Illuminations on the Lectionary readings for May 14, 2023 (Easter 6A)

First Reading: Acts 17:22-31

Here is the reassuring message of Sunday’s readings: The God who made us all is with us always, watches over us and hears our prayers.

Paul preaching at the Areopagus in Athens (1877), wall painting by Anton Dietrich (1833-1904), in the auditorium of the Christian-Weise-Gymnasium in Zittau, Saxony, Germany. (Click image to enlarge)

Even after the resurrected Jesus has gone back to the Creator, God remains in the world through the Holy Spirit. As today’s Collect sums up, God’s promises exceed all that we can desire. Our first reading from Acts tells us about Paul in Athens. He tells a crowd of skeptical Greeks that their altar to an unknown God actually celebrates our God, who made the world and is the One in whom we live and move and have our being.

Psalm: Psalm 66:7-18

Sometimes when bad things happen, it may feel as if even God’s presence has failed to protect us. This portion of Psalm 66 at first seems to suggest that God tests us with heavy burdens, standing aside when enemies ride over us and we must go through fire and water. This is a theological idea that we would rather not hear. But then the verses turn back to hope and faith: God hears our prayers and does not reject them. God keeps watch over all the people and, at the last, brings us out to a place of refreshment, a spacious place of relief.

Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22

This passage from the first letter written in the name of Peter offers fascinating glimpses of the early church working out its theology at a time when many Christians faced persecution. Echoing the hope of Psalm 66, these verses assure us that we earn blessing when we suffer for doing the right thing: Just as Noah and his family endured the flood so that humanity could survive, our baptism – which Noah’s flood prefigured with salvation through water – now saves us.

Gospel: John 14:15-21

Jesus’s Farewell Discourse continues. In this week’s passage Jesus continues to assure the apostles that, while he is leaving soon to return to the Creator, he will not leave them orphaned. Even if the world no longer sees Jesus, the apostles will see him. Jesus promises that God will send an Advocate – the Holy Spirit – to remain with them forever. And, in memorable words that remain a favorite quote from John’s Gospel, Jesus concludes this passage: “If you love me, keep my commandments … They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for May 17, 2020

First Reading: Acts 17:22-31


Even after the resurrected Jesus returns to the Creator, God remains in the world. The Holy Spirit is with us. This is the reassuring message of Sunday’s readings: The God who made us all is with us always, watches over us and hears our prayers.

Saint Paul preaching at the Areopagus in Athens (1515), painting by Raffaello Sanzio da Urbino, known as Raphael (1483-1520). The Victoria and Albert Museum, London. (Click image to enlarge.)

In our first reading find Paul in Athens, trying to persuade skeptical Greeks that their altar “to an unknown god” actually celebrates our God, who made the world and everything in it, who gave us life and breath, and who remains so near to us that in God we live and move and have our being.

Psalm: Psalm 66:7-18

Why do bad things happen to good people? The Psalmist ponders this eternal question in the portion of Psalm 66 that we read on this Sunday. Sometimes it seems as if God is testing us when we face burdens that seem too heavy to bear, the psalm reminds us. But God keeps watch over all the people of the Earth and ultimately brings us out to a place of refreshment, a spacious place of relief. God hears our prayers and does not reject them; at the end, God’s loving kindness is not withheld.

Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22


This passage from the first letter of Peter mirrors the theme of hope amid burdens and difficulties that we heard in Psalm 66. It assures us that when we suffer for doing the right thing we earn blessing, a promise that may have brought some comfort to an early church community facing persecution. Just as Noah and his family endured the flood so that humanity could survive, the author of 1 Peter writes, Jesus suffered on the cross, died and was resurrected so that we too may be brought to God through baptism.

Gospel: John 14:15-21


As Eastertide turns toward the Ascension and Pentecost, we continue where last Sunday’s Gospel left off in John’s Gospel. Jesus reassures the apostles that, although he will leave soon to return to the Creator, he will not leave them orphaned. God will give them an Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to remain with them forever. Then, emphasizing the intimate connection among this Trinity of Creator, Son and Spirit and those who believe, Jesus goes on: “If you love me, keep my commandments … They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for May 21, 2017

Saint Paul preaching at the Areopagus in Athens (1515), by Raphael (1483-1520). Royal Collection of the United Kingdom.

Even after the resurrected Jesus returns to the Creator. God remains in the world; the Holy Spirit is with us. This is the reassuring message of Sunday’s readings. The God who made us all is with us always, watches over us and hears our prayers. As today’s Collect sums it up, God’s promises exceed all that we can desire. In our first reading we see Paul in Athens, trying to persuade skeptical Greeks that their altar “to an unknown God” actually celebrates our God, who made the world and remains so near to us that in God we live and move and have our being. (In the following verses we learn that some of the crowd remained doubtful, but many became believers and joined Paul.)

Psalm 66:7-18

Sometimes bad things happen, and even God’s presence does not seem to protect us. The Psalm at first seems to suggest that God tests us with these heavy burdens, standing aside when enemies ride over us and we must go through fire and water, a theological idea that we would rather not hear. But then the verses turn back to hope and faith: God does keep watch over all the people and, at the last, ultimately brings us out to a place of refreshment, a spacious place of relief. God hears our prayers and does not reject them; at the end, God’s loving kindness is not withheld.

Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22

Mirroring the theme of hope amid burdens and difficulties that we heard in Psalm 66, the excerpt from 1 Peter that we read today assures us that when we suffer for doing the right thing we earn blessing, a promise that may have brought some comfort to an early church community facing persecution. Just as Noah and his family endured the flood so that humanity could survive, Jesus suffered on the cross, died and was resurrected to sit at the right hand of God so that we too may be brought to God through baptism.

Gospel: John 14:15-21

Picking up where last Sunday’s Gospel left off, we hear Jesus continuing to reassure the apostles that, while he is leaving soon to return to the Creator, he will not leave them orphaned. Even if the world no longer sees Jesus, they will see him. He promises that God will send an Advocate, the Holy Spirit, to remain with them forever. And, in words for all people and for all time, Jesus says, “If you love me, keep my commandments … They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Sunday, May 25, 2014

Paul preaches at the Areopagus in Athens.

Paul has arrived in Athens, where he enthusiastically debates theology with both Jews and Greek pagans. Now he plays a crafty trick. Pointing out that the Greeks keep an altar “to an unknown God,” Paul proclaims that the God who is unknown to them is in fact our God who made the world and everything in it, who gives to all mortals life and breath. Then Paul expresses a core truth about God that has endured through the ages and that we often hear in the Collect for Guidance in Morning Prayer: “In God we live and move and have our being.”

Psalm: Psalm 66:7-18

Why do bad things happen to good people? The Psalmist ponders this eternal question. Sometimes it seems as if God is testing us when we face burdens that seem too heavy to bear. But God keeps watch over all the people of the Earth and ultimately brings us out to a spacious place of relief. Curiously, the Lectionary omits the final two verses that bring Psalm 66 to its happy conclusion: “… truly God has listened; God has given heed to the words of my prayer.”

Second Reading: 1 Peter 3:13-22

This letter, written in Peter’s name long after the first Easter, offers fascinating glimpses of the early church working out its theology at a time when many faced persecution. Echoing the hope of Psalm 66, these verses assure us that we earn blessing when we suffer for doing the right thing, just as Noah and his family endured the flood so that humanity could survive, and just as Jesus suffered on the cross, died and was resurrected, and now waits for us at the right hand of God.

Gospel: John 14:15-21


As Eastertide turns toward the Ascension and Pentecost, we return to Jesus’ extended farewell at the Last Supper in a new context: Soon Jesus will return to the Creator, but he remains with us in the Holy Spirit. The Spirit is sent from God as our “advocate,” a word also used in ancient Greek as “helper” or “intercessor.” When the Spirit moves in our world, when we are inspired by God’s breath on our faces, when our hearts burn with desire to act as Christ’s hands in the world, we know that the Holy Spirit is with us.