Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for 29 September 2018, Saint Michael and All Angels

Saint Michael depicted in a stained-glass window in Saint Michael’s Church, the Church of Ireland parish church in Killorglin, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Patrick Comerford

Today is the Feast of Saint Michael and All Angels [29 September]. The Readings in the Revised Common Lectionary as adapted in the Church of Ireland are: Genesis 28: 10-17; Psalm 103: 19-22; Revelation 12: 7-12; John 1: 47-51.

Some parishes have transferred the commemoration of Saint Michael and All Angels to tomorrow (30 September 2018).

Churches dedicated to Saint Michael in the Dioceses of Limerick, Killaloe and Clonfert include Saint Michael’s, Pery Square, Limerick, Saint Michael’s Church, Killorglin, and Saint Michael and All Angels, Waterville, and the monastic settlement on the Skelligs Rocks was dedicated to Saint Michael. In the Diocese of Tuam, Killal and Achonry, Saint Michael’s Church, Miloremoy, is in Ballina, Co Mayo.

There are few references to Saint Michael in the Bible (Daniel 10: 13, 21, 12: 1; Jude 9; Revelation 12: 7-9; see also Revelation 20: 1-3). Yet Saint Michael has inspired great works in our culture, from John Milton’s Paradise Lost to Jacob Epstein’s powerful sculpture at Coventry Cathedral and poems by Philip Larkin and John Betjeman.

In all our imagery, in all our poetry, in stained glass windows throughout these islands, Saint Michael is depicted and seen as crushing or slaying Satan, often Satan as a dragon.

Culturally, today’s feast day of Saint Michael and All Angels has been an important day for the Church: the beginning of terms, the end of the harvest season, the settling of accounts.

It is the beginning of autumn, and as children in West Waterford we were told that Michaelmas Day is the last day for picking blackberries. As I grew up, I realised that this is a superstition shared across the islands, from Achill to Lichfield, from Wexford to Essex and Cambridge.

In his poem ‘Trebetherick,’ the late John Betjeman seems to link ripening blackberries and the closing in of the autumn days with old age and the approach of death:

Thick with sloe and blackberry, uneven in the light,
Lonely round the hedge, the heavy meadow was remote,
The oldest part of Cornwall was the wood as black as night,
And the pheasant and the rabbit lay torn open at the throat.

Betjeman had spent much of his childhood there, and he died in Trebetherick on 19 May 1984, at the age of 77. But the former poet laureate had a more benign view of blackberries on a visit to the Isle of Man, when he described ‘wandering down your late-September lanes when dew-hung cobwebs glisten in the gorse and blackberries shine, waiting to be picked.’

In his poem ‘At the chiming of light upon sleep,’ first drafted on this day 72 years ago [29 September 1946], the poet Philip Larkin links Michaelmas and a lost paradise with chances and opportunities he failed to take in his youth.

A beehive hut at Saint Michael’s Well in Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, associated with monastic settlement on the Skellig Rocks (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

This is a day to allow the mind to wander back to childhood memories, and a time for contemplation and unstructured prayers, giving thanks for the beauty of creation. September is the beginning of the Church Year in the Orthodox tradition, so this too is a day to think about and to give thanks for beginnings and ends, for starting and ending, for openings and closings, for memories and even for forgetfulness.

When I worked as Foreign Desk Editor of The Irish Times, Michael Jansen was a good friend and close colleague. We shared many of her hopes and fears, values and visions while she worked in Israel and the West Bank. Later, when she moved to Cyprus and shortly before my ordination, she invited me to spend Orthodox Easter in her village on the outskirts of Nicosia.

Friends and readers alike were surprised to find Michael is a woman. Most of us presume Michael is a man’s name. Yet the name Michael (Hebrew: מִיכָאֵל‎, Mîkhā'ēl; Greek: Μιχαήλ, Mikhaíl; Arabic: ميخائيل‎, Mikhā'īl) is not gender specific. The Talmudic tradition says Michael means ‘who is like El (God)?’ It is a popular mistake to translate the name as ‘One who is like God.’ It is, however, meant as a question: ‘Who is like the Lord God?’

The name was said to have been the war-cry of the angels in the battle fought in heaven against Satan and his followers. With a name like that, is it any wonder that my friend Michael lived up to her father’s expectations, taking a strong stand against the twin evils of oppressive violence and political corruption.

Saint Michael (centre) with Saint Gabriel (right) and Saint Raphael (left) in stained-glass windows in Saint Ailbe’s Church, Emly, Co Tipperary (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

The Archangel Michael is one of the principal angels in the Jewish, Christian and Islamic traditions. In John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost, Michael commands the army of angels loyal to God against the rebel forces of Satan. One of the best-known sculptures by Sir Jacob Epstein is Saint Michael’s Victory over the Devil at Coventry Cathedral.

Yet Michael is mentioned by name in the Bible only in the Book of Daniel, the Epistle of Jude and in the Book of Revelation.

After a period of fasting by Daniel, Michael appears as ‘one of the chief princes’ (Daniel 10: 13). Michael contends for Israel and is the ‘great prince, the protector of your (Daniel’s) people’ (Daniel 10: 21, 12: 1).

In the Epistle of Jude (verse 9), Michael contends with the Devil over the body of Moses, a story also found in the Midrash. In the Book of Revelation (Revelation 12: 7-12), we read of the war that ‘broke out in heaven’ between Michael and his angels and the dragon.

The later Christian traditions about Michael draw on Midrashic traditions and accounts in the Hebrew Apocrypha, especially the Book of Enoch, where he is the ‘viceroy of heaven,’ ‘the prince of Israel,’ and the angel of forbearance and mercy, who teaches clemency and justice, who presides over human virtue.

Rabbinic lore and the Midrash made Michael the special patron of Adam, the rescuer of Abraham, Lot and Jacob, the teacher of Moses, and the advocate of Israel; Michael tried to prevent Israel from being led into captivity, to save the Temple from destruction, and to protect Esther.

In the early Church, Michael was associated with the care of the sick, an angelic healer and heavenly physician associated with medicinal springs, streams and rivers. The Orthodox Church gave him the title Archistrategos or ‘Supreme Commander of the Heavenly Hosts.’ Saint Basil the Great and other Greek fathers placed Michael over all the angels and so called him ‘archangel.’

In the Middle Ages, Michael became the patron saint of warriors, and later became the patron saint of police officers, soldiers, paratroopers, mariners, paramedics, grocers, the Ukraine, the German people, of many cities, including Brussels, Coventry and Kiev, and, of course, of Marks and Spencer.

There are legends associating Michael with Castel di S. Angelo in Rome, Mont-Saint-Michel in France and mountain chapels all over Germany, and with Skellig Michael off the Kerry coast, which is a World Heritage Site. Saint Michael was also popular in the early Irish monastic tradition.

More practically, Michaelmas Day became one of the regular ‘quarter days’ in England and in Ireland. It was one of the days set aside for settling rents and accounts. Traditionally, in England and Ireland, university terms and court terms began on Michaelmas.

In the modern world, where angels and archangels are often the stuff of fantasy, science fiction and new-age babble, it is worth reminding ourselves about some Biblical and traditional values associated with Saint Michael and the Angels. Angels are nothing more than – but nothing less than – the messengers of God, the bringers of good news.

Saint Michael in a window in Saint Cronan’s Roman Catholic parish church in Roscrea, Co Tipperary (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Saint Michael’s virtues – standing up for God’s people and their rights, taking a clear stand against manifest evil, firmly opposing oppressive violence and political corruption, while always valuing forbearance and mercy, clemency and justice – are virtues we should always keep before us in our ministry and mission.

There is no special preface in the Book of Common Prayer for Michaelmas because in the Preface to the Eucharist, we already declare: ‘And so with all your people, with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying ...’

We should always be prepared, like Saint Michael and the angels to ask and to answer to the question: ‘Who is like the Lord God?’

The ruins of Ballinskelligs Priory, Co Kerry, founded by the monks from Skellig Michael (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

John 1: 47-51

47 When Jesus saw Nathanael coming towards him, he said of him, ‘Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!’ 48 Nathanael asked him, ‘Where did you come to know me?’ Jesus answered, ‘I saw you under the fig tree before Philip called you.’ 49 Nathanael replied, ‘Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!’ 50 Jesus answered, ‘Do you believe because I told you that I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these.’ 51 And he said to him, ‘Very truly, I tell you, you will see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.’

The Church of Saint Michael and All Angels in Waterville, Co Kerry, reopened on Trinity Sunday, 27 May 2018, with an ecumenical service (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical colour: White

Penitence:

Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Woe is me, for I am lost;
I am a person of unclean lips.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.

Your guilt is taken away,
And your sin is forgiven.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.

Saint Michael depicted in a stained glass window in Holy Cross Church, Charleville, Co Cork (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

The Collect:

Everlasting God,
you have ordained and constituted the ministries
of angels and mortals in a wonderful order:
Grant that as your holy angels always serve you in heaven,
so, at your command,
they may help and defend us on earth;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Introduction to the Peace:

Hear again the song of angels:
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace. (Luke 2: 14)

Post-Communion Prayer:

Lord of heaven,
in this Eucharist you have brought us near
to an innumerable company of angels
and to the spirits of the saints made perfect.
As in this food of our earthly pilgrimage
we have shared their fellowship,
so may we come to share their joy in heaven;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Blessing:

The God of all creation
guard you by his angels,
and grant you the citizenship of heaven:

The beach at Saint Finian’s Bay, near Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry, with Skellig Michael in the distance (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Suggested Hymns:

The hymns suggested for today in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling, include:

Genesis 28: 10-17:

561, Beneath the cross of Jesus
562, Blessèd assurance, Jesus is mine
330, God is here, As we his people
331, God reveals his presence
67, God, who made the earth and heaven
656, Nearer, my God, to thee

Psalm 103: 19-22:

682, All created things, bless the Lord
250, All hail the power of Jesus’ name
453, Come to us, creative Spirit
465, Hark, hark, my soul! angelic songs are swelling
321, Holy, holy, holy! Lord God almighty
708, O praise ye the Lord! Praise him in the height
366, Praise, my soul, the King of heaven
709, Praise the Lord! You heavens, adore him
376, Ye holy angels bright

Revelation 12: 7-12:

269, Hark ten thousand voices sounding
487, Soldiers of Christ, arise
112, There is a Redeemer
492, Ye servants of God, your master proclaim

John 1: 47-51:

460, For all your saints in glory, for all your saints at rest (verses 1, 2n, 3)
97, Jesus shall reign where’er the sun

Other hymns that are also suitable include:

346, Angel voices ever singing
316, Bright the vision that delighted
332, Come, let us join our cheerful songs
696, God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
476, Ye watchers and ye holy ones

Legends associat Saint Michael with Castel di S. Angelo in Rome (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 30 September 2018, Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity

‘Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? ’ (Mark 9: 50) … bags of salt tablets outside the Ice House Hotel on the Quayside in Ballina, Co Mayo (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday next, 30 September 2018, is the Eighteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVIII), with the liturgical provisions are for Proper 21.

The readings in the Revised Common Lectionary as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland are:

Continuous Readings: Esther 7: 1-6, 9-10, 9: 20-22; Psalm 124; James 5: 13-20; Mark 9: 38-50.

Paired readings: Numbers 11: 4-6,10-16, 24-29; Psalm 19: 7-14; James 5: 13-20; Mark 9: 38-50.

There is a link to the readings HERE.

Introducing the readings:

Some years ago, when I was discussing the readings for next Sunday with a colleague, I jested that I was going to preach from a phrase in the Epistle reading that reminds us: ‘Elijah ... prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth’ (James 5: 17).

After the mixed summer we have had in Ireland this year, it is fine to make childish jokes about passages like this in Scripture. Indeed, the Old Testament reading, despite its tragic background, is part of a book that creates entertaining and rowdy occasions in synagogues to this day.

But there is a more serious context to this reading, and both the Old Testament reading and the Gospel reading are serious warnings against the consequences of plotting and scheming that could destroy the innocence of children and the quality of life in wider society.

The Megillah or Scroll of Esther (bottom right) in an exhibition in a synagogue in Thessaloniki … this is the only book in the Bible not to mention God’s name (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Esther 7: 1-6, 9-10, 9: 20-22:

The Old Testament reading is one that creates entertaining and rowdy occasions in synagogues to this day.

As the story of Esther is read at the festival of Purim, which usually falls in March [28 February to 1 March 2018, 20 to 21 March 2019], a month before Passover, the synagogue is crowded with men, women, and children, the adults wearing their best Sabbath clothes, and many children, and some adults too, dressed up in colourful costumes, funny beards and masks.

Children in particular enjoy dressing up as the characters in the Book of Esther, including King Xerxes, the banished queen Vashti, Queen Esther, her cousin Mordecai and the evil, scheming Haman.

In some communities, they still burn an effigy of Haman. So for Jewish communities , Purim is like Hallowe’en, Carnival, Mardi Gras and Guy Fawkes Night ... all rolled into one, and usually focussed on children.

Purim and Hanukkah are two Jewish festivals that are not prescribed in Mosaic law. Indeed, the Megillah or Scroll of Esther is the only book in the Bible not to mention God’s name. It tells the story of the villain Haman who plots the genocide of the Jews in Persia.

Whenever his name is mentioned during the reading, everyone in the synagogue boos and hisses and stamps their feet, and they make a racket with graggers or rattles and cymbals.

The purpose of all this fun is to blot out the name of Haman. Originally, when his name was read, the congregation would shout ‘Cursed be Haman,’ or ‘May the name of the wicked rot!’

Any noise will do, and it is a mitzvah that Jewish people should eat, drink and be merry at Purim. According to the Talmud, a person is required to drink until they cannot tell the difference between ‘Cursed be Haman’ and ‘Blessed be Mordecai’ ... although opinions differ as to exactly how drunk that is.

In Sunday’s reading, we can tell the difference, for we have the end of the story: Haman the villain is hanged on the gallows he built for Mordecai, and Mordecai is given Haman’s job.

‘ … the month that had been turned for them from sorrow into gladness and from mourning into a holiday … they should make … days of feasting and gladness, days for sending gifts of food to one another and presents to the poor’ (Esther 9: 22) … (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

This story of Xerxes and Esther, Mordecai and Haman, is not relevant for Jews alone today. It is a story that reminds us constantly, with or without reference to God, that there are always people who plan and plot evil on a grand scale, happy to wallow in the misery and deaths of millions, men, women and children.

The fate of Haman – and of the 70,000 Persians over the course of three days – may seem severe and unconscionable by today’s standards. But it is not their executions, but rather the plots they planned to execute that faithful Jews are asked to call to mind at Purim.

For those with young children, trying to protect them from stories of evil and genocide is fraught with difficulties, and trying to fill their lives with appropriate but fun-filled and joyous occasions is not possible to sustain.

But while Haman and Hitler planned and plotted on a grand scale, there are always people who plot and plan evil and the destruction of innocence on varying scales of intensity and application. And we would be naïve to ever underestimate the capacity of people to do evil, nor ever undervalue the importance of our contribution to protecting the vulnerable, the frightened and the victimised children in our society today.

When we realise that we have been saved from disasters or from our enemies, then it is not only a matter for celebrating among ourselves. When sorrow has been turned into gladness and mourning into a holiday, we should not only feast and celebrated among ourselves but also mark these as ‘days for sending gifts of food to one another and presents to the poor’ (Esther 9: 22).

‘Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth’ (Psalm 124: 8) (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Psalm 124:

I sometimes wonder how the story in the Book of Esther was read by Jews during the horrors of the Holocaust, how they could possibly have sung the words of the Psalm for next Sunday:

If it had not been the Lord who was on our side
– let Israel now say –
if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
when our enemies attacked us,
then they would have swallowed us up alive,
when their anger was kindled against us ... – (Psalm 124: 1-3)

But the story of Esther is a reminder that even when God’s name is not mentioned or invoked, God can act through political decision-making to protect the rights of the vulnerable, the abused and the violated. For, as the Psalmist says, and as we – and all children – should be able to sing:

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
who made heaven and earth. (Psalm 124: 8)

The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective (James 5: 16) … (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

James 5: 13-20:

On Sunday, we come to the end of a series of readings from the Letter of Saint James. This conclusion to the letter may have been a sermon originally. Here, the author discusses prayer extensively. Whether we suffer or are cheerful, we must pray.

When people are seriously ill, we should call on those authority in the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord. The word πρεσβύτερος (presbyteros), translated as elder, is the Greek word that provides the words priest and presbyter in English.

Anointing with prayer connects physical health with spiritual health.

Sins should be mutually confessed, to attain integrity with God. We should pray for one another, for prayer is powerful and effective. The prayer of Elijah is an example of effective prayer.

We should prayer for one another, and help to rescue others from their sins.

‘And if your eye causes you to stumble’ (Mark 9: 47) … the London Eye (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 9: 38-50:

In preparing the Gospel reading for next Sunday (Mark 9: 38-50), we should note that verses 44 and 46 are omitted in most translations. This is not an error in publication, but because these are identical to verse 48, and are not found in the best ancient authorities.

To put the story in its context or setting, Christ and the disciples are in Capernaum. But on the way there, as we heard in the previous Sunday’s reading (Mark 9: 30-37), the disciples were arguing with one another about who is the greatest. Christ has told them not to seek position or prestige.

One of the Twelve, John, complains that someone who is not part of their inner circle has been casting out demons in Christ’s name. But did the disciples welcome him? Did they praise him for bringing comfort to distressed people and for restoring them to a good quality of life?

Christ now rebukes the disciples for attempting to stop this exorcist who is curing in his name. Just as the Book of Esther makes no mention of God, yet the story can be introduce the ways in which God works, we are reminded here that God can work through those who are not followers of Christ.

On the other hand, Christ warns us against putting an obstacle or stumbling block in the way of ‘little ones.’ He reprimands the disciples for being smug and jealous and unwelcoming.

Instead of being smug among themselves, arguing about who among them was the greatest, the disciples should have been like this man, bringing comfort to those who were in trouble, looking after those who were thirsty both physically and spiritually.

I once worked as a journalist in The Irish Times. A former colleague there, who was ordained a priest in the Church of Ireland a few years before me, was visiting our house one evening. I asked him what the difference was between the two – being a journalist and being a priest.

And with a grin he told me: ‘Not much. I continue to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted.’

Perhaps not in so many words, but in Sunday’s Gospel reading Christ tells the disciples that they should be afflicting the comfortable and comforting the afflicted.

More than 68.5 million people fled war or persecution last year, a new record, according to the UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency. Of those, 25.4 million people were refugees, 52% of them children, according to UNHCR’s Global Trends Report.

The present civil war in Yemen has been dubbed ‘the forgotten war.’ Meritexell Relano of the UN children’s agency, Unicef, says ‘the conflict has made Yemen a living hell for its children.’

She says more than 11 million children are threatened by food shortages, disease, displacement and access to essential social services. ‘An estimated 1.8 million children are malnourished in the country – nearly 400,000 severely malnourished and they are fighting for their lives every day.’

In Ireland today, how many children live hopeless lives with their parents in what we still call ‘direct provisions’? How many children sleep in temporary and often cramped accommodation in hotel rooms and hostels, not knowing how long they are going to be there, when they are going to be moved, and how long the journey to school is going to be next week?

In the past week, The Irish Times has reported the number of children kept in ‘wholly unsuitable’ conditions at ‘direct provision’ centres in Ireland has risen by more than a third over the past three years. These latest figures show 1,547 children are being held at 34 direct provision centres in 17 counties as their parents await the outcome of their applications for asylum.

That figure is up 37 per cent from 1,131 children in 2016. That number rose again last year to 1,420 children. The majority of the children are from Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Albania and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The children’s charity Barnardos says the system is diminishing the lives of children confined to the centre. ‘Simply put, the direct provision system is no place for children and the longer a child spends in this system the more their well-being and development will be hindered, said Jean Tinsley, head of advocacy for Barnardos.

Meanwhile, a report published by the Child Care Law Protecting Project highlights the difficulties in finding suitable places for disturbed children and young people and how these difficulties continue to take up the time of the courts. In one case, a nine-year-old boy had placement moves in 13 days.

A judge in one of these cases remarked this ‘is not the social worker’s fault, it is not the guardian ad litem’s fault, and it is most certainly not [the child’s] fault.’

On the same day, a consultant paediatric psychiatrist spoke at an Oireachtas committee hearing about an ongoing crisis in psychiatric services for children as current inpatient and outpatient facilities are not ‘fit for purpose.’

All children in these situations and these dilemmas are innocent. There is no such thing as a child being the wrong person in the wrong place at the wrong time. All children should feel safe, in all places, at all times.

But we need to move from Victorian Sunday School images of the children being brought to Jesus, and ask how he would hear the voices of children today and how he would respond to those who plot to do them harm.

Would Christ challenge us to hear the cries of children in the slums, in the sweat shops, in the brothels, to hear the cries of children behind the bedroom doors of respectability?

Would he ‘name and shame’ the Hamans of today who plot the end of a child’s childhood, taking away his innocence, her fun, their rights to love and life?

‘ … it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye’ (Mark 9: 47) … (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 9: 38-50 (NRSV):

38 John said to him, ‘Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us.’ 39 But Jesus said, ‘Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterwards to speak evil of me. 40 Whoever is not against us is for us. 41 For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.

42 ‘If any of you put a stumbling-block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. 45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, 48 where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.

49 ‘For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another.’

‘Pray for one another, so that you may be healed (James 5: 16) … (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical Colour: Green.

The Collect:

Almighty and everlasting God:
Increase in us your gift of faith
that, forsaking what lies behind,
we may run the way of your commandments
and win the crown of everlasting joy;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

All praise and thanks, O Christ,
for this sacred banquet,
in which by faith we receive you,
the memory of your passion is renewed,
our lives are filled with grace,
and a pledge of future glory given,
to feast at that table where you reign
with all your saints for ever.

Suggested Hymns:

The hymns suggested for next Sunday in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling, include:

Esther 7: 1-6, 9-10, 9: 20-22:

537, O God, our help in ages past
712, Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord
372, Through all the changing scenes of life

Psalm 124:

642, Amazing grace (how sweet the sound!)
553, Jesu, lover of my soul
537, O God, our help in ages past

Numbers 11: 4-6, 10-16, 24-29:

381, God has spoken – by his prophets
304, Loving Spirit, loving Spirit
386, Spirit of God, unseen as the wind

Psalm 19: 7-14:

606, As the deer pants for the water
631, God be in my head
696, God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
616, In my life, Lord, be glorified
384, Lord, thy word abideth
432, Love is his word, love is his way
638, O for a heart to praise my God

James 5: 13-20:

511, Father of mercy, God of consolation
614, Great Shepherd of your people, hear
635, Lord, be my guardian and my guide
619, Lord, teach us how to pray aright
513, O Christ, the Healer, we have come
625, Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire
369, Songs of praise the angels sang

Mark 9: 38-50:

643, Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
455, Go forth for God; go forth to the world in peace
507, Put peace into each other’s hands
527, Son of God, eternal Saviour
446, Strengthen for service, Lord, the hands

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 23 September 2018, Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity

‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me’ (Mark 9: 37) … ‘Spectral Child’ on Thomas Street, Limerick, by Dermot McConaghy (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday next, 23 September 2018, is the Seventeenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVII) and the liturgical provisions are for Proper 20.

The readings in the Revised Common Lectionary as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland are:

Continuous Readings: Proverbs 31: 10-31; Psalm 1; James 3: 13 to 4: 3, 7-8a; Mark 9: 30-37.

Paired Readings: or Wisdom 1: 16 to 2: 1, 12-22, or Jeremiah 11: 18-20; Psalm 54; James 3: 13 to 4: 3, 7-8a; Mark 9: 30-37.

There is a link to the readings HERE

‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me’ (Mark 9: 37) … Children of the Kindertransport seen in Frank Meisler’s bronze sculpture at Liverpool Street Station in London (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Introducing the readings:

Sophie’s Choice is a 1982 American movie based on a 1979 bestselling novel by William Styron. In this disturbing movie, Meryl Streep plays the title role of Sophie Zawistowski, a Polish immigrant who shares a boarding house in Brooklyn with Nathan Landau (Kevin Kline) and a young writer, Stingo (Peter MacNicol).

One evening, Stingo learns from Sophie that she was married, but her husband and her father were killed in a Nazi work camp, and that she was sent as a prisoner to Auschwitz with her children.

When Sophie arrived at Auschwitz, a camp doctor forced her to choose which one of her two children would be gassed and which would be sent to the labour camp. To avoid having both children killed, she chose to have her son Jan sent to the children’s camp, and her daughter Eva sent to her death. It was a heart-wrenching decision that left her in mourning and filled with a guilt that she can never overcome.

The name Sophie means wisdom, but the choice Sophie is faced with is not between good and evil, nor even between the lesser of two evils, but between evil and evil.

This morning’s readings introduce a number of similar themes, including comparisons between the Wisdom of God and a wise wife and mother, the choices we face between good and evil, and the innocence of children in the face of competition for power and status.

The loss of innocence and the destruction of wisdom … the railway tracks at Auschwitz-Birkenau (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Proverbs 31: 10-31:

We have come to the end of our short series of readings from the Book of Proverbs, which began earlier this month (9 September 2018). This selection ends on Sunday where the book ends with this poem, a detailed description of the roles and qualities of ‘a capable wife,’ a poem that serves as a summary of the Book of Proverbs.

Before this reading begins, we are told that the words in this closing section are ‘the words of King Lemuel. An oracle that his mother taught him’ (Proverbs 31: 1), and he is named again in verse 4.

Who was Lemuel?

Some say he was a member of a tribe descended from Abraham’s son Ishmael, some say he was Hezekiah, some even say he was Solomon.

Who is the good wife?

A good wife is mentioned earlier in this book: ‘He who finds a good wife finds a good thing, and obtains favour from the Lord’ (Proverbs 18: 22). Several of the qualities of this good wife are also those of Sophia, Wisdom. So, is the good wife Wisdom herself? There is a word play in verse 27, where the phrase in the NRSV ‘she looks well to’ reads in Hebrew as sophiyyah, providing a word play on the Greek Σοφῐ́ᾱ Sophia.

In four places in the Book of Proverbs, including this reading, the good wife, or Wisdom, is said to be ‘more precious than jewels’ (verse 10). The wife’s values to her husband are reminiscent of those of wisdom to her followers.

Verses 13-27 in this reading speak of the woman’s extraordinary and ceaseless activity, and her good relationship with her family. She and her husband are wealthy, while he is a leading figure in the community. She has a good business approach to managing their household, and is a hard worker, makes fine clothes for her family, and is generous to the poor and the needy.

On the following Sunday [Trinity XVIII, 30 September 2018], the Old Testament reading introduces us to a very different type of ‘capable wife’ with a very different sort of wisdom in the person of Esther (Esther 7: 1-6. 9-10, 9: 20-22).

‘They are like trees planted by streams of water’ (Psalm 1: 3) … willows by the banks of the River Suir in Golden, Co Tipperary (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Psalm 1:

This psalm is an introduction to the Psalms. It contrasts the fate of the godly and the ungodly.

The psalm begins by comparing the ways of the wicked and the ways of the godly. The godly do not live as the ungodly do. Instead, day and night, they meditate o the law of God. They are like trees that yield good fruit, and they are promised that they will prosper in all that they do.

On the other hand, the wicked are like chaff, blown about by the wind, who are lost when it comes to values of the Kingdom of God.

‘Where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind’ (James 3: 16) … the gates of Auschwitz (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

James 3: 13 to 4: 3, 7-8a:

We have also come to the end of our short series of readings from the Book of Proverbs, which began earlier this month (2 September 2018). This selection ends on Sunday with Saint James seeking to correct the arrogance and intemperate speech he finds in the community, and warning about the evil dangers of violence and war.

He reminds his readers of the qualities of wisdom, and his understanding of wisdom is like that of the Wisdom writers in the Old Testament and of Saint Paul. In doing this, he contrasts earthly wisdom and heavenly wisdom.

If we show gentleness, then we are showing heavenly wisdom. But if show envy and selfish ambition, and if we are boastful, then we are not being true to Christian values and are showing earthly values.

Godly wisdom is pure, peace-loving, merciful and bears good fruits, and seeks to make peace.

He continues by contrasting those who make peace with those who stir up strife and conflict, and contrasting the proud with the humble.

‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands and they will kill him’ (Mark 9: 31) … the crucifixion window in the parish church in Ballybunion, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 9: 30-37:

This Sunday’s Gospel reading comes immediately after a story that is passed over in the Sunday lectionary readings, the story of a young boy who is healed of epilepsy or an unclean spirit (Mark 9: 14-29). The disciples are left puzzled, wondering why Jesus could cure him, but they could not.

Now, as they travel from Caesarea Philippi to Jerusalem, they re-enter Jewish territory as they pass through Galilee. He tells them that he is the ‘Son of Man,’ that he is going to be betrayed and killed, and that he will rise again.

They do not understand what he is saying – how could they, they cannot yet expect the Crucifixion and the Resurrection. Both these future events, no matter how much closer they are getting to them as they move closer to Jerusalem, are beyond their understanding and they are afraid to ask Jesus, either because they do not want to show their ignorance or because they are afraid that they too may become innocent victims and suffer the consequences of what he is talking about.

By the time they arrive in Capernaum, the disciples have been arguing over who among them is the greatest. But Jesus chides them, telling them being a disciple is not about rank or power, position or prestige, but is about service.

To illustrate his point, Jesus takes a little child and places him or her among them. The Greek word used here, παιδίον (paidíon), is diminutive, and means a little child, either male or female, and could also be used for a young servant or even a child slave.

When someone welcomed a child slave or servant sent on an errand or with a message, they welcomed or received the master. Jesus reminds the disciples that whoever receives the servant receives the master, whoever receives a child receives Christ, whoever receives Christ receives God the Father, who sent him.

‘Then he took a little child and put it among them’ (Mark 9: 36) … a window in Saint Mary’s Church, Nenagh, Co Tipperary (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

A reflection on the Gospel reading:

How can we relate the first part of the Gospel reading (verses 30-32), when Jesus talks about his own impending betrayal, crucifixion and resurrection, with the part of the Gospel reading (verses 33-37), when Jesus takes an innocent, small child and makes him or her an example of how we should behave with Kingdom values?

Sometimes, I fear, we make it too difficult to talk about the Crucifixion, and so we make it too difficult to talk about the Resurrection, unless we are talking about them in the context of Holy Week, Good Friday and Easter.

But sometimes too, I fear, we make it too easy to talk about children because we romanticise childhood in our comfortable settings, yet too difficult to talk about children because too often we have to turn away, mentally and emotionally, when we see the suffering of children in the world today.

I think all of us have been disturbed for some years now about the terrors that are rained down on children in the world today.

I say ‘children’ and not ‘innocent children,’ because there is no such being as a guilty child – there are only innocent children.

And the suffering and plight of children is all the more distressing when it is caused by the calculations of adults who dismiss this suffering as merely the collateral damage brought about by war.

For Christians, this distress must always be acute, must always demand our compassion, must always call for our response.

It cannot matter to us what label is placed on these children – whether the suffering Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip are Christians or Muslim; whether the children fleeing Syria as refugees are Christian or Muslim; whether the children targeted by Saudi fighter bombers are Shia or Sunni, going to a school or a wedding; whether the children separated forcibly from their parents on the border between Texas and Mexico speak Spanish or English; whether the homeless children who sleep in a cramped hotel room with their mothers tonight are travellers or settled children.

When the disciples argue in this Gospel reading about who is the greatest among them (verse 34), they are shamed into silence when they realise Jesus overhears what they say.

In response, he calls a child, puts the child among them, and tells them: ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all’ (verse 35). Then he takes a little child and puts it among them, then takes the child in his arms and says to them, ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me’ (verse 37).

We are not told whether this child is a boy or girl, free or slave, Jew or Samaritan, Greek or Roman, a street urchin or the child of one the Disciples.

Indeed, in all likelihood, the Disciples never noticed, for at that time a child was of no economic value and a burden on families until the child could earn his or her own way, or until the child had the potential of being the equivalent of a pension scheme for parents.

But in Saint Matthew’s version of this story (Matthew 18: 1-14), Christ tells us: ‘Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven … it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost’ (verses 10-14).

The Kingdom of Heaven is like little things. Throughout the Gospels, Christ reminds us that the Kingdom of Heaven is like:

● Sowing a seed;

● Giving a nest to the birds of the air;

● Mixing yeast;

● Turning small amounts of flour into generous portions of bread;

● Finding hidden treasure;

● Rushing out in joy;

● Selling all that I have because something I have found is worth more – much, much more, again and again;

● Searching for pearls;

● Finding just one pearl;

● Casting a net into the sea;

● Catching an abundance of fish;

● Drawing that abundance of fish ashore, realising there is too much there for my personal needs, and sharing it.

In this Gospel reading, we are told that Kingdom is like a little child.

Quite often, we romanticise this little child, thinking of a well-dressed, well-fed, well-loved child from our own family or own parish.

But for one moment imagine a playing child not knowing he is about to die on a beach in Gaza, a child falsely feeling secure on a school bus in Yemen, a frightened child in a Syrian mother’s arms cramped into a tiny boat in the Mediterranean, a wailing, distressed child on the Mexican border who has no idea where her parents are, a child in an hotel room tonight whose mother does not know where they are going to sleep tomorrow night.

These are last in the world’s priorities, yet Christ says ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last … Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me’ (Mark 9: 35, 37).

‘… and three days after being killed he will rise again’ (Mark 9: 31) … the resurrection window in Saint Michael’s Church, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Mark 9: 30-37:

30 They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, ‘The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again.’ 32 But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.

33 Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you arguing about on the way?’ 34 But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. 35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, ‘Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.’ 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 ‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’

‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me’ (Mark 9: 37) … a window in the chapel of Saint John’s Hospital, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical Colour: Green

The Collect:

Almighty God,
you have made us for yourself,
and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you:
Teach us to offer ourselves to your service,
that here we may have your peace,
and in the world to come may see you face to face;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

God our guide,
you feed us with bread from heaven
as you fed your people Israel.
May we who have been inwardly nourished
be ready to follow you
all the days of our pilgrimage on earth,
until we come to your kingdom in heaven.
This we ask in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.

‘For the beauty of the earth’ (Hymn 350) … by the river bank in Adare, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Suggested Hymns:

The hymns suggested for next Sunday in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling, include:

Proverbs 31: 10-31:

350, For the beauty of the earth
543, Lord of the home, your only Son
636, May the grace of Christ our Saviour
544, O perfect love, all human thought transcending

Psalm 1:

649, Happy are they, they that love God
56, Lord, as I wake I turn to you
383, Lord, be thy word my rule

Wisdom 1: 16 to 2: 1, 12-22:

10, All my hope on God is founded
700, Holy God, we praise thy name

Jeremiah 11: 18-20:

118, Behold, the mountain of the Lord
273, Led like a lamb to the slaughter
140, The Lord will come and not be slow

Psalm 54:

218, And can it be that I should gain
638, O for a heart to praise my God
620, O Lord, hear my prayer

James 3: 13 to 4: 3, 7-8a:

10, All my hope on God is founded
297, Come, thou Holy Spirit, come
563, Commit your ways to God
311, Fruitful trees, the Spirit’s sowing
533, God of grace and God of glory
551, How can we sing with joy to God
553, Jesu, lover of my soul
99, Jesus, the name high over all
635, Lord, be my guardian and my guide
619, Lord, teach us how to pray aright
593, O Jesus, I have promised
507, Put peace into each other’s hands
8, The Lord is King! Lift up your voice

Mark 9: 30-37:

11, Can we by searching find out God
219, From heav’n you came, helpless babe
651, Jesus, friend of little children
228, Meekness and majesty
231, My song is love unknown
439, Once, only once, and once for all
627, What a friend we have in Jesus
145, You servants of the Lord

‘Jesus, friend of little children’ (Hymn 651) … a stained glass window in Saint John’s Church, Sandymount, Dublin (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

‘They are like trees planted by streams of water’ (Psalm 1: 3) … willows by the banks of the River Cam in Cambridge (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 16 September 2018, Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity

‘Look at ships … it takes strong winds to drive them’ (James 3: 4) … a late summer sunset at Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Next Sunday, 16 September 2018, is the Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVI). The readings in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted in the Church of Ireland, are:

Continuous Readings: Proverbs 1: 20-33; Psalm 19 or the Canticle The Song of Wisdom (Wisdom 7: 26 to 8: 1); James 3: 1-12; Mark 8: 27-38.

Paired Readings: Isaiah 50: 4-9a; Psalm 116: 1-8; James 3: 1-12; Mark 8: 27-38.

There is a link to the readings HERE.

Introducing the readings:

There is an interesting theme about Wisdom running through the Continuous Readings provided for next Sunday. The qualities of wisdom as an image of God are described in the first reading. The Psalm describes how wisdom can be searched out and found. An alternative to the Psalm is found in the Canticle, ‘The Song of Wisdom,’ which describes the characteristics of wisdom.

The New Testament reading, however, warns us against unwise use of our tongue in talk and conversation, and the Gospel reading is an introduction to how the disciples, personified in Saint Peter, find it difficult to be wise about who Christ is.

‘Wisdom cried out in the street … at the entrance of the city gates she spoke’ (Proverbs 1: 20-21) … a gate in the city walls in Thessaloniki (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Proverbs 1: 20-33:

Wisdom, who is personified as a woman, makes her first appearance in this book in this reading and delivers warnings of her own.

She speaks in public places where she can be heard – as did the prophets Isaiah and Jeremiah – reaching ordinary people in the street and the busy people who work at the city gates. She calls to the simple, to the scoffers and to fools, all of whom reject wisdom.

If only they would change their ways, she would make God’s ways known to them. But, even though she has stretched out her hand, they have not changed their ways and they laugh at her.

But, she warns them, she will have the last laugh. Their downfall will be sudden and unpredictable, like a storm or a whirlwind, when they will realise it too late. Then, because they hated knowledge and chose not to hold God in awe, because they did not accept the advice of Wisdom, nor listened to her criticism of their ways, they will reap what they have sown. But those who listen to Wisdom’s call will live ‘without dread of disaster.’

‘The sun … comes forth like a like a bridegroom out of the chamber’ (Psalm 19: 5) … a winter sunrise at the Rectory in Askeaton (Photograph; Patrick Comerford)

Psalm 19:

This Psalm is familiar to many churchgoers because its closing words were often used in the past by preachers as the opening prayer as they began their sermons: ‘Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my strength and my redeemer’ (Psalm 19: 14).

In the Psalm, the heavens and the firmament are depicted as telling us of God’s glory and work. The firmament was understood as almost like a pudding bowl over the earth, and beyond this was a hierarchy of heavens.

God’s glory is told day and night to all without needing to use words. The sun rises early in the morning, making God’s presence known with its heat.

Verses 7-9 present the wonders of the law as an expression of God’s will for humanity. It revives the soul, gives wisdom to the innocent, rejoices the heart and gives light to the eye.

‘Wisdom is a reflection of eternal light’ (Wisdom 7: 26) … the reflections of evening lights at the harbour in Skerries, Co Dublin (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

The Canticle Song of Wisdom (Wisdom 7: 26 to 8: 1):

The lectionary provides the Canticle The Song of Wisdom as an alternative to the psalm on Sunday. This is one of the 20 canticles provided for use at Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer in the Book of Common Prayer (see pp 132-133), but unlike other Biblical canticles in this section – such as Venite and Jubilate, we are offered only one form of this canticle.

The Book of Wisdom is important for our ideas of Christ. As in the first reading (Proverbs 1: 20-33), Wisdom is once again personified as a woman. She has 21 characteristics of wisdom – although some are repeated to reach this number. In Hebrew literature, the number 7 signifies perfection, while the number 3 is the divine number. So, the number 21 represents divine or absolute perfection.

Wisdom flows from eternal light, is a flawless reflection of God’s activity, and an image of his goodness. Wisdom can do all things, is constant unchanging, gives life to each generation, and enters the souls of the godly. Wisdom is morally perfect and ‘orders all things well.’

‘Look at ships … though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them’ (James 3: 4) … a sail ship at the quays in Dublin (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

James 3: 1-12:

The author of this Epistle is a teacher who realises the expectations for teachers is greater than those for others, and warns that none of us can live a perfect, Christian, moral life.

The tongue is small, but like a horse’s bit or a ship’s rudder, it can steer and move the rest of the body, with grave consequences. The tongue can be set on fire by hell, is difficult to be tame, and is capable of spreading evil. It can be used for good or evil, to honour God or to curse other people, who are ‘made in the likeness of God.’ It should only be used for good.

In nature, a spring only produces good water or bad water, fig trees do not yield olives, nor do vines yield figs, and salt water cannot yield fresh water.

What do we produce that are signs of a living Christian faith?

Saint Peter … an Earley window in the porch of the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Athlone (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Mark 8: 27-38:

In this Gospel reading, Christ travels north from the Sea of Galilee to the villages around Caesarea Philippi, a town known for its shrines to the god Pan. It was first settled in the Hellenistic period, and was also known as Caesarea Paneas and Neronias.

On the way to Caesarea Philippi, Saint Peter tells Christ that he believes he is the Messiah (Mark 8: 29-30). Peter has that rock-like faith on which the Church is going to be built (see Matthew 16: 18-19).

But Christ then tells his disciples that it is not all going to be a bed of roses, indeed it is going to be more like a crown of thorns. He tells them that on the journey he is going to suffer, be derided, and face his own execution.

Saint Peter is upset. This is not what he expects. This is not what anyone of the day expects of the Messiah. He takes Jesus aside, and he rebukes him.

But he has got it wrong. Christ in turn rebukes Peter and reminds those present that if they want to be his followers they must take up their cross and follow him.

Later, during the trial of Jesus, Peter denies he is a follower of Christ, not just once, or even twice, but denies Christ three times before the cock crows.

This is the same Simon Peter who has a faith that is going to be so rock solid that the church could stand on it. This is the same Peter who drew his sword in the garden in a futile attempt to stop the arrest of Christ (John 18: 10-11; but see Matthew 26: 51-54, Mark 14: 47 and Luke 22: 49-51, where Peter is not named).

But, when push comes to shove, Peter denies Christ, and denies him three times in the course of just one night (Matthew 26: 69-75; Mark 14: 66-72; Luke 22: 54-62; John 18: 15-17, 25-27).

Yet this Peter is to find his potential, or rather Christ sees his potential, in an Easter story, a story of hope (John 21: 15-17).

The Risen Christ meets the disciples on the shore early in the morning. After breakfast, Christ asks Peter: ‘Do you love me?’ Peter answers, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ Christ tells him: ‘Feed my lambs’ (verse 15).

A second time, Christ asks him, ‘Do you love me?’ Peter answers, ‘Yes Lord; you know that I love you.’ Christ tells him: ‘Tend my sheep’ (verse 16).

A third time, Christ asks him, ‘Do you love me?’ Peter feels hurt, and he sounds exasperated and exhausted as he answers a third time, ‘Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.’ This time Christ tells him: ‘Feed my sheep’ (verse 17).

Christ’s three questions to Peter serve as a way of reversing the three denials the previous week. Now he is given a triple charge: to feed the lambs of the Good Shepherd; to tend his sheep; and to feed his sheep.

Despite this, Saint Peter still does not manage to get it quite right all the time. He argues with Saint Paul at Antioch, and Paul rebukes Peter for seemingly trying to insist that Gentiles must become Jews if they are to convert to Christianity (Galatians 2: 11-13).

Even when he gets it wrong in Antioch, Saint Peter goes on to get it right at the first Council of the Church in Jerusalem (see Acts 15: 7-20). He goes on to refer to Saint Paul as ‘our beloved brother’ and his letters as ‘scripture,’ even when they may be difficult to understand (see II Peter 3: 16-17).

A later Church tradition says Saint Peter and Saint Paul taught together in Rome, founded Christianity in the city, and suffered martyrdom at the same time, so that an icon of Saint Peter and Saint Paul, standing side-by-side, is a popular icon of Church unity and ecumenism in the Orthodox Church.

Saint Peter depicted in a window in the north nave in in Saint Flannan’s Cathedral, Killaloe (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Reflecting on the Gospel reading:

Like the people who are listening to Christ in Sunday’s Gospel reading, we are called to take up our cross and follow Christ (Mark 8: 34). Along the way, we may fall and stumble, we may wonder where we are going and why. But the Easter message is always a reminder that the journey in faith leads to is one of hope and love.

If Saint Peter knew what was ahead of him, he might have been even stronger in rebuking Christ in this Gospel reading. But the triumph comes not in getting what we want, not in engineering things so that God gives us what we desire and wish for, so that we get a Jesus who does the things we want him to do. The triumph comes at Easter, in the Resurrection.

We cannot separate who Christ is from what Christ does. In Sunday’s Gospel reading, Christ asks his disciples, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ (Mark 8: 29). The suffering of the Suffering Servant is an image that is drawn on when Christ talks in our Gospel reading this morning from Saint Mark’s Gospel.

There he talks about his coming passion and crucifixion, when he says that ‘the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected … and be killed …’ (Mark 8: 31).

If we say we believe Christ suffered and died for our sins, then we must also say that he takes on the ways we are sinned against.

When people are taunted and spat on in the streets, when their ethnicity and their language become a matter for rejection and humiliation, then how do we respond to it when we think that it is Christ himself who is being spat upon, that Christ himself takes on the insults and the injuries?

But suffering and rejection must never have the last word. As Christ reminds us in this Gospel reading, all sufferings must end in hope: the Son of Man ‘after three days [will rise] again’ (Mark 8: 31). All suffering must eventually be put to an end, because that is the promise of the Crucifixion and the Resurrection.

To be true followers of Christ means taking up our cross and following him (Mark 8: 34). There is no shame in being Christ-like (Mark 8: 38). And so, we too must be willing to see any insult or taunt, any expression of prejudice or rejection, any racism or any discrimination based on ethnicity or language, gender or sexuality, colour or looks, is prejudice against Christ, is prejudice against the Body of Christ, is prejudice against all of us, is prejudice against me.

Some years ago, in my book Embracing Difference, I pointed out that immigrants and asylum seekers in Ireland suffer disproportionately when it comes to industrial accidents and poor wages. Statistics show they are more likely than Irish-born residents to be the victims of violent crime, including murder, to end up in prison, to be the victims of racism, to be killed in road traffic accidents, and to be the victims of workplace accidents, including fatal accidents.

Those same statistics show that a disproportionate number of the children admitted to our hospitals are the children of asylum seekers. If they suffer like this, then how ought we to respond as Christians?

Saint Peter and Saint Paul … a window in Saint John’s Church, Wall, near Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2017)

Mark 8: 27-38 (NRSV)

27 Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ 28 And they answered him, ‘John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.’ 29 He asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered him, ‘You are the Messiah.’ 30 And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.

31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’

34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.’

Saint Peter depicted in one of the paired east windows in Saint Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co Galway (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical Colour: Green

The Collect:

O Lord,
Hear the prayers of your people who call upon you;
and grant that they may both perceive and know
what things they ought to do,
and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil them;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

God of mercy,
through our sharing in this holy sacrament
you make us one body in Christ.
Fashion us in his likeness here on earth,
that we may share his glorious company in heaven,
where he lives and reigns now and for ever.

‘Look at ships … though they are so large … yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the pilot directs’ (James 3: 4) … a ferry leaving the harbour in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Suggested Hymns:

The hymns suggested for next Sunday in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling, include:

Proverbs 1: 20-33:

643, Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
11, Can we by searching find out God
324, God, whose almighty word

Psalm 19:

606, As the deer pants for the water
153, Come, thou Redeemer of the earth
351, From all that dwell below the skies
631, God be in my head
696, God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
616, In my life, Lord, be glorified
97, Jesus shall reign where’er the sun
384, Lord, thy word abideth
432, Love is his word, love is his way
638, O for a heart to praise my God
34, O worship the King all-glorious above
35, The spacious firmament on high

The Song of Wisdom:

643, Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
33, O Lord of every shining constellation

Isaiah 50: 4-9a:

230, My Lord, what love is this
235, O sacred head, sore wounded
239, See, Christ was wounded for our sake

Psalm 116: 1-8:

494, Beauty for brokenness
374, When all thy mercies, O my God

James 3: 1-12:

31, Lord of the boundless curves of space
589, Lord, speak to me that I may speak
33, O Lord of every shining constellation
446, Strengthen for service, Lord, the hands

Mark 8: 27-38:

666, Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side
460, For all your saints in glory, for all your saints at rest (verse 1, 2j, 3)
533, God of grace and God of glory
588, Light of the minds that know him
59, New every morning is the love
108, Praise to the Holiest in the height
599, ‘Take up thy cross,’ the Saviour said
112, There is a Redeemer
605, Will you come and follow me

‘Wisdom cried out in the street … at the entrance of the city gates she spoke’ (Proverbs 1: 20-21) … a gate in the city walls in Collioure in the south of France (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org