Patrick Comerford
Next Sunday, 2 February 2020, is the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, and is also counted as the Fourth Sunday after Epiphany.
The Church of Ireland Directory 2020 only provides the readings for Sunday as the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple; while, at the time of preparing these resources, the relevant page on the Church of Ireland website only provides the readings for Sunday as the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, but confuses matters by identifying this only as the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple.
This posting seeks to provide resources for both sets of readings, with notes and reflections on the readings, liturgical resources, including collects, post-Communion prayers and propers, and suggested hymns for both sets of readings.
The readings for the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Revised Common Lectionary as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland are:
The Readings: Malachi 3: 1-5; Psalm 24: 1-10 or Psalm 24: 7-10 or Psalm 84; Hebrews 2: 14-18; Luke 2: 22-40.
There is a link to the readings HERE.
The readings for next Sunday as the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A) in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are:
The Readings: Micah 6: 1-8; Psalm 15; I Corinthians 1: 18-31; Matthew 5: 1-12.
There is a link to the readings HERE.
This posting is in two parts:
Part 1 provides resources for Sunday next as the Feast of the Presentation, which should take precedence in planning services for next Sunday.
Part 2 provides resources for Sunday next as the Fourth Sunday before lent, although this should only be considered as an option for a second or later service after the Feast of the Presentation has been celebrated.
PART 1:
Introducing the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, or Candlemas:
The Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple, or Candlemas, is the climax of the Christmas and Epiphany season. It is a feast rich in meaning, with several related themes running through it – presentation, purification, meeting, and light for the world.
The various names by which it has been known in the history of the Church serve to illustrate just how much this feast has to teach and to celebrate.
But the true meaning of Candlemas is found in its ‘bitter-sweet’ nature. It is a feast day, and the revelation of the Christ Child in the Temple, greeted by Simeon and Anna, calls for rejoicing.
Nevertheless, the prophetic words of Simeon, who speaks of the falling and rising of many and the sword that will pierce the Virgin Mary’s heart, lead on to the passion and to Easter. Coming at the very end of the Christmas celebration, with Lent close at hand, Candlemas is a real pivot in the Christian year.
Malachi 3: 1-5:
The Prophet Micah in this reading speaks out ‘against those who oppress the hired workers in their wages, the widow, and the orphan, against those who thrust aside the alien,’ and who do not fear the Lord God (Micah 3: 5).
But, oh so often, mothers bear their grief in silence, are reluctant to bare their souls to the Church and Church leaders.
So often we can pronounce and preach and teach. But do we always know the suffering in the dark behind closed doors?
Do we teach and preach in a way that moves beyond being enlightening to actually bringing the light of hope, the light of the Suffering and Risen Christ to the broken-hearted Marys and Josephs all over this land?
Hebrews 2: 14-18:
The Epistle reading is a call to us but to all in the Church to be ‘merciful and faithful’ like Christ the ‘high priest in the service of God,’ to be sacrificial in the service of those who are suffering and ‘are being tested’ (see Hebrews 2: 17-18).
Luke 2: 22-40:
Eight days after his birth, the Christ Child was circumcised marking him as a member of God’s people. Then 40 days after childbirth, a mother could be purified before a priest in the Temple. She was expected to offer a lamb, along with a turtledove or a pigeon. But if she was poor, two turtledoves or pigeons would suffice. Exodus required that every firstborn boy be consecrated to God (see Exodus 13: 2, 12; Numbers 3: 13). In this episode, the family fulfil the requirements of Mosaic law when they bring the Christ Child up to the Temple in Jerusalem.
Simeon looks forward to the coming of the Messiah to restore Israel to favour with God, the consolation of Israel (παράκλησιν τοῦ Ἰσραήλ, verse 25). The Holy Spirit has rested on Simeon, and has promised him that he will see the Christ before he dies.
Simeon’s words (verse 29-32, 34-35) are paraphrased in the canticle Nunc Dimittis, from its first words in Latin. He begins by saying that God is setting him free, as a slave is granted liberty. Simeon knows now that he is free to die, and the coming salvation is to Israel’s glory but the fulfilment of the promise to all people (see Isaiah 52: 10; Psalm 98: 2).
Simeon blesses the family and tells the Virgin Mary that this Christ Child is destined for death and resurrection (verse 34). He will be opposed by many, so that the inner thoughts of many will no longer be kept secret.
In popular imagery, Simeon’s words are often conflated with earlier words of Zechariah after the birth of his son, Saint John the Baptist:
By the tender mercy of our God,
the dawn from on high will break upon us,
to give light to those who sit in the darkness
and in the shadow of death,
to guide our feet into the way pf peace. (see Luke 1: 78-79).
Like Joseph and Mary, Simeon and Anna stand before God, in God’s presence, in humility and in equality.
This conflation is found in the Introduction to the Peace provided in Common Worship, in the art, in poetry, and in inscriptions on stained-glass windows in churches and cathedrals.
When the family returns to Nazareth, the Child grows and becomes strong, filled with wisdom and the favour of God (verses 39-40), just as at a later stage he is to return from Jerusalem with his family to Nazareth, where he increases in years and in divine and human favour (see Luke 2: 51-52).
Reflecting on the Candlemas Gospel reading:
The Feast of the Presentation of Christ has been known to the Church by several names over time, including the Presentation of Christ in the Temple; the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary; and we talk too of Candlemas, celebrated in many Anglican cathedrals and churches with the Candlemas Procession.
This feast, forty days after Christmas, recalls how the Virgin Mary presents the Christ-Child to the priests in the Temple in Jerusalem. And, because of the family’s poverty, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph bring two cheap doves or pigeons as their offering.
This is a feast rich in meaning, with several related themes running through it. We have the contrast between the poverty of this family and the richly-endowed Temple; the young Joseph and Mary with their first-born child and the old Simeon and Anna who are probably childless; the provincial home in Nazareth and the urbane sophistication of Jerusalem; the glory of one nation, Israel, and light for all nations, the Gentiles; the birth of a child and the expectation of death; darkness and light; new birth and impending death.
So Candlemas is a feast day with a ‘bitter-sweet’ nature. It calls for rejoicing with all in the Temple celebrating the hope and the promise that this new child brings. Yet Simeon speaks in prophetic words of the falling and rising of many and the sword that will piece the Virgin Mary’s heart. His words remind us sharply that Christmas is meaningless without the Passion and Easter.
Candlemas is the climax of the Christmas and Epiphany season, the last great festival of the Christmas cycle. As we bring our Christmas celebrations to a close, this day is a real pivotal point in the Christian year, for we now shift from the cradle to the cross, from Christmas to Passiontide – Ash Wednesday and Lent are just four or five weeks away.
In this shift of mood, devotion and liturgy, we take with us the light of Christ, a sure promise that Christ is the eternal light and the salvation of all humanity, throughout all ages.
Traditionally, Candlemas is the final day of the Christmas season. The liturgical colour changes from the White of rejoicing to the Green of ordinary, everyday life. This is the day that bridges the gap between Christmas and Lent, that bridges the gap between a time of celebration and a time of reflection, a time of joy and a time for taking stock once again.
This is an opportunity to take stock of where we are. After two decades of the darkness of recession and austerity, the economists are trying to look for the light at the end of the tunnel.
For many of us, we moved long ago from a time of financial certainty that allowed us to celebrate easily to a time of reflection and uncertainty. Now the debates about ‘Brexit’ leave the majority of people with a new set of anxieties and uncertainties.
The lights of Christmas and its celebrations are dim and distant now, and by this Candlemas most people in Ireland continue to live their very ordinary days with uncertainty, trying to grasp for signs of hope, wondering how long we must remain in the dark.
How Mary must have wept in her heart as in today’s Gospel story the old man Simeon hands back her child and warns her that a sword would pierce her heart (Luke 2: 35).
How many mothers are weeping in their hearts and clinging onto the rock of faith just by the end of their fingertips as their hearts, their souls, are pierced by a sword?
Mothers whose lives were held in slavery by fear (see Hebrews 2: 15).
Mothers who see their special needs children denied special needs assistants in our schools.
Mothers who see their children waiting, waiting too long, for care in our hospitals or to move from the uncertainty of hotel room or hostels to a house and a home.
Mothers who saw their graduate daughters and sons unable to find employment and have still not returned home.
Mothers whose silent weeping is not going to bring home their adult emigrant children and the grandchildren born in Australia or the US.
Mothers whose gay sons and lesbian daughters are beaten up on the streets just for the fun of it and are afraid if they come out that our Church can only offer tea and sympathy, at best, but moralising prejudice most of the time.
Mothers whose husbands are on low pay or dismissed as mere statistics in the figures for poverty.
Mothers whose adult children are caught up in substance abuse and have lost all hope for the future – for a future.
They know what TS Eliot calls ‘the certain hour of maternal sorrow.’ Like the Prophet in his poem A Song for Simeon, they ‘Wait for the wind that chills towards the dead land.’ And they know too how true Simeon’s words are for them this morning: ‘and a sword will pierce your soul too.’
If the Virgin Mary had known what grief would pierce her soul, would she have said ‘Yes’ to the Archangel Gabriel at the Annunciation?
And in the midst of all this heartbreak, these mothers still cling on to the edge of the rock of faith by the edges of their fingernails. Wondering who hears their sobbing hearts and souls.
If they had known what grief would pierce their souls they would still have said yes, because they love their children, and no sword can kill that. They know too their children are immaculate conceptions, for their children too are conceived in a love for their world, our world, that is self-giving and sinless, and they continue to see the reflection and image of Christ in their children as they look into their eyes lovingly. Is that too not a truth and a hope at the heart of the Incarnation?
So often it is difficult to hold on to hope when our hearts are breaking and are pierced. So often it is difficult to keep the lights of our hearts burning brightly when everything is gloomy and getting dark. But Simeon points out that the Christ Child does not hold out any selfish hope for any one individual or one family ... he is to be a light to the nations, to all of humanity.
And as our leaders – political, social, economic and financial leaders – search in the dark for the hope that will bring light back into our lives, we can remind ourselves that this search will have no purpose and it will offer no glimmer of hope unless it seeks more than selfish profit. This search must seek the good of all, it must seek to bring hope and light to all, not just here, but to all people and to all nations.
Who will speak out like the Prophet Micah in the Old Testament reading ‘against those who oppress the hired workers in their wages, the widow, and the orphan, against those who thrust aside the alien,’ and do not fear the Lord God (Micah 3: 5)?
But so often these mothers bear their grief in silence, are reluctant to bare their souls to the Church and Church leaders. So often we can pronounce and preach and teach. But do we always know the suffering in the dark behind closed doors? And do we teach and preach in a way that moves beyond being enlightening to actually bringing the light of hope, the light of the Suffering and Risen Christ to the broken-hearted Marys and Josephs all over this land?
Yet the Epistle reading is a call not just to all in the Church to be ‘merciful and faithful’ like Christ the ‘high priest in the service of God,’ to be sacrificial in the service of those who are suffering and ‘are being tested’ (see Hebrews 2: 17-18).
This feast of Candlemas bridges the gap between Christmas and Lent; links the joy of the Christmas candles with the hope of the Pascal candle at Easter; invites us to move from celebration to reflection and preparation, and to think about the source of our hope, our inspiration, our enlightenment.
The candles of Candlemas link the candles of Christmas with Good Friday and with the Easter hope symbolised in the Pascal candle. And so to paraphrase the words of Timothy Dudley-Smith’s hymn that draw on Simeon’s prophetic words in the Canticle Nunc Dimittis, as we watch and wait in our faithful vigil for Christ’s glory in that Easter hope, may our doubting cease, may God’s silent, suffering people find deliverance and freedom from oppression, may his servants find peace, may he complete in us his perfect will.
Luke 2: 22-40:
22 When the time came for their purification according to the law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord 23 (as it is written in the law of the Lord, ‘Every firstborn male shall be designated as holy to the Lord’), 24 and they offered a sacrifice according to what is stated in the law of the Lord, ‘a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons.’
25 Now there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; this man was righteous and devout, looking forward to the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit rested on him. 26 It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27 Guided by the Spirit, Simeon came into the temple; and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him what was customary under the law, 28 Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying,
29 ‘Master, now you are dismissing your servant in peace,
according to your word;
30 for my eyes have seen your salvation,
31 which you have prepared in the presence of all peoples,
32 a light for revelation to the Gentiles
and for glory to your people Israel.’
33 And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him. 34 Then Simeon blessed them and said to his mother Mary, ‘This child is destined for the falling and the rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be opposed 35 so that the inner thoughts of many will be revealed – and a sword will pierce your own soul too.’
36 There was also a prophet, Anna the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, having lived with her husband for seven years after her marriage, 37 then as a widow to the age of eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshipped there with fasting and prayer night and day. 38 At that moment she came, and began to praise God and to speak about the child to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem.
39 When they had finished everything required by the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own town of Nazareth. 40 The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favour of God was upon him.
Liturgical Resources, the Feast of the Presentation of Christ in the Temple:
Liturgical Colour: White.
Note: Ordinary Times begins after the Feast of the Presentation, and the Liturgical Colour turns to Green from 3 February, and continues until Shrove Tuesday, 25 February 2020.
Bidding Prayer:
The traditional Bidding Prayer for Candlemas says:
Dear friends, forty days ago we celebrated the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. Now we recall the day on which he was presented in the Temple, when he was offered to the Father and shown to his people.
As a sign of his coming among us, his mother was purified according to the custom of the time, and we now come to him for cleansing. In their old age Simeon and Anna recognised him as their Lord, as we today sing of his glory.
In this Eucharist, we celebrate both the joy of his coming and his searching judgement, looking back to the day of his birth and forward to the coming days of his passion.
So let us pray that we may know and share the light of Christ.
Penitential Kyries:
Lord God, mighty God,
you are the creator of the world.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, Son of God and Son of Mary,
you are the Prince of Peace.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Holy Spirit,
by your power the Word was made flesh
and came to dwell among us.
Lord, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
The Collect of the Day:
Almighty and everliving God,
clothed in majesty,
whose beloved Son was this day presented in the temple
in the substance of our mortal nature:
May we be presented to you with pure and clean hearts,
by your Son Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Collect of the Word:
Strong and mighty God,
Father of our Lord Jesus,
the presentation of your Son in the Temple
was his first entrance into a place of sacrifice.
Grant that, trusting in his offering on the cross
to forgive our sins
and uphold us in the time of trial,
we may sing your praises
and live in the light of your salvation, Jesus Christ.
Introduction to the Peace:
Unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:
and his name is called the Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9: 7)
(The Book of Common Prayer, the Church of Ireland, p. 234)
or
In the tender mercy of our God
the dayspring from on high has broken upon us,
to give light to those who dwell in darkness
and in the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace. (cf Luke 1: 78, 79)
(Common Worship, p. 306)
Preface:
You chose the Blessed Virgin Mary
to be the mother of your Son
and so exalted the humble and meek;
your angel hailed her as most high and highly favoured,
and with all generations we call her blessed:
(The Book of Common Prayer, the Church of Ireland, p. 234)
or
And now we give you thanks
because, by appearing in the Temple,
he comes near to us in judgement;
the Word made flesh searches the hearts of all your people,
to bring to light the brightness of your splendour:
(Common Worship, p. 306)
Post-Communion Prayer:
God, for whom we wait,
you fulfilled the hopes of Simeon and Anna,
who lived to welcome the Messiah.
Complete in us your perfect will,
that in Christ we may see your salvation,
for he is Lord for ever and ever.
Blessing:
Christ the Son of God, born of Mary,
fill you with his grace
to trust his promises and obey his will:
Suitable intercessions:
In peace let us pray to the Lord.
By the mystery of the Word made flesh
Good Lord, deliver us.
By the birth in time of the timeless Son of God
Good Lord, deliver us.
By the baptism of the Son of God in the river Jordan
Good Lord, deliver us.
For the kingdoms of this world,
that they may become the Kingdom of our Lord and Christ
We pray to you, O Lord.
For your holy, catholic and apostolic Church,
that it may be one
We pray to you, O Lord.
For the witness of your faithful people,
that they may be lights in the world
We pray to you, O Lord.
For the poor, the persecuted, the sick and all who suffer;
that they may be relieved and protected
We pray to you, O Lord.
For the aged, for refugees and all in danger,
that they may be strengthened and defended
We pray to you, O Lord.
For those who walk in darkness and in the shadow of death,
that they may come to your eternal light
We pray to you, O Lord.
Father, source of light and life,
Grant the prayers of your faithful people,
and fill the world with your glory, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Suggested Hymns:
Malachi 3: 1-5:
52, Christ, whose glory fills the skies
634, Love divine, all loves excelling
134, Make way, make way, for Christ the King
640, Purify my heart
Psalm 24: 1-10 (or 7-10):
696, God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
266, Hail the day that sees him rise (verses 1, 2)
358, King of glory, King of peace
337, Lift up your heads, O ye gates
131, Lift up your heads, you mighty gates
134, Make way, make way, for Christ the King
488, Stand up, stand up for Jesus
284, The golden gates are lifted up
Psalm 84:
400, And now, O Father, mindful of the love
333, How lovely are thy dwellings fair!
95, Jesu, priceless treasure
425, Jesu, thou joy of loving hearts
360, Let all the world in every corner sing
634, Love divine, all loves excelling
620, O Lord, hear my prayer
487, Soldiers of Christ, arise
342, Sweet is the solemn voice that calls
343, We love the place, O God
Hebrews 2: 14-18:
212, Jesu, grant me this, I pray
652, Lead us, heavenly Father, lead us
635, Lord, be my guardian and my guide
108, Praise to the holiest in the height
114, Thou didst leave thy throne and thy kingly crown
627, What a friend we have in Jesus
Luke 2: 22-40:
119, Come, thou long–expected Jesus
88, Fairest Lord Jesus
691, Faithful vigil ended
191, Hail to the Lord who comes
193, In his temple now behold him
634, Love divine, all loves excelling
472, Sing we of the blessèd mother
203, When candles are lighted on Candlemas Day
PART 2:
Sunday next may also be observed as the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, but this should only be considered for a second or later service after the Feast of the Presentation is celebrated in parish.
The readings for next Sunday as the Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A) in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are:
The Readings: Micah 6: 1-8; Psalm 15; I Corinthians 1: 18-31; Matthew 5: 1-12.
There is a link to the readings HERE.
This section of the posting includes the usual liturgical and preaching resources, as well as an additional Bible study on the Gospel reading, and a challenging reflection on the Beatitudes by the Lutheran priest and theologian, the Revd Nadia Bolz-Weber.
Micah 6: 1-8
The Prophet Micah, the last of the prophets in the 8th century BC, lived around the same time as the Prophet Isaiah. He spoke out on behalf of the oppressed and against the social and economic injustices of the day.
This reading is set dramatically as if it were in courtroom. God’s people are on trial before God for being in breach of covenant made on Mount Sinai. The witnesses are the whole cosmos or creation: the mountains, the hills and the foundations of the earth.
God’s people are accused of forgetting how God saved them in the past, recalling many of the great moments in their history when he guided them from slavery to freedom, delivered from oppression and protected them.
The implication is that God has saved then in the past, and God can do so again in the future: ‘you may know the saving acts of the Lord’ (verse 5).
The defendants respond, pleading their case and asking for mercy. What can they do to make amends?
But God does not want sacrifices, burnt offerings, animal sacrifices, sacrifices in the Temple lit with pure oil, and certainly not child sacrifices.
Instead, the people are told what God expects: God expects his people to be godly, ‘to do justice, and to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God’ (verse 8).
Psalm 15:
Psalm 15 may have been written for a liturgy of admission to the Temple. The pilgrim asks God: who may come to holy mountain to worship God in the Temple?
The reply in verses 2-5a says those who truly worship God are those who do what it right, who speak truth, who do not lie, who do no evil to friends or neighbours, and who refuse to honour the wicked.
In addition, they do not exploit the poor financially through money-lending or usury, and they do not accept bribes.
I Corinthians 1: 18-31
Earlier in this letter to the Church in Corinth, the Apostle Paul has criticised the divisions among the Corinthian Christians.
Now he describes two kinds of people: those who think they are wise and those who believe. Those who seem themselves as being wise in the ways of the world see the ways of Christ to be folly. Those who believe because of signs and miracles, demand miracles and cannot accept the crucifixion.
But God’s ways are not human ways: ‘God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength’ (verse 25).
Saint Paul reminds the Christians at Corinth that few of them are what the world would have chosen: few are worldly wise, powerful or of noble birth. But God chooses those who matter little in the world, the foolish and the weak, the lowly and the despised, to show his ways to those who think they are wise or who hold power. Christ gives us a new way of life, a new set of priorities, and sets us aside to live in his ways.
The Sermon on the Mount, by Cosimo Rosselli, from the Sistine Chapel in the VaticanMatthew 5: 1-12:
The Beatitudes are familiar to us all, perhaps to the point that we find it difficult to read them afresh and to find new insights when it comes to preaching on them. The Beatitudes will be familiar to those in Church on Sunday week too – perhaps even to the point of familiar irreverence because of Monty Python’s The Life of Brian.
The Beatitudes are culturally embedded in our society, in our literature, in our arts. But how do we apply the Beatitudes to our own lives? How do we present them afresh again on a Sunday morning?
In the Sermon on the Mount in Chapters 5 to 7, Saint Matthew presents us with a covenant renewal document. About half of this material is also found in Saint Luke’s Gospel, but considerably less of it is found in Saint Mark’s Gospel. Some of the material is identical to the other synoptic gospels, some is similar.
The Beatitudes are a declaration of the happy or fortunate state of the children of God who possesses particular qualities, and who, because of them, will inherit divine blessings.
It is interesting to compare the delivery of the Beatitudes to the delivery of the Ten Commandments. Here we have the renewal of the covenant, and a restatement, a re-presentation, of who the Children of God are.
Just as we sometimes find the Ten Commandments grouped into two sets, so we might see the Beatitudes set out in two groups of four, the first four being inward looking, the second four being outward looking.
We might see the first four Beatitudes as addressing attitudes, while the second four deal with resulting actions.
Are they ethical requirements for the present?
Or are they eschatological blessings for the future?
Or are they are statements of present fact, identifying the qualities of a child of God and the consequent blessings that follow?
Few among us, I imagine, are ever going to commit murder.
But we all get ‘angry with a brother’ sooner or later.
The Sermon on the Mount exposes our own present reality in a very stark and real way, and the Beatitudes are a core text for Dietrich Bonhoeffer in The Cost of Discipleship and in the writings of towering Christian figures such as Dorothy Day, Thomas Merton, and Oscar Romero.
Father Brian D’Arcy quipped on a radio interview some years ago how Dorothy Day once spoke of how her fellow Roman Catholics went to confession regularly and confessed to ‘breaking’ one of the Ten Commandments, but she wondered how often they confessed to ‘breaking’ one of the Eight Beatitudes.
The Beatitudes are culturally embedded in our society, in our literature, in our arts.
Writing on the Financial pages of The Guardian some years ago (17 January 2011), Terry Macalister wrote: ‘From Tolstoy to Dostoevsky to Chekov, if anyone can tell a good story it’s the Russians.’ Well, in Chapter 2 of Boris Pasternak’s great Russian novel Doctor Zhivago, we meet Larissa Feodorovna Guishar, who ‘was not religious’ and ‘did not believe in ritual,’ but was startled by the Beatitudes, for she thought they were about herself.
How do we apply the Beatitudes to our own lives?
Matthew 5: 1-12, a Bible study:
The Gospel reading (Matthew 5: 1-12) is the most familiar account of the Beatitudes.
Verse 1:
The scene opens with Christ leaving the crowds and climbing up the mountain, like Moses in the Book Exodus leaving the crowd behind him, and climbing Mount Sinai.
Mountains are so important in so many Biblical stories – Mount Sinai, Mount Zion, Mount Tabor, the Mountain of the Transfiguration, the Mount of Calvary outside the city, the Mountain of the Ascension. They provide dramatic settings for covenantal encounters with the Living God.
Ἰδὼν (eidon), ‘when he saw [the crowds]’: seeing. Perhaps what is being said here is: ‘Jesus went up the mountain because he saw the crowds.’
Τὸ ὄρος (to oros) ‘a mountainside’: the hill, or the mountain. The use of the definite article may indicate a particular hill or mountain. Today, in modern Greek, το Ὄρος (to Oros) or το Ἅγιον Ὄρος (to Ayios Oros), the Holy Mountain, refers exclusively to Mount Athos. In those days, would this have prompted the first readers to make immediate associations with the holy mountain, the mountain of the covenant, Mount Sinai?
Καθίσαντος (kathísantos), ‘sat down’: sitting down. He went up, he sat down. In those days and in that tradition, a teacher sat down to teach. But there is a potential for double meaning or hidden understandings here, for the Greek verb is also used to set, to appoint, or to confer a kingdom on someone. So the new kingdom is being ushered in, Christ is sitting on his throne, his teachings are about kingdom values.
Οἱ μαθηταὶ (oi mathetai): ‘the disciples’ – are the beatitudes for the disciples? Are they the ‘poor in spirit,’ those who mourn … and so on? Are they for the crowd below? The text is not that specific.
Προσῆλθαν (proselthan (προσέρχομαι, prosérchomai), ‘came,’ came, to, approached, draw near. The disciples gathered around Christ to hear his teaching.
Verse 2:
ἀνοίξας τὸ στόμα αὐτοῦ (anoixas to stoma aftou): ‘he opened the mouth of him.’
ἐδίδασκεν (edídasken): he taught. The imperfect may be used here to make the point that the Sermon on the Mount is a summary of Christ’s teachings. In other words, ‘this is what he used to teach.’
Λέγων (légon), ‘saying’: The participle is adverbial, modal, expressing the manner of his action of the verb ‘he taught.’
Verse 3:
Μακάριοι (Makárioi): Does this mean ‘blessed’? Does anyone remember Archbishop Makarios, the President of Cyprus who was deposed in a coup that was followed by the Turkish invasion of the island in 1974? ‘His Beatitude’ is a term of respect for archbishops and metropolitans in the Greek Orthodox Church.
The word ‘blessed’ is not the best translation for μακάριος (makários). ‘Fortunate,’ ‘well off,’ or ‘happy’ might fit better.
Christ is telling those who hear him that they are fortunate to be this way. They are fortunate to possess these qualities of life. Why? Because it means they inherit the blessings or fortunes of God’s promised kingdom.
Οἱ πτωχοὶ (oi ptochoi), ‘the poor’: those in total poverty, possessing nothing and with no means to earn a living other than by receiving alms.
Οἱ πτωχοὶ τῷ πνεύματι (oi ptochoi to pneumatic), ‘the poor in spirit’: those who are totally destitute spiritually and so recognise the need for their total dependence on God, ‘who know their need for God.’
ὅτι (oti): ‘for,’ ‘that,’ ‘because,’ or ‘since.’ This conjunction is used throughout the Beatitudes.
Αὐτῶν ἐστιν (afton estin, ‘theirs is’ as a consequence, not as reward. In other words, those who are dependent on God possess the riches of his kingdom.
Verse 4:
Οἱ πενθοῦντες (oi penthountes): ‘those who mourn,’ the ones who are mourning. Is this describing those who mourn for events in their own lives, or those who mourn because of their needs before God, those who are broken before God?
They will be comforted, consoled, encouraged by consolation – αὐτοὶ παρακληθήσονται (aftoi paraklethésontai) – they will be comforted. Note the resonances with the word Paraclete for the Holy Spirit as the comforter.
Verse 5:
Οἱ πραεῖς (oi praeis), ‘the meek,’ the humble, the gentle, the self-effacing, those of mild of disposition or gentle spirit, perhaps those who do not make great demands on God, but submit to the will of God.
ὅτι αὐτοὶ κληρονομήσουσιν τὴν γῆν (oti aftoi kleronomésousin tin gen): ‘for they will inherit the earth.’ They shall receive it by lot. They shall possess it.
‘Blessed are the Meek,’ which means the humble, patient, submissive and gentle is misheard in Monty Python’s The Life of Brian as: ‘Blessed is the Greek – apparently he’s going to inherit the earth.’ When they finally get what Jesus actually says, a woman says ‘Oh it’s the Meek … blessed are the Meek! That’s nice, I’m glad they’re getting something, ’cause they have a hell of a time.’
This is soon followed by the political activist and terrorist leader, Reg, saying: ‘What Jesus blatantly fails to appreciate is that it’s the meek who are the problem.’ This perfectly sums up the quickly growing annoyance of the violent with the peaceful attitude of Christ.
Verse 6:
Οἱ πεινῶντες (oi peinontes): ‘those who hunger,’ those who are hungering.
Τὴν δικαιοσύνην (tin dikaiosúnin): ‘for righteousness,’ for justice, for God’s justice.
Many scholars who argue that Saint Matthew never really addresses the Pauline concepts of justification which are grounded on the faithfulness of Christ appropriated through faith. In the Sermon on the Mount, Christ introduces us to a righteousness that is apart from obedience to the law. The Sinai covenant too demanded a righteousness that exceeds that of the Scribes and the Pharisees, a righteousness that relates to the values of the Kingdom.
Χορτασθήσονται (chortasthísontai): ‘will be filled, will be fed, will be satisfied, to the full.’
Verse 7:
Οἱ ἐλεήμονες (oi eleímones), ‘the merciful.’ The quality of mercy is not strained, as Shakespeare reminds us, and the quality of mercy is illustrated later in the Sermon on the Mount, in the Lord’s Prayer, when we are reminded to pray that we are forgiven as we forgive others. However, we not being told here that those who show mercy will have mercy shown to them. The fortunate, the blessed, those to be congratulated, those who should be happy, are those who have experienced God’s mercy, and as a consequence, find themselves merciful toward others. These people know God’s mercy. I can never be perfect in showing mercy or forgiveness; what little I show can only illustrate, be a sign of, point towards, be a sacrament of the mercy shown by God in the Kingdom.
Verse 8:
Οἱ καθαροὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ (oi katharoi ti kardía), ‘the pure in heart.’ The desire to touch the divine probably best describes this quality. Those who possess it will ‘be like him,’ and ὅτι αὐτοὶ τὸν θεὸν ὄψονται (oti aftoi ton Theo opsontai) and ‘see God,’ they will find themselves in God’s presence.”
Verse 9:
Οἱ εἰρηνοποιοί (oi eirenopoioí), the reconcilers, those who make peace between warring sides. This is one and only use of this phrase in the New Testament. How unique and unusual a beatitude, yet, while it leaps off the pages, we try so often to scale down, to water down, its significance and its demands.
The verse saying ‘blessed are the peacemakers’ was famously misprinted in the second edition of the Geneva Bible as ‘blessed are the place makers.’ This typographic error is parodied in Monty Python’s The Life of Brian, where those in the crowd listening to the sermon hear Christ as saying: ‘Blessed are the cheese makers.’
‘Well, obviously it’s not meant to be taken literally. It refers to any manufacturers of dairy products.’
Christ is not talking about those who seek or wish for peace, but those who make peace.
What is the difference between a peacemaker and a conflict-resolution counsellor?
When there are two conflicting demands, have they got to be given equal weight or respect?
How do you make peace between the oppressor and the oppressed?
Is conflict resolution enough?
Are there times when the demands for justice demand to be heard despite those who call for ‘peace and quiet’?
ὅτι αὐτοὶ υἱοὶ θεοῦ κληθήσονται (oti aftoi uioi Theou klethísontai): for they shall be called the sons of God, the children of God, those generated by God. If we are clones of God, then we act like God. And if we act like God, others may see what God is like, and may answer the invitation to be members of God’s family.
Verse 10:
Οἱ δεδιωγμένοι (oi dediogménoi), ‘those who are persecuted,’ the ones being persecuted. The perfect tense indicates persecution that began in time past and that continues into the present. The meaning of the word is usually ‘persecute’ in the New Testament, or ‘to put to flight,’ ‘to drive away.’ But it also carries a positive sense: to follow with haste, and presumably with intensity of effort, in order to catch up with, for friendly or hostile purpose – to run after, to chase after, to pursue, to hasten, to run, to press forward, to press on, to follow without hostile intent.
ἕνεκεν (eneken), ‘because of,’ for the sake of.
Verse 11:
Μακάριοί ἐστε (makárioí este): ‘Blessed, happy, fortunate are you.’ Did you notice the change here from the third person found in the previous verses to the second person in this final beatitude?
ὅταν (otan): ‘when.’ We have here an indefinite temporal clause expressing general time, ‘whenever.’
ὀνειδίσωσιν (oneidísosin): [whenever] people insult, reproach or upbraid you.
Ψευδόμενοι (pseudómenoi: ‘falsely,’ under false pretensions, lying. The Greek word here, ψευδόμενοι, is not found in many of the early manuscripts. It may have been added in the process of redaction to reinforce the evil nature of the slander. Although when I am insulted as Christian, it often matters little whether I am being insulted for the sake of insult, or I am being insulted falsely.
ἕνεκεν ἐμοῦ (eneken emou): because of, or for the sake of me; in other words, because of, or for the sake of Christ. Possibly because of their testimony to Christ, but – probably better said as: because of their identification with Christ.
I digress for a moment as I think of what it would be like to be insulted falsely for being a Christian, to be accused of being a Christian. At one time, we had a poster in our kitchen that asked: ‘If you were accused of being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?’
Verse 12:
Χαίρετε καὶ ἀγαλλιᾶσθε (Chaírete kai agallasthe): ‘rejoice and be glad’ – in fact, ‘rejoice and be exceedingly glad.’ Not merely you are blessed, but it’s also worth rejoicing and being glad, a pair introduced here, because we are going to be given two good reasons for such a joyous response.
Why? Because (ὅτι, oti).
The first because is: ὁ μισθὸς ὑμῶν πολὺς ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς (ho misthos hymon polis en tois ouranois), the reward, the payment, the wage for you is great in the heavens. Present suffering is going to give way to something in the future that is exceptionally rewarding.
The second because is: οὕτως γὰρ ἐδίωξαν τοὺς προφήτας τοὺς πρὸ ὑμῶν (outos gar edíoxan tous profítas tous pro imon), ‘in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.’
So, we can look forward to being in good company.
Matthew 5: 1-12, a reflection:
The Lutheran priest and public theologian the Revd Nadia Bolz-Weber offered versions the following reflection on this Gospel reading at the Greenbelt Festival in 2014, at a sermon on All Saints’ Day later that year, and at the funeral of the blogger and best-selling writer Rachel Held Evans who died last year:
Agnostic’s Prayer
Maybe the Sermon on the Mount is all about Jesus’ lavish blessing of the people around him on that hillside who his world – like ours – didn’t seem to have much time for: people in pain, people who work for peace instead of profit, people who exercise mercy instead of vengeance.
Maybe Jesus was simply blessing the ones around him that day who didn’t otherwise receive blessing, who had come to believe that, for them, blessings would never be in the cards. I mean, come on, doesn’t that just sound like something Jesus would do? Extravagantly throwing around blessings as though they grew on trees?
So, I imagine Jesus standing among us offering some new beatitudes:
Blessed are the agnostics.
Blessed are they who doubt. Those who aren’t sure, who can still be surprised.
Blessed are they who are spiritually impoverished and therefore not so certain about everything that they no longer take in new information.
Blessed are those who have nothing to offer. Blessed are the pre-schoolers who cut in line at communion.
Blessed are the poor in spirit. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.
Blessed are they for whom death is not an abstraction.
Blessed are they who have buried their loved ones, for whom tears could fill an ocean.
Blessed are they who have loved enough to know what loss feels like.
Blessed are the mothers of the miscarried.
Blessed are they who don’t have the luxury of taking things for granted anymore.
Blessed are they who can’t fall apart because they have to keep it together for everyone else.
Blessed are those who ‘still aren’t over it yet.’
Blessed are those who mourn. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.
Blessed are those who no one else notices. The kids who sit alone at middle-school lunch tables. The laundry guys at the hospital. The sex workers and the night-shift street sweepers.
Blessed are the forgotten.
Blessed are the closeted.
Blessed are the unemployed, the unimpressive, the underrepresented.
Blessed are the teens who have to figure out ways to hide the new cuts on their arms.
Blessed are the meek. You are of heaven and Jesus blesses you.
Blessed are the wrongly accused, the ones who never catch a break, the ones for whom life is hard, for Jesus chose to surround himself with people like them.
Blessed are those without documentation.
Blessed are the ones without lobbyists.
Blessed are foster kids and special-ed kids and every other kid who just wants to feel safe and loved.
Blessed are those who make terrible business decisions for the sake of people.
Blessed are the burned-out social workers and the over-worked teachers and the pro-bono case takers.
Blessed are the kind-hearted football players and the fundraising trophy wives.
Blessed are the kids who step between the bullies and the weak.
Blessed are they who hear that they are forgiven.
Blessed is everyone who has ever forgiven me when I didn’t deserve it.
Blessed are the merciful, for they totally get it.
Matthew 5: 1-12 (NRSVA):
5 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
Liturgical Resources:
Liturgical Colour: White
Note: Ordinary Times begins after the Feast of the Presentation, and the Liturgical Colour turns to Green from 3 February, and continues until Shrove Tuesday, 25 February 2020.
The Collect of the Day:
Creator God,
who in the beginning
commanded the light to shine out of darkness:
We pray that the light of the glorious gospel of Christ
may dispel the darkness of ignorance and unbelief,
shine into the hearts of all your people,
and reveal the knowledge of your glory
in the face of Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Collect of the Word:
Holy God,
you confound the world’s wisdom
in giving your kingdom to the lowly and pure in heart.
Give us such a hunger and thirst for justice,
and perseverance in striving for peace,
that in our words and deeds
the world may see the life of your Son,
Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord.
The Post-Communion Prayer:
Generous Lord,
in word and eucharist we have proclaimed
the mystery of your love.
Help us so to live out our days
that we may be signs of your wonders in the world;
through Jesus Christ our Saviour.
Suggested Hymns:
Micah 6: 1-8:
190, Brightest and best of the suns of the morning
567, Forth in thy name, O Lord, I go
455, Go forth for God; go forth to the world in peace
211, Immortal love, for ever full
358, King of glory, King of peace
637, O for a closer walk with God
498, What does the Lord require for praise and offering?
Psalm 15:
631, God be in my head
I Corinthians 1: 18-31:
643, Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart
646, Glorious things of thee are spoken
225, In the cross of Christ I glory
698, Jesus, Saviour of the world
671, Jesus, thy blood and righteousness
484, Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim
33, Lord of the boundless curves of space
232, Nature with open volume stands
600, The wise may bring their learning
248, We sing the praise of him who died
247, When I survey the wondrous cross
Matthew 5: 1-12:
630, Blessed are the pure in heart
293, Breathe on me, breath of God
503, Make me a channel of your peace
507, Put peace into each others’ hands
308, Revive your Church, O Lord
712, Tell out, my soul, the greatness of the Lord
22, You shall cross the barren desert
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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