Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 4 July 2021, Fifth Sunday after Trinity

‘He … began to send them out two by two’ (Mark 6: 7) … two walkers on the beach in Ballybunion, Co Kerry, at the end of the day (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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

When I set out on journeys, too often I take too much with me … ‘A Case History’ or ‘The Hope Street Suitcases’ by John King in Liverpool (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘David occupied the stronghold, and named it the city of David. David built the city all around from the Millo inwards’ (II Samuel 5: 9) … the city of Jerusalem depicted on a tile in a restaurant (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘And when he spoke to me, a spirit entered into me and set me on my feet’ (Ezekiel 2: 2) … footprints in the sand on the beach in Ballybunion, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘Let Mount Zion rejoice … because of your judgments, O Lord’ (Psalm 48: 11) … ‘The Holy City,’ a batik by Thetis Blacker in the Royal Foundation of Saint Katharine in London (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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

‘To you I lift up my eyes’ (Psalm 123: 1) … the London Eye at night (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2020)

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?

What did Saint Paul mean by his ‘thorn … in the flesh’? … a symbolic Crown of Thorns on a cross at the gate of Saint George’s Monastery in the mountains near Vamos in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘He ordered them … to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics’ (Mark 6: 8-9) … sandals in a shopfront in Rethymnon, Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘He … began to send them out two by two’ (Mark 6: 7) … two walkers in the narrow streets of San Marino (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘On the sabbath he began to teach in the synagogue’ (Mark 6: 2) … inside Etz Hayyim Synagogue in Chania, Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘They … anointed with oil many who were sick’ (Mark 6: 13) … chrism oils on Maundy Thursday (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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.

‘As you give us the body and blood of your Son, guide us with your Holy Spirit’ (Post-Communion Prayer) … Communion vessels in preparation for the Eucharist in Saint Brendan’s Church, Bantry, Co Cork (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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

‘He … began to send them out two by two’ (Mark 6: 7) … two walkers set out into the light of day in Porto (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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

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.

‘He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts’ (Mark 6: 8) … figures carrying heavy bags in a shop window in Santiago de Compostela (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 12 July 2020, Fifth Sunday after Trinity

The Sower and the Seed … the parable depicted in the Chancel window by Mayer & Co in Saint Michael’s Church, Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

Next Sunday, 12 July 2020, is the Fifth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity V).

The readings in the Revised Common Lectionary, as adapted for use in the Church of Ireland, are in two sets, the Continuous readings and the Paired readings. These sets of readings are:

The Continuous readings: Genesis 25: 19-34; Psalm 119: 105-112; Romans 8: 1-11; Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23.

There is a link to the Continuous readings HERE.

The Paired readings: Isaiah 55: 10-13; Psalm 65: (1-7) 8-13; Romans 8: 1-11; Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23.

There is a link to the Paired readings HERE.

‘A sower went out to sow … some seeds fell on the path … other seeds fell on rocky ground … other seeds fell among thorns … other seeds fell on good soil’ (Matthew 13: 3-9) … paths and fields in summer sunshine in Castleconnell, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2020)

Introducing the readings:

Where do we expect to find spiritual growth, how do we count or measure it, and how do we evaluate it?

Last month (12 June 2020), The Irish Times published a glossy magazine supplement, The Top 1000 Companies 2020, with a cover that promised: ‘Best performing companies revealed.’

But, apart from a short piece on ethical investment half-way through this 60-page magazine, ‘best’ and ‘performance’ was judged by size, profits and value on the stock exchange. They were not judged by the social capital created by any company, the conditions and benefits for workers, or the commitment of organisations to funding charities or supporting struggling cultural, youth or community organisations.

Sometimes we are like that in the Church today. When we speak of ‘church growth’ we usually refer to increasing numbers of Sunday churchgoers, expanding church activities that attract new or retain old members and that look in on the inner life of a parish rather than measuring the Church’s compassionate outreach to the needs of the wider society, the wider world.

How do we measure spiritual growth?

So often we get it wrong – and this is a debate that can begin in Sunday’s readings.

Isaac does not expect Jacob to grow and become his heir, but Esau sells his spiritual birthright for worldly gains.

In the face of adversity, the Psalmist finds real joy, and even though he may not see the fruits of his faithfulness, it will be of benefit to future generations.

Saint Paul realises the paradox of the inner conflict that the believer faces, but counsels that these inner conflicts are part of spiritual growth.

The sower in the Gospel reading could see quick growth from the seed he scatters on the pathway, on the rocks and among the brambles. But real spiritual growth takes time and patience. It may not be as spectacular and takes longer, but it is of lasting value.

‘Jacob was a quiet man, living in tents’ (Genesis 25: 27) … preparing for a meal in a Middle East ambience (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Genesis 25: 19-34:

Too often we expect immediate results. And too often we judge whether a project is a success or a failure by asking whether it is producing immediate, measurable, visible, tangible results. If not, we dismiss that project as an immediate failure.

In the Old Testament reading (Genesis 25: 19-34), Rebekah knows about postponed and delayed expectations. She is married for 20 years and Isaac is 60 before she conceives. To add to her surprise after all those years, she finds she is pregnant not with one child but with two, twin boys.

Their father Isaac does not expect Jacob to grow and become his heir. Instead, Esau is the hunter gatherer, while Jacob seems to be the stay-at-home boy, the ‘Mammy’s boy,’ with a hint that he is good at stirring up trouble, cooking a stew (see verse 29).

Esau expects immediate results, to the point that he is willing to give up his long-term prospects, his rights and inheritance as the first-born son, for the immediate satisfaction of the lentil stew Isaac has been brewing up.

Esau expects immediate results. He lacks the patience to wait and see what may happen, he does not have the ability, the commitment or the endurance to stick with things.

Isaac and Rebekah, and Jacob too, could not yet see the working out of God’s plans in future generations … how could they? Like the sower who sows so that others may reap, how could Isaac and Rebekah know what one bowl of lentils would lead to?

‘I am deeply troubled; preserve my life, O Lord, according to your word’ (Psalm 119: 107) … street art in a square in Malaga (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

Psalm 119: 105-112:

Psalm 119 is the longest of the psalms. It is made up of 22 eight-line stanzas, and this reading is the 14th stanza, in which line in Hebrew begins with the letter nun (נ), the 14th letter in the Hebrew alphabet.

The Psalmist too is challenged to consider his own need for patience and endurance, to see not his immediate predicament but to look to the future. He thinks he is a failure because of his present circumstances, but does the rejection he feels today shape his tomorrow?

Perhaps the dominant theme running through this stanza of Psalm 119 is our need for patience and determination. The psalmist learns patiently in the face of the wicked, in living with deep troubles, insults, innuendoes and immediate risks to his life to remain in awe of God.

He has an inheritance that is not only for the here and now, but for future generations, for ever (verse 111), and for ever and to the end (verse 112).

In the face of adversity, this is his real joy, even though he may not see the fruits of his faithfulness, it will be of benefit to future generations.

‘To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace’ (Romans 8: 6) … street art in a square in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Romans 8: 1-11:

The Apostle Paul reminds us that through Baptism we are incorporated in Christ Jesus, and the Spirit frees us from the consequences of sin that lead to death. We now walk in the ways of the Spirit, instead of the old sinful ways that once led to death, and we should keep our minds focussed on the ways of the Spirit.

However, Saint Paul realises the paradox of the inner conflict that the believer faces. I wish to follow God’s ways, but, somehow, I do otherwise. Something within causes me not to follow through from mind to action, and my physical being seems naturally inclined to do what is wrong.

He reminds us that we belong to the Spirit, who dwells within us. This Spirit raised Christ from the dead and now dwells with us.

‘A sower went out to sow … some seeds fell on the path … other seeds fell on rocky ground … other seeds fell among thorns … other seeds fell on good soil’ (Matthew 13: 3-9) … a variety of soil in fields in Comberford, near Lichfield and Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23:

The crowd that has come to hear Jesus is so large that he teaches from a boat on the Sea of Galilee. He tells several parables, including the Parable of the Sower in the first part of this reading (verses 3b-8), and which Christ explains in part in the second part of the reading (verses 18-23).

In farming practices at that time, seeding sometimes took place before ploughing. The sower and the seed are constant, but where the seed lands varies. There are three unfruitful places: on the path (verse 4), among rocks (verse 5) and among thorns (verse 7). But there is one fruitful place, which is good soil (verse 8).

In verse 9, Christ tells the crowd – and us – that this story has a deeper meaning.

Sowing is often seen as the work of God (see Jeremiah 31: 27-28; Ezekiel 36: 9; Hosea 2: 21-23; IV Ezra (II Esdras) 9: 31; Baruch 32: 1). At the time, people would naturally think of the sower as God and the different soils as the people of the world. Thinking about the prophecy of the fate of the households of Jeroboam and Ahab (I Kings 16: 4, 24: 4)), they probably linked the birds in verse 4 with evil. But perhaps the sower here is anyone who tells the good news, and growth represents receptivity and response.

Although Christ has invited the crowd to listen to this parable (verse 9), the story still needs explanation so it can be understood and bear fruit (verses 19, 23).

The path is like those who have the seed sown in their hearts and who hear but do not seek to understand (verse 19).

The rocky ground is like those who have a superficial understanding of Christ’s teaching, but turn to other ideas in the face of changing fashions or opposition (verses 20-21).

The thorns can be compared to those who hear Christ’s teaching but are turned away from it by the temptations of the world, including wealth and power (verse 22).

Finally, those who understand take to heart what Christ says and understand it, and they reflect this understanding in how they live their lives, how they bear fruit (verse 23).

The ‘Sower’ window in Holy Trinity Church, Rathkeale, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Reflecting on the Gospel reading:

The East Window in Holy Trinity Church, Rathkeale, depicts the sower sowing seed on different types of ground.

When children come into the church, I enjoy explaining that window to them. But I never concede or admit that I am no good at sowing, no good in the garden, no good at growing plants or trees, and certainly no good at growing them from seed.

I could explain this away by excuses such as heavy hay fever since childhood or claiming I do not have green fingers. But to tell the truth, it may be because of a combination of faults: because I expect quick results and because I expect perfection.

I enjoy sitting in the garden, reading, eating in the open, listening to the fountain, but not weeding the flower beds, tending the plants or mowing the lawn.

In short, I do not do gardening, I do not do garden centres.

But in those times before the pandemic lockdown, when I could spend holidays in Crete, I have found myself appreciating gardens and growing and growth. In Platanias, the suburban village where we have enjoyed staying, we have often had breakfast on a terrace overlooking a taverna garden with tables between the tall, leafy trees and a variety of flowers and plants, many of them over 100 years old.

The family there explain that it has taken over a century to grow these plant, flowers and trees. It is careful nurturing, a gentle and loving task handed on from one generation to the next, with no expectation of immediate, personal reward for any one generation.

In the very heart of Rethymon itself, the Municipal Garden is an attraction that few tourists visit or appreciate. But this garden is a welcome, cool and refreshing place in the middle of the summer heatwaves that Crete can experience, with temperatures in the high 30s, and sometimes even reaching 40.

The garden is near the city centre and close to the old city walls and the Venetian gates into the Old Town.

This is a green area that includes a playground, drinking fountains, the busts of writers and politicians, and a cafeteria. Originally, it was a Turkish Muslim cemetery. After the Turks left Crete in the 1920s, the city council decided not to build on the site. Instead, they created a garden that respected the dead and gave pleasure to the living.

Now this is a home to rare plants, a place for the people of the town to stroll in the shade away from the summer heat, and a venue for political and cultural events and festivals.

This garden, dating from 1925, has taken almost a century, more than three full generations, to reach its present mature beauty. It takes that span of time to plant, grow, develop and shape two gardens like these. The people who had the vision for them, who laid out the pathways, who sowed the seeds and tended the first saplings in their early stages of growth, knew they would never see their work come to maturity, they would never see the fruits of their dreams.

At times, they must have been frustrated. In the old graveyard, inevitably some of their seeds and saplings ended up being sown or planted on stony ground and never grew properly. In the summer heat and drought, many seeds and plants must have found too little water and been burned by the sun. Some must have been trampled on by people dining in the taverna garden or eager to see the new phenomenon of a municipal public garden.

But the planners passed on their vision, and in the summer heat I have often benefitted from their vision, their persistence and their tenacity.

Too often we expect immediate results. And too often we judge whether a project is a success or a failure by asking whether it is producing immediate, measurable, visible, tangible results. If not, we dismiss that project as an immediate failure.

Just because something works now does not mean it is right for the future. Just because something does not work now does not mean it is wrong for the future.

It is not the fault of the seed that it has fallen on rocky soil, or landed on the roadway, or been burned up in the mid-day sun. God scatters where he will, abundantly and generously.

On the other hand, we can achieve little by our own innate qualities or abilities. We are all inter-dependent – just like the seed, which depends on the sower and on soil, sun, rain and the right conditions.

Why does some of the seed yield better results? – some of it is immeasurably better than that other seed.

Growth occurs without us seeing or knowing it. Yet we can have such limited expectations of God.

Why does God allow certain people to do this, that or the other?

Why does God allow particular people or nations to prosper?

Why does God seemingly reward the wayward and the careless, those I would prefer to see left on rocky soil or would pass by on the side of the road?

If only God behaved a little more like I do, or like I want God to, would this not be a far, far better world?

Would this not be a far, far better society?

Would this not be a far, far better Church?

And so on.

Sometimes in the Church of Ireland, we become very exercised about Church attendance figures and with this anxiety comes talk of Church growth, Church planting, and reaching the unchurched. But sometimes, just sometimes, I wonder whether we are neglecting our own inheritance, the harvest of the seeds that have already been planted by previous generations, the promises that were made to past generations.

In the Collect on Sunday morning, we are praying that as God’s faithful people that we would serve in ‘holiness and truth’. And so success in ordinary parishes is not to be judged by business models of rapid growth and charts that track increases in sales and profits.

Our measures for growth must be so different. We are here as salt and light in our communities. True growth may not be found not in quantity but in quality: how we love our neighbours, how we encourage and help them to grow in their faith, how we are faithful witnesses to the love of God and the love of others.

And, as we know, love, hope and faith cannot be measured, they cannot be bought or sold, and their true value bears fruit not in the now and the immediate but over decades, over time.

There is hope. There is hope for our small congregations. If we have hope in the seeds sown in the past, if we pay attention to the potential harvest, if we look with faith and hope to the future, then there is no reason to fret about present figures.

Like the garden planners in Crete who had vision in Rethymnon almost a century ago, we may not see the growth that follows our faithful attention to our own little patches today. But there is no need to dismiss congregations that are small in numbers are small in the benefits that we bring to the wider community.

I like to think of our churches and parishes as having the real potential to be the spiritual gardens of our wider communities. As Thomas More once said: ‘The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden.’

An additional resource:

In addition, the General Secretary of USPG, the Revs Duncan Dormor, is offering a free pre-recorded sermon for churches that are either already engaged with USPG, or who are interested in learning more.

A sermon, based on the lectionary readings and learnings from USPG’s global partners will be available for Sunday 12 July (Trinity 5). If you would like to receive this sermon for your church please email Gwen Mtambirwa, Mission Engagement Co-ordinator: gwenm@uspg.org.uk . It will be sent to you on Thursday 9 July.

A shaded corner in the Municipal Gardens in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23 (NRSVA):

1 That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. 2 Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. 3 And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. 4 And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. 5 Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. 6 But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. 7 Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. 8 Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. 9 Let anyone with ears listen!’

18 ‘Hear then the parable of the sower. 19 When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. 20 As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; 21 yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. 22 As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. 23 But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.’

The ‘Sower’ window in Saint Mary’s Church, Newtownbarry (Bunclody), Co Wexford (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Liturgical Resources:

Liturgical Colour: Green (Ordinary Time, Year A).

The Collect of the Day:

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

The Post-Communion Prayer:

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.

‘The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden’ (Thomas More) … the garden in the cloisters in Arkadi Monastery in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Suggested Hymns:

Genesis 25: 19-34:

No suggested hymns

Psalm 119: 105-112:

294, Come down, O Love divine
382, Help us, O Lord, to learn
384, Lord, thy word abideth
637, O for a closer walk with God
592, O Love that wilt not let me go
490, The Spirit lives to set us free
603, When we walk with the Lord

Isaiah 55: 10-13:

65, At evening when the sun had set
454, Forth in the peace of Christ we go
384, Lord, thy word abideth
710, Sing to God new songs of worship
47, We plough the fields and scatter
377, You shall go out with joy

Psalm 65: (1-7) 8-13:

612, Eternal Father, strong to save
645, Father, hear the prayer we offer
42, Good is the Lord our heavenly King
581, I, the Lord of sea and sky
709, Praise the Lord! you heavens adore him

Romans 8: 1-11:

218, And can it be that I should gain
294, Come down, O Love divine
297, Come, thou Holy Spirit, come
319, Father, of heaven, whose love profound
74, First of the week and finest day
353, Give to our God immortal praise
300, Holy Spirit, truth divine
102, Name of all majesty
104, O for a thousand tongues to sing
373, To God be the glory! Great things he has done!

Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23:

378, Almighty God, your word is cast
413, Father, we thank thee who hast planted
380, God has spoken to his people, alleluia
430, Lord, as the grain which once on upland acres
75, Lord, dismiss us with your blessing
385, Rise and hear! The Lord is speaking

Tables in the Taverna Garden in Platanias, near Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

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

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.

A sign in a café in Greystones, Co Wicklow (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Readings, hymns and sermon ideas for Sunday 1 July 2018,Fifth Sunday after Trinity

‘The Daughter of Jairus’ by James Tissot (1836-1902)

Patrick Comerford

Sunday next, 1 July 2018, is the Fifth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity V).

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

Continuous readings: II Samuel 1: 1, 17-27; Psalm 130; II Corinthians 8: 7-15; and Mark 5: 21-43.

Paired readings: Wisdom 1: 13-15, 2: 23-24; Psalm 30; II Corinthians 8: 7-15; and Mark 5: 21-43.

There is a link to the readings HERE.

II Samuel 1: 1, 17-27

The phrase ‘How the mighty have fallen’ occurs three times in the Old Testament reading.

Immediately before this reading, the story is told (I Samuel 31: 1-13) of a battle against the Philistines on Mount Gilboa, near the Sea of Galilee. This time, the Philistines defeat the Israelites, led by Saul.

Saul’s son and heir, Jonathan, is killed in battle, and Saul is so badly wounded that he takes his own life. Meanwhile, David has returned from defeating the Amalekites (verse 1), a nomadic tribe in the southern deserts, to Ziklag (near Gaza).

A different account of Saul’s death is given by an Amalekite (II Samuel 2: 2-16). He comes to David, saying that he has escaped from the battlefield after killing the gravely injured Saul, at Saul’s own request. He brings Saul’s crown to David, his lord. David and his troops mourn the loss of Saul and his son, and Israel’s defeat.

Because the Amalekite did not fear to kill ‘the Lord’s anointed’ (verse 14), David has him killed. The way is now open for David’s ascension to the throne.

What follows (verses 18-27) is a commemorative poem for Saul and Jonathan.

Psalm 130:

Psalm 130 is a prayer for deliverance from personal trouble, but it ends with a message to all people.

The depths are the chaotic waters, separation from God – as in Jonah’s prayer from the stomach of the great fish (Jonah 2: 2). May God be attentive to my pleas. God forgives, so he shall be revered. If God were to record all our misdeeds, how could anyone face him? He is merciful by nature, so I eagerly await his help, his word, a prophecy from him. I wait as do watchmen guarding a town from enemy attack.

Perhaps the psalmist has now received a prophecy of salvation which he tells to all: wait in hope for God, he offers unfailing love and freedom from grievous sin.

The south porch in the Byzantine the Church of the Panagia Acheiropoietos in Thessaloniki … Saint Paul reminds the Church in Corinth that the churches in Macedonia have contributed generously to the needs of the Church in Jerusalem (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

II Corinthians 8: 7-15

The Church in Jerusalem is in financial need once again. Christians at Corinth began collecting funds for them the previous year, but they appear to have stopped this, perhaps because of their internal disagreements referred to earlier in this epistle.

Meanwhile, the churches of Macedonia – in Philippi, Thessaloniki and Beroea – have contributed beyond measure to the Church in Jerusalem.

The Christians at Corinth were quarrelsome and divided, but meanwhile the churches in the Macedonian cities have been earnest in giving, putting their words and beliefs into action.

The great example of self-giving is Christ, who was rich being equal to the Father, but became poor or human for our sake.

Christ healing the woman in the crowd … a modern Orthodox icon

Mark 5: 21-43:

This Gospel reading (Mark 5: 21-43) tells the stories of how Christ responds to the plight of two very different people: a young girl is on her deathbed, and a woman who has been suffering for the previous 12 years, as long if not longer than the young girl has lived.

Both of them remain unnamed, like so many women in the New Testament.

One is the daughter of a leading male figure in the synagogue. But religious position and social status in the local community are of precious little value when a small girl is struck down with a death-threatening illness or disease.

In both cases, hope has run out for a little girl and for an old woman. In restoring their health, Christ teaches what faith means, Christ offers new hope, and Christ shows what love is.

In both cases these women are ritually unclean … a bleeding woman, a dying or dead women. Jesus should not touch them. Yet their plight touches the heart of Jesus, and he reaches out to them with a healing touch.

One young woman is restored to her place in her family and in her community. One older woman, who has lost everything, who is at risk of being marginalised even by the Disciples, is offered the hope of her proper place.

Reflecting on the Gospel reading

In this Gospel passage, there is a large cast of dramatis personae … of people who receive the gentle, caring, loving pastoral attention of Christ in equal measure, each within the list of people we are told should be our priority:

The crowd who gather around Jesus by the lake are going to learn what the Kingdom of God is like not through another sermon or another lecture, but by seeing what Jesus does. After the episodes in this Gospel reading, would each and every one of them been happy to wear one of those wristbands with the initials ‘WWJD’ – ‘What Would Jesus Do?’ If they looked at our actions for an example of Christian lifestyle, would they know what Jesus does?

Jairus is a respected provincial leader of the day. He shows what true worship is when he throws himself at the feet of Jesus. He prays, entreats, begs, not on behalf of himself, but on behalf of a sick and dying girl. If we were to look at ourselves today, would we see ourselves placing our lives at the feet of Christ and making our first priorities the needs of others who cannot speak for themselves?

By now the large crowd is pressing in on Jesus. They really want to see what he is about, what the Christian lifestyle is about. And who becomes the focus of attention within this crowd?

Too often in a crowd, it is those who get to the front first, who have the loudest voices, who are heard, whose demands are met.

But in this case, though, it is not the loud and the proud, the rich or the famous, who grab the attention of Christ – it is a weak, timid, neglected impoverished, exploited and sick woman. All her money has gone on quacks, and she has no man to speak up for her.

But look at what Christ does for her. Without knowing it, he heals her. And when he realises what has happened, he calls her ‘Daughter.’

In a society where men had the only voices, where to have a full place in society was to be known as a Son of Israel, she is called ‘Daughter.’ She too has a full and equal place in society, she is commended for her faith, she is restored personally and communally, she is offered healing, and she is also offered peace. From now on she can be at one with herself, with her society, with the world and with God.

But perhaps there was a danger that all this could become a sideshow for the crowd. Poor Jairus appears to have been forgotten. His household – perhaps religious and community leaders too – tell him to give up on Christ. The girl is dead. Was Christ only worth what he could do for their inner circle? If so, why bother with him any further?

Christ does not want to put on a show, either to impress the pressing crowd or to prove wrong the inner circle around Jairus. Instead, with just his three closest friends – Peter, James and John … the three disciples who would soon witness the Transfiguration – he goes directly to the house of the dying girl, where her family and neighbours are in the greatest distress.

It is shocking that when she dies the first reaction of some of the key local figures is to upbraid her father for seeking whatever help he can find for his daughter, and not to offer him comfort and sympathy. We can see that in his despair this man was finding no hope from his own community.

Their lack of compassion and sympathy contrasts sharply with the compassion Christ shows for the woman who has been suffering for 12 years. She has spent all her money with consultants and doctors and specialists. None of them has been able to offer a cure, and now that all her money has run out all her hope has run out too. It is all compounded by the fact that she is ritually unclean … no man should come near her.

Even as he was being told not to bother coming, even when he was being laughed at, Christ keeps focussed on who is important here – not those who shout the loudest and who press their demands.

Twelve-year-olds have no say and no voice and no power. But Jesus now offers her new life, new hope, a new future, a full place in society. When Jesus was her age, he was in the Temple. Now she is walking with her God.

In the middle of the story of Jairus’s daughter, Christ uses the word daughter to describe a woman who has no man to speak up for her, presumably a widow who has lost her money, her status and her place in society, lost being considered a Daughter of God along with the other children of God.

Good news for women?

Three years ago, at the annual conference of the Anglican mission agency USPG (the United Society Partners in the Gospel) in High Leigh, Hertfordshire, I heard powerful and engaging stories of how projects supported by USPG are empowering women from these islands to South Africa, from the West Indies and West Africa to India and Pakistan.

Canon Delene Mark, from the Anglican Church of Southern Africa, gave harrowing accounts of gender-based violence, people trafficking, child murder and forced prostitution, all being challenged by her group, Hope for Africa.

Sheba Sultan, from the Church of Pakistan, describing the varied lives of women in Pakistan, from tribal people with few resources and many restrictions, to the elite women who have lives of luxury but find cultural values also stop them from living life to the full.

She reminded us of the assassinated prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, who had said women in Pakistan cannot achieve anything without tackling bigotry and intolerance, and of the story of Malala Yousafzai, the activist for women’s education and the youngest-ever Nobel Peace laureate.

Anjun Anwar, a Muslim woman born in Pakistan, spoke way beyond her experiences on the staff of Blackburn Cathedral.

We heard in a Bible study with the Revd Dr Monodeep Daniel of the work of the Delhi Brotherhood in challenging gender-based violence, including rape and murder.

Deaconess Dr Rachele Evie Vernon spoke of women challenging injustice and violence in Jamaica and in Liberia.

The Revd Dr Miranda Threlfall-Holmes from Durham talked about gender justice, which is much wider than ending gender-based violence. She shared a vision of equality for men and women who are created equally in the image and likeness of God, who are made one in Christ, who are called and equipped by the Holy Spirit, and who live with the promise of abundant life for all.

Canon Andi Hofbauer of Wakefield Cathedral put careful thought and joy into the way she led us in worship each day.

We were challenged each day that week to ask ourselves: how is the Gospel good news for women?

Speaker after speaker insisted it is only Good News – but only if we read it, accept its consequences for us, and then live it out.

These stories came in the same week that we celebrated Saint Mary Magdalene [22 July], the first witness to the Resurrection, and in the week Rachel Treweek was being consecrated Bishop of Gloucester in Canterbury Cathedral.

The Gospel is Good News for the two women in our Gospel reading next Sunday: they are at opposite ends of the scale in terms of both social status and age. Yet one does not come before the other. Christ has equal compassion for both, and restores them to full life, physically, spiritually and socially, despite objections from men on the scene – the privileged men who have access to the house of Jairus, or the men around Christ who find that a poor, old sick woman is embarrassing.

The Gospel is Good News for women like these two women. But only if we read it and then put it into practice.

Mark 5: 21-43:

21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat to the other side, a great crowd gathered round him; and he was by the lake. 22 Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23 and begged him repeatedly, ‘My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.’ 24 So he went with him.

And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25 Now there was a woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years. 26 She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. 27 She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28 for she said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.’ 29 Immediately her haemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30 Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched my clothes?’ 31 And his disciples said to him, ‘You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, “Who touched me?” ’ 32 He looked all round to see who had done it. 33 But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34 He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.’

35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?’ 36 But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, ‘Do not fear, only believe.’ 37 He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 38 When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39 When he had entered, he said to them, ‘Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.’ 40 And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand and said to her, ‘Talitha cum’, which means, ‘Little girl, get up!’ 42 And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age). At this they were overcome with amazement. 43 He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

‘Christ raises the daughter of Jairus’ (left), in the Hardman window by JH Powell at the west end of the nave in Saint Nicholas Church, Adare, Co Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Liturgical resources:

Liturgical Colour: Green

The Collect of the Day:

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 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:

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

II Samuel 1: 1, 17-27:

592, O Love that wilt not let me go

Psalm 130:

564, Deus meus adiuva me (O my God, in help draw near)
620, O Lord, hear my prayer
9, There’s a wideness in God’s mercy
627, What a friend we have in Jesus

Wisdom 1: 13-15; 2: 23-24:

425, Jesus, thou joy of loving hearts
49, Lord, bring the day to pass
59, New every morning is the love

Psalm 30:

554, Lord Jesus, think on me
592, O Love that wilt not let me go
196, O worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness
528, The Church’s one foundation

II Corinthians 8: 7-15:

352, Give thanks with a grateful heart
168, Lord, you were rich beyond all splendour
177, Once in royal David’s city (verses 1, 2, 6)
114, Thou didst leave thy throne and thy kingly crown

Mark 5: 21-43:

511, Father of mercy, God of consolation
455, Go forth for God, go forth to the world in peace
211, Immortal love for ever full
513, O Christ, the healer, we have come
104, O for a thousand tongues to sing

The Mayer window in Saint Nicholas Church, Adare, Co Limerick, depicting the three virtues (from left): Faith, Charity and Hope (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the USA, and are used by permission. All rights reserved.