Day 1 (Monday)
Genesis 19:1-11 (The Evil of Sodom)
Because this is the week of Thanksgiving, there is no Sunday School at the Church this coming Sunday, nor will there be a Bible Study this week. This is somewhat convenient, as the reading that we have reached in Genesis is a troubling one for young families, with its discussion of the sins of Sodom. We recommend that each family use their best judgment regarding this matter, and will provide recommended omissions in italics, and more vague language for what the men of Sodom wanted to do to the visiting angels in bold italics.
The Depravity of Sodom
19 The two angels came to Sodom in the evening, and Lot was sitting in the gateway of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them, and bowed down with his face to the ground. 2 He said, “Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant’s house and spend the night, and wash your feet; then you can rise early and go on your way.” They said, “No; we will spend the night in the square.” 3 But he urged them strongly; so they turned aside to him and entered his house; and he made them a feast, and baked unleavened bread, and they ate.
4 But before they lay down, the men of the city, the men of Sodom, both young and old, all the people to the last man, surrounded the house; 5 and they called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us,” [so that we may know them.]” (The italicized portion can be omitted, and replaced with the parenthetical statement – for the men of the city wanted to rob and harm the visitors.) 6 Lot went out of the door to the men, shut the door after him, 7 and said, “I beg you, my brothers, do not act so wickedly… (this italicized portion can be omitted as well) 8 Look, I have two daughters who have not known a man; let me bring them out to you, and do to them as you please; only … do nothing to these men, for they have come under the shelter of my roof.”
9 But they replied, “Stand back!” And they said, “This fellow came here as an alien, and he would play the judge! Now we will deal worse with you than with them.” Then they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near the door to break it down. 10 But the men inside reached out their hands and brought Lot into the house with them, and shut the door. 11 And they struck with blindness the men who were at the door of the house, both small and great, so that they were unable to find the door.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out that the evil of Sodom is clearly on exhibit here. This is not only because the men of the city intend sexual violence against the visitors, although that is certainly a significant element of their sin; the greater issue, of which their intended violence is only a part, is their complete failure to show hospitality to visitors. When the two angels arrive at the gate of the city, only Lot is doing what righteous men were supposed to be doing, watching at the gate for visitors to welcome and host and care for and protect; that failure of the city is the first and great sign of its depravity; that they themselves are the dangers against whom a righteous man needs to protect visitors is still worse, and the particular sort of violence that they intend is just the icing on the cake. This gives us a good opportunity to emphasize the importance of hospitality, of caring for strangers and travelers and visitors, and of protecting those who are vulnerable and innocent. This is a good thing for us to reflect on and remember as we celebrate Thanksgiving.)
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?
Day 2 (Wednesday)
St. Katherine the Great Martyr of Alexandria
On November 25th, the Church celebrates the feast of St. Katherine. This Thanksgiving week, we will take the opportunity to read her life and reflect on her witness to the Faith. It is worth noting that St. Katherine’s existence is sometimes called into question, as she is not spoken of by name in any written sources for several centuries after the time at which she was martyred. However, Eusebius does note that the emperor Maximinus was indeed known for his seizure and mistreatment even of high-born women in Alexandria during this time, and mentions one in particular, notable for her wealth, family, and education, who refused him and suffered greatly on account of her Faith in Christ. He does not provide her name, but the essential pieces of Eusebius’ story match what has been generally been known about St. Katherine.
St. Katherine the Holy Great-Martyr and Most-Wise, and her companions: the fifty Orators, the Wife of the emperor, the commander Porphyrios and the two hundred Soldiers
Katherine was the daughter of Cestus, a wealthy patrician of Alexandria, the capital of Egypt and metropolis of the arts and sciences. She was widely admired not only for her noble birth but also for the exceeding beauty and intelligence that God had given her. Taught by the best masters and most illustrious philosophers, she learnt while still a girl to follow complex lines of argument and obtained a perfect understanding of the philosophical systems of Plato, Aristotle and their followers. She also excelled in the literary sphere, was familiar with the works of all the great poets from Homer to Virgil and was capable of discussing every subject, in a variety of languages learnt from scholars and foreign visitors to the great city. In her quest for knowledge, she had made herself acquainted with all the physical sciences, especially medicine, and there was no area of human wisdom beyond the range of her penetrating intellect. By the time she was eighteen, even the most learned scholars were in awe of her intellectual accomplishments. All this, combined with noble birth, beauty and wealth, made her an enviable match and there were suitors in plenty for her hand.
But having a presentiment of the excellence of virginity, Katherine refused them all and made it a condition with her parents that she would accept none but a youth who equaled her in nobility, riches, beauty and wisdom. Her mother, in despair of finding such a one, sent her to seek the advice of a holy Christian ascetic who lived not far from the city. He told Katherine that he did indeed know a man such as she was looking for, and possessed of that surpassing wisdom which is the very source and spring of all things visible and invisible – wisdom neither gained nor appropriated, but his eternal possession. He is noble also above all that we can think of, for He has authority over the whole universe and has made the world by his own power. Master of the worlds, principle of all wisdom and of all knowledge, He is also, the elder told her the most beautiful of the children of men (Ps. 44:3), for He is God incarnate: Son and eternal Word of the Father, Who became man for our salvation and who desires to espouse every virginal soul. As he bade her farewell, the ascetic gave her an icon of the Mother of God carrying the divine Child in her arms.
That night the Mother of God appeared to Katherine, but Christ turned away and would not look at her, saying that she was ugly and unclean because still subject to sin and death. Grief-stricken, she went back to the ascetic who instructed her in the mysteries of the faith and gave her new birth unto eternal life in the waters of Baptism. Then the Holy Virgin appeared to Katherine again with Christ in her arms, who said to His Mother with joy, ‘Now I will accept her as my most pure bride, for she has become radiant and fair, rich and truly wise!’ In token and pledge of this heavenly betrothal, the Mother of God put a ring upon the finger of the maiden and caused her to promise to take no other spouse upon earth.
Now in those days the Emperor Maximin (305-11), like Diocletian before him, tried to make all his subjects show their submission to his power by offering idolatrous sacrifices under pain of torture and death. When these impious rites were taking place in Alexandria, Katherine appeared before him in the temple and declared her allegiance, but severely reproved the idolatrous ceremonies. Struck by her beauty as much as by her boldness, the emperor listened as she developed her argument and he was overcome by her wisdom.
Accepting her offer to engage the foremost scholars and orators of the Empire in public disputation, Maximin sent heralds all over the Roman world to bring together scholars, philosophers, orators, and logicians. There arrived at Alexandria fifty in all, who presented themselves before the Emperor and the crowd that gathered in the amphitheater, to confront the slender young girl. Alone, but radiant with the grace of the Holy Spirit, she was in no fear of them, having been assured by the Archangel Michael in a vision that the Lord would speak through her mouth, and cause her to overcome the wisdom of the world by the Wisdom that comes from on high. In that strength, Katherine showed up the errors and contradictions of oracles, poets and philosophers. She showed how they have recognized for themselves that the so-called gods of the pagans are demons and the expression of human passions. She even referred in support of her arguments to certain oracles of the Sibyl and of Apollo, which dimly tell of the divine Incarnation and life-giving Passion of the Son of God. Overthrowing their myths and fables, she proclaimed the creation of the world out of nothing by the one only, true, eternal God, and the deliverance of man from death by the Incarnation of the only Son of the Father.
Having run out of arguments, the fifty orators were reduced to silence. Recognizing their error, they asked the Saint for Baptism, to the fury of the Emperor, who condemned them to be burnt alive on November 17. Finding Katherine immune to flattery, Maximin had her tortured and thrown into prison, while a dreadful instrument of torture was constructed of four spiked wheels connected by an axle. Katherine was attached to this machine as soon as it was ready, but an Angel came to free her and the death-dealing chariot hurtled down the slope killing many pagans on its way.
Seeing the feats of the Holy Martyr, Maximin’s own wife was converted and visited Katherine in prison, escorted by the commander Porphyrios, a close friend of the Emperor, and by 200 soldiers, all of whom became disciples of Christ. Katherine received them with joy and foretold that they would soon bear away the crown of valiant athletes of the Faith. The Emperor was enraged at such defiance within his household. Forgetful of all human feeling, he had his wife cruelly tortured and beheaded on November 23. On the following day Porphyrios and his company were put to death. On November 25, Katherine was brought forth from her dungeon to appear at the tribunal, fairer and more radiant with heavenly joy than when she had entered it, for she saw that the day of her union with Christ had come at last. She was taken outside the city and, after a last prayer of thanksgiving to the Lord Who had revealed to her the inexhaustible treasures of true wisdom, she was beheaded in her turn.
Her body was then conveyed by two Angels from Alexandria to Mount Sinai. There it was discovered in the eighth century by an ascetic who lived in the vicinity. The precious relic was later translated to the Monastery that the Emperor Justinian had founded in the sixth century. It is there to this day, giving forth a heavenly scent and working countless miracles.
From: “The Synaxarion,” Sebastian Press, Volume 2, pg. 235-239.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should note the essential elements of this story: that St. Katherine pledged herself to the Lord, rather than to any earthly love or power; that she expressed her allegiance to the emperor, but despised the gods that he chose to worship; that she convinced and converted the wise of the world by the wisdom of Christ; that even those closest to the emperor were converted through her witness; that she endured suffering in faithfulness to the Lord, choosing even to the point of death to be counted as a daughter of the Kingdom of God, rather than a princess or queen of this present world. In all of these things, she gathers to herself the common witness of all the martyrs and the saints, and it is perhaps because all of these elements are seen in her life and death that she is so greatly beloved of Christian people.)
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?
Day 3 (Friday)
Matthew 7:1-13 (Judging, Pearls Before Swine, Ask/Seek/Knock, Golden Rule, Narrow Gate)
We continue our way through the Sermon on the Mount this week, and begin the last of the three chapters that contain this sermon. Last time, we saw the Lord teach His disciples to turn away from earthly treasures, and even to esteem food and clothing and such “necessities” of life less than the Kingdom of Heaven, assuring them and us that, if they would seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, all that we need will be given to us as well. This time, we will see Him continue to teach, proceeding to what seem to be “miscellaneous” lessons about life in this world as citizens of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Judging Others
7 “Do not judge, so that you may not be judged. 2 For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. 3 Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your neighbor, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ while the log is in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your neighbor’s eye.
Profaning the Holy
6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs; and do not throw your pearls before swine, or they will trample them under foot and turn and maul you.
Ask, Search, Knock
7 “Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you. 8 For everyone who asks receives, and everyone who searches finds, and for everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Is there anyone among you who, if your child asks for bread, will give a stone? 10 Or if the child asks for a fish, will give a snake? 11 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good things to those who ask him!
The Golden Rule
12 “In everything do to others as you would have them do to you; for this is the law and the prophets.
The Narrow Gate
13 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. 14 For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (The Leader should point out what a difficult task it is to not judge one another, and how the Lord makes clear that the problem with our judging isn’t necessarily that we are wrong, although we may well be, but that in judging others, we invite judgment upon ourselves, as we all are troubled by some sin or weakness. Rather, we are to turn toward the Lord in humility, repentance, and supplication, and ask, seek, and knock, attending to the Lord’s mercy, rather than to giving judgment against others. We may make bold to say that in so doing, we begin the path along the narrow way that leads to life.)
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?