June 18, 2023
Third Sunday after Pentecost – year A – Byron Tindall
Happy Fathers’ Day. Fathers’ Day in 1979 was June 17. On that day, The Rt. Rev. Ned Cole ordained me to the priesthood in Trinity Episcopal Church in Boonville, New York. That was 44 years ago for those who can’t do the math in their heads.
This Gospel lesson for today from the Gospel According to St. Matthew comes about midway in Jesus’s ministry, as evidenced by chapter 10, verses 5 through 7.
These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: “Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, proclaim the good news, ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’”
Similar commands to the 12 closest followers of Jesus are recorded at Mark 1:15, when Jesus sent them forth telling them what to do, “and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.’” Luke 9:2 records Jesus’s actions, “and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal….”
Who were “the lost sheep of the house of Israel”? Upon close reading of the synoptic gospels, it is evident that Jesus did a lot of work among these lost sheep. Apparently, Jesus cared deeply for them.
Writing in Volume Seven of The Interpreters’ Bible,
June 11, 2023
Second Sunday after Pentecost A – Bill Harkins
Matthew 9:9-13, 18-26
9:9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. 9:10 And as he sat at dinner in the house, many tax collectors and sinners came and were sitting with him and his disciples. 9:11 When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” 9:12 But when he heard this, he said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 9:13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, not sacrifice.’ For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.” 9:18 While he was saying these things to them, suddenly a leader of the synagogue came in and knelt before him, saying, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.” 9:19 And Jesus got up and followed him, with his disciples. 9:20 Then suddenly a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak,
9:21 for she said to herself, “If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.”
9:22 Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, “Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.”
June 4, 2023
Trinity Sunday A – Bill Harkins
The Collect of the Day
Almighty and everlasting God, you have given to us your servants grace, by the confession of a true faith, to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity, and in the power of your divine Majesty to worship the Unity: Keep us steadfast in this faith and worship, and bring us at last to see you in your one and eternal glory, O Father; who with the Son and the Holy Spirit live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
The Gospel: Matthew 28:16-20
The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
In the Name of the God of Creation who loves us all…Amen. Good morning, friends, and welcome to Holy Family on this First Sunday after Pentecost. If you are visiting today, please let us know, and regardless, we are so very glad you are here.
May 28, 2023
Pentecost A – George Yandell
Jesus had a predictable habit. In his daily walks, talks, and teachings, anytime he met new people, particularly those in distress, he engaged them where they were. He didn’t ask them about their faith, or question their belief, he simply asked about the circumstances of their lives. His empathy was his calling card. He was a canny observer of the behaviors, manners and speech of those around him. Often the questions he asked about the life-situations of those he met cut to the core of their beings, agitated them, and opened them to change. But only after he’d gotten to know them.
Since ancient times, after Yahweh gave the law to Moses, the Jews all over the Mediterranean region and beyond observed a major religious festival 50 days after Passover, on a Sunday in spring. City-dwelling Jews who lived outside Israel after Alexander’s conquests spoke Greek as their common language, in addition to the regional languages they grew up with. Some might also have known some Hebrew, as well as some Aramaic, the everyday language of Jews in Jerusalem and Judea. In Greek, the name for the spring festival was Pentecost, meaning simply “50 days”: 50 days after Passover. In Hebrew it was called ‘the festival of weeks’, when the first-fruits of the corn harvest were presented. This great feast also recalled how Yahweh gave the law in covenant to the people Yahweh had chosen to serve the Lord.
On that Sunday in 30 a.d.,