If You Weren't Paying Attention

 

This Sunday, the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) used in many churches omits four verses from the Gospel reading and presents pewsitters with Matthew 9:9-13,18-26.

Filling the gap, I have reinstated the missing verses below and highlighted them in red.

9 As Jesus was walking along, he saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth; and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.

10 And as he sat at dinner* in the house, many tax-collectors and sinners came and were sitting* with him and his disciples. 11When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does your teacher eat with tax-collectors and sinners?’ 12But when he heard this, he said, ‘Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13Go and learn what this means, “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” For I have come to call not the righteous but sinners.’

14 Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast often,* but your disciples do not fast?’ 15And Jesus said to them, ‘The wedding-guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. 16No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak, for the patch pulls away from the cloak, and a worse tear is made. 17Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.’

18 While he was saying these things to them, suddenly a leader of the synagogue* came in and knelt before him, saying, ‘My daughter has just died; but come and lay your hand on her, and she will live.’ 19And Jesus got up and followed him, with his disciples. 20Then suddenly a woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the fringe of his cloak, 21for she said to herself, ‘If I only touch his cloak, I will be made well.’ 22Jesus turned, and seeing her he said, ‘Take heart, daughter; your faith has made you well.’ And instantly the woman was made well. 23When Jesus came to the leader’s house and saw the flute-players and the crowd making a commotion, 24he said, ‘Go away; for the girl is not dead but sleeping.’ And they laughed at him. 25But when the crowd had been put outside, he went in and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. 26And the report of this spread throughout that district.

I guess the RCL altered the Gospel reading to make things easier on either the preacher, the pewsitters, or both, but that was not the intent of  Matthew or the Spirit that inspired him. 

We see Jesus basically calling the Pharisees "old wineskins" that would explode if they consumed his words. I suppose the RCL editors did not want the Sunday crowd to get the impression that Jesus would ever offend anyone. 

Pay attention when someone tries to alter the text. There is always a reason why. 

Just Another Nail

From The Christian Post comes word of another nail being hammered into the Episcopal organization's coffin. 

The Rev. Sarah Fisher has been installed as bishop of an Episcopal Church diocese, reportedly becoming the first woman in a same-sex relationship to be elevated to that position in the southern United States.

Fisher, who is in a same-sex union with the Rev. Mandy Brady, was installed as the ninth bishop of the North Carolina-based Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina on Saturday.

Although there have been other openly gay bishops in The Episcopal Church, a spokesperson for the denomination told The Christian Post on Wednesday that, to her knowledge, “Bishop Fisher is the first openly lesbian Episcopal Church bishop for a diocese based in the South.”

Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Sean Rowe served as chief consecrator at the service, while Bishop Robert Wright of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta preached at the ceremony, the Episcopal News Service reported.

I would have expected this first from Western North Carolina since Asheville has been known as "The Berkeley of the East Coast" for many years.

Trinity Sunday

The Trinity seems to follow me around. I was baptized in a Trinity Church, attended a Trinity School, was married in a Trinity Church, and gave homilies for my parents funerals in a Trinity Church. 

So, this Trinity Sunday has some special meaning for me, but its real meaning is summed up in this day's Gospel reading.

Matthew 28:16-20

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.’

Preachers throughout the centuries have struggled with the Trinity, but I don't worry about the details very much. 

I like the mystery.

"Christ is Risen" is indeed offensive to the National Federation of Federal Employees

From Fox News,

Federal employees are suing the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Secretary Brooke Rollins, accusing the Trump official of "Christian proselytizing" after she sent department emails on Christmas and Easter with religious messages.

The complaint, brought by the National Federation of Federal Employees and seven USDA employees, accuses Rollins of "sending increasingly proselytizing communications to the entire USDA workforce, promoting her own preferred brand of Christian beliefs and theology to the captive audience of employees that report to her," since becoming head of the government agency in February 2025.

In the complaint, the plaintiffs say Rollins sent emails to all USDA employees on national and religious holidays, most overtly on Easter, with Christian language.

The Easter message sent by Rollins reportedly said, in part, "Happy Easter – He is Risen indeed! Today we celebrate the greatest story ever told, the foundation of our faith, and the abiding hope of all mankind." A drawing of an empty tomb with the words "Christ is Risen" was in the same email, according to the complaint.

This email was part of a broader pattern of religious messages sent on other holidays, the complaint alleges, starting with an email on July 4 that included the line, "May God continue to protect the United States of America and may His favor shine over all her land."

Rollins also sent a video message before Christmas that referred to Jesus as "our Savior," according to the complaint.

The plaintiffs, who include employees of various faith backgrounds as well as nonreligious employees, say the emails amount to "coercion, religious sermonizing and denominational preference" that leaves them feeling "excluded and unwelcome" in the workplace.

The plaintiffs argue the emails constitute an ongoing practice and policy that violates the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause and the Administrative Procedure Act. They are asking the court to declare these "proselytizing religious communications" unlawful and stop Rollins or other USDA officials from sending similar messages.

The complaint was filed May 13 in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. Americans United for Separation of Church and State, Democracy Forward and Bryan Schwartz Law, P.C., are representing the union and USDA employees in the complaint, which names Rollins and the USDA as defendants.

While I do not think that these messages violate the Establishment clause, I predict a long, drawn out process before the case is finally decided. 

I pray that Secretary Rollins remains standing firm in her faith, and that Jesus will be her advocate in these earthly matters. 

Let us all remember the following, 

1. 1 Corinthians 1:18 – “For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.”

2. Galatians 5:11 – “And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.”

3. Matthew 11:6 – “And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be offended in me.”

4. 1 Peter 2:8 – “And a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed.”

5. Romans 9:33 – “As it is written, Behold, I lay in Sion a stumblingstone and rock of offence: and whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.”

6. 1 Corinthians 1:23 – “But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumbling block, and unto the Greeks foolishness.”

7. Romans 1:16 – “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

8. 2 Corinthians 2:15-16 – “For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?”

9. 2 Timothy 3:12 – “Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.”

10. John 15:18 – “If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.”

11. Acts 4:12 – “Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.”

12. Matthew 10:22 – “And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.”

Pentecost

This Sunday we remember the day of Pentecost and hear the story as told in Acts 2:1-21,

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.

 Now there were devout Jews from every nation under heaven living in Jerusalem. And at this sound the crowd gathered and was bewildered, because each one heard them speaking in the native language of each. Amazed and astonished, they asked, ‘Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? And how is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—in our own languages we hear them speaking about God’s deeds of power.’ All were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, ‘What does this mean?’ But others sneered and said, ‘They are filled with new wine.’

 But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and addressed them: ‘Men of Judea and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to what I say. Indeed, these are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. No, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

 “In the last days it will be, God declares,

that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,

   and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,

and your young men shall see visions,

   and your old men shall dream dreams.

 Even upon my slaves, both men and women,

   in those days I will pour out my Spirit;

     and they shall prophesy.

 And I will show portents in the heaven above

   and signs on the earth below,

     blood, and fire, and smoky mist.

The sun shall be turned to darkness

   and the moon to blood,

     before the coming of the Lord’s great and glorious day.

 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Don't hurt your back if you are visiting Canada

The Canadian healthcare system continues to provide us with examples of what we should not do in the United States. 

From the Christian Broadcasting Network,  

Canadian citizens are expressing outrage after a woman who was seeking medical attention for back pain was offered euthanasia before she was ever diagnosed. Now, a member of Parliament is citing the story of Miriam Lancaster as proof that Canada needs to stop expanding its euthanasia program.

Miriam told her story in a social media video as well as in a post on The Free Press called, "Never Kill Yourself: When I went to the doctor in Vancouver with back pain, she offered me assisted suicide; instead, I recovered—and went to Cuba!"

It started a year ago when Miriam woke up with back pain and went to the hospital. Before testing her or diagnosing her condition, the hospital staff immediately offered to help her kill herself.

"I was approached by a lady doctor who, the first words out of her mouth were, 'We'd like to offer you MAID,'" Miriam recalls. MAiD stands for Medical Assistance in Dying.

Miriam was 83 and in a lot of pain, but was strong enough to say no to the doctor-assisted suicide. She was able to fight for the treatment she needed. Now she has recovered and was even able to celebrate her daughter's wedding, go traveling, and ride a horse, all within a year of being offered MAiD.

I have seen many cases of people who woke up with back pain and presented to the hospital because the pain was so severe. Some of these people had kidney stones, some had cancer, some had compression fractures, and a few popped up with shingles in a day or so. To offer MAid before testing or making a diagnosis is what you get in a state run system.

Don't hurt your back in Canada! 

 

The Ascension

 For those who missed the Feast of the Ascension this week, you had a make up day this Sunday when Acts 1:6-14 was read.

So when they had come together, they asked him, ‘Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?’ He replied, ‘It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.’ When he had said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. While he was going and they were gazing up towards heaven, suddenly two men in white robes stood by them. They said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up towards heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.’

 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath day’s journey away. When they had entered the city, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying, Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. All these were constantly devoting themselves to prayer, together with certain women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, as well as his brothers.

 Yep, after seeing that wouldn't you devote yourself to praying constantly?