Note: ¶ = Reading omitted at St Mary's, Temple Balsall
Sunday 6 January, 2008
Epiphany
Isaiah 60. 1 – 6
In the later Old Testament writings, there is a turning of the eyes to the outside world with a growing sense of other nations’ place in God's purposes and of Israel's benevolent role towards them.
Ephesians 3. 1 – 12
The apostle Paul's great achievement was to see Christ as God's gift for all, Jews and gentiles alike, and both on the same footing. By making it unnecessary to become a Jew as a step to Christian conversion, he opened the door wide for the future of Christianity.
Matthew 2. 1 – 12
The visit of the magi, gentile astrologers from afar, foreshadows beautifully in Jesus' infancy the future boundless scope of his sway over the hearts and minds of humanity.
* It is hard to be truly universal in spirit and in welcome. Pray for openness of heart.
* Paul's leap of faith was so clear-sighted and brave as to take our breath away.
* Reflect on the beautiful simplicity of Christ to be venerated even by those of complex and sophisticated minds.
Sunday 13 January, 2008
The Second Sunday of Epiphany
Isaiah 49. 1 – 7
As so often in the later chapters of Isaiah, the prophet's message is one of generous openness to human beings in general in the name of Israel's God, now seen as everyone's God.
1 Corinthians 1. 1 – 9
Paul writes to a congregation he himself had gathered, and he proudly states his position as apostle (or agent) of Christ towards them. 'Saints' here means 'belonging to God' and the later sense of 'especially holy' lay in the future. To be Christians, whoever we are, is to stand on holy ground, where God is to be found.
John 1. 29 – 42
Here, John the Baptist recognizes Jesus as God's chosen one, with the Spirit to validate him, and without delay Jesus recruits followers to his cause.
* Pray to share the breadth of vision shown by the prophet.
* To be 'holy' is first and foremost to know oneself to be living in true relationship to God.
* Jesus is 'Lamb of God'. Sacrifice is always on the cards, for him - and for us who are his.
Sunday 20 January, 2008
The Third Sunday of Epiphany
Isaiah 9. 1 – 4
Looking beyond Israel's bounds, Isaiah sees the shining of God's joyful light, bringing an end to oppression.
¶ 1 Corinthians 1. 10 – 18
Hero-worship and squabbles in the congregation enfeeble Christian life, and Paul hates it. His remedy rests on Jesus' death as the sole source of power and alone worthy of loyalty.
Psalm: 27.1, 4 - 12
Matthew 4. 12 – 23
The evangelist picks up the passage from Isaiah, as he looks to the spread of the good news; and he makes the point here, as the story of Jesus' ministry begins: he summons disciples and he relieves distress.
* We must trust that the faith can be a force of liberation for all kinds of slaves and victims.
* Bickering usually makes for weakness, but in a Christian group it is more, it is a perversion of the gospel.
* We should reflect on the basic simplicity of Jesus' call and, we trust, our response.
Sunday 27 January, 2008
The Fourth Sunday of Epiphany
¶ 1 Kings 17. 8 – 16
Elijah, man of God, brings life-saving aid to a poor widow and she is a gentile, beyond his formal sphere of charity.
¶ 1 Corinthians 1. 18 – 31
Paul plays with the idea of 'wisdom'. Some in the church boast of their religious depth. Paul brushes that aside. God's wisdom is to be seen in the weakness of Christ crucified.
John 2. 1 – 11
John probably relates this story to say that Jewish faith ('water') has now found its rich and abundant fulfilment in Christ ('wine').
* How wide are we ready to let our generosity extend?
* We must return to the strange simplicity of true religion, shaming our clever discussion.
* Can we tell when being convinced of our own faith leads us to dismiss the truths in the faith of others?
Sunday 3 February, 2008
The Presentation of Christ in the Temple
Malachi 3. 1 – 5
The focus is on the temple in Jerusalem, symbol of God's presence. Malachi sees it as the scene of the coming revelation of God's power.
Hebrews 2. 14 – 18
Hebrews is firm on Christ's genuine humanity. This is what enables us to see him as truly 'one of us' – and enables him to be our representative before God. Just like the high priest in the temple of old.
Luke 2. 22 – 40
Luke tells of Mary's humble keeping of the Jewish law relating to childbirth. As the new world is born, the old is superseded but not despised.
* We need powerful symbols, like the temple in Malachi's prophecy. How powerful can we let them be, and can they come to dominate the reality they stand for?
* It is surely helpful to see Jesus as our 'go-between' in relation to God. He has a foot on either side and joins the two together.
* Religious devotion can be glad of the past, even as the future dawns and draws our eyes.
Wednesday 6 February, 2008
Ash Wednesday
Joel 2. 1 – 2, 12 – 17
The prophet calls on God’s people to observe the holy time with all solemnity. It binds all together in the strict, heartfelt service of God.
or ¶ Isaiah 58. 1 – 12
God speaks via the prophet in exasperation at superficial religion. True service of God lies not in ritual acts but in care for the needy, bringing joy for all.
2 Corinthians 5. 20b – 6. 10
Paul sets out his credentials as Christ’s ambassador. They lie in the trials he has endured – leading to all the many blessings of the gospel of Christ.
¶ Matthew 6. 1 – 6, 16 – 21
Religious observance can be done for absurd reasons, even to win the approval of other people. Purity of motive is required – for the love of God.
or John 8. 1 – 11
We are not to sin – but equally, we must not be censorious, in effect putting ourselves on a pedestal of virtue. How wickedly foolish!
* Pray for purity in our love of God.
* The gift of Lent is to deepen out true service.
* Thank God for the chance to grow in love.
Sunday 10 February, 2008
Marriage Sunday (The First Sunday of Lent)
Genesis 2. 15 – 17; 3. 1 – 7
The story is a picture of the flawed character of our human nature, however 'good' we try to be. It is a sad truth about us - but not the whole truth.
Romans 5. 12 – 19
The fuller truth is that God does not abandon us to our spoiled and foolish selfishness. With Christ to stir us and Christ for us, we are taken out of ourselves to a quite different level of life. It is God's supreme, free gift.
Matthew 4. 1 – 11
Jesus triumphs over the natural temptations of his mission and (unlike Adam and Eve) is not turned away from what he must be and do.
* The fact that we are flawed must be humbly accepted if ever we are to be healed.
* The healing comes from God. Can we grasp it gladly?
* Temptations are often minor, but they can be symptoms of (and the test of) where we really stand.
Sunday 17 February, 2008
The Second Sunday of Lent
Genesis 12. 1 - 4a
In Abraham, the focus of the Old Testament story narrows from humanity as a whole to one man - with a huge destiny, which spreads out again, for the good of all.
¶ Romans 4. 1 – 5, 13 – 17
As a Jew, Paul knew Abraham as the seed of God's good will to us. To get that great boon out to the world at large, Paul seized on Abraham's faith and trust in God as the key. It is all that God requires of any of us.
Psalm: 121
John 3. 1 – 17
The final verses give the other side (God's side) of the coin from Paul. We trust, but first God gives, without stint or reserve, out of sheer love.
* We often tend to think of the big picture (nations, humanity). Is that the best way, when great matters are at stake, or is the small scale often crucial?
* Can our natural pride accept that God needs only trust, and not, for example, that we earn salvation by our perhaps rather threadbare virtue?
* Reflect that being accepted by God - receiving the gift - is the heart of our great good.
Sunday 24 February, 2008
The Third Sunday of Lent
¶ Exodus 17. 1 – 7
Trusting in God, not only in principle, but through thick and thin, is often an ordeal; but faith is the better for being tested.
¶ Roman 5. 1 – 11
Paul never ceases to be amazed at God's love for us – creatures of his who, in sober fact, merit nothing from him at all.
John 4. 5 – 42
John presents Jesus under two images, and he 'plays' with both. Jesus is the giver of the 'water' (baptism?) that alone can slake our real thirst; and he is the 'place' where God is most truly worshipped, our bond with God.
* Can we really be heartened when our faith is tested or do we fight shy?
* We pray – to keep to the faith that God's love is beyond all we have a right to expect.
* Jesus fulfils all our good and godly hopes, whatever shape we give to them.
Sunday 2 March, 2008
Mothering Sunday & Baptism Sunday
¶ Exodus 2. 1 – 10
Male Hebrew babies had to be drowned in the Nile, so Moses' mother acted shrewdly to save his life. In due course, he in turn was God's agent to save his people from slavery. It is a picture of Jesus' role for us all. Salvation hangs by a (golden) thread, does it not?
or 1 Samuel 1. 20 – 28
The birth of Samuel, dedicated for God’s special purpose, is an advance-echo for the coming of Jesus.
¶ 2 Corinthians 1. 3 – 7
Here we see Paul’s true pastoral spirit as he writes to a Christian Community that causes him much trouble.
or Colossians 3. 12 – 17
Here is Paul’s ideal picture of the Christian community – a generous, kindly people, devoted to God’s praise, all for the sake of Christ.
¶ Luke 2. 33 – 35
Like the mother of Moses, Mary has a crisis ahead. Jesus will be a man at risk as well as the giver of life and freedom.
or ¶ John 19. 25b – 27
Jesus provides for the future in his moment of death. Perhaps we should see his mother as standing for old Israel and the beloved disciple as the Church of the future, now inaugurated.
John 3. 1 - 8
The final verses give the other side (God's side) of the coin from Paul. We trust, but first God gives, without stint or reserve, out of sheer love.
* Is it hard to accept that the triumph of good is never plain sailing?
* How hard it is for church life to live up to so attractive an ideal.
* Pray for grace to share Mary's pain and suffering for the ultimate good of us all.
* Reflect that being accepted by God - receiving the gift - is the heart of our great good.
Sunday 9 March, 2008
The Fifth Sunday of Lent
Ezekiel 37. 1 – 14
The dry bones stand for the people of Israel, and the prophet's vision brings assurance of their new life, restored by God's power.
Romans 8. 6 – 11
God's spirit is his life-giving power. It exemplifies his central,
all-embracing character. Those who receive him will have true 'life' like the dry bones. The vision comes true.
John 11. 1 – 45
The raising of Lazarus is Jesus' greatest ‘sign' told in this Gospel. It shows us his power over all enemies - and the sisters rightly come to faith.
* What if your life is like dry bones, and where are the signs of newness?
* We believe that such life is God's gift, available for us.
* Life out of death is the gift at its most dramatic. What might it mean to us, even now?
Sunday 16 March, 2008
Palm Sunday
¶ Isaiah 50. 4 – 9a
The passage is a haunting description of one who suffers for the cause of God. It is no wonder that Christians soon saw it as helping to make sense of what happened to Jesus, and bringing it within the scope of God's mysterious purposes.
¶ Philippians 2. 5 – 11
We should probably read this passage as an early Christian hymn, summing up (rather like a kind of creed) the career of Christ: from God's highest place of esteem and dignity to the degradation of death by crucifixion, and then to glorious vindication.
Matthew 26.14 – 27.66
Matthew tells the familiar story of Jesus' arrest, trial and death, much as the earlier Gospel of Mark had done; but adding his own vivid touches, like Pilate washing his hands and leaving all responsibility to the Jewish authorities, and then Judas' suicide out of remorse.
or ¶ Matthew 27. 11 – 54
The shorter extract focuses on the climax of Pilate’s trial of Jesus, his final torture and death by crucifixion – the inexorable process fills our vision.
* That suffering can be beneficial and the only route to some great benefits is a hard pill for us to swallow. Here we see the principle at work on the grandest of scales.
* We wonder at the sweep of Christ's self-humbling and rejoice at his vindication.
* We should identify in imagination with characters in the story - and make what we can of ourselves.
Monday 17 March 2008
Compline 8.00 pm
Tuesday 18 March 2008
Compline 8.00 pm
Wednesday 19 March 2008
Compline 8.00 pm
Thursday 20 March, 2008
Maundy Thursday
Exodus 12. 1 – 4 (5 – 10), 11 – 14
The Last Supper was the Passover Meal, so here are the rubrics for its observance – on the eve of Israel’s great salvation from slavery in Egypt. We have always seen it as the model for our redemption in Christ.
1 Corinthians 11. 23 – 26
The oldest telling of the story of the Last Supper, whose actions are the model for the Eucharist – for all times and places.
John 13. 1 – 17, 31b – 35
The washing of the disciples’ feet is an act of deep humility, teaching the bond of love that is to join the followers of Jesus and make them one.
* Pray for a deeper devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist.
* We praise God for our rescue by God from all that threatens us.
* We trust that we can grow in love for each other.
Friday 21 March, 2008
Good Friday An Hour by the Cross 2 – 3.00 pm
Sunday 23 March, 2008
Easter Day
¶ Acts 10. 34 – 43
Peter gives a summary of the story of the salvation brought by Jesus, but the crucial point here is the universal scope of that work; it is for gentiles as well as for Jews. A major step in the Church's life and the spread of the good news.
or ¶ Jeremiah 31. 1 – 6
The prophet foresees a time when Israel’s hopes will be amply fulfilled, in joy and without stint.
Colossians 3.1 – 4
To become a Christian is to enter a whole new sphere of life, with Christ as its principle, indeed its true setting. This is the real fruit of Easter.
¶ John 20. 1- 18
Two stories of Easter Day, telling first of the abandoned tomb and then of Jesus' meeting with Mary Magdalene. A new world is born and the old is put behind. And love and recognition are the marks of the new.
or Matthew 28. 1 – 10
The women discover the tomb empty and report their finding – with joy and fear, both fitting reactions to the wonder of the day.
* To contemplate the story of Jesus is itself an act of thanksgiving to God.
* We pray not to forget the revolution that being a Christian must mean for us.
* Each of us should identify and cherish the events and experiences that clinch Christian faith for us.
Sunday 30 March, 2008
The Second Sunday of Easter
¶ Exodus 14. 10 – 31; 15. 20 – 21
The Israelites try to flee their Egyptian captors. All is in the balance: will they get away or not? With God’s help, success is assured.
¶ Acts 2. 14a, 22 – 32
This first example of apostolic preaching after the Ascension sees the raising of Jesus as fulfilling prophecy. It is meant by God and no mere fluke of nature.
¶ 1 Peter 1. 3 – 9
An exuberant affirmation of Christian belief written to people who must be ready for their share in Christ's triumph in the long term to be tested by suffering in the short term.
John 20. 19 – 31
Should faith depend on evidence? No, says the Gospel, for that destroys the character of faith itself. Faith is a matter of pure trust. Thomas is a sobering model for us as well as a reassurance.
* We are surely to be content that God's deep-laid providence should be worked out, for the good of all his creatures.
* Is it not hard to trust when the going is hard? It is also uniquely important and full of reward.
* Pray for the gift of pure trust, the true sign of love, not demanding proofs or measurable recompense.
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The Foundation of Lady Katherine Leveson
Registered
Charity no. 213618
Temple Balsall, Knowle, Solihull, West Midlands B93 0AN