The Last Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
Words, words, words. Our Bible is full of words. Too many words. We wonder at what they mean. We wonder about how they came about. We wonder if, and why, they are important. We wonder, do the words of the Bible really matter at all?
SUNDAY CELEBRATION:
The gospel words you will hear from the Bible this Sunday are shared by Matthew (17:1-9), Mark (9:2-9), and Luke (9:28-36). These three gospels are called synoptic, because they tell similar, parallel stories of the most important events in the life of Jesus. The texts were written for different early Christian communities, but because the words of this specific story are given prominence of place, we know we are to assign special value to what we are being told.
The narrative presented is about The Transfiguration. In the church calendar, this event is described as a major feast day. By tradition, it occurs annually on August 6. But in today's world of calendars and schedules, you may never have heard of this feast, or you may have noted that it is seldom celebrated with great festivity.
Apparently, the creators of the Lectionary calendar we use for our sacred Sunday worship realized that secular life had overwhelmed this important event when it was set on a day in late summer. This date, August 6, meant that The Transfiguration was rarely properly celebrated or often was not acknowledged at all. Weightier everyday personal commitments like dream vacations and getting ready to go back to school have managed to drown out the splendor that this miraculous biblical event ought to produce.
The meaning of the word "Epiphany" is "to show forth." All the gospel readings in the Season after The Epiphany, the final hurrah of the Christmas cycle beginning with Advent, show how the human Jesus is revealed in son-ship with God. Lectionary planners chose to end this seasonal emphasis with the most dramatic, powerful presentation of all, The Transfiguration. Although August 6 is still observed, placing The Transfiguration gospel on the Sunday just before the Ash Wednesday beginning of Lent, shifts the seasonal focus from Christmas toward Easter. In its newly-fixed Sunday, this narrative makes the final statement of how we are to see and recognize Jesus, the man, as Christ, the presence of the fullness of God in our midst.
MOUNTAINTOP EXPERIENCE:
The Episcopal Diocese of the Rio Grande covers all of New Mexico and the part of Texas shown below it on printed maps of the United States. All who live or travel across this space, more vast than the small territory we call the Holy Land, experience a startling resemblance to the biblical setting.* The ruddy ground, the sun-baked villages, the enormous sky, and the cool streams exist in our land today as echoes of the landscape spoken of 2000 years ago by the authors of the Bible. In our time, across centuries of time, we live in a God-given world.
The most obvious, important holy sites in the Bible have to do with mountains, an unavoidable, impressive part of our landscape. In a world before Google Earth or real flying machines, the closest humans could come to the perspective of a celestial being was to climb a mountain. In the Southwest, the Navajo have four sacred mountains. In the Albuquerque location of the diocesan center, the great Sandia Mountains tower above the valley cut by the Rio Grande. Looking at a mountain fills the mind with awe. What better place could human beings pick as a place to meet God?
CELEBRATE YOUR EXPERIENCE:
Before you read aloud the words of the three gospel accounts of The Transfiguration, first read the OT mountaintop account in Genesis 24:12-18 that is paired with them on Sunday. This story was foundational for both the Jews and pagan gentiles, who heard the gospel messages by writers called Matthew, Mark, and Luke. For Christians, then as now, these words of scripture move us mentally to heights, where we experience a miraculous mystery.
Whether you look at and contemplate a mountain in the Holy Land or in your own natural landscape, let it remind you of what you learn from the words of The Transfiguration story. By choice, God comes to us. Jesus is the one who leads us, connects us to the engulfing presence of God. Thanks to Jesus, God is with us.
*You can join with others in the Diocese for the Wild Lent Retreat in Alpine and the Big Bend area of SW Texas (March 24-26), and truly experience some of the beauty of the desert and mountains of this diocese-so similar to the Holy Land. We will consider Jesus' time in the wilderness and contemplate how that informs our ministry in this diocese. For more info timely and relevant event, see the Women's Ministry website.
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ February 13, 2017
The Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
The slightly askew, but very much in-depth, way I approach the Bible has evolved over my lifetime. My childhood belief in a loving God always embellishes my theological research and any professional communication activities. With maturing awareness I have been engulfed with amazing joy, that I have a uniqueness in God's world, best used when finding ways to support others.
There is an ancient Hebrew tradition of reading scripture called Midrash. Using it, the OT scripture is read in a thoughtful way to make it come alive in current, everyday living. I follow that ancient tradition when I explain how we should let the words of Paul speak directly to us. Do that, as you listen to the epistle for next Sunday (I Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23) closing out our partial look at the background of this remarkable Bible text, written by Paul about the year 50 CE.
PAUL & PREPARING PEOPLE:
Throughout the secular calendar year of 2017, we will share other biblical letters, including some written by Paul, the earliest Christian writer and the only author of a Bible book who is actually known. You should look forward to seeing how Paul inspired other unknown NT authors to follow his lead, much as we are nudged to do today.
Reading any biblical text aloud changes the way you comprehend the words. Much in the Bible we hold in our hands today has been modified over the years, through translations into multiple languages, copies that were intentionally or accidentally changed, and interpretations imbedded with hidden earthly agendas. Nevertheless, each of us has the God-given power to make the scriptural words come alive. Both the oldest and the newest way to live empowered with the love of God is to read the Bible aloud.
PAUL & TEACHING PEOPLE:
Reading the beginning of I Corinthians (1-3) during this liturgical year season after The Epiphany has provided us with Paul’s foundational direction for reading the Bible, living the Bible, and spreading the Bible. Paul compliments the Corinthians, and all of us, by explaining the importance each one of us has in the presence of God. The imagery used is solid and concrete. Paul lays a firm basis for what Christians are to do with individual lives.
What a wonderful foundation of knowledge Paul gives us in the surviving fragments we have of his letters. Though we, today, read Paul's words out of his immediate context, by simply listening to his voice and searching out our own human needs, we can connect with him, as he travels the road to spread God's good news to others.
We can gain valuable knowledge to undergird our Christianity today in the answers Paul gives to unknown questions, even though the instigating conversations or documents that provoked his writing have not survived. I Corinthians is chock-full of examples from early in Paul's ministry and life, in the toddler-age of Christian formation.
In reading all of I Corinthians, we find Paul telling us about the Lord’s Supper (11:23-26), individual gifts shared in community (12:4-11), people who make up church congregations (12:12-13, 28-31), ways to think of love (13:4-13), and how to believe in Jesus as the Christ (15:1-11). Near the end of this text, Paul gives us special, personal instructions (15:58 and 16:13). Across the pages of I Corinthians we discover so much to think about and question, in a way that makes the words of the Bible become a part of our conscious lives.
PAUL & DIRECTING PEOPLE:
Whenever you read the Bible aloud, you advance it from a passive to a truly active place in your life. Your voice now, lifting words off paper, carries the original thoughts of Paul’s voice, placed on papyrus to be read aloud to a community of those he loved.
Whereas Paul created the beginnings of the Bible 2000 years ago, today we are empowered to bring God’s good news into the lives of people around us. In reading the Bible, sharing the Bible, and spreading the Bible, we make the Bible come alive.
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ February 6, 2017
The Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
In a time when communications are instantaneous electronic "tweets," it may be difficult to wrap our brains around the informational transmission connections that Paul and other people relied on in the 1st century. To truly understand I Corinthians and the other six authentic epistles of Paul in our Bible, it is important to keep certain logistics in mind. We've delved into how Paul's texts may have been written; now we'll consider how his thoughts may have been spread.
LETTERS PREPARED FOR POSTING:
Paul did not deliver the words of his letters face-to-face to his recipients. Once the papyrus containing his scripted text was rolled, secured, and placed in a protective pouch, it was ready to begin its journey. If it were not carried by a personal friend, a possibility we note in some of Paul's letters, another person, known to be going the right direction, may have placed this precious bundle in a traveling pouch and started it on its journey, probably on the complex system of Roman roads and sea routes. A hired hand, who had a commercial livelihood in this traveling work, may have been the closest proximation to our U.S. Postal Service.
From descriptions found directly in Paul's letters and from the story told in Acts about contacts across the early Christian missionary activities, we can assume a bit about the locations involved. Paul tell us in I Corinthians of writing from Ephesus (16:8) to the community in Corinth. So let's explore how his letter or letters may have traveled between these two places.
LETTERS TRAVELING TO RECIPIENTS:
Looking at a map can give us only a vague idea of the Corinthian correspondence travels. To give us a better understanding of the complexities of the document's journey, check out orbis.stanford.edu/ for travels between Ephesus and Corinth (Corinthus). A quick look reveals that for this journey completed, in the fastest way in the warm month of July, it would take 49.8 days by foot on overland road or 8.9 days by ship on a coastal sea. Hardly speedy by 21st century standards, but it gives us a new awareness of the travel rigors Paul and his letters faced just trying to keep in touch.
LETTERS READ & REREAD:
Can you imagine the excitement the Corinthian community must have felt when a letter arrived, and it was from Paul? As soon as the bearer handed the document over, it would have been read aloud and read and read, again and again. Letters were rare and personal enough that merely hearing the words was truly as if Paul, once again, was speaking directly to all that listened. The impact was powerful.
What happened then? While our Bibles contain only two epistles from Paul to the Corinthians, detailed study of the texts by many scholars has concluded that each of the two documents we have today were probably composites of multiple letter postings. No one now will ever know the original number of letters Paul wrote or what inspired his writing. The multiple topics and seeming lack of logical-content order provide even readers not steeped in the original Greek language with a hint that there may have been many more letters than these two which have survived.
Corinth was a busy, worldly place, and Paul had an abundance of thoughts he needed to share. Among his concerns was the deep desire to make sure his Corinthian Christian family stayed true to the knowledge of Christ Jesus’ love which he had brought to them. Paul did not want any of them to stray. As Christians, they were to support one another and to carry God's message to others outside their small initial group.
LETTERS PASSED ON TO OTHERS:
In sharing God’s good news, copies of original documents were made and passed around, as were other critically important texts in the ancient world. What laborious effort this was, with only hand-done methods of duplication and person-to-person possibilities to create extensive circulation. With no Internet, faxes, text messages, printed-material, or overnight delivery, the concept of a “tweet” was truly impossible.
In considering how the letters of the Bible were handled in the early Christian centuries, we see just how miraculous it is that these holy scriptures have reached us today. In contemplating the world of the past, we can understand how important it is to not give a literal meaning to any portion of the Bible. Doing so takes away the original spirit embedded in Bible texts.
This Sunday, with I Corinthians 3:1-9, we are blessed with the human voice of Paul, that has been brought across so many obstacles to speak to us today. From Paul’s original idea, through many hands, everyone along the way is important. “For we are God’s servants, working together; you are God’s field, God’s building.” (3:9) The foundation has been laid; are you ready to continue expanding God’s building?
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ January 30, 2017
The Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
The First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians is 16 chapters long and takes an hour and twenty minutes to read aloud in full. Sunday epistle readings in Year A are lifted only from the first three chapters. This shorter covering of the full textural material is thought provoking and worth reading over several times.
OUR WRITING TODAY:
Readers can easily begin this Bible text with the premise that, like most books written today, I Corinthians was probably conceived as a very organized whole, and each chapter formed a sub-unit building toward completeness. Many 21st century writers start their work with a structural outline to guide their flow of words during writing, in hopes of creating an orderly whole.
However, trying to read the whole of I Corinthians in a planned systematic way can leave the reader stunned. This is an impossibility. Some folk just plain give up on trying to have Paul's writing make sense. Other folk may conclude that they do not like Paul. And some, including biblical scholars, meet their struggle with Paul's text by coming up with over-detailed ways to try to explain what they think is the meaning. Beware of all of these possibilities. They will lead you astray, and you will not end up encountering the critical meaning Paul strives hard to share with you. So, forget how a modern writer might create Corinthian correspondence. Paul did not write in the way we do today.
PAUL'S WRITING:
From reading Paul's letters, we know he was a "people person," who built family-like communities based on sharing the love of Jesus Christ. Because of his extensive travels, as Paul relocated from place to place to continue his mission, he stayed in touch using letters. While engaged in life and ministry in Ephesus (16:8), Paul wrote back to Corinth. He speaks in a vibrant way of his activities and his plans. Scholars agree that the letters to Corinth are genuinely written by Paul, and he may have had a little help from his friend Sosthenes. (1:1; 16:21)
Though our Bibles contain two letters to Corinth, scholars today do not know, and never will be able to definitely determine, how many actual letters Paul wrote to this community. Because of the way ancient documents were created, copied, and distributed, the two epistles in your Bible may each contain fragments of several different letters that ended up being assembled together. Thinking of a 1st century cut-and-paste process will help you understand why there is no smooth flow from subject to subject. Knowing this allows you to turn your reading into an active, not passive, experience.
Paul is talking directly to those who read his letters 2000 years ago and will read them today. Pretend to think of the Corinthian correspondence as a conversation you are having with your dear friend Paul. Consider each topic as the text evolves in a determined way; because between, friends there is so much important good news to be shared.
LISTENING ACTIVELY TO WRITING:
All of chapter two is included in the epistle reading for our coming Sunday. Instead of hearing words just printed in a book, consciously listen to prompts for a lively conversation. Where would you interrupt Paul? What would you like to question him on? How would you find a better way to explain what Paul is saying?
Let your mind travel back to Ephesus and observe Paul talking with others, as he formed his thoughts to write to Corinth. Dwell, too, on the possible part Sosthenes may have played. Was he acting as Paul's scribe? Did he use a metal stylus, scratching upon a wax-coated plank of wood, to carefully inscribe a draft of Paul's words? Can you imagine him laboring to transfer the tablet notes onto a precious piece of papyrus, using an ink-ended quill to complete the actual letter to be dispatched to Corinth? Do you see Paul's signature? (16:21)
Our ease in encountering the words of the Bible today does not truly let us appreciate the intensity involved in the mental and mechanical creation of the original documents. Though writing was difficult and complex, Paul was determined to make his thoughts clear. Today, 2000 years later, we must not take Paul's efforts or ideas for granted.
I Corinthians comes to us across the centuries as a miracle of the human spirit, empowered by God's Spirit. Whenever we hear Paul's voice, we must remember that "we have the mind of Christ." (2:16b) We have received and continue to receive a gift in knowing Paul, who teaches us how to know God.
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ January 23, 2017
The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
The selection of Sunday epistle readings for Lectionary Year A gives us a unique opportunity to continue our consideration of how the Bible, compiled 2000 years ago, speaks to us in a truly relevant way for our lives today.
NOW & THEN:
It is rare that the readings for a whole liturgical season are tightly clustered in a way that keeps full portions of a text together over a series of Sundays. From the first to the last Sundays after The Epiphany, the assignment is found only in the full first three chapters of I Corinthians, with verses 3:12-15 omitted.
Don't stop with the mere beginning of this important scripture book. Please read the whole of this remarkable correspondence Paul sent to his Christian family in Corinth.
At this time in the ancient world, reading aloud was the accepted custom that brought life to the inscribed words. It will take you an hour and 20 minutes to read all of I Corinthians aloud. In this text, you will discover how Paul addressed the struggles that this community experienced in its time of early infancy. You will discover that in our still-maturing Christian churches today, we continue to have some of the same concerns and problems.
The epistle chosen for the coming Sunday, I Corinthians 1:18-31, may seem, at first reading, to be strange, both from being lifted out of context and strange in relation to life today. Paul aims this short snippet at the individuals he knew 2000 years ago in Corinth. Setting the text in its original time and place, you will spot some of the same challenges we have today.
THEN & NOW:
Let your imagination conjure up Corinth in the middle of the 1st century of the Common Era. Pretend you are observing Paul, a stranger in this important Mediterranean-Sea transportation hub of the Roman Empire.
Corinth was the territorial name of two, not one, major seaports, that tied together cargo shipments from the Ionian and Aegean Seas by way of a narrow landmass. This fortuitous natural environment generated great wealth for local traders, who managed a way to make shipments bypass the unpredictable treacherous waters swirling around the nearby seaside rocks of the rugged, formidable Peloponnesian landscape. The region was a magnet for money and for an assortment of people deposited from the trade routes of the Greco-Roman world. Corinth was a dynamic, exciting gathering place.
Paul, who had journeyed from Tarsus in early adulthood around the lands of the empire as a Greek-speaking, Roman citizen, as well as a deeply committed Jew, unexpectedly had a new reason for his travels. In his mid-thirties, on the road to Damascus, he had seen the light. Mystical experiences were unquestioned by folk in the 1st century. Paul's was life-changing.
Paul's Jewish God became an actual human named Jesus, who died a despicable death on the cross, and then appeared, personally challenging him to accept the unbelievable miracle of being totally loved. The anointed Christ gave Paul the new mission of his life. What might seem like foolishness to others, now became a message to boast about and spread. So Paul had his new marching orders.
In his forties and fifties, Paul first contacted fellow Jews as he traveled the Greek-speaking Roman world. Using familiar references from the Septuagint OT, Paul introduced them to seeing God's love in a new, expansive way. Next, since Jesus Christ offered unlimited love for all, Paul sought out pagans or gentiles, who thought only of manipulative gods needing appeasement. In this fertile collection of people in Corinth, Paul gathered a composite community, learning together to commit to accepting Jesus Christ
THEN & NOW & FOREVER:
Paul's words to the Corinthians speak across the centuries to us. We are surrounded by believers who do not really believe. We encounter lost souls who are searching. We ourselves become distracted and lose our way.
Listen to Paul. What is foolish, weak, and despised, through the human experience of Jesus, brings Christ to live with us in our world today. We've much to boast about. We've many to share it with. Thanks to Paul, we know that a loving God is fully with us. Like Paul, our mission is to live with the presence of Jesus Christ in our lives.
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ January 16, 2017
The Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
Many people have the idea that the Bible is just a thick book of books, with no relationship to the world that surrounds us today. If this is the reason that you have been postponing the reading of I Corinthians (1 hour, 20 minutes aloud in full), it’s time to think again.
While the entire text of I Corinthians may seem to a modern reader as if it could benefit from a smoothing editor and a better explanation of facts cited, don’t let those thoughts deter you from having this reading adventure. With all parts of the Bible…OT, Apocrypha/Deuterocanonical, and NT…reading is never simple, always worthwhile. And any new contact with any scriptural document always uncovers rich treasures for you.
RETHINKING I CORINTHIANS:
Our version of this epistle (letter) begins with the signature name of the writer, Paul, who is actually the only authenticated author of any book of the NT, something scholars agree to, but most people do not realize. From his seven NT letters (I Thessalonians, Galatians, I and II Corinthians, Philippians, Philemon, and Romans), Paul’s voice is heard talking directly to the people of his time, who knew him personally.
As Paul begins his letter to his friends at Corinth, he mentions "Sosthenes," probably his companion at the time. Of course, Sosthenes is not a name that we hear today. Do not let biblical names bog you down or you will miss the meaning that texts hope to convey. (When I read, rather than stumble over names, I mentally replace them with first names I am comfortable hearing. This allows the message, not the messenger’s circle of acquaintances, to become paramount.)
CONFRONTING I CORINTHIANS:
We do not have knowledge of the information or questions that Paul has received from Corinth, that gave him purpose in writing this text. We are privy to only one side of this correspondence. It appears that the community there, after Paul’s departure, moved into a time of questioning, bickering, and power plays. What Paul’s letter stresses is the importance of not forgetting what unites, strengthens, and empowers them, the love of our Lord Jesus Christ.
In this portion of I Corinthians, as in all of the authenticated words in the epistles, we are given guides to keep us on a righteous track in our daily journey, as we try to follow Paul in his mission of speaking the good news of God’s love.
EMPLOYING I CORINTHIANS:
So what does I Corinthians have to do with us today? In January, 2017, we continue with a series of special events that may bear being set against the reading assigned for the coming Sunday, I Corinthians 1:10-18.
This month of January, in most Episcopal churches, is the time for an annual meeting to oversee the governing of our congregations. This month in 2017, in our country, is the time of a new President’s administration to lead us in the four years ahead. Both occasions are times of transition where we, personally and theologically, are faced with choices.
Reread I Corinthians 1:10-18. Hear it, lifted out of context, on Sunday. Listen attentively to Paul. Think about what he says to his fellow Christians in Corinth. Let Paul’s words roam about in your brain. Think about our world, large and small, today. What divides us, in our Christian churches, in our cities and states, in our nation, and around the globe? In doing this reflecting, you will learn that you must never take scripture for granted. It speaks to you.
The words of the Bible live today, just as they did in Paul’s time. How are we going to choose to live out our Christianity in the days ahead? “For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” (I Corinthians 1:18)
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ January 9, 2017
The Second Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
First things first. This week, your WDRG Study, to prepare you with helpful information to enrich the scripture readings that you will hear on the coming Sunday, is arriving later than planned. Two priorities disturbed my personal schedule, both providing new insights to strengthen my, and our, study of the Bible. --Elaine Wilson (1-12-2017)
1)Weather. Being housebound, because of ice frozen on our doorstep, had me wishfully thinking, as I was reading I Corinthians (1 hour, 20 minutes aloud in full), that I really ought to be basking in the warmth of Corinth and not on-hold in frigid Albuquerque. Musing about being dressed in short sleeves and sandals, I decided to check the weather in Corinth. The app World Radar indicated that Corinth was actually colder than Albuquerque and snow was expected there. Combining this info with a map showed the critical location of Corinth, on the narrow isthmus that connects mainland Greece with the rugged Peloponnesian landmass jutting out into the Mediterranean Sea. This information provides a new understanding of the importance of the location of Corinth and the basis for some thoughts that might otherwise be overlooked in reading Paul's Corinthian correspondence.
2) Time. Though my volunteer WDRG Study writing is high on my personal "to do" list, requirements of my God-given family rank higher. The top focus, in all we do, needs to be on salvation; the meaning of that Latin word is "good health." I Corinthians hints at this with the way it presents the boundaries of a good life; for Paul, that means a Christian life. On entering 2017, our family issues meant extra attention to our medical and financial situations.
FIRST THINGS FIRST:
We're into the beginning month of a new secular year. Several weeks back in Advent, we began a new liturgical time, as we entered Year A and began a new three year A, B, C cycle of Sunday service scripture readings.
The bulk of the gospels assigned for Year A are chosen from Matthew, the book that begins the Bible's NT. In both Matthew (A) and Luke (C), the first part of the narrative of the life of Jesus begins with the Christmas birth story. And in all three years, the second Sunday after The Epiphany begins the ministry of Jesus with an account of adult baptism. Lots of firsts here.
FIRST AUTHOR:
In our WDRG study, we now enter a chance to come into direct contact with another first, the voice of the earliest Christian writer. It is not the unknown author of the Gospel of Matthew. It is not the writer of any of the gospels, but rather the thoughts of a committed, problem-solving person who is actually known by the name of the first Hebrew king, Saul; or the Greek form of the same name, Paul. Though they never actually crossed paths, Paul's lifetime first coincided with that of Jesus and then extended about 30 years past Jesus' crucifixion. Paul's writing in our Bibles today occurred during a decade centered about 50 CE.
This coming Sunday, the first word of the epistle or letter that will be read (I Corinthians 1:1-9) is the word "Paul", as Paul, the writer, introduces himself. In this text, Paul starts with a traditional, polite beginning. He is direct and is determined to leave no doubt. Early Christians accepted the words of Paul, and we should, too.
FIRST CORINTHIANS:
Paul knew, lived with, and loved the people of Corinth, while he was creating a Christian community there. He had gathered and nurtured those he called "saints" by filling them with God's love during months of his stay in the area. As Paul's mission took him to other places, he kept in touch with the Corinthians through letters. Our Bible, 2000 years later, unfortunately has only a smattering of that correspondence, fragments of letters combined into I and II Corinthians. We will never know the questions directed to Paul. We are blessed to have the answers.
Now, as we begin I Corinthians, we hear Paul's voice. Read it aloud. Listen. Paul's words were powerful to the Christians he knew. Paul speaks to reassure the Corinthians about their mission to believe and spread the good news of Christ Jesus. Thanks to the Bible, Paul's voice is echoed across centuries to empower us today.
Women of the Diocese of the Rio Grande Study +++ January 2, 2017
The First Sunday after the Epiphany (Year A)
The coming Sunday, the first after the glorious January 6 Feast of the Epiphany, which closes the twelve days of Christmas, has been given the name of The Baptism of our Lord Jesus Christ to mark the beginning of Christ's adult ministry. The compilers of lectionary texts for three years of Sunday services chose to use readings from the three synoptic gospel accounts of The Baptism of Our Lord on this day, that directs churchgoers into discovering the active ministry of Jesus Christ.
Matthew's story (3:13-17) is the one we now hear in Lectionary Year A. Mark (1:9-11) gets Year B, and last year, we heard Luke's description (3:21-22) in Year C. It is interesting to put these accounts side-by-side to see both their importance and their differences. Here we are shown, as first-century hearers would not have missed, that Jesus is the son of God. And God is well pleased. Hired! Now it's time to get to work.
MATTHEW IN YEAR A:
By fully reading the Gospel of Matthew aloud over the twelve days of Christmas, you've been treated to the same information that listeners in the first century were given. They got it verbally, as only a smattering of folk then could read it on their own. They would have experienced the good news as a tale told to them in a small group. Told and retold, using only the precision of the storyteller's mind, the words gained familiarity. And the listeners could ask questions. What might you have asked? What are you asking and thinking today?
For the gospel writers of fledgling Christianity, the message had to be presented in a way to project belief. They believed, and because they believed, they had to convince others to believe, as well. Their words, in addition to being an interesting story, carried an eagerness to persuade. Words have power, and the words of the gospel were fashioned to project the difference between life and death for the listeners. Because Jesus overcame death, life had new meaning; it was life for today and eternity.
EARLY CHRISTIANS IN YEAR A:
By reading all of Matthew's version of the good news, you have heard Jesus' whole life story. As listeners near the end of the first century received it, let it remain in your thoughts throughout the coming year and for the rest of your life. In the NT, gospels are where the foundation of our faith begins. Look forward all this year to hearing Sunday gospel excerpts, lifted out of context, to give details of Jesus' life and ministry.
Everyday life for early Christians, just like ours today, went beyond knowing about the biography of Jesus. That is just the starting place. Learning about the good news must be put into practice. And that can be the most challenging part of what it means to follow Jesus Christ and to be a Christian.
ANTICIPATING THE LESSONS IN YEAR A:
In giving you background references and thoughtful suggestions for understanding the weekly Sunday Lectionary readings, the WDRG Study talks about all of the NT parts. In Year B, we shared information on Mark, John, Acts, the Corinthian correspondence, Ephesians, James, and Hebrews. Last year in C, we looked at Luke, Galatians, Philemon, Colossians, I and II Timothy, II Thessalonians, and Revelation. (Past WDRG Studies can be reviewed ion the Past Study page of the Women's Ministry blog.)
In the Year A months ahead, now that you have invested time in Matthew's good news, we will examine, through NT letters, the impact of Jesus, as the Christ, on the lives of those receiving gospel reassurance. Paul will speak to us in I Thessalonians, the Corinthian correspondence, Philippians, and Romans. We’ll also encounter the unknown authors of I and II Peter and learn how the earliest Christians struggled to listen, digest, and transmit Bible meaning to others. From the beginning, it has been the duty of all Christians to pass on God's good news of love.
YOUR ASSIGNMENT IN YEAR A:
Every time you look at and read from your Bible, you become part of the most compelling, exciting, and enduring experience of your life. You become a messenger for God. Your secular resolution, for the new calendar year, is to listen, learn, and share, with all you encounter, the same good news that Matthew detailed for us 2000 years ago. These endeavors will bring you unanticipated spiritual prosperity in the year to come. Through your using and sharing the Bible with others, you will glimpse your own eternal life in a new, rewarding way. Get to work!