Patrick Comerford
Sunday next, 4 July 2021, is the Fifth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity V).
The appointed readings in the Revised Common Lectionary for this Sunday, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland are:
The Continuous readings: II Samuel 5: 1-5, 9-10 Psalm 48; II Corinthians 12: 2-10; Mark 6: 1-13.
The Paired readings: Ezekiel 2: 1-5; Psalm 123; II Corinthians 12: 2-10; Mark 6: 1-13.
There is a link to the continuous readings HERE
There is a link to the paired readings HERE
Introducing the readings:
Until mid-June, I was still hoping that I might get to the High Leigh Conference Centre near Hoddesdon in Hertfordshire for the annual conference of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel) next month (19 to 21 July 2021). However, because of the spread of the Delta Variant, the conference is now going to be a ‘virtual’ or on-line event.
However, even if I only get to take part in the conference virtually, I expect the combination of ‘being sent’ and ‘being dependent’ is a mission theme that I shall hear much about from USPG staff and partners. This is also a strong Biblical theme in next Sunday’s readings.
In these readings, we are challenged to see how being sent by God is always being in service and as being part of the ‘Sent Community.’
In addition, as we are sent, we are called to trust both in God and in those from whom we receive resources and support for our work. This applies, of course, not just to bishops and priests, but to all who seek to follow Christ and live as citizens of God’s Kingdom.
What do you take with you on a journey? If you can bring your mind back to pre-pandemic times, ask yourself what are the essential items you packed in your case? Was it a small bag for an overhead cabin on a Ryanair flight and a short overnight stay? Or was it a large suitcase or two for a two-week summer holiday, filled with towels, suncream and swimwear?
Apart from my passport, the requisite toothbrush, plastic cards, phone chargers, presents for hosts and friends, and changes of clothes and sandals, I always need to take my laptop and more than enough reading: books, magazine, journals and newspapers.
And I always regret that I have packed too much – not because I do not wear all those T-shorts or read each and every one of those books, but because I find there is not enough room for all the books I want to take back with me, and because restrictions on overhead bags often mean I cannot return with a bottle of local wine.
In next Sunday’s Gospel reading (Mark 6: 1-13), as the disciples prepare for their journey, we might expect them to take with them an extra wineskin, an extra tunic, an extra pair of sandals, some water, some spending money. But Christ tells the disciples, as he sends them out in mission, two-by-two, to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money, no spare shoes, no change of tunic, no coins for tips in the taverns or where they stay.
Perhaps the disciples set out filled with doubts and uncertainty, full of fear and anxiety, rather than with full suitcases.
But what the disciples would soon learn is that for the people they are going to encounter along the way, it is not food or money or clothes that they need most. What those people need most, like the women in the previous Sunday’s Gospel reading (Mark 5: 21-43), is healing. And so, Christ requires the disciples to give what is the hardest thing in the world for us to give: the hardest thing to give is ourselves.
Sometimes, the moments when we put aside the comforts of home and step into uncertainty and risk are moments when we find we are closest to God.
Perhaps this Gospel reading is challenging me us to ask myself: What baggage have I been dragging along with me in life on my journey of faith, in my journey in ministry, in my journey in mission?
Have I been carrying this baggage around not because I need it, but because I am comfortable with it?
What unnecessary junk am I still carrying around with me in life that I ought to have left behind long ago?
Maybe, I should be planning to take up my walking stick, dust off my sandals and set off on that journey into God’s abundance.
II Samuel 5: 1-5, 9-10:
The people of Israel join the people of Judah in making David their king, and so David becomes king over the entire nation. Then David establishes his throne in Jerusalem.
David has settled at Hebron (see II Samuel 2: 3). He is publicly anointed to rule over Judah by the council of tribal heads. Meanwhile, in the north, Abner, once Saul’s military commander, makes Ishbaal, Saul’s son, the puppet king over the northern tribes (see 2: 8).
The rival tribal coalitions each plan to annex Gibeon, north-west of Jerusalem. When they go to war, David’s troops win. Abner, recognising a lost cause, switches to David’s side (see 3: 1-10), but he is killed (see 3: 22-29). Ishbaal’s courage fails and he is murdered by two of his own, who are then killed on David’s orders, for killing ‘a righteous man’ (see 4: 11). David shows Abner and Ishbaal his respect when he has them buried at Hebron.
There is no acceptable successor to Saul, and the tribes of Israel (verse 1) the north, invite David to become their king too. He is an Israelite and has been an army commander under Saul (verse 2). The council of the north or elders of Israel (verse 3), anoint him king over them too. In this way, the two states, Israel and Judah, are united with one king.
David now conquers a city belonging to neither state, and he makes the Canaanite or Jebusite city a neutral capital. Jerusalem becomes the city of David (verse 9). David is seen to have increased in power with the help of God, the God who is common to the people of the north and the south.
Ezekiel 2: 1-5:
For many commentators, Ezekiel, Isaiah and Jonah stand alongside one another in the way they are called and sent by God on a mission.
Ezekiel was sent into exile, yet still had to fulfil his mission. Other prophets were reluctant too: Moses questioned his eloquence; Jeremiah believed he was too young, Isaiah thought himself impure; Jonah was reluctant to respond to his call.
Ezekiel, a priest whose name means ‘God strengthens’, is called in the year 563 BCE from among the exiles in land of Chaldeans in the Babylonian empire. Two prophets, Ezekiel and Isaiah, saw mystical visions of God among the heavenly host, and heard the words sung by the angels: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory’ (Isaiah 6: 3) and ‘Blessed be the glory of the Lord’ (see Ezekiel 3: 12, some translations).
In this reading, Ezekiel receives the first of five commissions. Here God commissions Ezekiel to be a prophet to the ‘people of Israel, to a nation of rebels who have rebelled against me.’ He is to proclaim to them that although they are hard-hearted and rebellious, and whether they listen or not, they will know that a prophet has been among them.
Psalm 48:
Psalm 48 is a hymn of praise to the beauty and endurance of Jerusalem’s glory which overwhelms even enemy kings who come against it. The city has outlived all those who tried to conquer it, and it is protected by God.
God’s praise extends to the ends of the earth. The psalm celebrates the beauty and security of Jerusalem on Mount Zion, where God is to be praised.
God is present in the Temple in his steadfast love. Jerusalem is a joy to pilgrims who consider God’s gift of love when worshipping in the Temple. God is to be praised for ever and to the ends of the earth, and for all future generations
Psalm 123:
This Psalm is a prayer for deliverance from enemies and for God’s mercy after the mockery and shame that the proud have brought on God’s people. It is a commitment to be attentive to God, as servants are attentive to their masters and mistresses.
Verses 1-3 speak of humble submission to God’s will. We look with our eyes to God, seeking his mercy (verse 3). The speakers here are Israel or an oppressed group within Israel, and they seek God’s help and mercy, having had their fill of contempt, the scorn of the powerful, and derision.
Scorn and contempt have been laid upon the people, and they are either incapable or unwilling to fight against it alone. They turn to the Lord with confidence that they will receive mercy. An important dimension of mercy, רַחֵ֖ם (see Isaiah 49: 15), is that it can be understood as the tender love a mother has for her children. The psalmist’s wish is for the Lord to show motherly care for the people.
If you feel that there is no place to turn, no one to help, will you turn to the Lord for mercy?
In fact, will you turn to the Lord first?
Consider the innocent of the world, those suffering oppression, hunger, disease, those living in war-torn regions, those who have been kidnapped.
Can you pray to the Lord for mercy for them?
II Corinthians 12: 2-10:
The Apostle Paul refuses to boast in anything except his weaknesses, since God has given him a ‘thorn in his side’ to keep him from being conceited, and so he celebrates that in his weaknesses God’s strength is made perfect.
Saint Paul continues to rebut his critics. In the previous chapter, he has defended his Jewish heritage and his achievements. But he has refused to boast, and declared: ‘If I must boast, I will boast of the things that show my weakness’ (11: 30).
Now, in humility, he speaks as though someone else had a vision: ‘a person in Christ.’ It really did happen, 14 years ago, and it was a mysterious and mystical experience that is indescribable.
Was his ‘thorn … in the flesh’ (verse 7) that keeps Saint Paul from ‘being too elated’ a chronic condition, a physical or mental disability, a recurring illness, or strong opposition from one or more people?
Whatever it is, this affliction will not be removed, for the power of God is more apparent when it works through a sufferer. He accepts his condition, as it is, ‘for the sake of Christ,’ for when he feels weak, he is showing God’s power most effectively and so shows himself to be a true apostle.
Mark 6: 1-13:
This Gospel reading comes in two parts. Christ preaches in his home town, but the people reject him because they know him, and cannot honour him. He then sends the Twelve out in pairs, two-by-two, with no resources, to preach. They go out to proclaim Christ’s message, to heal, and to cast out demons.
Saint Mark has told us of Christ’s success with the crowds. They have listened to the word expressed in parables; they have seen him heal the sick. He has commissioned and instructed the Twelve, showing them that he has power over nature, sickness and even death. Now Christ leaves the place where he has healed the woman and the daughter of Jairus, and he comes to his hometown in Galilee, with those who trust in him.
But his reception in the synagogue is different from that he received earlier in the Gospel (see Mark 1: 21-28). The people now question who he is. They ask how a mere carpenter can be so wise. None of it adds up, they take offence at him, and they reject him. The word σκάνδαλον (skandalon), translated in verse 3 as offence, also means a stumbling block or the trigger of a trap.
After his rejection in his hometown, Christ moves out into the rural areas. He then sends out the Twelve in mission, to minister, to extend the proclamation of the Kingdom of God in word and deed.
The disciples become apostles – the word apostle means one who is sent, and the Twelve are sent out in pairs, two-by-two.
Their mission and their need to trust in God are so important that they are to subordinate their material and physical concerns to the task of preaching and healing, as Christ does. They are not to spend time seeking better accommodation, nor are they to waste time with those who refuse to listen. They are move on, perhaps just like Jesus has moved on from his hometown, from those who refused to listen.
Reflecting on the theme:
Two complementary ideas come together in a challenging way in these Lectionary readings: the idea of being sent by God, and the idea of being dependent on God.
Firstly, the importance of being sent for God’s people is reflected in David’s appointment as king over both Israel and Judah, in Ezekiel’s call to be a prophet, in Saint Paul’s ministry, and then, in our Gospel reading, both in Christ’s work in his home town and his sending of the Twelve to preach and demonstrate God’s reign.
Secondly, this sending is always in dependence on God. Ezekiel is called and God promises to show that he is a prophet, whether or not the people listen to him. David’s journey, which the Lectionary has been following over the last few weeks, reveals how much he depended on God in gaining the throne. Saint Paul recognises that God’s strength is made perfect in his weakness, and so he refuses to boast in anything except his dependence on God.
In a similar way, Psalm 123 reveals dependence on God for mercy.
Finally, Christ sends his disciples out, as he has been sent, with no real resources, but ready to rely on the hospitality of others for their basic needs, and depending on God for the power to fulfil their ministry.
We are challenged to embrace the call of God, and go out as servants of Christ in dependence on God’s resources, God’s strength, to sustain us.
There is no shortage of work to be done in the world today. The issues of justice are many and diverse and require people of passion, commitment and with a sense of being ‘called’ or being ‘sent.’
But, for justice to become a reality in the world, in our country, in our communities, there must be a sense in which all the individual initiatives connect and form part of a larger whole. It is not just as individuals that we are sent out into the world, but we are sent out as groups and communities. As we work together, each with our own particular gifts or focus, we can make a significant difference.
It is all too easy for us as priests or readers to begin to rely on our own wisdom, abilities, and charisma to do the work we have been called to do. But, without team work, we run the risks of being arrogant, controlling, abusive, rigid and closed to the ideas of others.
We need to accept that any calling comes only as part of a called community. We are always sent as individuals because of our connection with, and our place in, a ‘sent community.’
It is also true that we are always sent to serve, and this requires both trust in God’s message and mission, and the humility to be vulnerable to those to whom we seek to minister.
The resources we most depend on in ministry and in mission are not our own, but are gifts we receive from God, and from others who are ‘called’ too to resource God’s work. In this way, ministry and mission become one act of community-building and of mutual service and faith. And, when we begin to live and serve like this, we begin to experience life as God intended it, we begin to catch glimpses of the Kingdom of God.
Mark 6: 1-13 (NRSVA):
1 He left that place and came to his home town, and his disciples followed him. 2 On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They said, ‘Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took offence at him. 4 Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not without honour, except in their home town, and among their own kin, and in their own house.’ 5 And he could do no deed of power there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them. 6 And he was amazed at their unbelief.
Then he went about among the villages teaching. 7 He called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8 He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9 but to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 10 He said to them, ‘Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11 If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them.’ 12 So they went out and proclaimed that all should repent. 13 They cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.
Liturgical resources:
Liturgical colour: Green.
The Collect:
Almighty and everlasting God,
by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church
is governed and sanctified:
Hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people,
that in their vocation and ministry
they may serve you in holiness and truth
to the glory of your name;
through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.
The Collect of the Word:
O Lord our God,
you are always more ready to bestow your gifts upon us
than we are to seek them;
and more willing to give than we desire or deserve:
in our every need,
grant us the first and best of all your gifts,
the Spirit who makes us your children.
Post-Communion Prayer:
Holy and blessed God,
as you give us the body and blood of your Son,
guide us with your Holy Spirit,
that we may honour you not only with our lips
but also with our lives;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Suggested Hymns:
II Samuel 5: 1-5, 9-10:
12, God is our strength and refuge
529, Thy hand, O God, has guided
Psalm 48:
646, Glorious things of thee are spoken
380, God has spoken to his people, alleluia
354, Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise
593, O Jesus, I have promised
Ezekiel 2: 1-5:
381, God has spoken – by his prophets
387, Thanks to God, whose Word was spoken
Psalm 123:
696, God, we praise you! God, we bless you!
208, Hearken, O Lord, have mercy upon us
145, You servants of the Lord
II Corinthians 12: 2-10:
645, Father, hear the prayer we offer
352, Give thanks with a grateful heart
594, O Lord of creation, to you be all praise
387, Thanks to God, whose Word was spoken
Mark 6: 1-13:
454, Forth in the peace of Christ we go
483, Jesus went to worship
618, Lord of all hopefulness, Lord of all joy
197, Songs of thankfulness and praise
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 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)
Material from the Book of Common Prayer is copyright © 2004, Representative Body of the Church of Ireland.
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