Patrick Comerford
Next Sunday, 26 January 2020, is the Third Sunday after Epiphany.
The readings in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are:
The Readings: Isaiah 9: 1-4; Psalm 27: 1, 4-12; I Corinthians 1: 10-18; Matthew 4: 12-23.
There is a link to the readings HERE.
Introducing the readings:
Darkness and light ... oppression and liberation ... slavery and walking in freedom ... schism and church unity ... boats and nets ... Peter and Andrew ... James and John ... the ways of this world and the call of the Kingdom of God ... prophecy and the fulfilment of God's promises ... old ways and new beginnings.
Next Sunday’s readings challenge us to look at the world in a new light, and to look at discipleship and following Christ in a new light. Are we prepared to give up our old ways, to rake the plunge, to risk all for the sake of the kingdom?
We are also approaching the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz and Birkenau and the beginning of the end of the Holocaust, marked by Holocaust Memorial Day.
These resources offer introductions to reflecting on the readings, but also link the readings with commemorating Holocaust Memorial Day and this landmark, 75th anniversary.
Isaiah 9: 1-4:
The first reading includes a passage that is quoted in a different format in the Gospel reading.
The Prophet Isaiah is writing after the conquest by Assyria in the year 733 BC of three northern regions of Israel, the northern kingdom – Dor, Gilead and Galilee. Isaiah tells these people that their current anguish will end in the latter time, in God’s own time in the coming future.
The people will move from a time of darkness to a time of great light; those who have been plundered will return to great joy; those who are oppressed will be freed.
The verses that follow this reading are familiar at Christmas: ‘For a child has been born to us ...’ (verses 6-7). They were originally written to prophesy the restoration of the house of David, but were later read as foretelling the birth of Christ.
Psalm 27: 1, 4-12:
The psalmist sees God as his light,’ his salvation, his strength and his life, driving away all his fears.
His true desire is to worship God in the Temple for as long as he lives, and to ‘behold the fair beauty’ of God, to seek God’s will.
He seeks to see God’s face, praying that God will not hide from him, leave him, or forsake him.
I Corinthians 1: 10-18:
At the beginning of this letter to the Church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul addresses divisions in the church the Greek city, which has heard about from Chloe’s people.
They have been divided into three or four factions that are quarrelling with one another, proclaiming their loyalty to different leaders, including Paul, Crispus, Cephas (Peter) and, perhaps, Gaius, instead of emphasising their shared loyalty to Christ and to the Church.
Then, with biting sarcasm, Saint Paul then asks three rhetorical questions, to which he expects only No as an answer: Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptised in the name of Paul? (verse 13).
To put loyalty to a leader above fidelity to Christ is unacceptable. We are all baptised in the name of Christ, so we all belong to him, to the Church, and – by implication – to one another.
The Cross of Christ is not about power or holding power over others. If this seems foolish, we should remember that Christ on the cross has saved us and shows us how powerful God is.
Matthew 4: 12-23:
When Christ heard about the arrest of Saint John the Baptist, he withdrew to the Wilderness, where he was tempted by the Devil in the wilderness. However, he refused to use his divine powers to his own human ends.
In this reading, he now moves from Nazareth to Capernaum, so he can begin his mission. Saint Matthew also interprets this move as fulfilling the prophecies of Isaiah that are included in the first reading.
At the launch of his public ministry, Christ calls on people to repent, for the kingdom of God is at hand.
He then calls his first four disciples: Simon Peter and his brother Andrew, and the brothers James and John, the sons of Zebedee. He invites them to follow him, and to ‘fish for people.’ They give up their trade immediately, leaving their nets (verse 20) and their boats (verse 22), beginning a radically different way of life.
Christ continues his ministry, travelling throughout Galilee, teaching in the synagogues, and proclaiming the good news in both word and deed, through his preaching and his healing.
Matthew 4: 12-23 (NRSVA):
12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the lake, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 ‘Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles —
16 the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.’
17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.’
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the lake — for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.’ 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.
23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
A reflection on the Gospel reading:
One of my true pleasures in life is walking on the beach, along the banks of rivers, along the piers of harbours, and by the sea. So this Gospel reading has a particular attraction, with Christ walking by the shores of the sea or lake, meeting people, getting into conversation with them, and inviting them to journey with him.
I imagine, as people listen to this Gospel reading, a number of phrases jump out immediately:
● ‘the people who sat in darkness have seen a great light’ (verse 16; cf Isaiah 9: 2);
● ‘for those who sat in the region and the shadow of death light has dawned’ (verse 16);
● ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near’ (verse 17);
● ‘Follow me, and I will make you fish for people’ (verse 19);
● ‘Immediately they left their nets [or the boat] and followed him’ (see verses 20, 22).
Despite the familiarity of these phrases, I am sure these are images and quotes that still leap out as people listen to this passage afresh.
And some come back in the more familiar language of other translations and versions, such as:
● ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand’ (verse 17, RSV); or
● ‘Follow me, for I will make you fishers of men’ (verse 19, RSV).
In popular newspaper cartoons, humorous office absences are often indicated by a sign hung on the door declaring: ‘Gone Fishin’.’
Fishing in our culture is often seen by non-fishers as idleness, a sedentary past-time, taking it easy, doing nothing.
I cannot imagine it was like that for the first disciples. It was a tough career choice when you think of the night shifts, the storms, and the difficulties in finding a catch that occur time and again in the Gospels.
I do not know which was a more difficult and demanding task: being a fisher on the Sea of Galilee, or being a Disciple of Christ … especially when the call comes from someone who has withdrawn to Galilee after the arrest of his cousin, the one who publicly baptised and acclaimed him in last Sunday’s Gospel reading, Saint John the Baptist (John 1: 29-42).
Either way, the four first disciples were going to have no lazy day by the river bank, or by the shore, or for that matter as followers of Christ.
Becoming ‘fishers of men,’ ‘fishing for people,’ is going to bring these Galilean fishers into a relationship not only with Christ, but with their families, with their neighbours, with the tax collectors, with Pharisees, Sadducees and Zealots, with the powers of this world, with Gentiles, with the people who sat in darkness and in the region of the shadow of death.
Sometimes, in the Church, we do not cast our nets far enough or deep enough. No wonder then that most of the time, when we pull in those nets, we find them empty.
There is saying that fish come in three sizes, small ones, medium ones and the ones that got away.
Too often in the Church, we know about the small ones, we are good with the medium ones, but we pay little attention to going after the ones that get away.
The image of patient fishing is worth working with. Ernest Hemingway, in The Old Man and The Sea, says ‘Il faut (d’abord) durer … It is necessary, above all else, to endure. It is necessary to endure.’
The great Anglican writer Izaak Walton (1593-1683) was known not only for his biographies of John Donne, George Herbert and Richard Hooker, but also as the author of The Compleat Angler.
In The Compleat Angler, Izaak Walton points out that fishing can teach us patience and discipline. Fishing takes practice, preparation, discipline; like discipleship, it has to be learned, and learning requires practice before there are any results. And sometimes, whether it is fishing in a river or fishing in the sea, the best results can come from going against the current.
Walking along the piers in north Dublin or on summer holidays on Greek islands, I sometimes watch the careful early morning work of the crews in the trawlers and fishing boats, and I am reminded that good fishing does not come about by accident. It also requires paying attention to the nets, moving them carefully, mending them, cleaning them after each and every use, hanging them out to dry.
And fishing is also about noticing the weather, watching the wind and the clouds. Good fishing takes account of contexts … it is incarnational.
Time and again in the Gospels, the Kingdom of God is compared to a huge net cast over different numbers of people and species. We are the ones called to cast that net, and we cannot hang any sign outside on our office or rectory doors saying: ‘Gone Fishin’.’
Nor can we stand by the bank or on the shore, content with two sizes of fish. We are called to go after the ones that others let get away, not just those who come to Church regularly, but also those people who sit in darkness and in the region of the shadow of death.
When they take a break from their fishing in this reading, the disciples follow Jesus, and he goes into both the places of worship and ‘among the people’ (verse 23). The word used here for the people – the people who live in darkness and the people Jesus journeys among – is the word λαός (laós), and it means not just the people, but the rowdy, the masses, the populace; sometimes it even has vulgar connotations.
So we, me and you, are here for our neighbours, those around us.
We are here to walk by the waterside, to walk with the people, to cast our nets, but to cast them with those people. Who knows what we can do as we walk together in the time ahead of us.
There will be days when the fishing seems pointless. There will be days when we are happy with our work together. And as we work together, hopefully, there will be days when we are surprised with what we can achieve together, all in Christ’s name and all for the sake of the one that otherwise might get away.
Holocaust Memorial Day
The Gospel reading tells us: ‘Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues’ (Matthew 4: 23). This sharp reminder that Jesus was a practicing Jew, worshipping regularly in synagogues, comes a day before Holocaust Memorial Day on 27 January.
Holocaust Memorial Day takes place each year on 27 January and is a time to remember the millions of people murdered during the Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution and in the genocides that followed in Cambodia, Rwanda, Bosnia and Darfur. To paraphrase the Prophet Isaiah in the first reading next Sunday, the people who walked in darkness needed to see a great light.
Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) 2020 marks 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau. HMD 2020 also marks the 25th anniversary of the Genocide in Bosnia. The 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau is a landmark anniversary. The theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day is ‘Stand Together.’ Community groups are being encouraged to create their own Memorial Flame to respond to this day.
The National Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration takes place in Dublin every year on the Sunday nearest to 27 January, in the Round Room at the Mansion House, and takes place this year on 26 January.
It is organised under the auspices of Holocaust Education Trust Ireland in association with The Department of Justice and Equality and Dublin City Council.
The Holocaust Memorial Day commemoration cherishes the memory of all who perished in the Holocaust. It recalls six million Jewish men, women and children and millions of others who were persecuted and murdered by the Nazis because of their ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, political affiliations or their religious beliefs. The ceremony includes readings, survivors’ recollections, candle-lighting and music. It is attended by people from all walks of life and is a moving and dignified event.
Holocaust Memorial Day is a time to learn the lessons of the past and recognise that genocide does not just take place on its own – it is a steady process that can begin if discrimination, racism and hatred are not checked and prevented. We are fortunate here in Ireland; we are not at immediate risk of genocide.
However, discrimination has not ended, nor has the use of the language of hatred or exclusion. There is still much to do to create a safer future and HMD is an opportunity to start this process. The lessons of the past can inform our lives today and ensure that everyone works together to create a safer, better future.
Each year thousands of activities mark HMD, bringing people from all backgrounds together to learn lessons from the past in creative, reflective and inspiring ways. From schools to libraries, workplaces to local authorities, HMD activities offer a real opportunity to honour the experiences of people affected by the Holocaust and genocide, and challenge ourselves to work for a safer, better future.
The BBC is marking Holocaust Memorial Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau with a special televised Holocaust Memorial Day event, as well as a range of content across TV and radio.
Olivia Marks-Woldman, chief executive of the Holocaust Memorial Day Trust, says: ‘At a time when identity-based prejudice and hostility is worryingly prevalent in the UK and internationally, HMD is an opportunity to learn about the consequences of hatred when it is allowed to exist unchecked. At this important moment, 75 years after the liberation of Auschwitz, we are asking people to Stand Together against prejudice, and in memory of those who were murdered during the Holocaust, under Nazi Persecution and in genocides which have taken place since.’
‘Don’t be content in your life just to do no wrong, be prepared every day to try and do some good.’ – Sir Nicholas Winton, who rescued 669 children from Nazi-occupied Europe.
Liturgical resources:
Liturgical Colour: White
The Collect of the Day:
Almighty God,
whose Son revealed in signs and miracles
the wonder of your saving presence:
Renew your people with your heavenly grace,
and in all our weakness
sustain us by your mighty power;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Collect of the Word:
Lord God,
your loving kindness always
goes before us and follows us.
Summons us into your light,
and direct our steps in the ways of goodness
that come through the cross of your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord.
The Post Communion Prayer:
Almighty Father,
your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ is the light of the world.
May your people,
illumined by your word and sacraments,
shine with the radiance of his glory,
that he may be known, worshipped,
and obeyed to the ends of the earth;
for he is alive and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.
Resources for Holocaust Memorial Day 2020:
These resources have been prepared with the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz on 27 January 1945 in mind, and the Presidents of the Council of Christians and Jews (CCJ) have asked churches to join in the use of these prayer on the Sunday closest to Holocaust Memorial Day 2020.
A prayer for Holocaust Memorial Day:
God of the past, present, and future, we remember today, 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz, the six million Jews murdered in the Holocaust, the millions of other victims of Nazi persecution, and all those who have been targeted and killed in subsequent genocides.
We remember those who, having survived genocide, share their stories with us:
We give thanks to You for the lessons of human stories, both in their suffering and in their joy.
We remember those who stood up against injustice and saved lives:
We give thanks to You for their example.
Together we acknowledge the sacrifice of those that stood together with those who suffered during the Holocaust and other genocides.
And we affirm that every life is loved by You and sacred.
Yet, during the Holocaust too many failed to stand together with their neighbours. Oppression stains Your world and contradicts Your love.
So we pray that You will inspire us now as we stand together on this day in the love that we know of God in Christ Jesus.
Let us commit to remembering:
And glorify God in our words and actions.
We make these prayers in the name of Christ Jesus who, through His life, death, and resurrection, journeys with us into the eternal hope of Your truth and light.
Amen.
An opening prayer:
God of all people everywhere,
You reveal yourself in myriad ways, speaking through different voices to enlighten our world and enrich our lives.
All are created in your image but, in the face of prejudice and persecution, too often we fail to stand together.
So we gather today in memory:
We remember the lives of those who were murdered in the Holocaust and subsequent genocides.
We give thanks for those who have courageously shared their stories.
We recommit ourselves to transform the world through your love.
Silence
A Prayer of Confession:
For too long:
We walked different ways.
For too long:
We let what separates us define us.
For too long:
We turned a blind eye.
For far too long.
When it mattered so much, we did not stand with you.
We did not see the sights you saw, hear the sounds you heard, or feel the pain you felt, through persecution and hardship and unprecedented levels of brutal inhumanity.
But now we have listened:
We have come to walk more closely,
And we commit to a new relationship.
We are here to remember.
We recall the longed-for liberation, and now we seek justice and truth.
We did not walk with you into those dark places but we walk together now, we stand together now.
For it matters still.
We will stand together.
Jesus calls us to Stand Together: A Litany
In the face of the classification of people as ‘other’,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of people being singled out by labels,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of discrimination,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of human beings being treated as less than human,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of extremism,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of the polarisation of cultures with the intention of creating opposition,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of incitement to hatred,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of persecution,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of genocide,
Jesus calls us to stand together
In the face of denial of such atrocities as the Holocaust,
Jesus calls us to stand together
We stand together with Jesus, who came into the world so that everyone might have life in all its fullness.
Amen.
A prayer for use with young people:
God of justice and of peace,
You call your people to stand together, in solidarity with those who suffer;
We remember before you in sorrow:
all who perished in the horror of the Holocaust,
all who were persecuted, and all whose suffering continues;
Turn the hearts of all who persecute and oppress,
and of all who seek to divide;
Open our own hearts and minds,
when they are closed in fear and hatred,
So that all your peoples may stand together and reflect your image
Amen
Notes for an all-age address:
The theme of standing together offers a potential action as well as an attitude of the heart. An all age context invites us to start with acknowledging what the congregation has in common despite its variety. What does the unity of a church community look like and what does it mean?
One aspect of the variety may be their different experience and knowledge of persecution, hostility, and divisions within a community. Some will know about the Holocaust and some may know next to nothing. All, however, will know the feelings of being excluded or isolated, and the power of standing together (physically and symbolically).
Focus on what those feelings are – both when you are the victim and when you are the perpetrator – and encourage the congregation to own the darkness in all our hearts.
There are numerous stories of Jesus siding with the excluded (those with leprosy, tax collectors, the poor, for example) and of course being the excluded Himself, in lonely death on the cross. Share true stories about the Holocaust and subsequent genocides. Use these stories to grow empathy and see the Christian imperative to stand together.
You might return to the examples of isolating others and being isolated, and ask ‘what would Jesus do?’ Explore what practical steps a Christian might be called to take in such situations.
Further resources for Holocaust Memorial Day, produced by the Council for Christian and Jews, are available HERE.
Suggested Hymns:
Isaiah 9: 1-4:
52, Christ, whose glory fills the skies
324, God, whose almighty word
43, Holy is the seed–time, when the buried grain
192, How brightly beams the morning star!
362, O God, beyond all praising
306, O Spirit of the living God
199, The people that in darkness walked
Psalm 27: 1, 4-12:
87, Christ is the world’s light, he and none other
501, Christ is the world’s true light
431, Lord, enthroned in heavenly splendour
362, O God, beyond all praising
620, O Lord, hear my prayer
557, Rock of ages, cleft for me
20, The King of love my shepherd is
I Corinthians 1: 10-18:
86, Christ is the King! O friends, rejoice
318, Father, Lord of all creation
478, Go forth and tell! O Church of God, awake!
479, Go, tell it on the mountain
520, God is love, and where true love is, God himself is there
523, Help us to help each other, Lord
421, I come with joy, a child of God
522, In Christ there is no east or west
525, Let there be love shared among us
484, Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim
438, O thou who at thy Eucharist didst pray
486, People of God, arise
507, Put peace into each others’ hands
485, Rise up and serve the Lord!
488, Stand up, stand up for Jesus
528, The Church’s one foundation
490, The Spirit lives to set us free
530, Ubi caritas et amor
491, We have a gospel to proclaim
531, Where love and loving kindness dwell
492, Ye servants of God, your Master proclaim
Matthew 4: 12-23:
52, Christ whose glory fills the skies
549, Dear Lord and Father of mankind
460, For all your saints in glory, for all your saints at rest (verses 1, 2s, 3)
219, From heaven you came, helpless Babe
584, Jesus calls us! O’er the tumult
591, O happy day that fixed my choice
593, O Jesus, I have promised
197, Songs of thankfulness and praise
199, The people that in darkness walked
395, When Jesus taught by Galilee
605, Will you come and follow me
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
Material from the Book of Common Prayer is copyright © 2004, Representative Body of the Church of Ireland.
The hymn 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).
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