Day 1 (Monday)
Psalm 68 (69 in Protestant/Catholic Bibles)- Save me, O God!
In our Old Testament readings up to this point, we have been reading about Abraham’s journey of faithfulness to God, and have seen God’s faithfulness to him, in giving Isaac to him and to Sarah, and then we have seen God’s faithfulness to Isaac’s descendants, the children of Israel, as he brings them into the Promised Land, and cares for them. We have seen Him give them great blessings when they are faithful, and we have seen Him discipline them as His own children when they stray, through the time of the judges. This time ends with the establishment of the kingdom of Israel, first under King Saul, and then, finally, under God’s servant David, a “man after God’s own heart.” David wasn’t just a king, but was also a poet, a man of song and a man of prayer, and in his poetic prayers, which are collected in the book of Psalms, we see how his prayers are prophetic as well. Today we will read a prayer for a time of trouble…you may recognize some of the words.
Psalm 69
Prayer for Deliverance from Persecution
A Psalm of David. To the Chief Musician
1 Save me, O God, for the waters have come up into my soul.
2 I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing;
3 I have come into deep waters, where the floods overflow me.
3 I am weary with my crying; my throat is dry.
My eyes fail while I wait for my God.
5 They that hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head;
6 They that would destroy me, being my enemies wrongfully, are mighty; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.
5 O God, you know my foolishness; And my sins are not hidden from you.
6 Let not them that wait on You, O Lord God of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.
9 Because for Your sake I have born reproach; Shame has covered my face.
10 I have become a stranger to my brothers, and an alien to my mother’s children;
11 For zeal for Your house has eaten me up, and the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
12 When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting, that became my reproach.
13 I made sackcloth also my garment; I became a proverb to them.
14 They that sit in the gate speak against me, and I am the song of the drunkards.
15 But as for me, my prayer is to You, O Lord, in the acceptable time;
16 O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
17 Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, and out of the deep waters.
18 Let not the flood-water overflow me, nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.
19 Hear me, O Lord, for Your loving kindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.
20 Turn not Your face away from Your servant, for I am in trouble; Hear me speedily.
21 Draw near to my soul and redeem it; From my many enemies ransom me.
22 You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor;
23 My adversaries are all before You; Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness;
24 I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none.
25 They also gave Me gall for my meat, and for My thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
26 Let their table become a snare before them, and their well-being a trap.
27 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see; And make their loins continually to shake.
28 Pour out Your indignation upon them, and let Your wrathful anger take hold of them.
29 Let their habitation be desolate; Let no one dwell in their tents.
30 For they persecute him whom You have smitten, and talk of the grief of those You have wounded.
31 Add iniquity to their iniquity, and let them not come into Your righteousness.
32 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.
33 But I am poor and sorrowful; Let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high.
34 I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify Him with thanksgiving.
35 This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or bull, which has horns and hooves.
36 The humble shall see this and be glad; and your hearts shall live who seek God.
37 For the Lord hears the poor, and does not despise His prisoners.
38 Let heaven and earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves therein.
39 For God will save Zion and build the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and have it in possession.
40 The seed also of His servants shall inherit it, and they that love His name shall dwell in it.
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 Psalm is read at the beginning of the Ninth Hour in the Royal Hours on Holy Friday, the service that we read and sing before the Lord as He hangs upon the Cross. It resonates strongly with the narrative of the Lord’s Passion, most particularly at verse 25, when it speaks of being given gall to drink, and vinegar for his thirst, which of course is exactly what we see during the Lord’s crucifixion. Verses 9-13 are significant as well, as the Lord, too, is become a stranger to His countrymen, and zeal for the house of God has consumed Him. We note, too, that the Psalm ends in hope, with the assurance that the Lord will restore those who wait upon Him; but also, we see a change; in verses 26-32, David cries out for justice on those who have troubled him, but of course, the Lord cries out in forgiveness for those who have persecuted Him, and we know that many who took part in the crucifixion, or who forsook Him during His Passion, came to repentance and salvation after the fact. But we also know that many refused to repent, and that judgment and desolation did come upon the proud and the unjust in Jerusalem, some 40 years after the Lord’s crucifixion. May we be delivered from such a just recompense, and always walk in the mercy of the Lord Who is crucified for us!)
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)
Saint Theophan the Recluse – The Path of Prayer – Sermon 2
Last time we saw St. Theophan sum up his sermon, emphasizing the three disciplines that can support prayer throughout the day: the meditation on the things of God after morning prayers each day, the dedication of every task and every moment to God, and the verbal calling out to God for help throughout the day. This time, we will see him conclude his sermon with a final reminder and exhortation.
Mental Prayer – 8
Our soul is made to live in the mountainous world of God. That is where it should always dwell, both in thought and in heart. But the weight of worldly thoughts and passions attracts it and draws it downwards. The methods given here will detach it step by step from the earth, and in the end will detach it permanently. When this happens, the soul will enter its own proper sphere and will dwell blissfully in the heights. In feeling as well as in thought, and later in its very essence, it will be deemed worthy to stand before the face of God and dwell with the angels and the saints.
May the Lord in His goodness grant this to you all.
Amen.
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 what St. Theophan is describing is the state in which we find ourselves; we are pulled down and in every other direction by the desires and distractions of this world, and yet none of them comfort or satisfy us. We are created for communion with God, but we cannot be in communion with Him if our hands and hearts and lives are filled with other things. So we must learn to turn away from the things of this world, and to rise in prayer to the relationship with God for which we are created.)
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 27:27-66 (Jesus is Flogged, Mocked, Crucified, & Buried)
Last week we read St. Matthew’s account of the Lord’s trial before Pilate, as the religious authorities of Jerusalem sought to remove Jesus as a threat by accusing Him of claiming to be the Messiah, the king of the Jews, which would make Him a threat to the Romans. Pilate was suspicious of their accusations, but when the mob demanded that Jesus be crucified, he acquiesced, and handed Jesus over to be beaten by his soldiers and then crucified. In this reading, then, we will see the Lord go to the Cross and to His life-giving death, even as we enter into the services and commemorations of Holy Week.
The Soldiers Mock Jesus
27 Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. 28 They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, 29 and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. 31 After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
The Crucifixion of Jesus
32 As they went out, they came upon a man from Cyrene named Simon; they compelled this man to carry his cross. 33 And when they came to a place called Golgotha (which means Place of a Skull), 34 they offered him wine to drink, mixed with gall; but when he tasted it, he would not drink it. 35 And when they had crucified him, they divided his clothes among themselves by casting lots; 36 then they sat down there and kept watch over him. 37 Over his head they put the charge against him, which read, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews.”
38 Then two bandits were crucified with him, one on his right and one on his left. 39 Those who passed by derided him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! If you are the Son of God, come down from the cross.” 41 In the same way the chief priests also, along with the scribes and elders, were mocking him, saying, 42 “He saved others; he cannot save himself. He is the King of Israel; let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God; let God deliver him now, if he wants to; for he said, ‘I am God’s Son.’” 44 The bandits who were crucified with him also taunted him in the same way.
The Death of Jesus
45 From noon on, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. 46 And about three o’clock Jesus cried with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” 47 When some of the bystanders heard it, they said, “This man is calling for Elijah.” 48 At once one of them ran and got a sponge, filled it with sour wine, put it on a stick, and gave it to him to drink. 49 But the others said, “Wait, let us see whether Elijah will come to save him.”
50 Then Jesus cried again with a loud voice and breathed his last. 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. The earth shook, and the rocks were split. 52 The tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised. 53 After his resurrection they came out of the tombs and entered the holy city and appeared to many. 54 Now when the centurion and those with him, who were keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were terrified and said, “Truly this man was God’s Son!”
55 Many women were also there, looking on from a distance; they had followed Jesus from Galilee and had provided for him. 56 Among them were Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James and Joseph, and the mother of the sons of Zebedee.
The Burial of Jesus
57 When it was evening, there came a rich man from Arimathea, named Joseph, who was also a disciple of Jesus. 58 He went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus; then Pilate ordered it to be given to him. 59 So Joseph took the body and wrapped it in a clean linen cloth 60 and laid it in his own new tomb, which he had hewn in the rock. He then rolled a great stone to the door of the tomb and went away. 61 Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were there, sitting opposite the tomb.
The Guard at the Tomb
62 The next day, that is, after the day of Preparation, the chief priests and the Pharisees gathered before Pilate 63 and said, “Sir, we remember what that impostor said while he was still alive, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ 64 Therefore command the tomb to be made secure until the third day; otherwise his disciples may go and steal him away, and tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead,’ and the last deception would be worse than the first.” 65 Pilate said to them, “You have a guard of soldiers; go, make it as secure as you can.” 66 So they went with the guard and made the tomb secure by sealing the stone.
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 the connection points between St. Matthew’s account of the Lord’s passion, and the Psalm which we read on Day 1. It is worth noting, as well, that although Matthew has provided us throughout his gospel with explicit references to the prophecies which the Lord is fulfilling in the course of His ministry, he leaves those comments aside here; the references are present, and we can connect the events that he describes with the Psalms and the prophets that are referenced, but he leaves the connections for us to make. It has a strange effect on us, since we have become accustomed to Matthew’s voice explaining what is happening to us, and here he steps back and simply tells the story. It may be that he does this because he intends that effect…or it may be that he considers it unnecessary to explain what prophecies are being fulfilled, as we know from other places in Scripture and the Church’s tradition that these connections were frequently and commonly discussed and emphasized in the life of the early Church. The matter-of-fact reference to the immediate Resurrection of many is notable, and indeed remarkable.)
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?