Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Feb. 3, 2024 (Epiphany 5B)

Christ Healing the Mother of Simon Peter’s Wife (1839). Oil painting on canvas by John Bridges (1818–1854). Birmingham (Alabama) Museum of Art. (Click image to enlarge.)

First Reading: Isaiah 40:21-31

The season of Epiphany is coming to an early end this year because Easter comes early, on March 31. Ash Wednesday and Lent are only about two weeks away. In our first reading we hear the Prophet Isaiah reassuring the people in exile that though God may seem far away, they have not been forgotten. Isaiah poetically portrays a transcendent God who is far beyond our imagining. And yet, the prophet proclaims, this mighty, eternal and all-powerful God lifts up on eagle’s wings those who wait patiently for God. God provides the power and the strength to wait and to follow God’s ways.

Psalm: Psalm 147:1-12, 21c

Sunday’s Psalm portion, excerpted from one of the six exuberant hymns of praise that bring the book of Psalms to its end, sings harmony with our Isaiah reading as it celebrates the glory of a God who is powerful and all-knowing. God is large enough to count and name even the stars of heaven, the Psalmist sings; yet God is close to the people too, guiding them home from exile and binding their wounds. God is unimpressed by strength and might, yet cares deeply for the weak and lowly, gently tending the broken and the brokenhearted.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-23

Pretending to be something we are not is a morally dubious action, even when we do it for a worthy purpose. But that’s not really what Paul writes in these verses when he claims to have been “all things to all people,” presenting himself in a voice separately tuned to the ears of Jews and Gentiles, believers and pagans, the strong and the weak. Following up on the advice in last week’s reading, Paul offers simple counsel to the fractious, often battling believers of Corinth: Get over your divisions. Love one another. And finally, work together in spite of any differences in order to share the Gospel’s blessings.

Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

Immediately after the events in last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus goes from the synagogue at Capernaum to the home of his friends Simon and Andrew. There he cures Simon’s mother-in-law’s fever. Healed of her weakness, she gets up to serve them. The Greek word Mark uses for “she served” is “diekonei.” That’s the same word that Luke uses to describe those who came forward to support the Apostles as they spread the Gospel. And, of course, it is the word from which we derive our modern “deacon.” Just as Jesus cared for Simon’s mother-in-law and all who came for exorcism or healing, deacons vow to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Feb. 7, 2021

First Reading: Isaiah 40:21-31

God is very large. We are very small. God is very powerful. We are very weak.

Christ Healing Peter’s Mother-in-Law (c.1650-1660), pen drawing with watercolor wash, by Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn ((1606–1669). Fondation Custodia, Paris. (Click image to enlarge.)

In Sunday’s first reading, the Prophet Iāsaiah musters striking poetic language that likens the people to grasshoppers and their earthly rulers to dandelion puffs blown apart in the wind. As the people begin to ponder the challenges of return from exile, Isaiah portrays a transcendent God who is far beyond our imagining. And yet, the prophet foretells, this mighty, eternal and all-powerful God will lift us up on eagles’ wings and give us the power and the strength to follow God’s ways.

Psalm: Psalm 147:1-12, 21c

Echoing Isaiah’s message in one of the six exultant hymns of praise that conclude the book of Psalms, the Psalmist celebrates the glory of the powerful, all-knowing God who counts and names even the stars of heaven, and who has guided the people home from exile and bound their wounds. God is unimpressed by the powerful and the strong, the Psalmist sings, but gently tends the broken and the brokenhearted. God lifts up the lowly, but casts the wicked to the ground, we sing, celebrating a liberating theological idea that we hear again in the Song of Mary and the teaching of Jesus.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-23

It’s tempting to argue with Paul’s message in these verses. Even for a worthy purpose, it’s not good to pretend to be something you’re not. But that’s not really what he is saying. Paul is getting at something deeper than just being a moral chameleon when he claims to have been “all things to all people.” As in last week’s discussion about eating meat sacrificed to idols when Paul warned Christians not to be a stumbling block to others, Paul urges the people of Corinth to love one another and work together. It doesn’t matter whether you’re Jewish, Gentile, strong or weak, he tells the people. Honor each other in your differences. Then unite to share the good news of the Gospel.

Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

The season after Epiphany is ending early this year because Easter, and Lent before it, fall relatively early. In this Sunday’s Gospel, we’ll hear another of Mark’s accounts of Jesus healing, throwing out demons, and telling the Good News before we move along to the Transfiguration, Ash Wednesday and Lent. In this Gospel passage, Jesus goes from the synagogue at Capernaum to the home of his friends Simon and Andrew, where he cures Simon’s mother-in-law of a fever, a scary symptom in those days before modern medicine. Restored to health and strength, she gets up to serve them. The Greek word for “serve” used here is “διηκόνει,” from which we get the word “deacon.” The same word is later used in Acts to name those who came forward to support the Apostles who were busy spreading the Gospel. Just as Simon’s mother-in-law served Jesus and the apostles, deacons vow to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely.

Thoughts on Sunday’s Lessons for Feb. 4, 2018

Christ Healing the Mother of Simon Peter’s Wife by John Bridges (1839). Oil painting on canvas by John Bridges (1818–1854). Birmingham (Alabama) Museum of Art. (Click image to enlarge.)

We are approaching an early end to the season after Epiphany because Easter, and Lent before it, fall early this year. In Sunday’s Gospel, we’ll hear one more of Mark’s accounts of Jesus healing, throwing out demons, and telling the Good News before we move along to the Transfiguration, Ash Wednesday and Lent. (After Pentecost we’ll get back to the three Gospel readings from Mark that we skip over for now.) In our first reading, we hear the Prophet Isaiah reassuring the people in exile that though God may seem far away, they are not forgotten. The prophet poetically portrays a transcendent God who is far beyond our imagining. And yet this mighty, eternal and all-powerful God lifts us up on eagle’s wings and gives us the power and the strength to follow God’s ways.

Psalm: Psalm 147:1-12, 21c

Sunday’s Psalm, one of the six exuberant hymns of praise that bring the book of Psalms to its end, sings harmony with our Isaiah reading as it celebrates the glory of a God who is powerful and all-knowing. God is large enough to count and name even the stars of heaven, yet God is close to the people too, guiding them home from exile and binding their wounds. God is unimpressed by strength and might, yet cares deeply for the weak and lowly, gently tending the broken and the brokenhearted. In a liberating idea that we also hear when we read the Song of Mary, “The Lord lifts up the lowly, but casts the wicked to the ground.”

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-23

Let’s be frank: Even for a worthy purpose, it’s not good to pretend to be something you’re not. But Paul is getting at something deeper than just being a moral chameleon when he claims to have been “all things to all people,” presenting himself in a voice separately tuned to the ears of Jews and Gentiles, believers and pagans, the strong and the weak. As in last week’s advice to take care not to be a stumbling block to others, Paul urges the fractious, often battling believers of Corinth to get over their divisions, loving one another and working together in spite of their differences so they can share the Gospel’s blessings.

Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

Jesus and his friends have left the synagogue at Capernaum to go to the home of his friends Simon and Andrew, where they find Simon’s mother-in-law sick with a fever, a serious and possibly life-threatening concern in that time. Jesus lifts her up, healing her with a touch. She promptly gets up to serve them, which might appear to be an instance of early gender roles. Take note, though that the Greek word for “serve” used here is “διηκόνει,” or “deacon,” the same word later used in Acts to name those who came forward to support the Apostles who were busy spreading the Gospel. Just as Simon’s mother-in-law served Jesus and the apostles, deacons vow to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely.

Thoughts on Today’s Lessons for Feb. 8, 2015

Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law. Orthodox icon.

God is very large. We are very small. God is very powerful. We are very weak. In striking poetic language that likens us to grasshoppers and our earthly rulers to dandelion puffs blown apart in the wind, Isaiah portrays a transcendent God who is far beyond our imagining. And yet, ultimately, this mighty, eternal and all-powerful God lifts us up on eagle’s wings and gives us the power and the strength to wait for God and to follow God’s ways.

Psalm: Psalm 147:1-12, 21c

Echoing Isaiah’s message in one of the six exultant hymns of praise that conclude the Psalms, the Psalmist celebrates the glory of the powerful, all-knowing God who counts and names even the stars of heaven, and who has guided the people home from exile and bound their wounds. God is unimpressed by the powerful and the strong. but God cares for the weak and lowly; God gently tends the broken and the brokenhearted.

Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 9:16-23

What is Paul saying here? Be “all things to all people” to proclaim the Gospel? Even in a good cause, it seems hypocritical to pretend to be something that you’re not. But that’s not really Paul’s message. As in last week’s advice not to be a stumbling block to others, Paul urges the people of Corinth to love one another and work together to spread the good news. It doesn’t matter whether you’re Jewish, Gentile, strong or weak: Honor each other in your differences. Then unite to share the good news of the Gospel.

Gospel: Mark 1:29-39

Jesus goes from the synagogue at Capernaum to his friends Simon and Andrew’s home, where he cures Simon’s mother-in-law’s fever. Healed of her weakness, she gets up to serve them. But note well that Mark’s Greek word for “serve” is “διηκόνει,” the same word that describes those who came forward to support the Apostles as they spread the Gospel; the same word from which we get our modern “deacon.” Just as Jesus cared for Simon’s mother-in-law and all who came for exorcism or healing, deacons vow to serve all people, particularly the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely.