Abstract
There are twenty-four passages suggested for the four Sundays of this month. As always, it is fascinating and challenging to attempt to discover reasons behind the choice of lessons. Sometimes, of course, the selection is in part dictated by the time of year, but autumn is not in that category. So the compilers of the Lectionary have no parameters to constrain their scholarly imaginations and spiritual insights.
The most evidently related passages are those from Exodus, which tell the story of that great escape with power and economy. In addition there are four selections from St Matthew’s Gospel, three from the letter to the Romans, and no fewer than eight citations from the Psalms. Five single sections from Genesis, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Jonah and Philippians complete the tally.
The Psalter selections perhaps connect with the Exodus narrative most directly. Ps.105 sings of God’s goodness to His people, and, in fact, in its second half, deals explicitly with the Exodus, its miraculous episodes and its final arrival at security and sufficiency. Ps.26 might well be taken as a gloss on the call and the response of Moses, hesitant and full of questions, but ultimately obedient. ‘Your faithfulness always leads me.’ Ps.149 is a hymn of praise for victory; and the verses from Ps.119 could be understood as a plea to understand the practices of Passover and the commandments of Judaism – ‘Explain your law to me, and I will obey it.’
Ps.114 “The Red Sea looked and ran away” is readily linked with Israel’s safe passage through that formidable barrier, and verses from Ps.103 provide another chorus of wondering praise. Finally, Ps.105 again evokes the miraculous journey to liberty, and Ps.145 rejoices in God’s faithfulness, and urges all creation to join in the anthem.
Similarly it is possible to connect the Gospel sections with the events of the Exodus. God’s summons to Moses, a call to abandon security and risk all, has parallels with Jesus’ invitation to find life by losing it. The communal activity required at Passover may be related to the dominical teaching that when two human beings agree in praying for something, it will be done. We may see in the unforgiving servant a glimpse of the Egyptian society that oppressed Israel and saw no wrong in doing so; and the labourers in the vineyard may, in their varied responses to their duties, and to one another, be regarded as a commentary on the inevitable contrasts and conflicts among Moses’ flock of refugees. The impact on Moses of the multiple stresses of leadership may well have been periods of frustration and anger, and perhaps account for the citation of verses from Jonah describing his anger at God’s endless patience with the people of Nineveh. My insufficient scholarship and unadventurous imagination will carry me no farther in these attempts to understand the juxtapositions of the Lectionary; but readers may be led in fresh directions, to the enrichment of their understanding and communication of the faith.
A Prayer For Each Sunday
1. Almighty God, whatever I am doing, however I am serving, help me to be open to new ways of obedience. Change is never easy, change especially from what is worthy and enjoyable to what is untried and demanding. Help me to listen for your guidance. Allow me, like your servant Moses, to argue and protest; but let your will be done; and help me to find, in any new responsibility, both challenge and satisfaction. Examine me and test me, Lord; judge my desires and thoughts. Your constant love is my guide; your faithfulness always leads me.
2. Gracious God, I give my thanks for the organisation and shared activity of the Church; for the rituals and familiarities of public worship; for the fellowship of a prayer meeting or a Bible study group; for the strengths of tradition. As Moses and his followers found strength and comfort in the Passover, may we be lifted and encouraged by the Holy Sacrament. Teach me, O Lord, the meaning of your laws, and I will obey them at all times. Keep me obedient to your commandments, for in them I find happiness.
3. O God, the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, Your people Israel have had repeated and bitter experience of injustice and oppression from more powerful neighbours, sometimes, alas, from people claiming to be Christian. Help us, who have been much forgiven, to be caring and considerate in our relationships with them, and with all our fellows in this ever changing world, and continue to forgive our many lapses. As kind as a father is to his children, so kind is the Lord to those who honour Him. He knows what we are made of. He remembers that we are dust.
4. O caring God, as you provided for your people in the wilderness with manna and quails, so you provide for your people all across the world in a rich variety of ways. Help us to be faithful labourers in the vineyard, in whatever role you have allotted, conscientious in our duties, and slow to criticise our neighbour. And help us never to take for granted the incredible bounty you have built into nature. I will proclaim your greatness, my God and King; I will thank you for ever and ever. Every day I will thank you; I will praise you for ever and ever.