27 Bertha and Ethelbert, Queen and King of Kent, 616 was the Queen of Kent whose influence led to the introduction of Christianity to Anglo-Saxon England. 28 John Calvin, Theologian, 1564 was a principal figure in the development of the system of Christian theology later called Calvinism. Originally trained as a humanist lawyer, he broke from the Roman Catholic Church around 1530. After religious tensions provoked a violent uprising against Protestants in France, Calvin fled to Basel, Switzerland, where he published the first edition of his seminal work The Institutes of the Christian Religion in 1536 29 30 Jeanne d’Arc (Joan of Arc), Mystic and Soldier, 1431 is a folk heroine of France and a Roman Catholic saint. She was born a peasant girl in what is now eastern France. Claiming divine guidance, she led the French army to several important victories during the Hundred Years' War, which paved the way for the coronation of Charles VII of France. She was captured by the Burgundians, transferred to the English in exchange for money, put on trial by the pro-English Bishop of Beauvais Pierre Cauchon for charges of "insubordination and heterodoxy",[6] and was burned at the stake for heresy when she was 19 years old 31 The Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary June 1 Justin, Martyr at Rome, c. 167 was an early Christian apologist, and is regarded as the foremost interpreter of the theory of the Logos in the 2nd century 2 The Martyrs of Lyons, Prov 8:1 (NRSV) Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice? 2 On the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; 3 beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries out: 4 "To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live. 22 The LORD created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago. 23 Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. 24 When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth-- 26 when he had not yet made earth and fields, or the world's first bits of soil. 27 When he established the heavens, I was there, when he drew a circle on the face of the deep, 28 when he made firm the skies above, when he established the fountains of the deep, 29 when he assigned to the sea its limit, so that the waters might not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 then I was beside him, like a master worker; and I was daily his delight, rejoicing before him always, 31 rejoicing in his inhabited world and delighting in the human race. PSALM 8 (RCL) Psalm 8: 4 - 9 (Roman Catholic) Psal 8:1 (NRSV) O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; 4 what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? 5 Yet you have made them a little lower than God, and crowned them with glory and honor. 6 You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet, 7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. 9 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! 8 Domine, Dominus noster (ECUSA BCP) 1 O Lord our Governor, * how exalted is your Name in all the world! 2 Out of the mouths of infants and children * your majesty is praised above the heavens. 3 You have set up a stronghold against your adversaries, * to quell the enemy and the avenger. 4 When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, * the moon and the stars you have set in their courses, 5 What is man that you should be mindful of him? * the son of man that you should seek him out? 6 You have made him but little lower than the angels; * you adorn him with glory and honor; 7 You give him mastery over the works of your hands; * you put all things under his feet: 8 All sheep and oxen, * even the wild beasts of the field, 9 The birds of the air, the fish of the sea, * and whatsoever walks in the paths of the sea. 10 O Lord our Governor, * how exalted is your Name in all the world! 2 A Song of Praise Benedictus es, Domine (alt. for ECUSA; BCP) Song of the Three Young Men, 29-34 Blessed art thou, O Lord God of our fathers; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed are thou for the name of thy Majesty; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed are thou in the temple of thy holiness; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed are thou that beholdest the depths, and dwellest between the Cherubim; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed art thou on the glorious throne of thy kingdom; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed are thou in the firmament of heaven; * praised and exalted above all for ever. Blessed are thou, O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; * praised and exalted above all for ever. 13 A Song of Praise Benedictus es, Domine (alt. for ECUSA; BCP) Song of the Three Young Men, 29-34 Glory to you, Lord God of our fathers; * you are worthy of praise; glory to you. Glory to you for the radiance of your holy Name; * we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever. Glory to you in the splendor of your temple; * on the throne of your majesty, glory to you. Glory to you, seated between the Cherubim; * we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever. Glory to you, beholding the depths; * in the high vault of heaven, glory to you. Glory to you, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; * we will praise you and highly exalt you for ever. NEW TESTAMENT: Romans 5: 1 - 5 (all) Roma 5:1 (NRSV) Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 3 And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. h/t Monrteal Anglican Paul has written that union with God (justification) comes through faith. “Peace”, a Jewish concept, expresses all the benefits of a right relationship with God – namely a partnership of reconciliation, eternal well-being and wholeness of life. “Grace” (v. 2) is God’s free and unmerited offer of mercy and love towards all people. Earlier (in 3:23), Paul has noted that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God”, i.e. of what God intended for humans when he created us. Even so, through God’s grace, we “boast in our hope of sharing” (v. 2) in this glory, this gift of complete oneness with him in eternal life. Christ is our entry point to God’s grace. This justification has a second effect: even in times of trial (“sufferings”, v. 3, perhaps when beset with doubt that Christ loves us) it lead us to openness to God’s plans for us (“hope”, v. 4), for “suffering produces endurance” (v. 3, including patience under fire), which in turn “produces character” (v. 4, proven-ness under testing). This process makes us better able to be open to God. Our hope, unlike that we have in fellow humans, is assured (“does not disappoint”, v. 5), for God has given us his Holy Spirit, who is present in us, and who continually brings God’s love to us. Paul develops these ideas further in 8:1-39: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death ...”. [NJBC] Verse 1: “justified by faith”: This is the theme of 3:21-31. [CAB] Verse 1: “peace”: In Hebrew, this is shalom, the state of being in which one enjoys all the benefits of a right relationship with God, namely partnership in reconciliation, eternal well-being and wholeness of life. Being justified is very similar, although it implies action. Verse 1: “through our Lord Jesus Christ”: Christ is active as the mediator, the interface between the Father and humans, in carrying out God’s plan of/for salvation. In some form or other, Paul makes frequent use of this phrase in this chapter: see also vv. 2, 9, 11, 17, 21. [JBC] He writes in 1:5: “through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name”; see also 2:16. “Through” means mediated by, in the Father’s plan of salvation. [NJBC] Verse 2: “obtained access”: JBC offers secured an introduction. We have been introduced into the sphere of divine favour through Christ. He has, as it were, led Christians into the royal audience chamber and into the divine presence. Verse 2: “we boast in our hope ...”: In contrast to the boasting by Jews of their relationship to God mentioned in 2:17: “But if you call yourself a Jew and rely on the law and boast of your relation to God”. [CAB] Verses 2,3,11: “boast”: In Paul’s writings, this word is sometimes meant in the obvious sense, but not here. Basking in glory is what he means here. [NJBC] Verse 3: “boast in our sufferings”: Paul also uses the word “boast” in 2 Corinthians 11:30; 12:9 and also 1 Corinthians 1:31; 3:21; 2 Corinthians 10:17; Galatians 6:13; Philippians 3:3. [CAB] Verse 3: “endurance”: The Greek word is hupomone. See also 8:25 (where the Greek word is translated as “patience”) and 15:4-5. [CAB] Verse 4: “character”: The Greek word is dokime, from a verb meaning to test, so the sense is proven-ness under testing. [CAB] Verse 5: “and hope”: The sense is easier to see if we insert such between and and hope. A human may disappoint one by not doing what he or she commits to do, but God is not like this. [NJBC] Verses 5,8: “God’s love has been poured ... through the Holy Spirit”, “Christ”: In v. 5, God is the Father. These verses lead later to the doctrine of the Trinity. Verse 5: “poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit”: In the Old Testament and in the Apocrypha, pouring out of a divine attribute is commonplace: for example, mercy in Sirach 18:11, wisdom in Sirach 1:9, grace in Psalm 45:2, and wrath in Hosea 5:10 and Psalm 79:6. See especially Joel 2:28 for the outpouring of the Spirit. [NJBC] Verses 6-11: Christ, in his death, has borne the consequences of our sin, and thus has reconciled us to God. This reconciliation is the result of God’s action; it is something we were too “weak” (v. 6) to bring about. Verse 6: “For while we were still weak”: i.e. before we knew Christ. [NOAB] Verse 6: “weak”: NJBC offers helpless. Verse 6: “Christ died for the ungodly”: Paul writes in 4:5: “But to one who without works trusts him who justifies the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness”. [CAB] Verses 7-8: It would be rare enough for anyone to die for a pious (“righteous”, v. 7) person, and perhaps a bit more likely for a particularly “good person” to do so, but Christ sacrificed his life for us when we were neither: we were sinners without hope then! Verse 8: God’s love is unconditional, spontaneous, not dependent on human love for him. Verse 9: “justified by his blood”: This is a restatement of 3:24-25: “they [those who have fallen short of true godliness] are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith ...”. [CAB] In 4:25, justification is the result of Christ’s resurrection, but here it is the result of his death. [NOAB] Verse 10: In Galatians 2:20, Paul writes: “... the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”. [CAB] Verse 10: “while we were enemies”: Perhaps Paul thinks partly of himself here, as a former persecutor of Christians. Verse 11: In 1 Corinthians 1:30-31, Paul writes: “He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification and redemption, in order that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord’”. [CAB] Verse 11: “we have now received reconciliation”: In 3:21-22, Paul writes: “But now, apart from law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed, and is attested by the law and the prophets, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe”. [NOAB] GOSPEL: John 16: 12 - 15 (all) John 16:12 (NRSV) [Jesus said,] "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. 13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. 14 He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. 15 All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you. After the Last Supper, Jesus continues to tell the disciples about the mission they are to undertake. The “Spirit of truth” (15:26) is the Holy Spirit; he will be sent to the disciples, the Church, by Christ “from the Father”. Jesus’ statement “yet none of you asks me, ‘where are you going?’” (v. 5) seems strange because the disciples have asked the question earlier (13:36, 14:5). Perhaps he is saying: overwhelmed with “sorrow” (v. 6), you are missing the main point: the coming of the Spirit. By leaving them, Jesus is able to send the Spirit, “the Advocate” (v. 7). One thing the Spirit will do is to show “the world” (v. 8, unbelievers, possibly Jews) that they are wrong on three counts: their idea of sin is incorrect (v. 9); the righteous (the Jewish authorities) who condemned Jesus were wrong: he is God's agent (v. 10); and he has defeated sin (v. 11). An example: healing on the Sabbath is not sinful. Now v. 12-13: the disciples have much more to learn from Jesus, but they are not yet ready to comprehend it. The Spirit will expand on what Jesus has told them. In guiding them, the Spirit will speak what comes to him from God (as Jesus has spoken what the Father has told him). The Spirit will “declare” (v. 13) about events “to come”, not only prophecy about the end-times but also guidance in the way of Christ, after Jesus’ death and resurrection. The Spirit will elucidate for them that Jesus fulfils God’s plans; he will reveal the essential nature of God, and show Christ’s power (“glorify”, v. 14). Whether the word comes from the Father, the Son, or the Holy Spirit, it is the same. 15:26-27: “the Advocate ... the Spirit of truth”: In Mark 13:11 Jesus describes the function of the Holy Spirit in these terms: “When they bring you to trial and hand you over, do not worry beforehand about what you are to say; but say whatever is given you at that time, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit”. Matthew 10:20 is similar. [NJBC] 15:26: “the Advocate”: BlkJn offers the Champion. The Greek word translated Advocate is parakletos, sometimes transliterated as Paraclete. While in 1 John 2:1 it refers to Christ, in John it refers to the Holy Spirit: see also 14:26 and 16:7. The Greek word is derived from a verb meaning call to one’s side. The Latin word advocatus has the same meaning, but there is a distinction to be made between the Greek and Roman judicial systems. In a Roman court, an advocatus pleaded a person’s case for him, but a Greek parakletos did not: in the Greek system, a person had to plead his own case, but he brought along his friends as parakletoi to influence the court by their moral support and testimony to his value as a citizen. BlkJn argues that the sense in John is of giving help – as is usually the sense in the New Testament, e.g. “console” in 2 Corinthians 1:4 and “exhort” in Romans 12:8. A Champion is one who supports by his presence and his words. 15:27: In Acts 1:8, Jesus says “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you ...”. The Church too is to witness, to work with the Holy Spirit, by living the life that Christ made possible, continuing Christ’s work in the world. 16:1-4a: A forewarning of conflict. It is to be expected that the world, even the religious world, will persecute the followers of Christ. See also Acts 22:3-5 (Paul’s defence in Jerusalem) and 26:9-11 (Paul before Agrippa II). [NOAB] 16:1: “from stumbling”: BlkJn offers be made to fall away (from the Faith). 16:2: “put you out of the synagogues ... those who kill you”: Charges of blasphemy and impiety have been laid against Jesus earlier by those thinking that “they are offering worship to God”: see 5:37b-38; 7:28; 8:27, 55. While some scholars see this as evidence that John was written in the last quarter of the first century, when the synagogue liturgy was changed to include a prayer that made participation by Jewish Christians impossible, an earlier date for John is reasonable on the following grounds: Mark, Matthew and Luke all contain predictions of persecutions and of death for the faith (see, for example, Matthew 5:10; Mark 13:9; Luke 12:4, 11) Jesus can be expected to forewarn his followers of persecution after his death While the final breach between the Church and the synagogue should probably be dated after the fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD, relations between the two were by no means cordial before that: see, for example, Paul’s exit from the synagogue in Corinth in Acts 18:5-17 and the martyrdom of James the Lord’s brother in Acts 12:2-3. [BlkJn] Other scholars point to the persecution by Jews in Asia Minor found in Revelation 2:3 (Ephesus), 2:9 (Smyrna) and 3:9 (Philadelphia) as a context for a second episode of persecution that affected the Johannine community. Whatever the particulars, 15:18-16:4a presumes the hostility from the unbelieving world will be a permanent facet of Christian life. [NJBC] 16:2 “worship”: BlkJn offers service. He says that the Greek word conveys also the idea of worship. Many Christians today call their worship services. 16:3: “they have not known the Father or me”: For failure to know Christ or the Father, see also 1:10; 8:55; 17:25. Such people have an inadequate apprehension of the true nature and activity of the Father and of Jesus, with an inability to obey God’s will. [BlkJn] Comments : Jesus’ statement “yet none of you asks me, ‘where are you going?’” (v. 5) seems strange because the disciples have asked the question earlier: It is possible that two alternative accounts of Jesus’ teaching at the Last Supper have been included, v. 5 being part of one account, and 13:36 and 14:5 being part of the other, and that the two accounts were reversed during editing. 16:6: This verse is the reverse of 15:11: “I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete”. [NJBC] 16:6-7: “sorrow” at Jesus’ departure is transformed by “the truth” that his death and resurrection make possible the Spirit’s work. [NOAB] 16:7: “it is to your advantage that I go away”: This repeats the notion in 14:27b-28. [NJBC] 16:7: “if I do not go away ...”: 7:39 says “Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified” and in 14:16 he says “... I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever”. [JBC] 16:8: “prove the world wrong about sin ...”: BlkJn offers convict the world of sin. The Greek word he translates as convict is also found in 3:20, where the deeds of an evil person will be exposed for what they are. This is the activity of a judge and prosecuting attorney in one. Others argue that the word carries the connotation of educative discipline here, as in convince someone about something. The word is also found in 8:46; there the NRSV translates it as “convicts”. [NJBC] 16:8: “prove the world wrong about ... righteousness”: How will Christ convict unbelievers of righteousness? BlkJn says that the word translated “righteousness” (dikaiosune) is used only here in John, and may mean justification or acquittal. This is how Paul uses the word, as meaning moral uprightness. If this is what John intended, v. 10 speaks of those who come to belief in Christ: they will be acquitted because of Jesus’ resurrection. By this argument, the “judgement” is the condemnation which is the alterative to acquittal; unbelievers are condemned based on the devil already being condemned. 16:9: In 3:19-21, Jesus says “‘... this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed’”. In 1 Corinthians 2:8, Paul says “None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory”. Colossians 2:15 says that God “disarmed the rulers and authorities and made a public example of them, triumphing over them in it [the cross].” [NOAB] 16:11: “ruler of this world”: In 12:31, Jesus says “‘Now is the judgment of this world; now the ruler of this world will be driven out’” and in 14:30 he says “‘I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no power over me’”. [NOAB] 8:42-47 tells us that those who seek to kill Jesus are doing the works of their father, the Devil. [NJBC] 16:12-15: As in 14:25-26, the Advocate plays an important role within the community; there Jesus says “‘I have said these things to you while I am still with you. But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything, and remind you of all that I have said to you’”. [NJBC] 16:12: 13:7 tells us that the disciples are not ready to receive further teaching from Jesus: Peter has asked with surprise: “‘Lord, are you going to wash my feet?’”; Jesus answers: “You do not know now what I am doing, but later you will understand’”. [BlkJn] 16:13: “Spirit of truth”: In 14:17, Jesus says “‘This is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, because he abides with you, and he will be in you.’” and in 15:26 he says “‘When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf’”. [JBC] 16:13: “the Spirit of truth ... will guide you into all the truth”: Philo, in Life of Moses 2.265, speaks of a divine spirit guiding the mind to truth. Psalm 25:5 asks that God “lead me in your truth, and teach me ...”. The term “Spirit of truth” is also found in 14:17 and 15:26. 1 John 4:6 contrasts “the spirt of truth” with “the spirit of error”. 1 John 5:6 says that “the Spirit is the truth”. This terminology was current when John wrote; it is also found in 1QS (Qumran Rule of the Community) 3-4 and Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (even to using the same verbs for “testify” (15:26) and “guide”). There are differences in the theology, but there are sufficient parallels for it to be likely that John’s term “Spirit of truth” is a development from the usage in contemporary Judaism. [BlkJn] 16:13: “all the truth”: To NJBC, “truth” must have the same meaning here as in the rest of this gospel, i.e. belief in Jesus as the sole revelation of God and the one who speaks the words of God. In 8:40, Jesus describes himself as “a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God”. In 8:47, he tells some Pharisees: “Whoever is from God hears the words of God. The reason you do not hear them is that you are not from God”. See also 3:20 and 3:33. 16:13: “declare to you”: The Greek verb is anangellein. In 4:25, the Samaritan woman speaks of the coming prophet in similar terms: “‘I know that Messiah is coming’ (who is called Christ). ‘When he comes, he will proclaim [anangellein] all things to us’”. [NJBC] 16:13: “things that are to come”: The reference is not simply to prophecy but also to the interpretation of the life and death of Christ and the declaration of the new order which follows his departure to the Father. [BlkJn]