Day 1 (Monday)

3 Kingdoms (1 Kings) 19:1-21 (Elijah Flees from Jezebel)

Last time we saw Elijah confront Ahab and the prophets of Baal on Mt. Carmel, and challenge them to see whose god was true. He prepared one sacrifice, and they prepared another, and both called on their god to send fire from heaven. The prophets of Baal tried all morning and into the afternoon, but there was no fire. Elijah prayed once, and Yahweh immediately sent fire from heaven. The people who were assembled confessed that Yahweh was the true God, and the prophets of Baal were killed. It looked like a great victory had been won, and the people would return to the Lord. What we’ll see this time, however, is that it ended up very different from how Elijah hoped it would go.

Elijah Flees from Jezebel

19 Ahab told Jez′ebel all that Eli′jah had done, and how he had slain all the prophets with the sword. 2 Then Jez′ebel sent a messenger to Eli′jah, saying, “So may the gods do to me and more also, if I do not make your life as the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.” 3 Then he was afraid, and he arose and went for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there.

4 But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a broom tree; and he asked that he might die, saying, “It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life; for I am no better than my fathers.” 5 And he lay down and slept under a broom tree; and behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, “Arise and eat.”

6 And he looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on hot stones and a jar of water. And he ate and drank, and lay down again. 7 And the angel of the Lord came again a second time, and touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, else the journey will be too great for you.” 8 And he arose, and ate and drank, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God.

Elijah Meets God at Horeb

9 And there he came to a cave, and lodged there; and behold, the Word of the Lord came to him, and He said to him, “What are you doing here, Eli′jah?” 10 He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”

11 And he said, “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; 12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.

13 And when Eli′jah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him, and said, “What are you doing here, Eli′jah?” 14 He said, “I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the people of Israel have forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thy altars, and slain thy prophets with the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away.”

15 And the Lord said to him, “Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; and when you arrive, you shall anoint Haz′ael to be king over Syria; 16 and Jehu the son of Nimshi you shall anoint to be king over Israel; and Eli′sha the son of Shaphat of A′bel-meho′lah you shall anoint to be prophet in your place. 17 And him who escapes from the sword of Haz′ael shall Jehu slay; and him who escapes from the sword of Jehu shall Eli′sha slay. 18 Yet I will leave seven thousand in Israel, all the knees that have not bowed to Ba′al, and every mouth that has not kissed him.”

Elisha Becomes Elijah’s Disciple

19 So he departed from there, and found Eli′sha the son of Shaphat, who was plowing, with twelve yoke of oxen before him, and he was with the twelfth. Eli′jah passed by him and cast his mantle upon him. 20 And he left the oxen, and ran after Eli′jah, and said, “Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.” And he said to him, “Go back again; for what have I done to you?” 21 And he returned from following him, and took the yoke of oxen, and slew them, and boiled their flesh with the yokes of the oxen, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he arose and went after Eli′jah, and ministered to him.

767 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that Elijah was having a hard time in this chapter; perhaps he thought the victory on Mt. Carmel would change things, but it didn’t seem to change anything, and he was all alone, with Jezebel’s soldiers chasing him to kill him. What he learned in the wilderness was that he wasn’t alone, that God would bring justice to Jezebel, and that there were in fact many people in Israel who were faithful to God as well. Elijah had thought he was going to win a final victory, but what he learned was that the victory was God’s, and he only had to fulfill his part and be faithful, and others would be raised up to continue the work. This is a good lesson for all of us; we don’t need to fix the world, we just need to be faithful to God, and leave the end result in God’s hands. A couple other points; we see both the Angel of the Lord and the Word of the Lord spoken of here…both of these are Jesus Christ Himself, present and encouraging Elijah prior to His Incarnation, preparing the ground for His own coming into the world in the flesh several centuries later.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Letter of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians – 3

Last time we saw St. Ignatius urge the Christians in Ephesus to be careful to preserve their unity with their bishop, and to make sure not to abandon the gatherings of the Church to celebrate the Eucharist. We got some hints about what sort of problems the Church in Ephesus was experiencing, and in this coming passage, we will see still more, about false teachers who were there disrupting the unity of the Church and stirring up disagreements against the bishop and the Gospel.

Warnings about Teachers of Error

For there are some who are accustomed to carrying about the Name maliciously and deceitfully while doing other things unworthy of God. You must avoid them as wild beasts. For they are mad dogs that bite by stealth; you must be on your guard against them, for their bite is hard to heal. There is only one physician, who is both flesh and spirit, born and unborn, God in man, true life in death, both from Mary and from God, first subject to suffering and then beyond it, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Therefore let no one deceive you, just as you are not now deceived, seeing that you belong entirely to God. For when no dissension capable of tormenting you is established among you, then you indeed live God’s way. I am a humble sacrifice for you and I dedicate myself to you Ephesians, a church that is famous forever. Those who belong to the flesh cannot do spiritual things, nor can those who are spiritual do fleshly things, just as faith cannot do the things of unfaithfulness, nor unfaithfulness the things of faith. Moreover, even those things that you do according to the flesh are in fact spiritual, for you do everything in Jesus Christ.

But I have learned that certain people from elsewhere have passed your way with evil doctrine, but you did not allow them to sow it among you. You covered up your ears in order to avoid receiving the things being sown by them, because you are stones of a temple, prepared beforehand for the building of God the Father, hoisted up to the heights by the crane of Jesus Christ, which is the cross, using as a rope the Holy Spirit; your faith is what lifts you up, and love is the way that leads up to God. So you are all participants together in a shared worship, God-bearers and temple-bearers, Christ-bearers, bearers of holy things, adorned in every respect with the commandments of Jesus Christ. I too celebrate with you, since I have been judged worthy to speak with you through this letter, and to rejoice with you because you love nothing in human life, only God.

369 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that Ignatius is warning the Christians in Ephesus about a real danger, people who claim to be teaching about God, but are in fact wrong. The language he uses about them is strong: “mad dogs, whose bite is hard to heal.” The point is that, both then, and now, there are many people who claim to be preaching the truth about Jesus Christ, and many of the things they say will seem true, and right, and reasonable…or at least very appealing to us. But if they contradict the Faith we have received, we have to reject them, and hold fast to the Faith the Lord delivered to the Apostles, and take time to learn the truth about what we have heard. He is, in short, making a strong argument for Orthodoxy, the right and correct way of thinking and living and being, and for the dangers of being led astray by teaching that is not Orthodox. Besides this, if no one else has commented on it, the leader should make sure to make note of the metaphor of the building, with the Cross as the construction crane of Jesus Christ. It’s an unusual, but vivid, and beautiful image.)

2) What do we learn about God in this reading?

3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

Day 3 (Friday)

Luke 11:45-54; 12:1-12 (Jesus Denounces Pharisees & Lawyers, Warning against Hypocrisy, Exhortation to Fearless Confession)

Last time, we saw the Lord preaching to the people on His way to Jerusalem, speaking about the sign of Jonah, a prophecy of His Resurrection, and urging His disciples to walk in the light. He also began to denounce the Pharisees for their hypocrisy, teaching others to do things that they did not do themselves. In what follows, we will see Him continue to speak of the consequence of the faithlessness of the teachers of the Law, and to warn His disciples not to imitate them.

Jesus Denounces Pharisees & Lawyers continued

45 One of the lawyers answered him, “Teacher, in saying this you reproach us also.” 46 And he said, “Woe to you lawyers also! for you load men with burdens hard to bear, and you yourselves do not touch the burdens with one of your fingers. 47 Woe to you! for you build the tombs of the prophets whom your fathers killed. 48 So you are witnesses and consent to the deeds of your fathers; for they killed them, and you build their tombs.”

49 “Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute,’ 50 that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be required of this generation, 51 from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechari′ah, who perished between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, I tell you, it shall be required of this generation. 52 Woe to you lawyers! for you have taken away the key of knowledge; you did not enter yourselves, and you hindered those who were entering.”

53 As he went away from there, the scribes and the Pharisees began to press him hard, and to provoke him to speak of many things, 54 lying in wait for him, to catch at something he might say.

A Warning against Hypocrisy

12 In the meantime, when so many thousands of the multitude had gathered together that they trod upon one another, he began to say to his disciples first, “Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy. 2 Nothing is covered up that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 3 Whatever you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed upon the housetops.

Exhortation to Fearless Confession

4 “I tell you, my friends, do not fear those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. 5 But I will warn you whom to fear: fear him who, after he has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear him! 6 Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? And not one of them is forgotten before God. 7 Why, even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not; you are of more value than many sparrows.

8 “And I tell you, every one who acknowledges me before men, the Son of man also will acknowledge before the angels of God; 9 but he who denies me before men will be denied before the angels of God. 10 And every one who speaks a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but he who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven. 11 And when they bring you before the synagogues and the rulers and the authorities, do not be anxious how or what you are to answer or what you are to say; 12 for the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say.”

Reading 27
530 words

Discussion Questions

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out that Jesus is really making two essential points in this passage. First, He is continuing to speak to the leaders of the people in particular, calling them to account for their arrogance and faithlessness, fixating on particular elements of the Torah but neglecting the core point of communion with God, in continuation from what He was saying to the Pharisees last time. Second, He is first telling His disciples not to worry about what other people think, since that is the source of hypocrisy and self-righteousness, but that they should focus on what is pleasing to God, who knows everything, and that they only need to be faithful to Him. And to all of them, when He speaks of how those who blaspheme against the Son of man will be forgiven, but those who blaspheme against the Holy Spirit will not, He is saying that, for all that this warning to them is true and real, this is not in fact their last chance; they will be forgiven for rejecting Him (as He will pray to the Father from up on the Cross that those who crucify Him will be forgiven)…but when the Holy Spirit comes, then that will in fact be the last chance for the religious leaders and for the people of God as they have been up to that point. Those who reject Him then, and refuse the offer of forgiveness from the Holy Spirit in the first decades of the Church after Pentecost, will finally come to destruction and judgment, as we see actually happened in A.D. 70 with the destruction of Jerusalem.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 1 (Monday)

3 Kingdoms (1 Kings) 18:1-47 (Elijah at Mount Carmel)

Last time, we saw Elijah sent by God to Ahab, to proclaim a drought, making an open show of the weakness of Baal, the false god Ahab had begun to worship. During the years of this drought, Elijah was sheltered in the home of a widow, where the Lord sustained them miraculously despite the famine and drought, and where Elijah raised the widow’s son from the dead, and then, after at least two years, God sent Elijah back to Ahab, as the time of warning and instruction was coming to an end, and a day of judgment and decision was arriving. This time, we will see what that day of judgment looks like for Ahab and those who have led Israel into evil with him.

Elijah’s Triumph over the Priests of Baal

20 So Ahab sent to all the people of Israel, and gathered the prophets together at Mount Carmel. 21 And Eli′jah came near to all the people, and said, “How long will you go limping with two different opinions? If the Lord is God, follow him; but if Ba′al, then follow him.” And the people did not answer him a word. 22 Then Eli′jah said to the people, “I, even I only, am left a prophet of the Lord; but Ba′al’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men.”

23 “Let two bulls be given to us; and let them choose one bull for themselves, and cut it in pieces and lay it on the wood, but put no fire to it; and I will prepare the other bull and lay it on the wood, and put no fire to it. 24 And you call on the name of your god and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, he is God.” And all the people answered, “It is well spoken.”

25 Then Eli′jah said to the prophets of Ba′al, “Choose for yourselves one bull and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire to it.” 26 And they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Ba′al from morning until noon, saying, “O Ba′al, answer us!” But there was no voice, and no one answered. And they limped about the altar which they had made.

27 And at noon Eli′jah mocked them, saying, “Cry aloud, for he is a god; either he is musing, or he has gone aside, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep and must be awakened.” 28 And they cried aloud, and cut themselves after their custom with swords and lances, until the blood gushed out upon them. 29 And as midday passed, they raved on until the time of the offering of the oblation, but there was no voice; no one answered, no one heeded.

30 Then Eli′jah said to all the people, “Come near to me”; and all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down; 31 Eli′jah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name”; 32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed.

33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” 34 And he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time”; and they did it a third time. 35 And the water ran round about the altar, and filled the trench also with water.

36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Eli′jah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. 37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that thou, O Lord, art God, and that thou hast turned their hearts back.”

38 Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” 40 And Eli′jah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Ba′al; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them; and Eli′jah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and killed them there.

The Drought Ends

41 And Eli′jah said to Ahab, “Go up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of the rushing of rain.” 42 So Ahab went up to eat and to drink. And Eli′jah went up to the top of Carmel; and he bowed himself down upon the earth, and put his face between his knees. 43 And he said to his servant, “Go up now, look toward the sea.” And he went up and looked, and said, “There is nothing.” And he said, “Go again seven times.”

44 And at the seventh time he said, “Behold, a little cloud like a man’s hand is rising out of the sea.” And he said, “Go up, say to Ahab, ‘Prepare your chariot and go down, lest the rain stop you.’” 45 And in a little while the heavens grew black with clouds and wind, and there was a great rain. And Ahab rode and went to Jezre′el. 46 And the hand of the Lord was on Eli′jah; and he girded up his loins and ran before Ahab to the entrance of Jezre′el.

918 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (There is a lot going on in this reading. There is a subtext, though, that needs to be teased out. Baal is not a false god, in the sense of a made-up and imaginary god, but a false god in the sense that he is a fallen angel, who rebelled against God. He is trying to fight against God in the one way that matters; he is trying to take God’s chosen people away, to enlist them as allies in his rebellion, and ultimately to destroy them. Everything that happens here, then, needs to be seen in that light. God sends Elijah immediately to call the Israelites back to Him; he talks to the king at first, but now he is talking to all the people. Everything that Elijah does shows the weakness of Baal and the power and love of Yahweh, the Lord. And after the fire comes down, when Elijah kills all the priest and prophets of Baal, it is precisely as an exorcism, a destruction of those who are leading Israel into destruction. For anyone in Israel who is paying attention at all, it is crystal clear that Yahweh is real, that He has not forgotten His people, and that He remains faithful to them, and calls them to be faithful to Him. This is God’s response when Israel begins to reject Him; He comes and calls them back, but does not force them back.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Letter of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians – 2

Last time we began to read the letter of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians. He wrote this letter from Smyrna, where he had been visited by a delegation from the Church in Ephesus, led by the bishop of Ephesus, Onesimus. He began his letter by congratulating the church in Ephesus on what a pious and faithful bishop they had, and continues here by urging them to obey him, to remain in active communion with their bishop.

Obedience to the Bishop

I am not commanding you, as though I were someone important. For even though I am in chains for the sake of the Name, I have not yet been perfected in Jesus Christ. For now I am only beginning to be a disciple, and I speak to you as my fellow students. For I need to be trained by you in faith, instruction, endurance, and patience.

But since love does not allow me to be silent concerning you, I have therefore taken the initiative to encourage you, so that you may run together in harmony with the mind of God. For Jesus Christ, our inseparable life, is the mind of the Father, just as the bishops appointed throughout the world are in the mind of Christ.

Thus it is proper for you to run together in harmony with the mind of the bishop, as you are in fact doing. For your council of presbyters, which is worthy of its name and worthy of God, is attuned to the bishop as strings to a lyre. Therefore in your unanimity and harmonious love Jesus Christ is sung.

You must join this chorus, every one of you, so that by being harmonious in unanimity and taking your pitch from God you may sing in unison with one voice through Jesus Christ to the Father, in order that he may both hear you and, on the basis of what you do well, acknowledge that you are members of his Son. It is, therefore, advantageous for you to be in perfect unity, in order that you may always had a share in God.

For if I in a short time experienced such fellowship with your bishop, which was not merely human but spiritual, how much more do I congratulate you who are united with him, as the church is with Jesus Christ and as Jesus Christ is with the Father, so that all things may be harmonious in unity. Let no one be misled: if anyone is not within the sanctuary, he lacks the bread of God.

For if the prayer of one or two has such power, how much more that of the bishop together with the whole church! Therefore whoever does not meet with the congregation thereby demonstrates his arrogance and has separated himself, for it is written: “God opposes the arrogant.” Let us, therefore, be careful not to oppose the bishop, in order that we may be obedient to God.

Furthermore, the more anyone observes that the bishop is silent, the more one should fear him. For everyone whom the Master of the house sends to manage his own house we must welcome as we would the one who sent him. It is obvious, therefore, that we must regard the bishop as the Lord himself. Now Onesimus himself highly praises your orderly conduct in God, reporting that you all live in accordance with the truth and that no heresy has found a home among you. Indeed, you do not so much as listen to anyone unless he speaks truthfully about Jesus Christ.

514 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that Ignatius sees the active Communion of the Saints, each Christian’s participation in the communal and sacramental life of the Church, as the most important thing for a Christian to do…and that he sees it as impossible to do this without living in obedience to the bishop. He makes a few arguments to support this. The latter one is simply that the bishop is the direct representative of Christ, and that therefore, we need to treat the bishop like we would treat Christ Himself. The former is that the Church is called to operate like a musical chorus, and that a musical chorus requires a director, and the bishop is that director; so it is impossible for the Church to do and be what it is called to do and be unless everyone is in perfect harmony with the bishop. It is important to note, as well, that Ignatius doesn’t make this argument on the basis of his own authority…he speaks humbly, as one still learning, but also with certainty, as one describing something that is universally known to all. This reflects, then, a truth that was clearly established even at this early date, but also a struggle and challenge that has existed in the Church from the beginning.)

2) What do we learn about God in this reading?

3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

Day 3 (Friday)

Luke 11:29-44 (Sign of Jonah, Light of the Body)

Last time we saw Jesus teach His disciples to pray, and show them that He had the power over demons and evil spirits that only God Himself could have. This time He will begin to speak in a clear judgment of the people of the day, both the people at large, and especially those with power and authority. Things are beginning to move toward His Passion and death in Jerusalem.

The Sign of Jonah

29 When the crowds were increasing, he began to say, “This generation is an evil generation; it seeks a sign, but no sign shall be given to it except the sign of Jonah. 30 For as Jonah became a sign to the men of Nin′eveh, so will the Son of man be to this generation. 31 The queen of the South will arise at the judgment with the men of this generation and condemn them; for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here. 32 The men of Nin′eveh will arise at the judgment with this generation and condemn it; for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.

The Light of the Body

33 “No one after lighting a lamp puts it in a cellar or under a bushel, but on a stand, that those who enter may see the light. 34 Your eye is the lamp of your body; when your eye is sound, your whole body is full of light; but when it is not sound, your body is full of darkness. 35 Therefore be careful lest the light in you be darkness. 36 If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, it will be wholly bright, as when a lamp with its rays gives you light.”

Jesus Denounces Pharisees and Lawyers

37 While he was speaking, a Pharisee asked him to dine with him; so he went in and sat at table. 38 The Pharisee was astonished to see that he did not first wash before dinner. 39 And the Lord said to him, “Now you Pharisees cleanse the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside you are full of extortion and wickedness. 40 You fools! Did not he who made the outside make the inside also? 41 But give for alms those things which are within; and behold, everything is clean for you.

42 “But woe to you Pharisees! for you tithe mint and rue and every herb, and neglect justice and the love of God; these you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. 43 Woe to you Pharisees! for you love the best seat in the synagogues and salutations in the market places. 44 Woe to you! for you are like graves which are not seen, and men walk over them without knowing it.”

Reading 26
417 words

Discussion Questions

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out that the way that Jesus is speaking makes clear that something has changed. There were hints as He was sending out the 12 and the 70 in the last few chapters that the preaching of the Gospel was a moment of crisis, presenting everyone who heard with a choice of whether to receive Him or reject Him. Now, He is speaking directly to both the people and to their religious leaders, making clear that this is the last chance before judgment will come. Reading this together with the Old Testament, we see that God has been patient with His people since He first revealed Himself to them on Mt. Sinai, but with the approach of His Passion, the opportunity for them to repent and avoid disaster is coming to an end. Ultimately, the disaster comes some 40 years after the Crucifixion, when the Temple is destroyed after a Jewish rebellion against the Romans. Those who embrace the Lord are saved, and the Church survives and thrives. But for those who reject Him (especially the Sadducees), the destruction of the Temple abolishes their faithless authority over the people, and their time comes to an end.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life? (This reading should make us think long and hard about ourselves, and whether we are responding to the preaching of the Gospel and following the Lord as we should. He is patient and forgiving and loving, but it is very possible for us to harden our hearts and destroy completely our desire to receive His grace.  If we become so hardened that we no longer want what God gives to us, then at a certain point it will not matter that God is loving and forgiving, because we will have destroyed the ability in ourselves to receive His love. For us, this reading is a call to beware, and to repent.)

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 1 (Monday)

3 Kingdoms (1 Kings) 18:1-47 (Elijah Comes Back)

Last time, we saw Elijah sent by God to Ahab, to proclaim a drought, making an open show of the weakness of Baal, the false god Ahab had begun to worship. During the years of this drought, Elijah was sheltered in the home of a widow, where the Lord sustained them miraculously despite the famine and drought, and where Elijah raised the widow’s son from the dead. This time, we will see what happens when Elijah is sent back to Ahab.

Elijah’s Message to Ahab

18 After many days the word of the Lord came to Eli′jah, in the third year, saying, “Go, show yourself to Ahab; and I will send rain upon the earth.” 2 So Eli′jah went to show himself to Ahab. Now the famine was severe in Samar′ia. 3 And Ahab called Obadi′ah, who was over the household. (Now Obadi′ah revered the Lord greatly; 4 and when Jez′ebel cut off the prophets of the Lord, Obadi′ah took a hundred prophets and hid them by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water.)

5 And Ahab said to Obadi′ah, “Go through the land to all the springs of water and to all the valleys; perhaps we may find grass and save the horses and mules alive, and not lose some of the animals.” 6 So they divided the land between them to pass through it; Ahab went in one direction by himself, and Obadi′ah went in another direction by himself.

7 And as Obadi′ah was on the way, behold, Eli′jah met him; and Obadi′ah recognized him, and fell on his face, and said, “Is it you, my lord Eli′jah?” 8 And he answered him, “It is I. Go, tell your lord, ‘Behold, Eli′jah is here.’” 9 And he said, “Wherein have I sinned, that you would give your servant into the hand of Ahab, to kill me?”

10 “As the Lord your God lives, there is no nation or kingdom whither my lord has not sent to seek you; and when they would say, ‘He is not here,’ he would take an oath of the kingdom or nation, that they had not found you. 11 And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Behold, Eli′jah is here.”’”

12 “And as soon as I have gone from you, the Spirit of the Lord will carry you whither I know not; and so, when I come and tell Ahab and he cannot find you, he will kill me, although I your servant have revered the Lord from my youth. 13 Has it not been told my lord what I did when Jez′ebel killed the prophets of the Lord, how I hid a hundred men of the Lord’s prophets by fifties in a cave, and fed them with bread and water?”

14 “And now you say, ‘Go, tell your lord, “Behold, Eli′jah is here”’; and he will kill me.” 15 And Eli′jah said, “As the Lord of hosts lives, before whom I stand, I will surely show myself to him today.” 16 So Obadi′ah went to meet Ahab, and told him; and Ahab went to meet Eli′jah.

17 When Ahab saw Eli′jah, Ahab said to him, “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” 18 And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel; but you have, and your father’s house, because you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and followed the Ba′als. 19 Now therefore send and gather all Israel to me at Mount Carmel, and the four hundred and fifty prophets of Ba′al[a] and the four hundred prophets of Ashe′rah, who eat at Jez′ebel’s table.”

543 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that we might have the impression that Elijah was hiding from Ahab in order to escape the king’s anger, as though God couldn’t or wouldn’t protect him. But if that were the case, then God would not send him back to Ahab at this point, and this gives us an insight into what is actually happening with this period without rain. This is, like the plagues in Egypt, an opportunity for Ahab to repent, to see that the storm god Ba’al, whom he had chosen for his god, was not in fact the master of the weather. Ahab had rejected Yahweh the God of Israel, the Most-High Creator and Ruler of all, in favor of this false god who claimed dominion of the weather…and he (and all Israel with him) are being shown, in real time, that Ba’al’s claims are lies, and he could not grant fertility to the crops. Elijah is therefore hidden from Ahab to keep Ahab from destroying his opportunity for repentance…and now, as the time of decision arrives, Elijah is sent back to Ahab. We should be remembering God’s patience with Pharaoh in Egypt at this point…and next week, we will see the confrontation arrive.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Letter of St. Ignatius to the Ephesians – 1

Now that we have read the Didache, we’ll take the chance this summer to read another piece of early Christian writing, from the letters of St. Ignatios of Antioch. St. Ignatios was the bishop of Antioch in the period just after the Apostles; he was himself a disciple of St. John the Evangelist, and possibly of Sts. Peter and Paul as well. During the reign of the Emperor Trajan, between A.D. 98 and 117, he was arrested and tried, and when he refused to renounce Christ before the Emperor himself, he was condemned to death by wild beasts in Rome, since the emperor didn’t want to martyr him in his own city, but in a distant and humiliating obscurity far away. During the long journey to Rome, as he passed through the cities of Asia Minor, he was visited by delegations from several of the churches in that region, and in turn he wrote letters to several of them, as well as a letter to the Church in Rome. These letters have been preserved in the Church since that time, and give us a priceless glimpse of the life of the Church in the first decades of the 2nd century. We will be reading his letter to the Ephesians.

Salutation

Ignatius the God-bearer to the church at Ephesus in Asia, blessed with greatness through the fullness of God the Father, predestined before the ages for lasting and unchangeable glory forever, united and elect through genuine suffering by the will of the Father and of Jesus Christ our God, a church most worthy of blessing: heartiest greetings in Jesus Christ and in blameless joy.

Thanks for Visit and Assistance

I welcomed in God your well-beloved name, which you possess by reason of your righteous nature, characterized by faith in and love of Christ Jesus our Savior. Being imitators of God, once you took on new life through the blood of God you completed perfectly the task so natural to you. For when you heard that I was on my way from Syria in chains for the sake of our shared name and hope, and was hoping through your prayers to succeed in fighting with wild beasts in Rome – in order that by so succeeding I might be able to be a disciple – you hurried to visit me.

Since, therefore, I have received in God’s name your whole congregation in the person of Onesimus, a man of inexpressible love who is also your earthly bishop, I pray that you will love him in accordance with the standard set by Jesus Christ and that all of you will be like him. For blessed is the one who has graciously allowed you, worthy as you are, to have such a bishop.

Now concerning my fellow servant Burrhus, who is by God’s will your deacon, blessed in every respect, I pray that he may remain with me both for your honor and the bishop’s. And Crocus also, who is worthy of God and of you, whom I received as a living example of your love, has refreshed me in every way; may the Father of Jesus Christ likewise refresh him, together with Onesimus, Burrhus, Euplus, and Fronto, in whom I saw all of you with respect to love.

May I always have joy in you – if, that is, I am worthy. It is proper, therefore, in every way to glorify Jesus Christ, who has glorified you, so that you, joined together in a united obedience and subject to the bishop and the council of presbyters, may be sanctified in every respect.

387 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that we see Ignatius present himself as a man facing death as a test, a trial, a completion of a life lived in faithfulness to Jesus Christ. He calls himself the God-bearer, and does not come across as a man who is afraid of death, but rather as a man who is intent on finishing his chosen course well, but also is concerned about the well-being of those he leaves behind. He is writing to this church to encourage them to be faithful themselves, and giving them specific instructions in how to do so. One final point – the bishop of Ephesus, Onesimus, is one of the many disciples of St. Paul that are named in the New Testament, which emphasizes for us the closeness of this time to that of the Apostles, as not only Ignatius himself, but many of the other leaders of the Church in Asia Minor and throughout the world, would have been themselves catechized and baptized by the Apostles.)

2) What do we learn about God in this reading?

3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

Day 3 (Friday)

Luke 11:1-28 (Lord’s Prayer, Perseverance in Prayer, Jesus & Beelzebul, Return of the Unclean Spirit, True Blessedness)

Last time we read the parable of the Good Samaritan and saw Jesus visit Martha and Mary. As we move forward in St. Luke’s Gospel, we leave that sequence behind and see Jesus and his disciples in what appear to be several unrelated “scenes” in this chapter. Broadly, however, this chapter deals with prayer and with the problem of demons.

The Lord’s Prayer

11 He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” 2 And he said to them, “When you pray, say:

“Father, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. 3 Give us each day our daily bread; 4 and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive every one who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation.”

Perseverance in Prayer

5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves; 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him whatever he needs.”

9 “And I tell you, Ask, and it will be given you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For every one who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

Jesus and Beelzebul

14 Now he was casting out a demon that was dumb; when the demon had gone out, the dumb man spoke, and the people marveled. 15 But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Be-el′zebul, the prince of demons”; 16 while others, to test him, sought from him a sign from heaven.

17 But he, knowing their thoughts, said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and house falls upon house. 18 And if Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? For you say that I cast out demons by Be-el′zebul. 19 And if I cast out demons by Be-el′zebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they shall be your judges.

20 But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. 21 When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace; 22 but when one stronger than he assails him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoil. 23 He who is not with me is against me, and he who does not gather with me scatters.

The Return of the Unclean Spirit

24 “When the unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through waterless places seeking rest; and finding none he says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ 25 And when he comes he finds it swept and put in order. 26 Then he goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man becomes worse than the first.”

True Blessedness

27 As he said this, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that bore you, and the breasts that you sucked!” 28 But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”

Reading 25
655 word

Discussion Questions

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out the examples that Jesus gives of prayer, of people who pester and bother others to get what they need. The point isn’t that God doesn’t want to answer our prayers, but that we need to be persistent, and truly seek the mercy and grace of God, in order to be able to receive the good gifts that He gives to us. The final point about demons, the story about the “return of the unclean spirit,” explains clearly why, when we fast, we need to also pray and fill our minds and hearts with godly things. If we make a space in our lives, and don’t fill it with good things, other things will rush in to fill that vacuum. But if we fill our lives with the things of the Lord, we will always be safe from unclean spirits.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here? (He doesn’t work in the way that we expect, and He doesn’t care if we know the right answer if we don’t LIVE the right answer).

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us? (We have a very hard time not getting completely mixed up and confused in how we are supposed to follow God).

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this story make you think that you need to change anything in your life? (Hopefully everyone sees that Jesus isn’t just asking us to be “good people.” He wants us to actively and truly follow Him, to be radically changed, to be transformed. That involves doing “good things,” but will as often involve living in a way that drives the people around us nuts, not least because even in living in that way, it will condemn them for their failure to actually follow Jesus).

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 1 (Monday)

3 Kingdoms (1 Kings) 16:29-33, 17:1-24 (Ahab Rules, Elijah Warns, Raises a Dead Boy to Life)

Over the past few months, we have been reading about the Exodus and the journey through the wilderness of the children of Israel, and we had just seen them arrive at the Promised Land and then refuse to go in, because they did not trust the Lord to grant them victory. Because of their rebellion, that generation wandered in the wilderness for 40 years, led and fed and protected by God, until the entire generation that had rebelled had died. Then their children were led into the Promised Land by Joshua, Moses’ longtime assistant and successor. We will here sum up what happened next; they entered in, and as long as they were faithful to God, He gave them the victory, and they settled in the land. But over time they began to adopt the religion and practices of the people who had been there before them, and over the centuries things went from bad to worse. At first God ruled over them directly, sending judges to lead them when necessary, but after several hundred years, they asked for a king, like the nations around them. God warned them that it wouldn’t go well, but when they insisted, He gave them kings; first Saul, who fell quickly into disobedience, and then David, who loved God and was faithful to Him, and repented when He fell away, so that God promised David that his line would never fail, and his descendants would be great kings and usher in a time of prosperity and peace. David’s grandson, however, was a foolish king, and as a result 10 of the 12 tribes went into rebellion against him, choosing someone else to be their king, and beginning to worship the gods that the Canaanites had worshipped. We will pick up the story at the time of David’s great-great-grandson Asa, who was king in Jerusalem about 100 years after David died, as a new king rises to power in Israel, and leads them into great wickedness. We will see God send a prophet to that king to call him to repentance, and what will follow after.

Ahab Reigns over Israel

29 In the thirty-eighth year of Asa king of Judah, Ahab the son of Omri began to reign over Israel, and Ahab the son of Omri reigned over Israel in Samaria twenty-two years. 30 And Ahab the son of Omri did evil in the sight of the Lord more than all that were before him. 31 And as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, he took for wife Jezebel the daughter of Ethbaal king of the Sidonians, and went and served Ba′al, and worshiped him.

32 He erected an altar for Baal in the house of Baal, which he built in Samaria. 33 And Ahab made an Asherah. Ahab did more to provoke the Lord, the God of Israel, to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him… 34 In his days Hi′el of Bethel built Jericho; he laid its foundation at the cost of Abi′ram his first-born, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to the word of the Lord, which he spoke by Joshua the son of Nun.

Elijah Predicts a Drought

17 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord the God of Israel lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.” 2 And the word of the Lord came to him, 3 “Depart from here and turn eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, that is east of the Jordan. 4 You shall drink from the brook, and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.”

5 So he went and did according to the word of the Lord; he went and dwelt by the brook Cherith that is east of the Jordan. 6 And the ravens brought him bread and meat in the morning, and bread and meat in the evening; and he drank from the brook. 7 And after a while the brook dried up, because there was no rain in the land.

The Widow of Zarephath

8 Then the word of the Lord came to him, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. Behold, I have commanded a widow there to feed you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks; and he called to her and said, “Bring me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink.”

11 And as she was going to bring it, he called to her and said, “Bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12 And she said, “As the Lord your God lives, I have nothing baked, only a handful of meal in a jar, and a little oil in a cruse; and now, I am gathering a couple of sticks, that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.”

13 And Elijah said to her, “Fear not; go and do as you have said; but first make me a little cake of it and bring it to me, and afterward make for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the Lord the God of Israel, ‘The jar of meal shall not be spent, and the cruse of oil shall not fail, until the day that the Lord sends rain upon the earth.’” 15 And she went and did as Elijah said; and she, and he, and her household ate for many days. 16 The jar of meal was not spent, neither did the cruse of oil fail, according to the word of the Lord which he spoke by Elijah.

Elijah Revives the Widow’s Son

17 After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. 18 And she said to Elijah, “What have you against me, O man of God? You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!” 19 And he said to her, “Give me your son.” And he took him from her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he lodged, and laid him upon his own bed.

20 And he cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, hast thou brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?” 21 Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried to the Lord, “O Lord my God, let this child’s soul come into him again.” 22 And the Lord hearkened to the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.

23 And Elijah took the child, and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house, and delivered him to his mother; and Elijah said, “See, your son lives.” 24 And the woman said to Elijah, “Now I know that you are a man of God, and that the word of the Lord in your mouth is truth.”

880 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that Baal was the Canaanite god of the sky, of thunder and of rain, corresponding to the Greek God Zeus, and also was understood to have his palace in the underworld, in the place of the dead, and to have power over the dead. He is the pagan god usually understood to be the devil. So in declaring that there would be no rain, Elijah is declaring to Ahab that his god is false and has no real power, and that Yahweh is the one true God. The remaining events of this chapter highlight this point. Wherever Elijah is, God provides him with food, even in the middle of a famine. He sends Elijah to a city of Sidon, NOT an Israelite city, where Baal was worshipped by everyone, and finds there someone who is willing to trust in Yahweh, and they then have food when no one else does. And when the child dies, coming directly under the power of Baal, God raises him from the dead, showing that even in death, Baal’s power is nothing before Him.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Didache (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles) – 6

This week we finish with the Didache, the earliest text from the life of the Church outside of the New Testament. The Didache has two parts: the first describes the Way of Life and the Way of Death, and the second gives general instructions for the life of the Church. This time we will read some final guidance to the Christians about how they should treat each other, and how they should always keep their lives focused on the imminent coming of the Lord, after which the text speaks of the Last Days, and warns the Faithful that there will be many troubles in the future, and that it will be a time of testing, but that at the end, the Lord will return. This tells us, then, of what the early Church expected to happen to the world, and to them, and what they were preparing for…it tells us, too, what we should expect, and how we should prepare.

Call to Follow the Gospel

Furthermore, correct one another not in anger but in peace, as you find in the Gospel; and if anyone wrongs his or her neighbor, let no one speak to that person, nor let that one hear a word from you, until he or she repents. As for your prayers and acts of charity and all your actions, do them all just as you find it in the Gospel of our Lord.

Watch over your life: do not let your lamps go out, and do not be unprepared, but be ready, for you do not know the hour when our Lord is coming. Gather together frequently, seeking the things that benefit your souls, for all the time you have believed will be of no use to you if you are not found perfect in the last time.

Mini-Apocalypse

For in the last days the false prophets and corrupters will abound, and the sheep will be turned into wolves, and love will be turned into hate. For as lawlessness increases, they will hate and persecute and betray one another. And then the deceiver of the world will appear as a son of God and will perform signs and wonders, and the earth will be delivered into his hands, and he will commit abominations the likes of which have never happened before.

Then all humankind will come to the fiery test, and many will fall away and perish; but those who endure in their faith will be saved by the Accursed One Himself. And then there will appear the signs of the truth: first the sign of an opening in heaven, then the sign of the sound of a trumpet, and third, the resurrection of the dead – but not of all; rather, as it has been said, “The Lord will come, and all his saints with him.” Then the world will see the Lord coming upon the clouds of heaven.

322 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that the Apostles taught a high standard of behavior for the Church; this instruction to not speak to someone who had wronged someone else until they repent is the way that they upheld that. The point is not to cut people off from the Church, but rather to bring them back into the Church by showing them that they have cut themselves off from the Church by their action, and by inviting them to return through repentance. It is an important point to understand, that Christian love does NOT in fact mean that any of us can live however we want, do whatever we want to do, and treat people however we want, and the Church just has to accept us and our actions because God is love. If we sin, we will always be welcome to come back to the Church, but the only way back is through repentance.)

Leader should also note that what the final paragraphs of the Didache describe is very intense, but we can break it down to a few central elements. First, the Apostles expected the troubles in the last days to reach inside the Church. This is the meaning of the “sheep will be turned into wolves, and love to hate.” Second, the “deceiver of the world” will appear as a son of God, which is to say, as an angel, a god, and will lead humanity into great sin; this is following the same pattern as we saw in the Old Testament readings with the giants, the demonized human beings, but the Apostles expect it to be worse than ever. Whether the deceiver of the world will be a human being, a demon, or an alliance between them, is not clear, but certainly an alliance between rebellious angels and rebellious humanity is what is being talked about. Third, the “Accursed One” who will save those who endure is Christ Himself, Who the world considers to be accursed because of His humiliation and death on the Cross, but Who saves us, even as we are suffering, through His own suffering. Finally, this text speaks clearly about the Resurrection of the Lord’s Faithful as the final sign of His coming, which matches with the final words of the Creed: “I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the age to come.”)

2) What do we learn about God in this reading?

3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

Day 3 (Friday)

Luke 10:25-42 (Good Samaritan, Jesus Visits Martha & Mary)

Last time we saw Jesus send out the 70 Apostles, and when they came back He talked to them about how God always chooses to reveal Himself and work through simple, weak, ignorant, and even foolish people, and how finally, what had been desired by all the great saints of the Old Testament was being revealed to them, those who were following Him and listening to Him. Let’s see what happens next.

The Parable of the Good Samaritan

25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the law? How do you read?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered right; do this, and you will live.”

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road; and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was; and when he saw him, he had compassion, 34 and went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine; then he set him on his own beast and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him; and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed mercy on him.” And Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”

Jesus Visits Martha and Mary

38 Now as they went on their way, he entered a village; and a woman named Martha received him into her house. 39 And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching. 40 But Martha was distracted with much serving; and she went to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” 41 But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things; 42 one thing is needful. Mary has chosen the good portion, which shall not be taken away from her.”

Reading 24
425 words

Discussion Questions

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out how these two stories illustrate the point Jesus was making before. The lawyer knows the right answer, but he struggles to live it; Jesus shows what it actually looks like to love God and to love our neighbor. Then, He shows Mary and Martha that the things the world thinks are important aren’t as important as listening to and following Him. In both cases, the “normal” rules of the world are turned upside down.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here? (He doesn’t work in the way that we expect, and He doesn’t care if we know the right answer if we don’t LIVE the right answer).

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us? (We have a very hard time not getting completely mixed up and confused in how we are supposed to follow God).

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this story make you think that you need to change anything in your life? (Hopefully everyone sees that Jesus isn’t just asking us to be “good people.” He wants us to actively and truly follow Him, to be radically changed, to be transformed. That involves doing “good things,” but will as often involve living in a way that drives the people around us nuts, not least because even in living in that way, it will condemn them for their failure to actually follow Jesus).

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 1 (Monday)

Proverbs 3:19-35; 4:1-27

As we begin the summer, we will start with another selection from the book of Proverbs. In this passage, the writer of Proverbs reflects on the foundational nature of Wisdom, how all that is is built upon her, and then proceeds to give several tenets of wisdom to his son. The repeated point of the book of Proverbs is the importance of attending regularly, with discipline and care, to the things of God, as a way of actively turning away from this world and turning towards the Lord.

God’s Wisdom in Creation

19 The Lord by wisdom founded the earth;
by understanding he established the heavens;
20 by his knowledge the deeps broke forth,
and the clouds drop down the dew.

The True Security

21 My son, keep sound wisdom and discretion;
let them not escape from your sight,
22 and they will be life for your soul
and adornment for your neck.
23 Then you will walk on your way securely
and your foot will not stumble.
24 If you sit down, you will not be afraid;
when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.

25 Do not be afraid of sudden panic,
or of the ruin of the wicked, when it comes;
26 for the Lord will be your confidence
and will keep your foot from being caught.
27 Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due,
when it is in your power to do it.
28 Do not say to your neighbor, “Go, and come again,
tomorrow I will give it”—when you have it with you.

29 Do not plan evil against your neighbor
who dwells trustingly beside you.
30 Do not contend with a man for no reason,
when he has done you no harm.
31 Do not envy a man of violence
and do not choose any of his ways;
32 for the perverse man is an abomination to the Lord,
but the upright are in his confidence.

33 The Lord’s curse is on the house of the wicked,
but he blesses the abode of the righteous.
34 Toward the scorners he is scornful,
but to the humble he shows favor.
35 The wise will inherit honor,
but fools get disgrace.

Fatherly Advice

4 Hear, O sons, a father’s instruction,
and be attentive, that you may gain insight;
2 for I give you good precepts:
do not forsake my teaching.
3 When I was a son with my father,
tender, the only one in the sight of my mother,
4 he taught me, and said to me,
“Let your heart hold fast my words;
keep my commandments, and live;
5 do not forget, and do not turn away from the words of my mouth.

Get wisdom; get insight.
6 Do not forsake her, and she will keep you;
love her, and she will guard you.
7 The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom,
and whatever you get, get insight.
8 Prize her highly, and she will exalt you;
she will honor you if you embrace her.
9 She will place on your head a fair garland;
she will bestow on you a beautiful crown.”

Admonition to Keep to the Right Path

10 Hear, my son, and accept my words,
that the years of your life may be many.
11 I have taught you the way of wisdom;
I have led you in the paths of uprightness.
12 When you walk, your step will not be hampered;
and if you run, you will not stumble.
13 Keep hold of instruction, do not let go;
guard her, for she is your life.

14 Do not enter the path of the wicked,
and do not walk in the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it; do not go on it;
turn away from it and pass on.
16 For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;
they are robbed of sleep unless they have made some one stumble.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.

18 But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn,
which shines brighter and brighter until full day.
19 The way of the wicked is like deep darkness;
they do not know over what they stumble.

20 My son, be attentive to my words;
incline your ear to my sayings.
21 Let them not escape from your sight;
keep them within your heart.
22 For they are life to him who finds them,
and healing to all his flesh.

23 Keep your heart with all vigilance;
for from it flow the springs of life.
24 Put away from you crooked speech,
and put devious talk far from you.
25 Let your eyes look directly forward,
and your gaze be straight before you.
26 Take heed to the path of your feet,
then all your ways will be sure.
27 Do not swerve to the right or to the left;
turn your foot away from evil.

Selection 3 – 750 words

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that Wisdom, in the Old Testament, and especially in the book of Proverbs and similar books, is associated with the Word of God Himself, with our Lord Jesus Christ. The book of Proverbs itself makes this explicit in chapter 8, that Wisdom here is not just the idea of wise-ness, but a Person, God Himself, Who speaks in wisdom and cries out to human beings that they should return to Him. If we think of these words being spoken by Jesus Christ as we see Him in the Gospels, we find, I think, that the tone and voice are much the same as we have been hearing from Him throughout the Gospel of Luke. It should also be noted that the word for Wisdom in both Hebrew and Greek is grammatically feminine, which is why the feminine pronoun “she” is used here; so we aren’t saying that Jesus is a woman, but that this title of His, Wisdom, is grammatically feminine in Greek (σοφία), just as the word for road in Greek (ὁδός) is feminine, and the word for world (κόσμος) is masculine, but that doesn’t mean that the road is a woman, or the world is a man.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here?

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the highest level, the anagogical reading (in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, opening up to us the grand scope of God’s great work of salvation in and for us) sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)

Day 2 (Wednesday)

Didache (Teaching of the Twelve Apostles) – 5

We continue with the Didache, the earliest text from the life of the Church outside of the New Testament. The Didache has two parts: the first describes the Way of Life and the Way of Death, and the second gives general instructions for the life of the Church. We talked last time about how the Eucharist was celebrated at this time; now we will begin to talk about how each Church community should treat Christian teachers who visited them, and how they need to be careful not to be led astray; we will also see how the Apostles instruct the Church to worship on Sunday, Κυριακή, the Day of the Lord.

Concerning Teachers

So, if anyone should come and teach you all these things that have just been mentioned above, welcome him. But if the teacher himself goes astray and teaches a different teaching that undermines all this, do not listen to him. However, if his teaching contributes to righteousness and knowledge of the Lord, welcome him as you would the Lord.

Concerning the Lord’s Day

On the Lord’s own day gather together and break bread and give thanks, having first confessed your sins so that your sacrifice may be pure. But let no one who has a quarrel with a companion join you until they have been reconciled, so that you sacrifice may not be defiled. For this is the sacrifice concerning which the Lord said, “In every place and time offer me a pure sacrifice, for I am a great king, says the Lord, and my name is marvelous among the nations” (Malachi 1:11,14)

Bishops and Deacons

Therefore appoint for yourselves bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, men who are humble and not avaricious and true and approved, for they too carry out for you the ministry of the prophets and teachers. You must not, therefore, despise them, for they are your honored men, along with the prophets and teachers.

Discussion questions:

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that this passage and what follows after tells us that, in the early Church, Christian communities might be visited frequently by traveling teachers. The Apostles are making a point to give guidance to the Church about how to be careful and test these teachers, to make sure that they are not teaching a different gospel than what they themselves had taught from the beginning. We should note that they don’t tell the Church to ignore the teachers if they say anything new, but rather urge them to watch what the fruit of the teaching is. If it undermines the essentials we have already seen in the Didache, then the teacher is a false teacher. But if the new teaching builds the Church in righteousness and the knowledge of God, then the teacher is a faithful teacher of the Lord’s Gospel. So we see that change isn’t always bad, but we have to watch and see what direction it is going, and what fruit it will bear.)

Leader should note that this passage shows us that the early Church worshipped on the same day as we do, on the 1st Day of the Week, the day that the Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead, the day that we call Sunday, but that they called the Lord’s Day, Κυριακή in Greek. We see too that the Apostles assume that everyone will participate, everyone will offer themselves in thanksgiving to God, and everyone will receive Communion, and are simply instructing the people to confess their sins first and to reconcile themselves with anyone they were quarreling with before Communion. These are important things for us to do as well.)

2) What do we learn about God in this reading?

3) What do we learn about human beings in this reading?

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. )

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

Day 3 (Friday)

Luke 10:1-24 (Mission of the Seventy, Woe to Unrepentant Cities, Return of the Seventy)

Last time we saw Jesus talking to the Twelve Disciples after the Transfiguration, and correcting some mistaken ideas they had about how they were better than everyone else. This time, we will see Him expand the program of preaching, and send out not twelve, but seventy others to preach.

The Mission of the Seventy

10 After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where he himself was about to come. 2 And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. 3 Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. 4 Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and salute no one on the road.”

5 “Whatever house you enter, first say, ‘Peace be to this house!’ 6 And if a son of peace is there, your peace shall rest upon him; but if not, it shall return to you. 7 And remain in the same house, eating and drinking what they provide, for the laborer deserves his wages; do not go from house to house. 8 Whenever you enter a town and they receive you, eat what is set before you; 9 heal the sick in it and say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come near to you.’”

10 “But whenever you enter a town and they do not receive you, go into its streets and say, 11 ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off against you; nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’ 12 I tell you, it shall be more tolerable on that day for Sodom than for that town.

Woes to Unrepentant Cities

13 “Woe to you, Chora′zin! woe to you, Beth-sa′ida! for if the mighty works done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. 14 But it shall be more tolerable in the judgment for Tyre and Sidon than for you. 15 And you, Caper′na-um, will you be exalted to heaven? You shall be brought down to Hades.

16 “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me, and he who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

The Return of the Seventy

17 The seventy returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!” 18 And he said to them, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. 19 Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall hurt you. 20 Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.”

Jesus Rejoices

21 In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I thank thee, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes; yea, Father, for such was thy gracious will. 22 All things have been delivered to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, or who the Father is except the Son and any one to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.”

23 Then turning to the disciples he said privately, “Blessed are the eyes which see what you see! 24 For I tell you that many prophets and kings desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it.”

Reading 23
585 words

Discussion Questions

1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out how the instructions Jesus gives the seventy are similar to those He gave the twelve, but there seems to be more detail. Also, we can see Jesus starting to warn those who refuse to listen to Him at this point, indicating that there is a limited period of time in which they will be able to repent. He also warns the disciples not to rejoice or take pride in the authority He has given to them, but only to rejoice that their names are written in heaven.)

2) Where do we see Christ in this text; what is He saying or doing here? (We learn that even in the New Testament, there is still a reality of judgment, just as we see in the Old Testament. We also see Jesus pray to His Father, with a revelation of the Holy Trinity to His disciples that we haven’t seen so clearly yet in Luke.)

3) Do we see ourselves and the Church in this text; what does it say about us? (We see that too many of those who heard the word preached reject the preaching of the apostles and of Jesus, and that the apostles continue to be tempted by pride).

4) What do you find difficult about this reading? Is there anything confusing about it, or anything that you dislike? (This is an open question, as always. Some may be confused why Jesus rejoices that the secrets of the kingdom are hidden to the wise and the powerful, and are being revealed rather to the weak and the foolish. It is worth noting that this is ALWAYS how God works. Reference can be made to 1 Corinthians 1:27, where Paul says “God has chosen the foolish things of this world to confound the wise”).

5) Does this reading make you think that you need to change anything in your life?

6) “What is the a) literal, b) allegorical, c) moral/ethical, d) anagogical/eschatological meaning of this text? (Think of these questions as a mountain which we can ascend, or as layers of meaning upon which we can reflect. Oftentimes, as we reflect upon a text in this way, we may find that the anagogical reading, in which we see the text as revealing the glory of God and His kingdom in a deeper manner, sheds new insights on the lower levels of interpretation.)