22 Vincent, Deacon of Saragossa, and Martyr, 304 was a deacon of the Church of Saragossa. He is the patron saint of Lisbon and Valencia. 

23 Phillips Brooks, Bishop of Massachusetts, 1893

24 Ordination of Florence Li Tim-Oi, First Woman Priest in the Anglican Communion, 1944

25 The Conversion of Saint Paul the Apostle

26 Timothy, Titus, and Silas, Companions of Saint Paul

27 Lydia, Dorcas, and Phoebe, Witnesses to the Faith  was a first-century Christian woman mentioned by the Apostle Paul in his Epistle to the Romans, verses 16:1-2. A notable woman in the church of Cenchreae, she was trusted by Paul to deliver his letter to the Romans

28 Thomas Aquinas, Priest and Friar, 1274  was an Italian^[3][4] Dominican friar, Catholic priest, and Doctor of the Church. He was an immensely influential philosopher, theologian, and jurist in the tradition of scholasticism, within which he is also known as the Doctor Angelicus and the Doctor Communis.^[

29 Andrei Rublev, Monk and Iconographer, 1430

OLD TESTAMENT: Isaiah 9: 1 - 4 (RCL, Roman Catholic)

Isai 9:1 (NRSV) But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zeb'ulun and the land of Naph'tali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.

2 The people who walked in darkness

have seen a great light;

those who lived in a land of deep darkness--

on them light has shined.

3 You have multiplied the nation,

you have increased its joy;

they rejoice before you

as with joy at the harvest,

as people exult when dividing plunder.

4 For the yoke of their burden,

and the bar across their shoulders,

the rod of their oppressor,

you have broken as on the day of Mid'ian.

Note: Verses are numbered differently in Roman Catholic bibles; this is 8:23a, 9:1-3. By the above translation, the Roman Catholic Lectionary omits the second sentence of 9:1.

PSALM 27: 1, 4 - 9   (RCL)

Psalm 27: 1,  4, 13 - 14   (Roman Catholic)

Psal 27:1 (NRSV) The LORD is my light and my salvation;

whom shall I fear?

The LORD is the stronghold of my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?

4 One thing I asked of the LORD,

that will I seek after:

to live in the house of the LORD

all the days of my life,

to behold the beauty of the LORD,

and to inquire in his temple.

5 For he will hide me in his shelter

in the day of trouble;

he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;

he will set me high on a rock.

6 Now my head is lifted up

above my enemies all around me,

and I will offer in his tent

sacrifices with shouts of joy;

I will sing and make melody to the LORD.

7 Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud,

be gracious to me and answer me!

8 "Come," my heart says, "seek his face!"

Your face, LORD, do I seek.

9 Do not hide your face from me.

Do not turn your servant away in anger,

you who have been my help.

Do not cast me off, do not forsake me,

O God of my salvation!

13 I believe that I shall see the goodness of the LORD

in the land of the living.

14 Wait for the LORD;

be strong, and let your heart take courage;

wait for the LORD!

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

27   Dominus illuminatio   (ECUSA BCP)

1               The Lord is my light and my salvation;

whom then shall I fear? *

     the Lord is the strength of my life;

     of whom then shall I be afraid?

5               One thing have I asked of the Lord;

one thing I seek; *

     that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days

                        of my life;

6               To behold the fair beauty of the Lord *

     and to seek him in his temple.

7               For in the day of trouble he shall keep me safe

                        in his shelter; *

     he shall hide me in the secrecy of his dwelling

     and set me high upon a rock.

8               Even now he lifts up my head *

     above my enemies round about me.

9               Therefore I will offer in his dwelling an oblation

with sounds of great gladness; *

     I will sing and make music to the Lord.

10             Hearken to my voice, O Lord, when I call; *

     have mercy on me and answer me.

11             You speak in my heart and say, "Seek my face." *

     Your face, Lord, will I seek.

12             Hide not your face from me, *

     nor turn away your servant in displeasure.

13             You have been my helper;

cast me not away; *

     do not forsake me, O God of my salvation.

NEW TESTAMENT: 1 Corinthians 1: 10 - 18 (RCL)

                                    1 Corinthians 1: 10 - 13, 17 (Roman Catholic)

1Cor 1:10 (NRSV) Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been reported to me by Chlo'e's people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, "I belong to Paul," or "I belong to Apol'los," or "I belong to Ce'phas," or "I belong to Christ." 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Cris'pus and Ga'ius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 (I did baptize also the household of Steph'anas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.

18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

Montreal h/t

Last week we noted Paul’s omission of faith, hope and love for each other as gifts of the Spirit prominent in the Christian community at Corinth. In this reading, we learn of divisions in the church there. Paul appeals for commonality in their thinking about the faith and in their vision for the church. He has heard from “Chloe’s people” ( v. 11), who are either

·  members of, and slaves in, her household, or

·  the church that meets in her home, or

·  those who look to her as leader,

– that their factiousness has reached the level of recrimination (“quarrels”). We do not know what the three (or four) factions believed; perhaps those who “belong to Christ” (v. 12) give allegiance to him without the mediation (and the participation) of the church. (“Cephas” is Peter.)

V. 13 presents three rhetorical questions, to which Paul expects a negative answer (as the Greek shows). The sarcasm is biting! (By “Christ” he means the world-wide church.) To put loyalty to a leader above fidelity to Christ is unacceptable. While Paul probably baptised the first converts in Corinth (“Crispus”, v. 14, “Gaius” and “the household of Stephanas”, v. 16), his prime mission is to teach the faith (v. 17). Claims of belonging to Paul are unfounded. All are baptised in the name of Christ, so all “belong” (v. 12) to him. Paul teaches straight-forwardly, relying on the message, the “power” (v. 17) of the “cross of Christ” (Jesus’ sacrificial death) to convince people – not “eloquent wisdom”, appealing to reason with clever arguments and rhetorical prowess. To those who hear the message and do not accept it and trust in it, it is “foolishness” (v. 18) about a man who died an ignominious death; they “are perishing” both now and when Christ comes again. But to the faithful (“to us who are being saved”) it bespeaks how powerful God is.

Verse 11: “Chloe’s people”: For other female leaders in the Church, see Philippians 4:2-3 (“Euodia” and “Syntyche”), Romans 16:1-2 (“Phoebe”), Acts 16:14 (“Lydia”) and Acts 18:2 (“Priscilla”), 18, 26. [ CAB]
Verse 12: “Apollos”: See also Acts 18:24-19:1. He was an Alexandrian Jew who became a follower of John the Baptist. He was instructed in the faith by Priscilla and Aquila, who are also mentioned in Romans 16:3. He preached in Paul’s absence (see 3:6) and was with Paul at Ephesus when this letter was written (see 16:12). [ NOAB] [ NJBC]
Verse 12: “Cephas”: Cepha’ is a Palestinian Aramaic nickname meaning rock. The Greek rendering of Cepha’ is Cephas . The name Peter is the Greek word for rock, petra. For his nicknaming, see Matthew 16:18 and John 1:42. Paul usually calls him Cephas (see also 3:22; 9:5; 15:5; Galatians 1:18; 2:9, 11, 14) but he also uses the Greek form petros (see Galatians 2:7-8). [ CAB] [ NJBC]
Verse 13: “Christ”: See also 6:15 (Christians are “members of Christ”); 12:12; Galatians 3:16. [ CAB]
Verse 14: “Crispus”: A former official of the synagogue at Corinth: Acts 18:8 tells us that he “became a believer in the Lord, together with all his household”. [ CAB]
Verse 14: “Gaius”: Romans 16:23 speaks of a certain Gaius “who is host to me [Paul] and to the whole church”, indicating that he is a wealthy man whose house was large enough to contain a whole church, made up of a number of smaller house churches. Perhaps this is the same person. [ HBD] 1 Corinthians 16:19 tells us that “Aquila and Prisca” also hosted a “church in their house”. [ NJBC]
Verse 16: “the household of Stephanas”: Paul’s first converts in Achaia (in central Greece), as 16:15 tells us. [ NOAB]
Verse 17: “the cross of Christ”: See also 1:23 (“we proclaim Christ crucified”); 1:29-2:2. [ CAB]
Verse 18: “those who are perishing”: Perhaps Paul is thinking of Isaiah 29:14: “... The wisdom of their wise shall perish ...”. There is still time to turn to Christ: see 5:1-5 (“a man is living with his father's wife”) and 10:12 (“if you think you are standing, watch out that you do not fall”). [ CAB] [ NJBC]

GOSPEL: Matthew 4: 12 - 23   (all)

Matt 4:12 (NRSV) Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Caper'naum by the sea, in the territory of Zeb'ulun and Naph'tali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isai'ah might be fulfilled:

15 "Land of Zeb'ulun, land of Naph'tali,

on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles--

16 the people who sat in darkness

have seen a great light,

and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death

light has dawned."

17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near."

18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea--for they were fishermen. 19 And he said to them, "Follow me, and I will make you fish for people." 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zeb'edee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zeb'edee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him.

23 Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.

Note: Vs. 18-23 are optional for Roman Catholics

Jesus has been tempted by the devil in the wilderness. His responses show his complete dedication to the will and purpose of God. He has refused to use his divine power to his own human ends. Now he withdraws from “Nazareth” (v. 13) to “Capernaum”, so he can begin his mission safe from government interference. (John the Baptist has been arrested. Sepphoris, near Nazareth, was a Roman administrative centre. If the authorities seek to arrest him, he can escape more easily from Capernaum – by boat – than from Nazareth.) Matthew is keen to show Jesus as the fulfilment of Old Testament prophecies: he quotes Isaiah in condensed form (vv. 15-16) to show that Jesus is the future ideal king, the Messiah. (In Isaiah, the “sea” is the Mediterranean; here it is the Sea of Galilee.)
“From that time” (v. 17) marks a milestone: the launch of Jesus’ public ministry. Jesus proclaims: turn back to godly ways, to making God part of your way of thinking, for the completion of God’s plan for all created beings is close! Vv. 18-22 tell of the calling of the first four disciples. (We know “Simon” as “Peter”.) Jesus the teacher invites them to follow him, speaking in their terms (“fish for people”, v. 19) and fulfils Jeremiah 16:16; there the Lord is “sending for many fishermen” to Israel. They give up their trade and “immediately” (v. 20) begin a radically different way of life. Jesus expects, and receives, prompt obedience. He proclaims the “good news” (v. 23) in both word and deed (healing). His ministry is to Jews, but people from “Syria” (v. 24), “the Decapolis” (v. 25, Hellenistic towns) and “beyond the Jordan” also come to him to hear his message.

The parallels are:

Mark      Luke      John

4:12-17 1:14-15 4:14-15

4:18-22 1:16-20 5:1-11   1:35-42 [ NOAB]

Verse 12: “he withdrew to Galilee”: BlkMt says that Jesus was not, in fact, fleeing from danger. Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee and Perea had arrested John the Baptizer in Perea, on the eastern side of the Jordan. When Jesus moved to Galilee, he did so to challenge Herod: he took up in Herod’s territory the work which Herod had tried to stop by arresting John. The interpretation in Comments fits more easily with the text, and more obviously with Matthew.

Verse 13: “Zebulun and Naphtali”: Matthew uses the old names for the regions so he can defend the presence of the Messiah in Galilee rather than in the religious centre, Jerusalem. It is interesting to note that the first provinces to hear of God's salvation were those that were first to be annexed by Assyria (in Old Testament terms, to experience the destroying wrath of God.) [ JBC]

Verses 15-16: Based on the Masoretic Text of Isaiah 9:1-2 (8:23-9:1 in the Hebrew). [ NJBC] However, BlkMt notes that these verses are quoted in a form which reflects features of both the Masoretic Text and the Septuagint translation.

Verse 15: “the road by the sea”: Probably, in the original context, the road from Damascus to the Mediterranean. It was probably the route of the Assyrian invasion: see 2 Kings 15:29. Capernaum was on the northwestern shore of the Lake of Galilee. Here in Matthew, the road from Damascus to the Mediterranean passes the Sea of Galilee. [ BlkMt]

Verse 15: “Galilee of the Gentiles”: By Matthew’s day, this region was at least half Gentile and bilingual (Greek and Aramaic). While Jesus ministers almost entirely to Jews, several such fleeting suggestions forecast that the good news will reach the Gentiles. [ BlkMt]

Verse 16: “shadow”: In Isaiah, the “shadow” is that of Assyrian invasion, but here it is of human sin. [ BlkMt]

Verse 17: “From that time”: This phrase is used only here and in 16:21 (Jesus’ turn towards Jerusalem). [ NOAB]

Verse 17: “kingdom of heaven”: This is Matthew’s usual way of speaking of the kingdom of God. He avoids Jewish sensibilities of using God’s name.

Verse 17: “the kingdom of heaven has come near”: This is derived from Daniel 7:13-14. It is the final salvation of all humanity socially, politically and spiritually, through the exercise of the sovereignty of God, establishing justice and peace on earth as well as in heaven: see 6:33 and Romans 14:17. For Christians, the Kingdom hope includes faith in Christ as end-time saviour. Jesus takes up the message of John (in 3:2). [ BlkMt]

Verses 18,21: “Peter ... Andrew his brother ... two other brothers”: The two pairs of brothers were the first and foremost of the Twelve; from their number was drawn the inner circle, Peter, James and John. See also Acts 3:1-11. James was the first of the Twelve to be martyred: see Acts 12:2. [ BlkMt]

Verse 18: “Simon, who is called Peter”: By Matthew’s time he was known as Peter, but early in Jesus’ public ministry he was not yet nicknamed.

Verse 18: “Andrew”: Originally a follower of John the Baptist: see John 1:35-41.

Verse 19: Jeremiah 16:16 says, in part, “I am now sending for many fishermen, says the Lord, and they shall catch them [the people of Israel]”. [ NJBC]

Verse 20: “left their nets”: They had been wading out from the shore, throwing a casting net, and encircling the fish. Now they leave their business and means of livelihood to follow Jesus wherever he takes them, to learn his message. and to help in any way they are able. [ BlkMt]

Verse 21: “James ... and ... John”: Both are prominent in lists of the Twelve: see Mark 3:16-18; Matthew 10:2-4; Luke 6:13-16; Acts 1:13.

Verse 21: “mending their nets”: James and John had pulled their boat up on to the beach, and were mending their nets for the next fishing trip. [ BlkMt]

Verse 23: Comments: in both word and deed: Matthew depicts Jesus as the minister of the word in Chapters 5-7 and of the deed in Chapters 8-9. Healing is a foretaste of the Kingdom. [ NJBC]

Verse 23: “the good news of the kingdom”: This phrase is unique to Matthew. He also uses it in 9:35 and 24:14. [ NJBC]

Verse 25: “the Decapolis”: A federation of ten cities of Hellenistic culture, nine of them east of the Sea of Galilee and the Jordan River. They were Damascus, Philadelphia, Raphana, Scythopolis, Gadera, Hippos, Dion, Gerasa, and Canatha. [ HBD]