NEW TESTAMENT: James 5: 13 - 20 (RCL)
Jame 5:13 (NRSV) Are any among you suffering? They should pray. Are any cheerful? They should sing songs of praise. 14 Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective. 17 Eli'jah was a human being like us, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain and the earth yielded its harvest.
19 My brothers and sisters, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and is brought back by another, 20 you should know that whoever brings back a sinner from wandering will save the sinner's soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
James 4: 13 - 17, 5: 7 - 11 (Can. BAS)
James 5: 1 - 6 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 4 (NRSV) 13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a town and spend a year there, doing business and making money." 14 Yet you do not even know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that." 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. 17 Anyone, then, who knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, commits sin. 5:1 Come now, you rich people, weep and wail for the miseries that are coming to you. 2 Your riches have rotted, and your clothes are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against you, and it will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure for the last days. 4 Listen! The wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous one, who does not resist you.
7 Be patient, therefore, beloved, until the coming of the Lord. The farmer waits for the precious crop from the earth, being patient with it until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also must be patient. Strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is near. 9 Beloved, do not grumble against one another, so that you may not be judged. See, the Judge is standing at the doors! 10 As an example of suffering and patience, beloved, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Indeed we call blessed those who showed endurance. You have heard of the endurance of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.
comments
v1. James directs his words to the rich, not to the wealthy as such, but to the unrighteous who, through their exploitation of the poor, have grown fat on the suffering of others. James tells them that they might as well start lamenting now because what goes around, comes around.
v2-3, James has a word of judgment for the unrighteous rich, a judgment that is even now beginning to bite. For a first century man the symbols of wealth were fine clothing and a bulging purse. Yet, wealth is transitory, it dissipates before our very eyes. Even worse, wealth stolen from the poor will condemn the rich in the coming day of judgment. Why hoard wealth for the a coming day when it will only serve as evidence for the prosecution?
v.4. In the following verses James details the charges against the arrogant rich, First, not only have they failed to show compassion toward the poor, they have actually exploited them. The evil rich have used the sweat of the poor to gain wealth for themselves. They have not paid just wages. The law of God demands a just recompense for a worker's expended effort. To do otherwise is to cause a hurt which, in the end, reaches the ear of God. The Scriptures are clear on this issue and thus the wealthy have no excuse. "He murders his neighbor who deprives him of his living, and he who defrauds a hireling of his wages is a shedder of blood"
erses 7-9: Three references to the coming of Christ stand in contrast to the preceding passage on seeking riches in vain. [NOAB]
Verse 7: “Be patient”: The verb indicates self-restraint, which enables the sufferer to refrain from retaliation or precipitous action. This phrase summarizes the whole section. Be patient not only when faced by outrageous injustice (vv. 4-6) but in the ordinary trials of life (vv. 9, 12-14, 19). [NJBC]
Verse 7: “the coming of the Lord”: For the second coming of the Lord, see also 2 Thessalonians 2:1, 8-9; Matthew 24:3; 2 Peter 1:16; 3:4, 12; 1 John 2:28. [NJBC]
Verse 7: “the early and the late rains”: Deuteronomy 11:14 and Joel 2:23 mention both rainy seasons. [NJBC]
Verse 8: “Strengthen your hearts”: 1 Thessalonians 3:13 says :”... may he so strengthen your hearts in holiness that you may be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints”. [NJBC]
Verse 8: “the coming of the Lord is near”: See also Philippians 4:5 (“... The Lord is near”); Hebrews 10:25 (“as you see the Day approaching”), 37 (“... in a very little while, the one who is coming will come and will not delay”); 1 John 2:18 (“... it is the last hour! ...”); Revelation 22:10 (“... the time is near ...”), 12 (“I am coming soon”), 20. [NJBC]
Verse 9: Note the abrupt change to seeing the coming of the Lord as that of a judge. [NJBC]
Verse 10: “As an example ... take the prophets”: The prophets are represented as martyrs: see also Matthew 23:29-31. In Acts 7:42, Stephen quotes Amos: “‘Did you offer to me slain victims and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel?’”. [NJBC]
h/t montreal.anglican.org
GOSPEL: Mark 9: 38 - 50 (RCL)
Mark 9: 38 - 43, 45, 47 - 48 (Roman Catholic)
Mark 9:38 (NRSV) John said to him, "Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us." 39 But Jesus said, "Do not stop him; for no one who does a deed of power in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. 40 Whoever is not against us is for us. 41 For truly I tell you, whoever gives you a cup of water to drink because you bear the name of Christ will by no means lose the reward.
42 "If any of you put a stumbling block before one of these little ones who believe in me, it would be better for you if a great millstone were hung around your neck and you were thrown into the sea. 43 If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. 45 And if your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame than to have two feet and to be thrown into hell. 47 And if your eye causes you to stumble, tear it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and to be thrown into hell, 48 where their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.
49 "For everyone will be salted with fire. 50 Salt is good; but if salt has lost its saltiness, how can you season it? Have salt in yourselves, and be at peace with one another."
comments
The disciples have argued over who of them is the greatest. Jesus has told them not to seek position or prestige. Now he rebukes them for attempting to stop an exorcist curing in his name. Jesus explains his tolerance (v. 39): such a person will be slow to speak ill of him. God does work through those who are not followers of Jesus. V. 40 generalizes this, in the form of a proverb. The “reward” (v. 41) is entry into the Kingdom and the blessed state of union with God awaiting us there. Those who treat Jesus’ followers with kindness will be so rewarded.
On the other hand, putting an obstacle (“stumbling block”, v. 42) in the way of immature Christians (“little ones”), causing them to sin, will lead to condemnation on Judgement Day. (The “great millstone” was drawn by a donkey in grinding wheat; “the sea” was the place of chaos.) Vv. 43-47 speak of actions by members of the community, the body. Anyone who shakes the faith of others (“causes you to stumble”), however he or she does it, should be cast out, for the sake of the community. Hell was seen as the place of unquenchable fire and “where their worm never dies” (v. 48), per Isaiah 66:24. Discipleship is demanding. In vv. 49-50, “salt” has three meanings:
# in v. 49, it means purified, as ore is purified to metal in a furnace; before Christ comes again, we will be purified through persecution and suffering;
# In v. 50a, “salt” is a seasoning agent; the disciples are the salt of the earth, the agents of spirituality; if we lose our effectiveness in proclaiming God’s word, what use are we?
# In v. 50b, “salt” is distinctive character: this matters, but so does harmony in the community.
Verse 42: “little ones”: This may be a reference to the child/servant of vv. 36-37 or to the exorcist.
Verse 43: “hell”: The Greek word is Gehenna. This was the valley of Hinnon (ge’Hinnon) outside Jerusalem where garbage (rubbish) was gathered and burned. According to 2 Kings 23:10, Hinnon had been the site of child sacrifice: see also Jeremiah 7:31; 19:5-6. It provided a physical reminder of the place of eternal punishment. See 1 Enoch 27:2; 90:24-26; 2 Esdras 7:36. [JBC]
Verses 43-47: Some scholars see these verses as referring to short-comings within an individual, rather than of the effect of members on the community. The “hand” is often the member of the body that does the wrong deed; the “foot” goes in the direction of temptation (in Jewish teaching, a moral life is spoken of as a journey); per Job 31:1, the eye can provoke one to sin. The message is: Do not fail to control your own actions and impulses; God will punish such undisciplined behaviour.
Verses 44, 46: In some manuscripts these verses are present and are the same as v. 48; however, they are omitted from the most reliable manuscripts. [JBC]
Verse 47: “to enter the kingdom of God” is to live. See 10:15, 23-25.
Note that the NRSV and most other modern translations omit vs. 44 & 46.
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Saturday, September 19, 2009
NEW TESTAMENT:
James 3:13 - 4:3, 7 - 8a (RCL)
James 3:13 - 18 (Can. BAS)
James 3:16 - 4:3 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 3:13 (NRSV) Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. 15 Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. 16 For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. 4:1 Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? 2 You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
The gentleness being advocated is not abdication of responsibility. It is an attitude which comes from a different kind of purity (3:17). That purity consists not in pure doctrine nor in pure anger, but in pure love. Notice how the author contrasts the two approaches in 3:15 and 3:17. Wisdom is about purity and purity is about wholeness, singleness, oneness. That oneness is held together by being full of compassion and produces genuine goodness towards others (3:17). There is no phoney-ness. The word righteousness (which also means justice and goodness) rightly belongs here. Rightness or righteousness is about being in right relationship with God and with oneself - and so also with others.
Wisdom comes from above (3:17). It is an echo of that Jewish tradition, first attested in Proverbs 8, that wisdom is like God's companion and makes visits to earth seeking people in whom to dwell. As such this wisdom is sometimes identified also as God's word and as God's Spirit. Christians drew on this image when they identified Jesus as the Word who came down to his own (see John 1:1-14; Colossians 1:15-20 and also Hebrews 1:1-4, which we shall be looking at in two weeks' time). Here in James the image is used as it was in the Jewish tradition: of wisdom. It was a way of speaking of how God comes to people.
Contrary to some popular misconceptions, Christians are not opposed to desire and desires. Scripture manifests a rich vocabulary of desire: "My soul thirsts for God"; "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness"; "I press on to grab hold of that for which Christ first grabbed hold of me." Of course, there is also the Song of Songs. No, the problem is not desire but, as James rightly sees, the problem is the objects we desire, how we order our desires, and the motives we have in pursuing them.
Anger toward others comes from an inward passion for material
pleasure (4:1-3). The experience of being without things can provoke the
impulse to covet the worldly goods of others (4:4-5). This tests the believer’s
confidence in a God who promises to resist the arrogant and exalt the pious
poor (4:6-12; cf. 2:5).
h/t http://www.textweek.com/james.htm
GOSPEL: Mark 9: 30 - 37 (all)
Mark 9:30 (NRSV) They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again." 32 But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.
33 Then they came to Caper'naum; and when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the way?" 34 But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. 35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me."
Mark 10:33 brings us already to lower Galilee, to Capernaum, home territory. It also brings us to another low point for the disciples. If in 8:31-33 it was Peter, their spokesperson, here it is the group. They are discussing who is the greatest. We assume they mean the greatest among their number, but the text could also be read more broadly. Certainly Jesus’ answer applies much more broadly than just to the disciples. His journey to Jerusalem embodies his answer. It is the way of Jesus, the way of discipleship which they are to follow.
It is nevertheless interesting that when Mark has Jesus comment, he explicitly mentions ‘the twelve’ (9:35). It certainly applies to leadership. ‘If anyone wants to be first, let them be last of all and servant/slave of all.’ The message will be repeated in 10:41-45, where Jesus contrasts this with leadership styles of the day where people love to flaunt their power and authority. The message is directly subversive of the norms of his day and the norms of ours
Verses 30-32: The parallels are Matthew 17:22-23 and Luke 9:43-45. [NOAB]
Verse 30: “He did not want anyone to know it”: Jesus is notably more concerned about news spreading of who he is in Jewish territory than he is in Gentile territory.
Verses 38-40: There are other ways to ultimate goodness, i.e. God, than being an explicit follower of Jesus.
h/t http://www.textweek.com
James 3:13 - 4:3, 7 - 8a (RCL)
James 3:13 - 18 (Can. BAS)
James 3:16 - 4:3 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 3:13 (NRSV) Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. 15 Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. 16 For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. 4:1 Those conflicts and disputes among you, where do they come from? Do they not come from your cravings that are at war within you? 2 You want something and do not have it; so you commit murder. And you covet something and cannot obtain it; so you engage in disputes and conflicts. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, in order to spend what you get on your pleasures.
7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.
The gentleness being advocated is not abdication of responsibility. It is an attitude which comes from a different kind of purity (3:17). That purity consists not in pure doctrine nor in pure anger, but in pure love. Notice how the author contrasts the two approaches in 3:15 and 3:17. Wisdom is about purity and purity is about wholeness, singleness, oneness. That oneness is held together by being full of compassion and produces genuine goodness towards others (3:17). There is no phoney-ness. The word righteousness (which also means justice and goodness) rightly belongs here. Rightness or righteousness is about being in right relationship with God and with oneself - and so also with others.
Wisdom comes from above (3:17). It is an echo of that Jewish tradition, first attested in Proverbs 8, that wisdom is like God's companion and makes visits to earth seeking people in whom to dwell. As such this wisdom is sometimes identified also as God's word and as God's Spirit. Christians drew on this image when they identified Jesus as the Word who came down to his own (see John 1:1-14; Colossians 1:15-20 and also Hebrews 1:1-4, which we shall be looking at in two weeks' time). Here in James the image is used as it was in the Jewish tradition: of wisdom. It was a way of speaking of how God comes to people.
Contrary to some popular misconceptions, Christians are not opposed to desire and desires. Scripture manifests a rich vocabulary of desire: "My soul thirsts for God"; "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness"; "I press on to grab hold of that for which Christ first grabbed hold of me." Of course, there is also the Song of Songs. No, the problem is not desire but, as James rightly sees, the problem is the objects we desire, how we order our desires, and the motives we have in pursuing them.
Anger toward others comes from an inward passion for material
pleasure (4:1-3). The experience of being without things can provoke the
impulse to covet the worldly goods of others (4:4-5). This tests the believer’s
confidence in a God who promises to resist the arrogant and exalt the pious
poor (4:6-12; cf. 2:5).
h/t http://www.textweek.com/james.htm
GOSPEL: Mark 9: 30 - 37 (all)
Mark 9:30 (NRSV) They went on from there and passed through Galilee. He did not want anyone to know it; 31 for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, "The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again." 32 But they did not understand what he was saying and were afraid to ask him.
33 Then they came to Caper'naum; and when he was in the house he asked them, "What were you arguing about on the way?" 34 But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. 35 He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all." 36 Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, 37 "Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me."
Mark 10:33 brings us already to lower Galilee, to Capernaum, home territory. It also brings us to another low point for the disciples. If in 8:31-33 it was Peter, their spokesperson, here it is the group. They are discussing who is the greatest. We assume they mean the greatest among their number, but the text could also be read more broadly. Certainly Jesus’ answer applies much more broadly than just to the disciples. His journey to Jerusalem embodies his answer. It is the way of Jesus, the way of discipleship which they are to follow.
It is nevertheless interesting that when Mark has Jesus comment, he explicitly mentions ‘the twelve’ (9:35). It certainly applies to leadership. ‘If anyone wants to be first, let them be last of all and servant/slave of all.’ The message will be repeated in 10:41-45, where Jesus contrasts this with leadership styles of the day where people love to flaunt their power and authority. The message is directly subversive of the norms of his day and the norms of ours
Verses 30-32: The parallels are Matthew 17:22-23 and Luke 9:43-45. [NOAB]
Verse 30: “He did not want anyone to know it”: Jesus is notably more concerned about news spreading of who he is in Jewish territory than he is in Gentile territory.
Verses 38-40: There are other ways to ultimate goodness, i.e. God, than being an explicit follower of Jesus.
h/t http://www.textweek.com
Saturday, September 12, 2009
NEW TESTAMENT: James 3: 1 - 12 (RCL)
Jame 3:1 (NRSV) Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4 Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no one can tame the tongue--a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
see notes from last week...
James 2: 1 - 5, 8 - 10, 14 - 17 (Can. BAS)
James 2: 14 - 18 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 2:1 (NRSV) My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? 2 For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?
8 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 9 But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.
GOSPEL: Mark 8: 27 - 38
Mark 8:27 (NRSV) Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesare'a Philip'pi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Eli'jah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29 He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." 30 And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
1. the verse speaks of the "villages" of Caesarea Philippi, but Caesarea Philippi is a single city
2. this is the first time in the gospel a human being recognizes Jesus as the Christ
3. this is the only place in the whole Gospel where the title "Messiah" is joined to an injunction to silence.
4. According to Cynic and Stoic circles of the first century CE, it is the readiness to follow a teacher in suffering or even death that qualifies one as a true philosopher. This belief is based on the following sequence of logic: 1) a true philosopher seeks what is right; 2) the worst threat one can face in this search is that of suffering and death; 3) if one can continue the search even unto death, then one's status as a true philosopher is beyond challenge. The question is: how does one arrive at a readiness to endure the worst? Such a state is not easy to achieve. The answer is: one imaginatively re-enacts the noble death of a model by hearing or reading the story of it. One thereby gains the fortitude to face death literally, if necessary. This explains the frequency with which such stories are encountered. The more often one imaginatively re-enacts the deaths of great teachers or models, the more often one proleptically enacts one's own death for the sake of philosophy, and the less daunting such a prospect becomes."
5. Similar sentiments were commonplace in the ancient world. Epictetus again: "Socrates cannot be preserved by an act that is shameful...It is dying that preserves him, not fleeing.
h/t http://www.michaelturton.com
Jame 3:1 (NRSV) Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is perfect, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4 Or look at ships: though they are so large that it takes strong winds to drive them, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no one can tame the tongue--a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless the Lord and Father, and with it we curse those who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives, or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
see notes from last week...
James 2: 1 - 5, 8 - 10, 14 - 17 (Can. BAS)
James 2: 14 - 18 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 2:1 (NRSV) My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? 2 For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?
8 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 9 But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it.
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
18 But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith.
GOSPEL: Mark 8: 27 - 38
Mark 8:27 (NRSV) Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesare'a Philip'pi; and on the way he asked his disciples, "Who do people say that I am?" 28 And they answered him, "John the Baptist; and others, Eli'jah; and still others, one of the prophets." 29 He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Messiah." 30 And he sternly ordered them not to tell anyone about him.
31 Then he began to teach them that the Son of Man must undergo great suffering, and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 He said all this quite openly. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. 33 But turning and looking at his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, "Get behind me, Satan! For you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things."
34 He called the crowd with his disciples, and said to them, "If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 35 For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the gospel, will save it. 36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life? 37 Indeed, what can they give in return for their life? 38 Those who are ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of them the Son of Man will also be ashamed when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."
1. the verse speaks of the "villages" of Caesarea Philippi, but Caesarea Philippi is a single city
2. this is the first time in the gospel a human being recognizes Jesus as the Christ
3. this is the only place in the whole Gospel where the title "Messiah" is joined to an injunction to silence.
4. According to Cynic and Stoic circles of the first century CE, it is the readiness to follow a teacher in suffering or even death that qualifies one as a true philosopher. This belief is based on the following sequence of logic: 1) a true philosopher seeks what is right; 2) the worst threat one can face in this search is that of suffering and death; 3) if one can continue the search even unto death, then one's status as a true philosopher is beyond challenge. The question is: how does one arrive at a readiness to endure the worst? Such a state is not easy to achieve. The answer is: one imaginatively re-enacts the noble death of a model by hearing or reading the story of it. One thereby gains the fortitude to face death literally, if necessary. This explains the frequency with which such stories are encountered. The more often one imaginatively re-enacts the deaths of great teachers or models, the more often one proleptically enacts one's own death for the sake of philosophy, and the less daunting such a prospect becomes."
5. Similar sentiments were commonplace in the ancient world. Epictetus again: "Socrates cannot be preserved by an act that is shameful...It is dying that preserves him, not fleeing.
h/t http://www.michaelturton.com
Saturday, September 5, 2009
NEW TESTAMENT: James 2: 1 - 10 (11 - 13) 14 - 17 (RCL)
James 2: 1 - 5 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 2:1 (NRSV) My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? 2 For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
8 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 9 But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. 11 For the one who said, "You shall not commit adultery," also said, "You shall not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
1. "A good seat" can mean "please" or "in a good place." In either case it denotes an attitude of deference to this rich man.
2. Leviticus 19:15 "You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly."
3. "Favoritism" means to treat a person according to external appearances.
4. Paul is stressing the fact that works do not save. Only faith does that. James is stressing the fact that delusion concerning faith amounts at the same time to delusion concerning works.
5. "Brother or sister" means "fellow Christian."
James 1: 17 - 27 (Can. BAS) see previous week for notes
Jame 1:17 (NRSV) Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
19 You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. 21 Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. 23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; 24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. 25 But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act-they will be blessed in their doing.
26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
GOSPEL: Mark 7: 24 - 37 (RCL)
Mark 7: 31 - 37 (Can. BAS, Roman Catholic)
Mark 7:24 (NRSV) From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25 but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." 28 But she answered him, "Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29 Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go-the demon has left your daughter." 30 So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34 Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." 35 And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
1. Declaring the food laws invalid removed one of the areas of contention in including Gentiles in the new community
2. 7:24-30 is rather shocking because it portrays Jesus mouthing prejudice: ‘Let the children first be fed; for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs’ (7:27). The story was told and retold because Jesus abandoned his very conservative stance in favour of compassion and inclusion.
3. that the girl was healed at a distance, it is still preserving some of the conservative sentiment about pious Jews not entering the houses of Gentiles,
4. Faced with human need Jesus is persuaded that people matter most. No one can be excluded. All must be given food. None can be treated like dogs.
5. The healing of the deaf and dumb man in 7:31-37 portrays Jesus using the ancient techniques of healing. Matthew must have been embarrassed by such techniques; he removes all such references (15:29-31)
6. Here Jesus heals with spittle. He will do so again in 8:22-26, healing a blind man. The two stories are thus linked. The blind see; the deaf and dumb hear and speak.
James 2: 1 - 5 (Roman Catholic)
Jame 2:1 (NRSV) My brothers and sisters, do you with your acts of favoritism really believe in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ? 2 For if a person with gold rings and in fine clothes comes into your assembly, and if a poor person in dirty clothes also comes in, 3 and if you take notice of the one wearing the fine clothes and say, "Have a seat here, please," while to the one who is poor you say, "Stand there," or, "Sit at my feet," 4 have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts? 5 Listen, my beloved brothers and sisters. Has not God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him? 6 But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who oppress you? Is it not they who drag you into court? 7 Is it not they who blaspheme the excellent name that was invoked over you?
8 You do well if you really fulfill the royal law according to the scripture, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 9 But if you show partiality, you commit sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. 10 For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become accountable for all of it. 11 For the one who said, "You shall not commit adultery," also said, "You shall not murder." Now if you do not commit adultery but if you murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. 12 So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. 13 For judgment will be without mercy to anyone who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment.
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? 15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, "Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill," and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.
1. "A good seat" can mean "please" or "in a good place." In either case it denotes an attitude of deference to this rich man.
2. Leviticus 19:15 "You shall do no injustice in judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor nor defer to the great, but you are to judge your neighbor fairly."
3. "Favoritism" means to treat a person according to external appearances.
4. Paul is stressing the fact that works do not save. Only faith does that. James is stressing the fact that delusion concerning faith amounts at the same time to delusion concerning works.
5. "Brother or sister" means "fellow Christian."
James 1: 17 - 27 (Can. BAS) see previous week for notes
Jame 1:17 (NRSV) Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures.
19 You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. 21 Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. 23 For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; 24 for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. 25 But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act-they will be blessed in their doing.
26 If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.
GOSPEL: Mark 7: 24 - 37 (RCL)
Mark 7: 31 - 37 (Can. BAS, Roman Catholic)
Mark 7:24 (NRSV) From there he set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice, 25 but a woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. 26 Now the woman was a Gentile, of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. 27 He said to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." 28 But she answered him, "Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs." 29 Then he said to her, "For saying that, you may go-the demon has left your daughter." 30 So she went home, found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone.
31 Then he returned from the region of Tyre, and went by way of Sidon towards the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis. 32 They brought to him a deaf man who had an impediment in his speech; and they begged him to lay his hand on him. 33 He took him aside in private, away from the crowd, and put his fingers into his ears, and he spat and touched his tongue. 34 Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened." 35 And immediately his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. 36 Then Jesus ordered them to tell no one; but the more he ordered them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. 37 They were astounded beyond measure, saying, "He has done everything well; he even makes the deaf to hear and the mute to speak."
1. Declaring the food laws invalid removed one of the areas of contention in including Gentiles in the new community
2. 7:24-30 is rather shocking because it portrays Jesus mouthing prejudice: ‘Let the children first be fed; for it is not good to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs’ (7:27). The story was told and retold because Jesus abandoned his very conservative stance in favour of compassion and inclusion.
3. that the girl was healed at a distance, it is still preserving some of the conservative sentiment about pious Jews not entering the houses of Gentiles,
4. Faced with human need Jesus is persuaded that people matter most. No one can be excluded. All must be given food. None can be treated like dogs.
5. The healing of the deaf and dumb man in 7:31-37 portrays Jesus using the ancient techniques of healing. Matthew must have been embarrassed by such techniques; he removes all such references (15:29-31)
6. Here Jesus heals with spittle. He will do so again in 8:22-26, healing a blind man. The two stories are thus linked. The blind see; the deaf and dumb hear and speak.
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