Sunday August 25 Pentecost 14
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Psalm 146
Joy in God’s victorious justice for the oppressed, the blind, the strangers and the orphans—that justice for all is built into God’s magnificent creation. Appropriate for a Sunday, which is the anniversary of the resurrection—God’s victory over all evil.
Psalm 147
God’s wondrous creation and God’s commitment to justice are intertwined. Other cultures are not aware of this. What a helpful insight in our day!
Job 4.1-6, 12-21 What’s Job about?
The first friend, Eliphaz, points out the inconsistency that Job has been so good at helping other people in difficulties, but loses hope when troubles come to him. Eliphaz explains that the reason for Job’s disaster is that no human can be completely good, so humans, being imperfect, can’t help bringing disaster on themselves. Eliphaz quakes at the horror of this discovery because it means there is ultimately no hope for humanity.
Mark 6.1-6a What’s Mark about?
For the last several chapters in Mark, Jesus has been telling parables about the coming of the kingdom, and has been enacting that kingdom in healings, feedings, and calming a storm. But when he comes to his home town he is rejected for being an ordinary person and he cannot do many miracles there. Shortly things will get much worse as opposition grows: his cousin, John the Baptist, will be executed. Mark is beginning his account of how opposition grows to Jesus and the kingdom.
This week’s collect:
Almighty God,
we are taught by your word
that all our doings without love are worth nothing.
Send your Holy Spirit and pour into our hearts
that most excellent gift of love,
the true bond of peace and of all virtue;
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
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