• 29 John Cassian, Abbot at Marseilles, 433, was a Christian monk and theologian celebrated in both the Western and Eastern Churches for his mystical writings.

March

• 1 David, Bishop of Menevia, Wales, c. 544was a Welsh bishop of Menevia during the 6th century; he was later regarded as a saint. He is the patron saint of Wales
• 2 Chad, Bishop of Lichfield, 672 was a prominent 7th century Anglo-Saxon churchman, who became abbot of several monasteries, Bishop of the Northumbrians and subsequently Bishop of the Mercians and Lindsey People.
• 3 John and Charles Wesley, Priests, 1791, 1788
• 4 Paul Cuffee, Witness to the Faith among the Shinnecock, 1812
• 6 William W. Mayo, 1911, and Charles Menninger, 1953, and Their Sons, Pioneers in Medicine
•  

OLD TESTAMENT:  Isaiah 55: 1 - 9   (RCL)

Isai 55:1 (NRSV) Ho, everyone who thirsts,

come to the waters;

and you that have no money,

come, buy and eat!

Come, buy wine and milk

without money and without price.

2 Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,

and your labor for that which does not satisfy?

Listen carefully to me, and eat what is good,

and delight yourselves in rich food.

3 Incline your ear, and come to me;

listen, so that you may live.

I will make with you an everlasting covenant,

my steadfast, sure love for David.

4 See, I made him a witness to the peoples,

a leader and commander for the peoples.

5 See, you shall call nations that you do not know,

and nations that do not know you shall run to you,

because of the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel,

for he has glorified you.

6 Seek the LORD while he may be found,

call upon him while he is near;

7 let the wicked forsake their way,

and the unrighteous their thoughts;

let them return to the LORD, that he may have mercy on them,

and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.

8 For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

nor are your ways my ways, says the LORD.

9 For as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Exodus 3: 1 - 15   (ECUSA)

Exodus 3: 1 - 8a, 13 - 15   (Roman Catholic)

Exod 3:1 (NRSV) Moses was keeping the flock of his father-in-law Jeth'ro, the priest of Mid'ian; he led his flock beyond the wilderness, and came to Ho'reb, the mountain of God. 2 There the angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked, and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3 Then Moses said, "I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is not burned up." 4 When the LORD saw that he had turned aside to see, God called to him out of the bush, "Moses, Moses!" And he said, "Here I am." 5 Then he said, "Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground." 6 He said further, "I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob." And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God.

7 Then the LORD said, "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the Ca'naanites, the Hit'tites, the Am'orites, the Per'izzites, the Hi'vites, and the Jeb'usites. 9 The cry of the Israelites has now come to me; I have also seen how the Egyptians oppress them. 10 So come, I will send you to Pharaoh to bring my people, the Israelites, out of Egypt." 11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?" 12 He said, "I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain."

13 But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, "What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" 14 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM."

 He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, "I AM has sent me to you.'" 15 God also said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, "The LORD, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you':

This is my name forever,

and this my title for all generations.

PSALM 63: 1 - 8   (RCL)

Psal 63:1 (NRSV) O God, you are my God, I seek you,

my soul thirsts for you;

my flesh faints for you,

as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

2 So I have looked upon you in the sanctuary,

beholding your power and glory.

3 Because your steadfast love is better than life,

my lips will praise you.

4 So I will bless you as long as I live;

I will lift up my hands and call on your name.

5 My soul is satisfied as with a rich feast,

and my mouth praises you with joyful lips

6 when I think of you on my bed,

and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

7 for you have been my help,

and in the shadow of your wings I sing for joy.

8 My soul clings to you;

your right hand upholds me.

Note: Verse numbering in your Psalter may differ from the above.

63   Deus, Deus meus    (ECUSA BCP)

1          O God, you are my God; eagerly I seek you; *

     my soul thirsts for you, my flesh faints for you,

     as in a barren and dry land where there is no water.

2          Therefore I have gazed upon you in your holy place, *

     that I might behold your power and your glory.

3          For your loving-kindness is better than life itself; *

     my lips shall give you praise.

4          So will I bless you as long as I live *

     and lift up my hands in your Name.

5          My soul is content, as with marrow and fatness, *

     and my mouth praises you with joyful lips,

6          When I remember you upon my bed, *

     and meditate on you in the night watches.

7          For you have been my helper, *

     and under the shadow of your wings I will rejoice.

8          My soul clings to you; *

     your right hand holds me fast.

Psalm 103: 1 - 4, 6 - 8, 11   (Roman Catholic)

Psal 103:1 (NRSV) Bless the LORD, O my soul,

and all that is within me,

bless his holy name.

2 Bless the LORD, O my soul,

and do not forget all his benefits--

3 who forgives all your iniquity,

who heals all your diseases,

4 who redeems your life from the Pit,

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

6 The LORD works vindication

and justice for all who are oppressed.

7 He made known his ways to Moses,

his acts to the people of Israel.

8 The LORD is merciful and gracious,

slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

11 For as the heavens are high above the earth,

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

NEW TESTAMENT:  1 Corinthians 10: 1 - 13   (all but Roman Catholic)

                                     1 Corinthians 10: 1 - 6, 10 - 12   (Roman Catholic)

1Cor 10:1 (NRSV) I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that our ancestors were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, 2 and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, 3 and all ate the same spiritual food, 4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ. 5 Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them, and they were struck down in the wilderness.

6 Now these things occurred as examples for us, so that we might not desire evil as they did. 7 Do not become idolaters as some of them did; as it is written, "The people sat down to eat and drink, and they rose up to play." 8 We must not indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did, and twenty-three thousand fell in a single day. 9 We must not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by serpents. 10 And do not complain as some of them did, and were destroyed by the destroyer. 11 These things happened to them to serve as an example, and they were written down to instruct us, on whom the ends of the ages have come. 12 So if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall. 13 No testing has overtaken you that is not common to everyone. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tested beyond your strength, but with the testing he will also provide the way out so that you may be able to endure it.

h/t Montreal Anglican

Paul warns Christians at Corinth that some of them are not on the path to eternal life: “if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall”! (v. 12) He uses events from the Exodus to illustrate their plight: the Israelites were the Church’s spiritual “ancestors” (v. 1); they too were under God’s protection (“under the cloud”). Stretching the metaphor, they were “baptised” (v. 2) in passing through the Reed (Red) Sea. Their “spiritual food” (v. 3) was manna; ours is the bread of the Eucharist. Their “spiritual drink” (v. 4) was the water from the rock. Now Christ gives to us; back in Moses’ day, the rock gave to them: hence “the rock was Christ”. Further, as the rock was with them, Christ is with us. (A Jewish legend says that the rock “followed them”.) Even so, Paul says, God showed his anger to many of them, by killing them. To him, these events happened (“occurred”, v. 6) and “were written down” (v. 11) so we may avoid evil ways: do not “play” (v. 7), i.e. “indulge in sexual immorality as some of them did” (v. 8); do not test God (by your self-centeredness). When many Israelites tested God (by complaining about the food he provided), they were “destroyed” (vv. 9-10). (Rabbis believed that a special angel, “the destroyer” existed.) We live in the last era (“ages”, v. 11) of human history. The “testing” (v. 13) some Corinthians have failed is what humans normally endure; you could have resisted, for God does not test us beyond what we can bear.

Even those called by God can be condemned for infidelity. This passage is a warning against overconfidence: baptism and partaking in the Lord’s supper do not guarantee salvation, anymore than the corresponding acts sufficed for the ancient Hebrews. [ NOAB]
Verse 1: “under the cloud”: As in Psalm 105:39: “He [ Yahweh] spread a cloud for a covering, and fire to give light by night”.
Verse 1: “cloud”: See Exodus 13:21: “The Lord went in front of them in a pillar of cloud by day, to lead them along the way, and in a pillar of fire by night, to give them light, so that they might travel by day and by night”. [ NOAB]
Verse 1: “sea”: Exodus 14:22 tells us that at the Reed Sea: “The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left”. [ NOAB]
Verse 2: “baptised into Moses”: A purely Christian interpretation. In Galatians 3:27 and Romans 6:3, Paul uses the phrase “baptized into Christ”. [ NJBC]
Comments: Reed (Red) Sea: The words translated “Red Sea” in the Old Testament are yam suph, meaning literally sea of reeds; Hebrew did not distinguish between a sea and a lake.
Verses 3-4: See Exodus 16:4-35; 17:6; Numbers 20:7-11 (Moses strikes the rock at Meribah); Deuteronomy 8:3. [ NOAB]
Verse 4: “the spiritual rock that followed them”: The Jewish legend is based on an interpretation of Numbers 21:17-20: the Hebrew not being too clear, these verses can be read as saying that the rock (and/or the well) accompanied the people of Israel through to Moab. [ NJBC]
Verse 4: “the rock was Christ”: Paul sees the rock as a symbol of Christ, perhaps as the work of the pre-existent Christ. [ NOAB]
Verse 5: “ they were struck down in the wilderness”: God punishes the Israelites in Numbers 14:29-30. There Yahweh tells Moses and Aaron: “‘I will do to you the very things I heard you say: your dead bodies shall fall in this very wilderness; and of all your number, ... from twenty years old and upward, who have complained against me, not one of you shall come into the land in which I swore to settle you, except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun”’. [ NOAB]
Verse 6: “examples”: The Greek word can also be translated by the technical term types.
Verse 7: “Do not become idolaters”: Exodus 32:4 tells of the moulding or engraving of the Golden Calf. the quotation is like Exodus 32:6. [ NOAB] Some Corinthian Christians joined in pagan cult meals: see 8:10 and 10:14-22. [ NJBC]
Verse 7: “rose up to play”: The quotation is like Exodus 32:6: “... the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel”. [ NOAB] One sense found in Jewish tradition is that this refers to indulgence in sexual immorality. [ NJBC]
Verse 8: See Numbers 25:1-9, where the number is 24,000. [ NOAB]
Verse 9: For the revolt of the Israelites against Moses and Aaron, see Numbers 16:13-14, 41-49. [ NOAB] The Israelites also “spoke against God and against Moses” (concerning food) in Numbers 21:4-6; some Israelites were killed by the serpents God sent. [ NJBC]
Verse 10: “the destroyer”: Rabbis believed that there was a special destroying angel, based on Exodus 12:23 (“... the Lord will pass through to strike down the Egyptians ...”); Number 16:41-50; 2 Samuel 24:16 (“... when the angel stretched out his hand toward Jerusalem to destroy it ...”); 1 Chronicles 21:15; Wisdom of Solomon 18:20-25,. [ NJBC]
Verse 11: “example”: As in v. 6, the Greek word is tupoi ( types) [ NJBC]
Verse 11: “the ends of the ages”: The first age (era) was from creation to Christ’s incarnation; the second (and last) is from the incarnation to his second coming. [ JBC]

GOSPEL:   Luke 13: 1 - 9   (all)

Luke 13:1 (NRSV) At that very time there were some present who told him about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. 2 He asked them, "Do you think that because these Galileans suffered in this way they were worse sinners than all other Galileans? 3 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish as they did. 4 Or those eighteen who were killed when the tower of Silo'am fell on them--do you think that they were worse offenders than all the others living in Jerusalem? 5 No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all perish just as they did."

6 Then he told this parable: "A man had a fig tree planted in his vineyard; and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. 7 So he said to the gardener, "See here! For three years I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and still I find none. Cut it down! Why should it be wasting the soil?' 8 He replied, "Sir, let it alone for one more year, until I dig around it and put manure on it. 9 If it bears fruit next year, well and good; but if not, you can cut it down.'"

Jesus has said that he will return to judge humankind at an unexpected time. Those who know of Christ’s coming and use what God gives wisely will be rewarded with God’s abundance. Those who know but do not prepare will be condemned. Those who do not know and behave wantonly will be lightly reprimanded. ( 12:35-48). It was commonly believed that pain and premature death were signs of God’s adverse judgement. Now we read of two events where people died prematurely and unexpectedly: one group (“the Galileans”, v. 1) doing God’s will, killed intentionally as they sacrifice to him in the Temple; the other group (“those eighteen”, v. 4, possibly construction workers) killed accidentally. In both cases, Jesus says, there is no link between early death and sin; however, these deaths do show the fate of those who fail to “repent” (vv. 3, 5), to turn to God.
In the parable (vv. 6-9), Jesus elaborates on his call for repentance. (The fig tree symbolizes some Jews, possibly the religious leaders.) Jesus expects those who hear him to bear fruit (v. 9), to do his will. If they do not do so immediately, God in his mercy gives them some extra time (“one more year”, v. 8) to do so. If they still fail to do so, they will be destroyed. In Matthew 3:10, Jesus speaks of such a tree being “cut down and thrown into the fire”. So the perishing (vv. 3, 5) is spiritual, at the end of the age.

Comments: It was commonly believed that pain and premature death were signs of God’s adverse judgement: In John 9:2-3, Jesus rejects the idea that a man was born blind because of his or his parents’ sinful ways. This belief was common amongst both Jews and Hellenists. [ NOAB]
Verses 1-6: Here suffering represents God’s judgement and is a call to repentance, lest spiritual catastrophe overtake his hearers. [ NOAB]
Verse 1: To me, for Luke to be so indirect as he is in this verse is unusual. I have used the most obvious interpretation in Comments, but BlkLk offers another. The contemporary historian Josephus, in Antiquities of the Jews 18:3:2, says that when Pilate used Temple funds to build an aqueduct into Jerusalem, some Jews opposed it. Pilate then used a ruse to murder some Jews: his soldiers, in civilian dress, mingled with the crowd, and beat them down with clubs they had concealed. The obvious interpretation would be in accord with what is known of Pilate’s character.
Verse 2: “sinners”: The Greek word literally means debtors . [ BlkLk]
Verses 3, 5: In Matthew 5:45, Jesus disconnects natural and moral good and evil. [ NJBC]
Verse 4: “tower of Siloam”: Probably a tower that guarded the aqueduct bringing water to the pool of Siloam, to the south of the north-eastern corner of Jerusalem. [ JBC] See Clipping above on v. 1.
Verses 6-9: See also Matthew 21:18-20 (Jesus curses the empty fig tree); Mark 11:12-14, 20-21. [ NOAB] For an Old Testament antecedent, see Isaiah 5:1-7 (the song of the unfruitful vineyard). In Joel 1:7, the locusts kill God’s fig trees. See also Hosea 9:10. [ JBC]
Verse 6: “fig tree”: One may well ask what a fig tree is doing in a vineyard. Whoever this tree stands for, it doesn’t belong in the vineyard.
Verse 7: “Cut it down”: In Matthew 3:10, Jesus says: “Even now the ax is lying at the root of the trees; every tree therefore that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire”; Matthew 7:19; Luke 3:9. [ NOAB]