Patrick Comerford
Next Sunday, 2 June 2019, is the Seventh Sunday of Easter (Easter VII).
The Readings in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are:
The Readings:
Acts 16: 16-34 or I Samuel 12: 19-24; Psalm 97; Revelation 22: 12-14, 16-17, 20-21; John 17: 20-26.
There is a link to the readings HERE.
Introducing the readings
On the Seventh Sunday of Easter, we are, I suppose, in some way caught in an in-between time, between Ascension Day, the previous Thursday, and the Day of Pentecost, the following Sunday.
In this ‘in-between time,’ the disciples and other followers and family members are gathered together in upper room, devoting themselves to prayer (see Acts 1: 13-14), and there Matthias is chosen to join the Twelve (see Acts 1: 23-26).
The first reading continues the series of readings from the Acts of the Apostles. The alternative first reading, from Samuel’s farewell address, prepares us to listen to the Gospel reading, which is part of Christ’s farewell discourse at the Last Supper.
The Psalm is a reminder that God is the Lord and King of the earth. This majesty of God, and Christ’s rule over the new heaven and the new earth, is emphasised in the second reading, which concludes our set of readings from the Book of Revelation, looking forward to Christ’s second coming.
The Gospel reading is part of Christ’s great prayer at the Last Supper for his disciples and the future Church after his departure.
All these readings are a call to look forward to being with Christ in glory, which is appropriate preparation for the Day of Pentecost the following Sunday.
Acts 16: 16-34:
The Apostle Paul has entered Europe for the first time, and he is in Philippi. Saint Paul, Silas and Timothy have visited the Jewish community, which meets ‘by the river’ (verse 13), perhaps at an outdoor place of prayer. There they met Lydia, a businesswoman. After hearing the good news, she has been converted to the faith.
Now we read of two miracles: the curing of a slave girl who is possessed, which puts Paul and Silas in prison (verses 16-24), and the miraculous earthquake that leads to the conversion and baptism of the jailer and his family (verses 25-34).
The slave-girl’s cry when she realises who Saint Paul is and the response of Paul to her plight is a reminder of the exorcisms carried out by Jesus himself. There too evil spirits recognised God and spoke the truth. Saint Paul continues what Christ began; it is Christ who cures (‘in the name of Jesus Christ,’ verse 18).
The market-place or agora was the seat of the local authorities or judges (verse 19): law cases were heard there, and the city jail was nearby.
The slave-girl’s owners bring two false charges against Paul and Silas: disturbing the peace and urging Roman citizens to practice strange customs (verse 20-21).
The owners stir up the crowd and justice follows swiftly. They are beaten by the police using the bundle of rods sometimes bound around an axe as a sign of justice (verse 22). They are put in a prison cell, and placed in the stocks, which forced the legs apart (verses 23-24).
In the second part of this reading, the earthquake is seen as a manifestation of God’s presence: being beyond the natural, it is a miracle. A Roman jailer was likely to be put to death for letting a prisoner escape, and so this one is on the verge of suicide (see 27).
Verses 30-33 tell of the conversion of the jailer and his family: he asks the key question, to which Paul and Silas reply with a brief statement (verse 31).
The jailer and his family are instructed in the faith, he and his family are baptised, and they share a meal, rejoicing (verse 32-34).
A reflection on the reading:
Taken out of context, this first reading is quite stark and raises many questions.
As we heard the previous Sunday (Acts 16: 9-15, Easter VI, 26 May 2019), the Apostle Paul has a vision of a man calling him to Macedonia. Paul and Silas, and some more companions set sail from Troy, arrive in Eastern Macedonia, and are staying in the Roman colony of Philippi. There the first person they meet is not the man Paul saw in his vision, but Lydia from Thyatira, a rich woman who makes them welcome in her household.
That woman’s name is Lydia, but Lydia is also the name of the area around Thyatira. It was a centre of the cult of Apollo and Artemis, and one of the great Lydian temple to these twins was at Didyme, near the Lydian city of Sardis.
Lydia’s wealth, social standing and independence are unusual for a woman of her time. She and her household are baptised, and she provides lengthy hospitality for Paul, Silas, Luke and whoever else is travelling with them. The Orthodox Church gives her the title of ‘Equal to the Apostles.’ Her home hosts the first church on what we now call European soil. Could we think of her as the first European bishop?
Lydia’s freedom of choice when it comes to religious matters contrasts with the plight of the unnamed girl we meet in these next few verses, the slave-girl who is described in some translations as a ‘damsel’ (e.g. KJV). She has no wealth, no independence from men, and no freedom of religious choice.
This poor girl is possessed – the NRSV says she has ‘a spirit of divination.’ And other people make money out of that. The Greek here is much more specific than this English translation: εχουσαν πνευμα πυθωνος, she ‘has the spirit of Python.’
No, she is not possessed by the humour of Monty Python. Nor has she swallowed a snake. Πύθων in Greek mythology was the name of the Pythian serpent or dragon at Pytho at the foot of Mount Parnassus. This python guarded the oracle at Delphi and was slain by Apollo (Ἀπόλλων). And so, Python became one of the names of Apollo, the Greek god of light and the sun, the fine arts, music, poetry, medicine, eloquence and prophecy, the patron of shepherds and the guardian of truth. He is the son of Zeus, and in Greek mythology he dies and rises again.
The celebrated oracle at Delphi, the priestess of Apollo, was said to be inspired by Apollo. She became violently agitated during the periods of supposed inspiration and gave responses about the future that were regarded as the oracles of the god.
This possessed young woman is a minor oracle of the cult of Apollo. She is exploited by a group of men who make a pretty income from her utterances, what the NRSV describes as her ‘fortune-telling.’ But the Greek uses the word μαντεύομαι – she is not like a fortune teller with a turban in a circus tent looking at the palms of hands; she acts as a seer, she delivers an oracle, she is a slave priestess of the cult of Apollo.
The priestesses of Apollo were said to give their answers from their bellies – the seat of emotions – while their mouths were closed.
How does this oracle of Apollo behave when she is confronted with the disciples of the good shepherd, the one who is the way the truth and the light, the Son of God who died and rises again?
But there is a contradiction here: if she is an oracle slave of Apollo, why is she proclaiming that Paul and his companions are the slaves of the Most High, proclaiming the way of salvation?
And I find myself asking, why does she keep on doing this, for days and days on end (see verse 18)?
Why is Saint Paul so annoyed with what she says?
Was he right to ignore her for the first few days?
Or has he come to realise her plight, the full enormity of her religious enslavement?
If she is already proclaiming, for many days, the God that Paul and Silas proclaim as the Most High God, and she is acknowledging that they are preaching salvation, surely she has already lost her value to her owners before they start blaming Saint Paul and his exorcism?
But then, as Saint James reminds readers of his epistle, ‘even the demons believe’ (James 2: 19).
She may be stating the truth, but she is not serving the truth. But how often are we deceived by people who speak the truth but whose intentions are so contrary to what is truthful and wholesome?
And if the financial dependence and the religious slavery of this girl contrast with the financial independence and religious freedom of the more mature Lydia, then her slavery to exploitative religion, her imprisonment to those who make a profit out the cult of Apollo, is in contrast to the subsequent imprisonment for Christ’s sake suffered by Paul and Silas.
The story comes between two sets of conversions and baptisms – those of Lydia and her household (Acts 16: 15), and of the Philippian jailer and his entire family, which concludes Sunday’s reading (Acts 16: 25-34).
Of course, later, when Paul challenges the cult of Artemis in Ephesus he is jailed by those facing financial loss, just as he is jailed in Philippi for challenging the exploitative cult of Apollo.
But this reading raises a number of questions:
Are there appropriate and inappropriate times and places for proclaiming the Gospel?
Are there times to be silent about who God is and about the Gospel?
Is there an appropriate time or place to be annoyed or irritated by what other people are saying about our ministry or our discipleship?
Are we aware of times when religion is used as a way of trapping and abusing vulnerable people?
Or times when religion is used for making a great deal of money for others?
Do we appreciate how sometimes other people may have to pay the price for our ministry and mission?
Do we appreciate and pray for those who suffer for the faith, sometimes in hidden and unseen circumstances, perhaps even in the silence of their own homes?
And when people are like Lydia to us, encouraging, supporting and hospitable, do we merely accept it passively and take it for granted, or do we fully appreciate it, acknowledging that they too have an apostolic ministry?
Apart from acknowledging God most high and preaching of the way of salvation, which even this oracle of Apollo can acknowledge, how do we show our faith and the life in Christ in the way we live our own lives?
The Temple of Apollo in Didyma … one of the most important shrines and temples in the classical world to Apollo and his twin sister Artemis (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)I Samuel 12: 19-24:
The alternative first reading is from Samuel’s farewell address, in which he urges the people to put fear aside, and to serve the Lord ‘with all your heart’ (verse 19), and to serve him ‘faithfully with all your heart’ (verse 24).
Samuel’s farewell address could be compared to the thoughts in the Gospel reading from Christ’s great discourse in Saint John’s Gospel (see John 17: 20-26, below), and the words in which he urges the disciples to live without fear and guided by God’s love.
Psalm 97:
Psalm 97 is a hymn celebrating God’s kingship. It emphasises God’s supremacy as Lord of the earth. ‘The Lord is king!’ (verse 1), in other words, he has won the battle for world kingship over the forces of chaos. May the whole earth rejoice!
Verses 2-5 are a theophany, a description of how God has appeared as he has visited earth: in a cloud and in a burning bush during the Exodus, etc. He rules with righteousness and justice. He is ‘the Lord of all the earth’ (verse 5).
The word ‘all’ occurs three times in verses 6-9, emphasising God’s omnipotence. Verse 7 says that those who worship images or idols will realise the error of their ways. Other gods recognise God’s supremacy. Then, in verse 8, the people of Israel rejoice in God’s justice.
Verses 10-12 tell us the kind of rule God exercises. Those who hate evil are faithful to him, and he rescues them from the ways of the wicked. Light shines on the righteous, who rejoice and who give thanks to God.
Revelation 22: 12-14, 16-17, 20-21:
Saint John has come to the end of recounting the revelation he has received on Patmos.
Now, in verse 12, Jesus, who is the Lamb on throne speaks to him (see verse 16). Using the image of the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, he is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end of all things (verse 13; see Revelation 1: 8).
‘Those who wash their robes,’ those who are faithful, are now blessed, and may enter the city, the New Jerusalem, by the gates (verse 14).
In the earliest manuscripts, there are two versions of verse 14: one refers to ‘those who wash their robes’; the other refers to those who ‘do his commandments.’ Both use terms found throughout this book.
The tree of life (verse 14) is an image that also allows us to link the beginning of the creation story (see Genesis 3: 22) with the fulfilment of creation in this closing book of the Bible. Earlier in this chapter, we are told the ‘tree of life’ has ‘twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves are for the healing of the nations’ (verse 2).
Christ then identifies himself with traditional Jewish messianic titles (see Isaiah 11: 2, 10). He is born of David’s line, and it was he who sent his angel to Saint John to give this revelation ‘for the churches’ (verse 16). He is the ‘star [that] shall come out of Jacob [Israel]’ (see Numbers 24: 17).
The bride in verse 17 is the Church (see 21: 2, 9). Both the Spirit and the Church are integral with God, and both seek Christ’s return. The water of life flows from the throne of God and of the Lamb (verse 1). God’s gift of eternal life is available to all.
Verses 18-19 seek to ensure that this book is transmitted accurately to all, for it is from God. It is not to be added to, nor is anything to be taken from it.
He will soon return, bringing reward and recompense for the faithful, to the extent that they have acted for Christ (verse 20).
The final verse, which echoes many of the blessings in the New Testament letters, is a fitting closing to this book and to the Bible: ‘The grace of our Lord Jesus be with all the saints. Amen’ (verse 21).
John 17: 20-26:
The Gospel reading is part of Christ’s high priestly prayer at the Last Supper, in which he prays to the Father on behalf of his disciples and the Church, and for the world.
Before this reading, in verses 6-19, Christ prays for his followers, that they may be protected from evil, that they may be one as he and his Father are one (verse 11), that they may be protected (verse 12), may have joy (verse 13), and that they may fulfil his mission as his agents in the world (verses 14-18).
Now, in this reading, Christ prays for the Church of all times. He looks beyond those who follow him now, to those who will come to believe through their witness. May the Church be rooted in the oneness he shares with the Father (verse 21), which is a relationship of mutual love (verse 23).
He prays that his followers may attain the ultimate goal: to share in Christ’s glory, which is founded in love that has been there before time began (verse 24).
His followers know that Christ has been sent by the Father (verse 25), and he prays that ‘the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them’ (verse 26).
John 17: 20-26 (NRSVA):
[Jesus said:] 20 ‘I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, 21 that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 22 The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one, 23 I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. 24 Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory, which you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world.
25 ‘Righteous Father, the world does not know you, but I know you; and these know that you have sent me. 26 I made your name known to them, and I will make it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’
Liturgical resources:
Liturgical Colour: White
The Greeting (from Easter Day until Pentecost):
Christ is risen!
The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!
Penitential Kyries:
Lord God,
you raised your Son from the dead.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord Jesus,
through you we are more than conquerors.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Holy Spirit,
you help us in our weakness.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
The Collect:
O God the King of Glory,
you have exalted your only Son Jesus Christ
with great triumph to your kingdom in heaven:
Mercifully give us faith to know
that, as he promised,
he abides with us on earth to the end of time;
who is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Introduction to the Peace:
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, Peace be with you. Then were they glad when they saw the Lord. (John 20: 19, 20).
Preface:
Above all we praise you
for the glorious resurrection of your Son
Jesus Christ our Lord,
the true paschal lamb who was sacrificed for us;
by dying he destroyed our death;
by rising he restored our life:
The Post-Communion Prayer:
Eternal Giver of love and power,
your Son Jesus Christ has sent us into all the world
to preach the gospel of his kingdom.
Confirm us in this mission,
and help us to live the good news we proclaim;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Blessing:
The God of peace,
who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus
that great shepherd of the sheep,
through the blood of the eternal covenant,
make you perfect in every good work to do his will,
working in you that which is well-pleasing in his sight:
or:
God the Father,
by whose glory Christ was raised from the dead,
raise you up to walk with him in the newness of his risen life:
Dismissal: (from Easter Day to Pentecost):
Go in the peace of the Risen Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Thanks be to God. Alleluia! Alleluia!
Suggested Hymns:
The hymns suggested for the Seventh Sunday of Easter (Year C) in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling, include:
Acts 16: 16-34:
320, Firmly I believe and truly
92, How sweet the name of Jesus sounds
I Samuel 12: 19-24:
619, Lord, teach us how to pray aright
625, Prayer is the soul’s sincere desire
Psalm 97:
34, O worship the King all glorious all glorious above
281, Rejoice, the Lord is King!
8, The Lord is king! Lift up your voice
Revelation 22: 12-14, 16-17, 20-21:
501, Christ is the world’s true light
332, Come, let us join our cheerful songs
37, Come, ye thankful people, come
263, Crown him with many crowns
459, For all the saints, who from their labour rest
646, Glorious things of thee are spoken
381, God has spoken – by his prophets
127, Hark what a sound, and too divine for hearing
418, Here, O my Lord, I see thee face to face
300, Holy Spirit, truth divine
553, Jesu, lover of my soul
425, Jesus, thou joy of loving hearts
132, Lo! he comes with clouds descending
303, Lord of the Church, we pray for our renewing
634, Love divine, all loves excelling
137, Promised Lord and Christ is he
281, Rejoice, the Lord is King!
138, Soon and very soon we are going to see the King 144, Word of justice, alleluia
509, Your kingdom come, O God!
John 17: 20-26:
518, Bind us together, Lord
326, Blessed city, heavenly Salem (Christ is made the sure foundation)
415, For the bread which you have broken
438, O thou, who at the eucharist didst pray
526, Risen Lord, whose name we cherish
527, Son of God, eternal Saviour
285, The head that once was crowned with thorns
531, Where love and loving kindness dwell
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
The hymns suggestions are provided in Sing to the Word (2000), edited by Bishop Edward Darling. The hymn numbers refer to the Church of Ireland’s Church Hymnal (5th edition, Oxford: OUP, 2000)
Material from the Book of Common Prayer is copyright © 2004, Representative Body of the Church of Ireland.
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