The 14th Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 18B), Sept. 10, 2006

BCP: Isaiah 35:4-7a; Psalm 146 or 146:4-9; James 1:17-27; Mark 7:31-37

RCL: Prov. 22:1-2, 8-9, 22-23 or Isaiah 35:4-7a; Psalm 125 or Psalm 146; James 2:1-10, (11-13), 14-17; Mark 7:24-37

The world can seem to be a dark and threatening place, but faith brings hope. Isaiah prophesies about the time when God will come to save, and deliverance for humanity will be known in many ways. The blind will see, the deaf will hear, the lame will leap like a deer, the speechless will sing for joy. God’s glory will be known in all parts of the creation: “Waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert” (Isaiah 35:6). God’s coming means new life and hope — like water in the desert, like sight for the blind. Psalm 146 also promises that happiness is found in the Lord “who keeps his promise for ever” (vs. 5). God’s reign is a peaceable kingdom where the hungry are fed, prisoners are freed, and the humiliated or needy are lifted up by divine love.

This kingdom of God’s love is already seen in Jesus, even if it is not yet fulfilled in our world. Jesus heals the little daughter of the Gentile woman, after she challenges him to reach beyond the needs of his own people to cast the demon out of her daughter. He also heals the deaf man who had an impediment in his speech. Through Jesus’ presence and ministry, the sick and the hopeless find new life. The kingdom of God draws near to all kinds of people, including those we might not expect.

Our hope for the peaceable kingdom has everything to do with how we live today. Distinctions of partiality are obstructions that come between us and God’s kingdom. If we pray “thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven,” we must not give ourselves to prejudices and judgments that contradict the community of divine love that we hope to share. The Letter of James sharply challenges those who honor the rich in church while dishonoring the poor. Such favoritism opposes our faith in God, who has chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith (James 2:5). If we pray the Lord’s Prayer, we will find ourselves called to stand with some unlikely brothers and sisters who pray to the same Father in heaven. The community of love we seek is a place of welcome for all kinds of people — rich and poor, old and young, strong and weak.

Look It Up

See the last collect at the liturgy for Good Friday (BCP, p. 280), which asks God to “look favorably on your whole Church, that wonderful and sacred mystery,” so that the whole world may “see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection” by Christ.

Think About It

Do some visitors or newcomers receive a better welcome than others in your church? Are there obstacles that prevent some people from joining your church?

Next Sunday

The 15th Sunday After Pentecost (Proper 19B), Sept. 17, 2006

BCP: Isaiah 50:4-9; Psalm 116 or 116:1-8; James 2:1-5, 8-10, 14-18; Mark 8:27-38 or Mark 9:14-29.

RCL: Prov. 1:20-33 or Isaiah 50:4-9a; Psalm 19 (opt. with Wisdom of Solomon 7:26-8:1) or Psalm 116:1-8; James 3:1-12, Mark 8:27-38