• 30 Charles Chapman Grafton, Bishop of Fond du Lac, and Ecumenist, 1912
• 31 Aidan, Bishop of Lindisfarne, 651. Cuthbert, Bishop of Lindisfarne, 687 was a saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Celtic tradition. He was a monk, bishop and hermit, associated with the monasteries of Melrose and Lindisfarne in what might loosely be termed the Kingdom of Northumbria in the Northeast of England.^[5] After his death he became one of the most important medieval saints of Northern England

September

• 1 David Pendleton Oakerhater, Deacon and Missionary, 1931
• 2 The Martyrs of New Guinea, 1942
• 3 Prudence Crandall, Teacher and Prophetic Witness, 1890
• 4 Paul Jones, 1941was the Episcopal Bishop of Utah (1916–1918), a socialist, and a prominent pacifist. He was forced to resign his see in April 1918 because of his outspoken opposition to World War I.
• 5 Gregorio Aglipay, Priest and Founder of the Philippine Independent Church, 1940

OLD TESTAMENT:   Song of Solomon 2: 8 - 13   (RCL)

Song 2:8 (NRSV) The voice of my beloved!

Look, he comes,

leaping upon the mountains,

bounding over the hills.

9 My beloved is like a gazelle

or a young stag.

Look, there he stands

behind our wall,

gazing in at the windows,

looking through the lattice.

10 My beloved speaks and says to me:

"Arise, my love, my fair one,

and come away;

11 for now the winter is past,

the rain is over and gone.

12 The flowers appear on the earth;

the time of singing has come,

and the voice of the turtledove

is heard in our land.

13 The fig tree puts forth its figs,

and the vines are in blossom;

they give forth fragrance.

Arise, my love, my fair one,

and come away.

Deuteronomy 4: 1 - 2, 6 - 8   (Roman Catholic)

Deuteronomy 4: 1 - 2, 6 - 9   (alt. for RCL)

Deut 4:1 (NRSV) So now, Israel, give heed to the statutes and ordinances that I am teaching you to observe, so that you may live to enter and occupy the land that the LORD, the God of your ancestors, is giving you. 2 You must neither add anything to what I command you nor take away anything from it, but keep the commandments of the LORD your God with which I am charging you.

6 You must observe them diligently, for this will show your wisdom and discernment to the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say, "Surely this great nation is a wise and discerning people!" 7 For what other great nation has a god so near to it as the LORD our God is whenever we call to him? 8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just as this entire law that I am setting before you today?

9 But take care and watch yourselves closely, so as neither to forget the things that your eyes have seen nor to let them slip from your mind all the days of your life; make them known to your children and your children's children--

PSALM 45:1,2, 6-9   (RCL)

Psal 45:1 (NRSV) My heart overflows with a goodly theme;

I address my verses to the king;

my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

2 You are the most handsome of men;

grace is poured upon your lips;

therefore God has blessed you forever.

6 Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever.

Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity;

7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness.

Therefore God, your God, has anointed you

with the oil of gladness beyond your companions;

8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia.

From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad;

9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor;

at your right hand stands the queen in gold of O'phir.

Note: Verse numbering in your psalter may differ from the above

45   Eructavit cor meum   (ECUSA BCP)

1          My heart is stirring with a noble song;

let me recite what I have fashioned for the king; *

            my tongue shall be the pen of a skilled writer.

2          You are the fairest of men; *

            grace flows from your lips,

            because God has blessed you for ever.

7          Your throne, O God, endures for ever and ever, *

            a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom;

            you love righteousness and hate iniquity.

8          Therefore God, your God, has anointed you *

            with the oil of gladness above your fellows.

9          All your garments are fragrant with myrrh, aloes, and cassia, *

            and the music of strings from ivory palaces makes you glad.

10        Kings’ daughters stand among the ladies of the court; *

            on your right hand is the queen,

            adorned with the gold of Ophir.

Psalm 15   (alt. for RCL)

Psalm 15: 2 - 5   (Roman Catholic)

Psal 15:1 (NRSV) O LORD, who may abide in your tent?

Who may dwell on your holy hill?

2 Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,

and speak the truth from their heart;

3 who do not slander with their tongue,

and do no evil to their friends,

nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;

4 in whose eyes the wicked are despised,

but who honor those who fear the LORD;

who stand by their oath even to their hurt;

5 who do not lend money at interest,

and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

Those who do these things shall never be moved.

15   Domine, quis habitabit?   (ECUSA BCP)

1          Lord, who may dwell in your tabernacle? *

 who may abide upon your holy hill?

2          Whoever leads a blameless life and does what is right, *

 who speaks the truth from his heart.

3          There is no guile upon his tongue;

he does no evil to his friend; *

 he does not heap contempt upon his neighbor.

4          In his sight the wicked is rejected, *

 but he honors those who fear the Lord.

5          He has sworn to do no wrong *

 and does not take back his word.

6          He does not give his money in hope of gain, *

 nor does he take a bribe against the innocent.

7          Whoever does these things *

 shall never be overthrown.

NEW TESTAMENT:   James 1: 17 - 27   (RCL)

                                      James 1: 17 - 18, 21b - 22, 27   (Roman Catholic)

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.

  h/t Montreal Anglican

This book is an exhortation to conduct befitting Christians: who are aliens in a world which has become evil, and are also heirs of God’s relationship with Israel. The author cautions them (v. 16): “Do not be deceived, my beloved”. The very “act of giving” (v. 17) is what matters, not the size of the gift. God, “the Father of lights”, gives the “perfect gift”: in Genesis 1:14-18 he gave the planets and stars, which vary in position and brightness (“shadow”, v. 17) in the sky, but God’s love and goodness to us are never diminished. He created according to his own intent; he now gives us the new creation, i.e. baptism (“birth”, v. 18), into the gospel (“word of truth”), his saving revelation fully expressed in Christ. Why? So that we may be forerunners (“first fruits”) of all humans in offering ourselves to God. So (v. 21) cast aside worldliness, and welcome the faith received (“implanted”) at baptism, a faith that can save you from the evil in the world. But this “word” (v. 22) is not just to be heard but also to be done: baptism places ethical demands. To be a hearer (v. 23) but not a doer is like looking in a “mirror”: it reveals blemishes; the hearer sees them, but then forgets them (or ignores them): he or she does nothing to correct the deficiencies. But those who “look into” (v. 25) and “persevere” with the gospel (“the perfect law, the law of liberty”) are doers, are “blessed” for following God’s ways.
Now v. 19: doers have three characteristics: they are “quick to listen” (so do not “deceive themselves”, v. 22), “slow to speak, slow to anger” (v. 19) – sinful and prolonged anger is not striving for the integrity (“righteousness”, v. 20) demanded by God. Vv. 26-27 offer a practical application: “care for orphans and widows”. If our “religion” is all talk, it is “worthless”; it must include caring actively for others. Also, we must keep a detachment from the world.

I think James is related to Old Testament wisdom in many ways. What matters in one's lifestyle is “right living”, “right action” (orthopraxy) in relation to the rest of the community (including those outside the church, presumably). This is to live the gospel as an agent of God's mercy to the world. Caring for widows and orphans is “true religion”.
There is perhaps an echo of Isaiah 55:11 here, too. “My word ... shall not return empty, but shall accomplish that which I purpose, and succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” The gospel as word is not simply to be heard but to be enacted, so that the word may accomplish God's purpose.
I think there is a distinction between acting on one's own in response to the command of God, and acting as an agent of God's word, by God's strength. V. 17 makes this clear. “Every generous act of giving ... is from above.” In other words, it is not us who give but God (in us, or through us).
Luther considered James a “straw epistle”, mainly I suspect because it deals so much with orthopraxy rather than orthodoxy. Luther's emphasis was on justification by grace through faith, but James says (rightly I think) “show me your works, and I will see your faith.”. [Alan Perry]
Verse 17: “Father of lights”: Two documents from the first century speak of the “prince of lights”: 1QS (Rule of the Community) 3:20 and CD (Damascus Document) 5:18. 1QS 3:20 says: “In the hands of the Prince of Lights is dominion over all the sons of justice; they walk on paths of light.” CD 5:17-18 says: “... For in ancient times there arose Moses and Aaron, by the hand of the prince of lights ...”
Verses 18-19: These verses depend on a baptismal liturgy. See also 1 Peter 1:22-2:2.
Verse 18: “In fulfilment of his own purpose”: Unlike the blind forces that give birth to sin. V. 14 says: “one is tempted by one’s own desire, being enticed and lured by it.”
Verse 18: “first fruits”: The first part of the harvest was to be offered to God: see Leviticus 23:10; Numbers 15:21; Deuteronomy 18:4. Paul uses “first fruits” in two senses:

• in referring to pioneer converts (see Romans 16:5 and 1 Corinthians 16:15, where the NRSV translates the Greek as “first convert(s)”), and
• gifts of the Holy Spirit (see Romans 8:23).

In James, it appears that the author and his readers have already experienced divine birth, which is ultimately destined for all humans.
Verse 19: “quick to ... slow to anger”: These admonitions are common in the Old Testament and in the Qumran Literature: see Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Proverbs 14:29; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2; Nahum 1:3; Sirach 5:11-13; 20:5-8; 1QH (Qumran Hymns) 9:34-37 ( Vermes: 1:34-37). [NJBC]
Verse 22: ^†NJBC says that this verse is a summary of the book. It is like Romans 2:13. Christianity as a religion of deeds is characteristic of James. For this notion in the gospels, see Matthew 7:24-27 (and parallels); Luke 8:21; 11:28. For the Old Testament background, see Deuteronomy 4:5-6, 13-15; Ezekiel 33:31-32. [ NJBC]
Verse 25: “law”: James lacks the distinction between law and gospel; rather he qualifies the word law when he uses it. This is like the spirit of Matthew 5:17-19 (the Sermon on the Mount). “Perfect law” is usually a Jewish description of Mosaic law, but here the term is applied to the gospel. [ NOAB]
Verse 25: “blessed”: The happiness of the person who does God’s will. Psalm 1:1-2 says: “Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord ...”. See also Matthew 5:3-11 (the Beatitudes). [ NOAB]
Verses 26-27: See Matthew 25:35-36. [ NOAB]
Verse 27: “Father”: Psalm 68:5 speaks of God’s fatherly care of widows and orphans. [ JBC]
Verse 27: “orphans and widows”: They are the natural objects of charity in the community. See Deuteronomy 27:19; Sirach 4:10; Acts 6:1. [ JBC]

GOSPEL:   Mark 7: 1 - 8, 14 - 15, 21 - 23   (all)

Mark 7:1 (NRSV) Now when the Phar'isees and some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem gathered around him, 2 they noticed that some of his disciples were eating with defiled hands, that is, without washing them. 3 (For the Phar'isees, and all the Jews, do not eat unless they thoroughly wash their hands, thus observing the tradition of the elders; 4 and they do not eat anything from the market unless they wash it; and there are also many other traditions that they observe, the washing of cups, pots, and bronze kettles. 5 So the Phar'isees and the scribes asked him, "Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?" 6 He said to them, "Isai'ah prophesied rightly about you hypocrites, as it is written,

"This people honors me with their lips,

but their hearts are far from me;

7 in vain do they worship me,

teaching human precepts as doctrines.'

8 You abandon the commandment of God and hold to human tradition."

14 Then he called the crowd again and said to them, "Listen to me, all of you, and understand: 15 there is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are what defile."

20 And he said, "It is what comes out of a person that defiles. 21 For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, 22 adultery, avarice, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. 23 All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person."

Mark has told us that Jesus has gained an audience among the common people, who have sought sustenance and have responded to his compassion in healing. Now we hear of his opposition to the legalism and pickiness of the Pharisees. They are “from Jerusalem”, so represent official Judaism. Mark’s note (vv. 3-4), written for Gentile readers, explains that Pharisees consider the “tradition of the elders” to be binding, as are the laws of Moses. (They wished to extend the laws of ritual purity, which once applied only to priests, to all Jews, thus making all people priestly.) Rather than answer the question (v. 5), Jesus calls them phonies. (In Greek, hypokrites were actors who masked – hid – their faces.) He quotes Isaiah 29:13: their religion is empty; they “hold to human tradition” (v. 8) rather than the Law. Then vv. 14-15: Jesus says that what you eat (“going in”) is immaterial, but what comes out does matter: it is from the very being of a person that “evil intentions” (v. 21) and actions come. (The “heart” was seen as the source of will and not just of emotions.)

The parallel is Matthew 15:1-20.
This passage stresses the central importance of the purity of food and food containers for all Jews, but especially for Pharisees (meaning “pure ones”) and scribes, i.e. those responsible for showing the relevance and specific requirements of Mosaic law. Jesus appeals to Isaiah to show that what matters most is personal dedication to God and his will, rather than formal – often evasive – conformity to legal precepts. The real sources of evil are not ritual pollution from without, but corruption within the human heart - the seat of will, and not merely of emotions (as we think today). [ CAB]
Verse 2: “defiled”: The issue is not one of hygiene, but rather failure to follow traditional Jewish practices of ritual purification. [ NJBC]
Verse 3: “tradition of the elders”: The Pharisees claimed traditions in which the great leaders of Israel formed a chain back to Moses, i.e. unwritten law, aural torah (later recorded in the Mishnah, the Babylonian Talmud and the Jerusalem Talmud.) [ JBC]
Verse 4: In Matthew 23:25, Jesus warns: “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence”. See also Luke 11:39. [ NOAB]
Verse 5: In Galatians 1:14, Paul tells us of his early zealousness for the Law. [ NOAB]
Verses 6-7: The quotation is from the Septuagint translation of Isaiah 29:13: This people draw nigh to me with their mouth, and they honour me with their lips, but their heart is far from me: but in vain do they worship me, teaching the commandments and doctrines of men, [ BLXX] but note that there are differences. NOAB hypothesizes that Mark used a collection of (inexact) quotations from the Septuagint. [ NOAB]
Verse 8: “human tradition”: The Pharisees and scribes would have argued that they were making practical and concrete teachings that were not clear in the law. [ NJBC] Also, the aural torah formed a protective wrapper round Mosaic law, thus making it most unlikely that a Jew would commit a serious sin by transgressing the Law itself.
Verses 9-13: Jesus illustrates his point by speaking of “Corban” (Greek: korban). A child could, per the aural torah, declare possessions to be korban, i.e. an offering to God. He still enjoyed the use of them. At that time, the Commandment to “Honour your father and mother” was interpreted as giving parents a right to a child’s possessions. Making possessions korban circumvented a child’s obligations to his parents under the Law. Some later Jewish teachers agreed with Jesus. [ NJBC]
Verse 15: “defile”: Defilement rendered one unfit to share in public worship. See also Acts 10:14-15 (Peter’s vision) and 1 Timothy 4:3.
Verse 16: Most important manuscripts omit this verse.
Verse 19: “Thus he declared all foods clean”: “Clean” here means ritually clean. The question arises: if Jesus was so clear about food laws, why was the issue debated in the early Church? See Galatians 2:11-14 (Paul rebukes Peter at Antioch); Romans 14:14-20; Colossians 2:20-23; Acts 10:14-15. [ NJBC]
The answer, I think, is that the comment “thus he declared” is Mark's commentary on Jesus' statement. Given that Mark was written after the events recorded in Acts (notably Peter's vision), perhaps Mark is here finding in the words of Jesus justification of the ultimate decision to relax the dietary laws.
Oddly enough, if that is the case, then Mark is acting in the way the Pharisees operated! In other words, he is establishing in the new oral tradition (i.e. the words of Jesus) that there is a teaching validating a new interpretation of the written Law. The Pharisees believed in a two-fold Law, one written and the other oral. This latter law is chiefly what separated them from the Sadducees. [Alan Perry]
Verses 21-23: For other such lists of vices, see Galatians 5:19-21; Romans 1:29-31; 1 Peter 4:3; Wisdom 14:25-26. Many of the elements were common in the Greco-Roman world and in Judaism. See 1QS (Qumran Rule of the Community) 4:9-11. [ NJBC]
1QS 4:9-11 says:

“... to the spirit of deceit belong greed, frailty of hands in the service of justice, irreverence, deceit, pride and haughtiness of heart, dishonesty, trickery, cruelty, much insincerity, impatience, much insanity, zealousness about wrong things, appalling acts performed in a lustful passion, filthy paths for indecent purposes, blasphemous tongue, blindness of eyes, hardness of hearing, stiffness of neck, hardness of heart in order to walk in all the paths of darkness and evil cunning. ...” [ Martinez]