Break Open the Word

The Feast of the Holy Trinity, 31 May 2015 Isaiah 6:1-8 Psalm 29, or Canticle 2 or 13 Romans 8:12-17 St. John 3:1-17 Background: Luther’s Sanctus The first reading for this day takes me back to my days as Vicar (Intern) at The Evangelical Lutheran Church of Saint Luke in Chicago during the early seventies. There was a parochial school there and on Wednesdays, there was a Eucharistic celebration for the students, faculty and staff. Often times we would sing Luther’s Sanctus from Deutsche Messe, the hymn Isaiah Mighty Seer in Days of Old. The text for the hymn is drawn from Isaiah 6, and it was marvelous to hear 300 treble voices trilling, “holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth, holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth, holy is God the Lord of Sabaoth, behold his glory filleth all the earth.” And indeed it was so, given from the mouths of these children. The hymn does not appear in Episcopal hymnal; else I would have been tempted to use it on this Sunday. Isaiah 6:1-8 In ...

The Day of Pentecost - Whitsunday, 24 May 2015 Acts 2:1-21 or Ezekiel 37:1-14 Psalm 104:25-35,37 Romans 8:22-27 or Acts 2:1-21 St. John 15:26-27; 16:4b-15 Background: Petra and Pentecost I have always wanted to go to see Petra, and after seeing Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, I was definitely hooked. The buildings there (if you can call them that) are magnificent, but there are other aspects to this site that cause wonder and amazement. The nature of the place, think Bryce Canyon, causes its own sense of wonder, and the approach is utterly magical. That is not, however, what is moving me to write about Petra here, in this commentary on the readings for the Day of Pentecost. As you enter the Suq that leads to Petra proper you are tantalized with a few tidbits, some of which are weatherworn inscriptions. Other carvings are devoted to Nabatean deities, and still others comment on the stream of humanity that wandered through this desolate but stunningly beautif...