period over which this book was written was one in which first the northern and then southern kingdoms fell and the leaders taken in exile. The reading itself is to those in exile returning home. Isaiah Influence The book of Isaiah has played a central role in Christian liturgy and theology. It is sometimes called the "Fifth Gospel." To Christians, Isaiah recounts the life of the Messiah in such a way as to make one think he is "telling the story of what has already happened rather than what is still to come." Isaiah is more often quoted in the New Testament than is any other book of the Hebrew Bible apart from Psalms. Christ Church Stained Glass Context The reading as edited for us seems to say that it is good to care for the poor and to honor the Sabbath. The meaning is not misleading, its just that in context this section really deals with “Sunday Christians” Those who worship with exaggerated piety on the Sabbath, then ignore the poor for the next 6 days. Worship In this case the practice looked at is a fast, by wealthy worshippers. With the reading in context the word play on yoke becomes apparent. Verses 6 and 7 are 6 Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? 7 Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Meaning vs. Impact In this instance the edited text from the lectionary does not alter the meaning. The impact is better just as the ancient prophet wrote it, rather than as a ‘modern’ editor slimmed it down. A fast as an act of piety is not bad, it is simply that God apparently wants a practical act of piety! Psalm 103:1-8 Page 733, BCP
Benedic, anima mea 1 Bless the LORD, O my soul, *
and all that is within me, bless his holy Name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, *
and forget not all his benefits. 3 He forgives all your sins *
and heals all your infirmities; 4 He redeems your life from the grave *
and crowns you with mercy and loving-kindness; Psalm 103:1-8 Page 733, BCP
Benedic, anima mea 5 He satisfies you with good things, *
and your youth is renewed like an eagle's. 6 The LORD executes righteousness *
and judgment for all who are oppressed. 7 He made his ways known to Moses *
and his works to the children of Israel. 8 The LORD is full of compassion and mercy, *
slow to anger and of great kindness. Psalm 103: Thanksgiving for recovery from sickness. This might be classified as a hymn, but Verses 1—5 suggest that the words, though general, are intended to express the emotion of a particular individual on a specific occasion. The reference is to physical healing. The reading selection omits the pslam’s conclusion, with a summons to all created things to join their voices with that of the psalmist. Hebrews 12:18-29 You have not come to something that can be touched, a blazing fire, and darkness, and gloom, and a tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and a voice whose words made the hearers beg that not another word be spoken to them. (For they could not endure the order that was given, "If even an animal touches the mountain, it shall be stoned to death." Indeed, so terrifying was the sight that Moses said, "I tremble with fear.“) Hebrews 12:18-29 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:18-29 See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking; for if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape if we reject the one who warns from heaven! At that time his voice shook the earth; but now he has promised, "Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heaven." This phrase, "Yet once more," indicates the removal of what is shaken-- that is, Hebrews 12:18-29 created things-- so that what cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us give thanks, by which we offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe; for indeed our God is a consuming fire. The Oxford Annotated Footnotes Depict this passage as dealing with the two covenants that of Moses contrasted with that of Jesus. The first covenant is something that can be touched, Mount Sinai. The ‘Law’ of New Testament era Jewish scholars. The second that cannot be touched Mount Zion ... the heavenly Jerusalem. The heavenly Kingdom promised by Jesus. The Old and the New The theme of the letter to the Hebrews is the supremacy of Christ. The letter opens with the assertion that God, who spoke through the prophets in varied ways, has in this last age spoken his final word in the person of his Son, Jesus. The Old and the New Under the temple system priests of the old order offer sacrifices, endlessly repeated because they were unable to achieve the redemption. These are replaced by Christ's one perfect sacrifice of himself, which is evermore effective for purging sins. The Old and the New A major purpose of the letter to the Hebrews was to explain the contrast between the old sanctuary and the new and establish the absolute superiority of the new order over the old. The selections from Hebrews for the last two weeks were to urge its readers to stand firm under persecution remembering always that their true homeland is not here but hereafter. A new Jerusalem
Isaiah: “Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;
you shall raise up the foundations of many generations….”
Hebrews: “But you have come to…the heavenly Jerusalem….” In Memling’s painting, St. Peter welcomes resurrected souls to the New Jerusalem, represented by the gates in the latest Gothic style. In the Zurbaran painting, Peter of Nolasco, who lived in the 1200s, in a vision is shown the New Jerusalem by an angel. The heavenly city with its tower resembles contemporary Avila. Hans Memling, Last Judgment Triptych (left wing), 1467-71
Oil on wood, 223 x 72 cm
Muzeum Narodowe, Gdansk Francisco de Zurbaran, The Vision of St Peter Nolasco, 1629
Oil on canvas, 179 x 223 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid Luke 13:10-17 Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath. And just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus saw her, he called her over and said, "Woman, you are set free from your ailment." When he laid his hands on her, immediately she stood up straight and began praising God. Luke 13:10-17 But the leader of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had cured on the Sabbath, kept saying to the crowd, "There are six days on which work ought to be done; come on those days and be cured, and not on the Sabbath day." But the Lord answered him and said, "You hypocrites! Does not each of you on the Sabbath untie his ox or his donkey from the manger, and lead it away to give it water? Luke 13:10-17 And ought not this woman, a daughter of Abraham whom Satan bound for eighteen long years, be set free from this bondage on the Sabbath day?" When he said this, all his opponents were put to shame; and the entire crowd was rejoicing at all the wonderful things that he was doing. Luke 13 on the way to Jerusalem Luke 13 opens with a short lesson from current events of the 1stcentury and a short parable. There were some worshippers killed by Pilate and a group of people killed by a falling tower. Jesus says these people were not worse than others [e.g misfortune was not deserved] Now hold that thought. The short parable of the barren fig tree. Next Jesus relates the parable of the barren fig tree, whose owner wants to cut it down, but the gardener asks that it be given one more season to produce. A not very veiled reference to the failure of the 1st century Jewish rulers to honor the substance rather than the forms of the law. Now comes the healing in our reading. The woman did not deserve her affliction. She did not ask for a cure but came to listen. The ailment is attributed to Satan not her sin. Also note that everyone at the Synagogue then sees the true point. The dig is then directed to the authorities rather than the ordinary people, Jews. Contrast with Isaiah? In Isaiah the importance of the Sabbath is one of the points. BUT, is this a contrast? Or is this act of Jesus in fact showing how the Sabbath ought to be kept. The leader of the synagogue is doing what at the surface is correct, but was it a meaningless act of piety if it caused suffering to be prolonged? Healing of the crippled woman (Luke 13:10-17). Detail of top panel of the Sarcophagus of the Spouses (Sarcophage des Epoux) or Trinity Sarcophagus, dating from the second quarter of the 4th century. The tomb was found in 1974 at Trinquetaille, still sealed and containing the remains of a woman around age 50 and a man, with war wounds, around age 60. Musee de l'Arles Antique, Arles, France. Christ healing the crippled woman who was bent over
“Two Brothers Sarcophagus,” mid-4th century, Vatican Museum
