Day 1 (Monday)
Genesis 25:1-11; 19-34 (Abraham’s 2nd Wife, Death of Abraham, Birth of Esau & Jacob, Esau Sells his Birthright)
As we begin this third year of the Religious Education Initiative, we are picking up the story of Abraham as he comes to the end of his life, after the death of Sarah, as the story moves on from Abraham to his son Isaac. Before we do so, it is good that we sum up the story in Scripture so far; God created humankind in innocence, and placed them in the Garden of Eden, where they dwelt in His presence until they disobeyed His commandment and chose their own way. Through that sin, and the many more sins of their descendants, the world fell into corruption, until God purified it, destroying and refashioning the world in the great Flood. He saved the righteous in the Ark, and from them the world was restored, but once again, Noah's descendants fell into evil and corruption, making common cause with evil gods, fallen angels who sought to lead all of humanity astray and destroy us in their rebellion against the Most-High God. When they built the Tower of Babel, God divided the nations, separating their languages and scattering them throughout the world, and removing Himself far from them so as not to destroy them again. He did not abandon humankind, however, but called Abram to leave his father's house and home country, and to follow God's call into a distant country, with the promise that he would make him into a great nation, and that all the nations of the world would be blessed (and therefore reconciled with God) through him. Abram and his wife Sarah had no children at that time, and as they obeyed God, entrusting themselves to Him, they waited for many years without having any children, until Abraham was 100 years old, and Sarah was 90. At that time, God visited them, and brought forth from the two of them Isaac, the child of promise, although they were long past the time when they had the natural ability to bring forth children. So Isaac is a miracle child, the gift of God to Abraham and Sarah, and the vessel of His promises to them, and to all humankind. The last thing we read was how Isaac gained his wife Rebecca, and married her just before the death of his mother Sarah. As we continue the story, then, we will say goodbye to Abraham, and will see what Isaac and his family are like.
Abraham Marries Keturah
25 Abraham took another wife, whose name was Keturah. 2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah. 3 Jokshan was the father of Sheba and Dedan. The sons of Dedan were Asshurim, Letushim, and Leummim. 4 The sons of Midian were Ephah, Epher, Hanoch, Abida, and Eldaah. All these were the children of Keturah. 5 Abraham gave all he had to Isaac. 6 But to the sons of his concubines Abraham gave gifts, while he was still living, and he sent them away from his son Isaac, eastward to the east country.
The Death of Abraham
7 This is the length of Abraham’s life, one hundred seventy-five years. 8 Abraham breathed his last and died in a good old age, an old man and full of years, and was gathered to his people. 9 His sons Isaac and Ishmael buried him in the cave of Machpelah, in the field of Ephron son of Zohar the Hittite, east of Mamre, 10 the field that Abraham purchased from the Hittites. There Abraham was buried, with his wife Sarah. 11 After the death of Abraham God blessed his son Isaac. And Isaac settled at Beer-lahai-roi.
Ishmael’s Descendants
25:12-18 (We are omitting the list of Ishmael's descendants. We should note here, though, that, although Ishmael was born of what seems to have been Abram's mistake, thinking that he must need to take matters into his own hands when he and Sarah did not have a child of their own for so long, he is not forsaken by God, and indeed remains at peace with Isaac and his descendants. In the list of his descendants is a certain Jobab, who the Fathers of the Church consider to be the Job about whom the book of Job is written.)
The Birth and Youth of Esau and Jacob
19 These are the descendants of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham was the father of Isaac, 20 and Isaac was forty years old when he married Rebekah, daughter of Bethuel the Aramean of Paddan-aram, sister of Laban the Aramean. 21 Isaac prayed to the Lord for his wife, because she was barren; and the Lord granted his prayer, and his wife Rebekah conceived. 22 The children struggled together within her; and she said, “If it is to be this way, why do I live?” So she went to inquire of the Lord. 23 And the Lord said to her,
“Two nations are in your womb,
and two peoples born of you shall be divided;
the one shall be stronger than the other,
the elder shall serve the younger.”
24 When her time to give birth was at hand, there were twins in her womb. 25 The first came out red, all his body like a hairy mantle; so they named him Esau. 26 Afterward his brother came out, with his hand gripping Esau’s heel; so he was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old when she bore them.
27 When the boys grew up, Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man, living in tents. 28 Isaac loved Esau, because he was fond of game; but Rebekah loved Jacob.
Esau Sells His Birthright
29 Once when Jacob was cooking a stew, Esau came in from the field, and he was famished. 30 Esau said to Jacob, “Let me eat some of that red stuff, for I am famished!” (Therefore he was called Edom.) 31 Jacob said, “First sell me your birthright.” 32 Esau said, “I am about to die; of what use is a birthright to me?” 33 Jacob said, “Swear to me first.” So he swore to him, and sold his birthright to Jacob. 34 Then Jacob gave Esau bread and lentil stew, and he ate and drank, and rose and went his way. Thus Esau despised his birthright.
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should point out two things. First, we hardly see Isaac do anything, either in this passage, or later on. He is the child of promise, and he simply lives a peaceful life, in faithful obedience to the Lord. Second, just because he is faithful and peaceful himself does not mean that his children are guaranteed the same blessings; they have to choose to be faithful, to follow the example of their parents. The conflict that we see between Esau and Jacob in these first stories about them indicate what will follow; their path toward faithfulness and peace with God and with one another will be longer and more complicated. The other point that should be noted is that Abraham marries again after Sarah dies, and has several other children; these children, especially Midian, will be seen again, or rather, the descendants of Midian, among whom Moses finds shelter when he flees from Egypt, and learns the worship of the Lord, finds a wife, and fathers sons, and is renewed to the covenant by circumcision. So these other descendants of Abraham hold fast to the covenant, and continue to dwell in the region, even after the descendants of Jacob go down to Egypt.)
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)
Hymns from the Feast of the Elevation of the Holy Cross
Today for our selection from Church Tradition, we’ll be looking at some of the hymns from the great Feast of the Church that we celebrate on September 14th, the Elevation of the Precious and Holy Cross. This feast commemorates both the finding of the Cross by St. Helen, and its recovery and return to Jerusalem in 627, after its seizure by the Persians a decade before. The feast of the Cross is a Strict Fast, and functions almost like mini celebration of the themes of Holy Week, all distilled into a single feast day, here in the fall, at the beginning of the new Church Year.
Doxastikon of the Kekragaria
Come, all you nations, let us reverence the blessed tree, through which has come the eternal vindication. For he who deceived our forefather Adam by means of a tree is himself ensnared by the Cross. And he falls headlong tumbling down, who formerly held the royal masterwork in tyranny. By the blood of God, the venom of the serpent is washed away, and the curse is lifted of the just sentence by the unjust sentence on the Righteous One who was condemned. For it was necessary to remedy tree by tree, and to put an end to the passions suffered by the condemned at the tree by the Passion of the Passionless One. And therefore, glory, O Christ the King, glory to the awesome plan for our salvation, by which You saved everyone, since You are good and You love humanity.
1st Hymn of the Aposticha
Rejoice, life-bearing Cross of the Lord, * of true religion the invincible monument, * the door to the blessed Garden, * support for those who believe, * and the Church's wall of defense all around. * Corruption has vanished and is abolished because of you. * Through you the power that was death's has been swallowed up, * and from earth have we been exalted to the heavens' heights; * panoply unassailable, * opponent of demons all, * the Martyrs' glory that truly adorns devoutest ascetic saints; * the port of salvation, * O all-precious Cross, bestowing great mercy on the world.
2nd Hymn of the Orthros Kathismata
The wood of Your Cross was merely planted, O Christ, and the foundations of death were shaken, O Lord. Hades had swallowed You eagerly, but with trembling it disgorged You. You have shown us Your salvation, O Holy One, and we glorify You, Son of God. Have mercy on us.
Ode 5, selections
Tree of the Cross, you are thrice-blessed, * for Jesus Christ, who is King and Lord, was crucified on you. * Through you fallen is the one who by a tree deceived us, * for he was lured by God who in the flesh indeed * was hung and nailed to you, * and who grants to our souls His peace.
Our adversaries, the powers from beneath the earth, ⁄ tremble when they see the sign of the Cross ⁄ displayed in the air where they dwell; ⁄ and the ranks of those who dwell in heaven ⁄ together with those born on earth ⁄ bow the knee before Christ Who grants peace to our souls.
Ode 9, Hymn 5
We were continually plunged in our forefather's darkness, O Lord our God; * but through the Cross, today You have raised us up. * Even as all of human nature was swept down by error uncontrollably, * so the light of Your Cross lifted the entire human race. * And therefore we the believers magnify the Cross.
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 how the Cross is talked about as a weapon, by which the Lord has destroyed our enemies and raised us up to glory. This is precisely accurate, of course; the Cross was what the Lord used, in humility and weakness, together with us, to submit Himself to death, and to unite Himself to the lowest and most broken depths of our nature. In so doing, of course, He has conquered death by death, brokenness by brokenness, exile by exile, suffering by suffering, and injustice by injustice. To speak of the Cross as the Lord’s weapon, however, is also to affirm for ourselves that the same principle applies for us in our lives; the only ultimate remedy to the problems of the world is the Cross of the Lord, which we allow to be present in our lives when we take up our own cross and follow Christ.)
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)
John 1:19-34 (Testimony of John the Baptist, the Lamb of God)
Last time we began the Gospel of John, and saw the Apostle draw a clear line connecting the figure of the Word of God from the Old Testament, the figure who spoke to many of the Prophets, as fully God, and as the One Who “became flesh, and dwelt among us.” He also talked about John the Baptist, a “man sent from God” to bear witness to the Word, the Light of the world. This time, we enter upon the narrative, as we see John being questioned by the religious authorities to see who he is.
The Testimony of John the Baptist
19 This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?” 20 He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, “I am not the Messiah.” 21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the prophet?” He answered, “No.” 22 Then they said to him, “Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?” 23 He said,
“I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
‘Make straight the way of the Lord,’”
as the prophet Isaiah said.
24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. 25 They asked him, “Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?” 26 John answered them, “I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, 27 the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.” 28 This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.
The Lamb of God
29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him and declared, “Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! 30 This is he of whom I said, ‘After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.’ 31 I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.” 32 And John testified, “I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. 33 I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ 34 And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.”
Discussion questions:
1) What did you notice in today’s reading? What surprised you or what was memorable to you? (Leader should note that, when they ask John who he is, they are referencing several prophecies. In asking if he is the Messiah, they refer to the most important expectation of the Anointed One, the son of David, who will come to save his people. For the others, the reference to the Prophet, they are talking about Moses’ prophecy in Deuteronomy 18:15, that the Lord will raise up a prophet like Moses, and the people are to listen to Him, and about the expectation from Malachi 3:23, that the Lord “will send you the Prophet Elijah before the great and terrible day of the Lord.” To all of these, John answers no, because he is not, in fact, the Messiah, and all three of these texts are, or may be, understood as referring to the Messiah in one sense of another. John rather emphasizes his role as a servant and herald of one whose coming can hardly be imagined, in a quote from Isaiah 40:3, from which we will quote a little bit more to show the point that John is making…that the Messiah is God Himself:
3 A voice cries:
“In the wilderness prepare the way of the LORD,
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
4 Every valley shall be lifted up,
and every mountain and hill be made low;
the uneven ground shall become level,
and the rough places a plain.
5 And the glory of the LORD shall be revealed,
and all flesh shall see it together,
for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.”6 A voice says, “Cry!”
And I said, “What shall I cry?”
All flesh is grass,
and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.
7 The grass withers, the flower fades,
when the breath of the LORD blows upon it;
surely the people is grass.
8 The grass withers, the flower fades;
but the word of our God will stand for ever.
9 Get you up to a high mountain,
O Zion, herald of good tidings;
lift up your voice with strength,
O Jerusalem, herald of good tidings,
lift it up, fear not;
say to the cities of Judah,
“Behold your God!”
10 Behold, the Lord GOD comes with might,
and his arm rules for him;
behold, his reward is with him,
and his recompense before him.
11 He will feed his flock like a shepherd,
he will gather the lambs in his arms,
he will carry them in his bosom,
and gently lead those that are with young.”
With that quote in mind, what John says when he actually sees the Lord is made still more clear; this is the 2nd Person of the Holy Trinity, the Uncreated Creator of all, now present within His own creation, just as was discussed in more theological terms in last week’s reading.)
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?