A Commemoration for the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe

 

Liturgy for October 11, 2020 19 Pentecost, A Proper 23

 

October 11, 2020

Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost, Proper 23 St. Mary’s-in-the-Valley Episcopal Church Ramona, CA

Opening Hymn: # 304, I Come with Joy Sung and played by Joshua Charney

1. I come with joy to meet my Lord, forgiven, loved, and free,

in awe and wonder to recall,

his life laid down for me.

2. I come with Christians far and near to find, as all are fed,

the new community of love

in Christ's communion bread.

3. As Christ breaks bread, and bids us share, each proud division ends.

The love that made us, makes us one,

and strangers now are friends.

4. And thus with joy we meet our Lord. His presence, always near,

is in such friendship better known,

we see and praise him here.

5. Together met, together bound, we'll go our different ways

and as his people in the world, we'll live and speak his praise.

Blessed be God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

People And Blessed be God’s kingdom now and forever. Amen.

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Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy Immortal One.

Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our

hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may

perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name;

through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Have Mercy on us.

(three times)

The Celebrant then says The Lord be with you.

People And also with you. Celebrant Let us pray.

Collect

Lord, we pray that your grace may always precede and follow us, that we may continually be given to good works; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

Exodus 32:1-14

When the people saw that Moses delayed to come down from the mountain, the people gathered around Aaron, and said to him, “Come, make gods for us, who shall go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.” Aaron said to them, “Take off the gold rings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me.” So all the people took off the gold rings from their ears, and brought them to Aaron. He took the gold from them, formed it in a mold, and cast an image of a calf; and they said, “These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!” When Aaron saw this, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation and said, “Tomorrow shall be a festival to

the LORD.” They rose early the next day, and offered burnt offerings and brought sacrifices of well-being; and the people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to revel.

The LORD said to Moses, “Go down at once! Your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have acted perversely; they have been quick to turn aside from the way that I commanded them; they have cast for themselves an image of a calf, and have worshiped it and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘These are your gods, O Israel, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt!’” The LORD said to Moses, “I have seen this people, how stiff-necked they are. Now let me alone, so that my wrath may burn hot against them and I may consume them; and of you I will make a great nation.”

But Moses implored the LORD his God, and said, “O LORD, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand? Why should the Egyptians say, ‘It was with evil intent that he brought them out to kill them in the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth’? Turn from your fierce wrath; change your mind and do not bring disaster on your people. Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, how you swore to them by your own self, saying to them, ‘I will multiply your descendants like the stars of heaven, and all this

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land that I have promised I will give to your descendants, and they shall inherit it forever.’” And the LORD changed his mind about the disaster that he planned to bring on his people.

Hear what the Spirit is saying to God’s people

Thanks be to God

Psalm 106:1-6, 19-23

Confitemini Domino, Et fecerunt vitulum

1 Hallelujah!

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good, * for his mercy endures for ever.

2 Who can declare the mighty acts of the LORD * or show forth all his praise?

3 Happy are those who act with justice * and always do what is right!

4 Remember me, O LORD, with the favor you have for your people, * and visit me with your saving help;

5 That I may see the prosperity of your elect

and be glad with the gladness of your people, * that I may glory with your inheritance.

6 We have sinned as our forebears did; *

we have done wrong and dealt wickedly.

19 Israel made a bull-calf at Horeb * and worshiped a molten image;

20 And so they exchanged their Glory *

for the image of an ox that feeds on grass.

21 They forgot God their Savior, *

who had done great things in Egypt,

22 Wonderful deeds in the land of Ham, * and fearful things at the Red Sea.

23 So he would have destroyed them,

had not Moses his chosen stood before him in the breach, * to turn away his wrath from consuming them.

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The Epistle: Philippians 4:1-9

My brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my co-workers, whose names are in the book of life.

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing the things that you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, and the God of peace will be with you.

Hear what the Spirit is saying to God’s people

Thanks be to God

Matthew 22:1-14

The holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew: Glory to you Lord Christ

Once more Jesus spoke to the people in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said

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to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

The Gospel of the Lord Praise to you Lord Christ

Sermon:

19 Pentecost, Cycle A Proper 23, October 11, 2020 Exodus 32:1-14 Psalm 106

Philippians 4:1-9 Matthew 22:1-14

The presentation of God in the Bible is often frightening. Like when the people of Israel constructed a golden calf on Moses' extended visit on Mt. Sinai. So God said Moses, "This is a worthless, faithless people; let me kill them all off and start a new people with you." And Moses intercedes to placate the wrath of God and reminds God of the divine promise to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. So, God threatened to wipe out the very people chosen by divine promise.

The biblical presentations of God, often seem to make God like a person with feelings, jealousy, anger, love and kindness.

We believe in God because we take the profound conditions in life personally. We project divine personal motivation on the things that happen to us. We project bad and evil on malevalent personal forces. As persons we cannot help but project personality upon everything that happens to us. When people did not understand causation like scientists do today, the mystery of causation was easiest to explain in terms of the cosmic being of God and fallen angels.

And as much as science has helped us to achieve, science cannot give complete precise answers to causation, particularly in how events feel to us when they happen. And because science does not eliminate feeling, we resort to art, spiritual art, inner meaning art to deal with what happens to us. We are not just machine bodies obeying the laws of physics; we are inner spiritual beings

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with souls thoroughly endowed with language. And in using language we cannot avoid being seekers of meaning of everything that happens to us.

The favor of God in biblical language is often expressed as being chosen. And sometimes we might regard this to be like the winning of the lottery. But it is not like God drew Israel name out of the big hopper and they won the lottery; to be chosen is to experience being in relationship. To experience a relationship and then violate the vows of the relationship is what characterizes sin. The golden calf event was a rejection of a relationship because of unfaithfulness.

In the Gospel parable of Jesus, God is presented as a unrequited party giver, because the A, B, C list of invitees decide not to come to the wedding feast.

In wedding planning with brides and groom, I often find them very over optimistic about how many people will be present at their weddings. And it can be quite a blow when the schedules or the interest of the invited do not get them to the church. And bridal families can feel quite unrequited to experience a smaller than expected crowd.

God as the one throwing a big wedding party is excited to invite those who would seem to be in an obvious relationship with God. But alas, the RSVP regrets from the A list, B list and C list of guests indicate the obvious people who were supposed to be friends of God, turn out not to be interested in the big event. They have lost their relationship with God to the point of not being able to value what is important to God, namely celebrating relationship, friendship, love and union. When the seeming preferred lists of guests sent their regrets, then agents are sent to extend a invitation to those people who seemed to be unchosen.

What is the insight of this riddle parable? It turns out those who were regarded to be the preferred and chosen, didn't really know what it meant to be in right relationship to God. And those who regarded to be unchosen, were those who were flattered to know that the invitation from God was offered to them too.

And when we're all excited that the wedding feast has these new guest, we're shocked to find out a guest is condemned to outer darkness because he is dressed inappropriately. And we wonder, why so severe punishment for a minor dress code offense? Doesn't God honor California casual?

And of course, we cannot take a parable literal; we have to crack the riddle code. God indeed, has a generous invitation to the great feast, but attending the feast still has the vows of relationship. And what is our vow of relationship? We don't have to be perfect. And we are provided with the garments of graceful righteousness by God. But we still have to put on these graceful clothes. As great as God grace it, it does not mean that we can "do" our own thing. It means we have to embrace the path of repentance, or a Paul writes, a path of intentional excellence. St. Paul warned about not misunderstanding God's grace. "Where sin abound, there did grace much more abound....shall we continue to sin so that grace may abound?" Whoopee, since I've got a "get out of jail card" for everything, I'll just keep doing whatever I want.

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The grace of an invitation to the feast is offered to all, and the Host for purposes of social leveling provides graceful clothing as a gift to everyone, a uniform as it were. Accept the gift; and don't do your own thing. Don't be like a single solder or band member who decides to wear pink spats to "stick out" among the battalion or band.

What is the Gospel for you and me today? God wants to be in relationship with us. We're all invited to the feast. To make the vow of relationship is to enter the experience of being chosen. So we don't try to do our own thing; we accept the vows of our relationship with God. We don the garments of righteousness provided for us by the great host of the feasts.

And we avoid the false sense of being chosen. How can we be chosen if the invitation to the great feast is not important to us? Lots of people can live in this sense of "false choseness" and not regard the invitation to the feast of God as important to respond to. Let us not miss the invitation. Let us not use God as a rubber stamp to "do our own thing." The feast of God is a feast of communion and fellowship where love and justice is the profound experience.

Do not send your RSVP regrets to God today. Attend the feast and accept the lovely protocols of grace. Amen.

The Nicene Creed (page 357) We believe in one God,

the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth,

of all that is, seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God,

eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God,

begotten, not made,

of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation

he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit

he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,

and was made man.

For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;

he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again

in accordance with the Scriptures;

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he ascended into heaven

and is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son.

With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets.

We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead,

and the life of the world to come. Amen.

Prayers of the People:

We are invited to the wedding banquet which the Father is preparing for the Son's marriage to the church. Let us pray to the host of the eternal feast, that we may be drawn to the banquet, saying: Lord hear our prayer.

That all in our community may joyously and fully accept God's invitation, and that our heartfelt response be be undeterred by distraction and excuses, let us pray to the king of the feast: Lord, hear our prayer

That all who hunger and thirst for the bread and wine of life may be drawn to the meal of fellowship in Christ, let us pray to the Lord of heaven: Lord, hear our prayer

That all leaders of the church may recognize that God bids the banquet be filled with the rich and the poor, the prominent and the unknown, the healthy and the sick, let us pray to the Host of the wedding feast: Lord, hear our prayer.

That all leaders of the nations may address the global problem of hunger, and that the hungry may be fed, let us pray to the Giver of good food: Lord, hear our prayer.

That Christians everywhere, abandoning anxiety, may nourish themselves on the marriage celebration with God and on the eternal feast prepared for all peoples, let us pray to the God of lavish and insistent love: Lord, hear our prayers.

Intercessions: For Debbie, Aaron, Michelle, for Donald, and all Covid-19 sufferers. For those afflicted by hurricanes and wildfires. For racial justice and an orderly election.

O Lord, supply our needs fully out of your magnificent riches in Christ Jesus. May all one day appear clothed with amazing grace at your Son's wedding banquet, to whom be glory forever and eve. Amen.

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Let us confess our sins against God and our Neighbor Most merciful God,

we confess that we have sinned against you

in thought, word, and deed,

by what we have done,

and by what we have left undone.

We have not loved you with our whole heart;

we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves.

We are truly sorry and we humbly repent.

For the sake of your Son Jesus Christ,

have mercy on us and forgive us;

that we may delight in your will,

and walk in your ways,

to the glory of your Name. Amen.

Absolution

Almighty God have mercy on you, forgive you all your sins through our Lord Jesus Christ, strengthen you in all goodness, and by the power of the Holy Spirit keep you in eternal life. Amen.

The Peace of the Lord be always with you. People: And also with you

Hymn: On Eagles Wings, by Michael Joncas Played and sung by Rob and Deb Lewallen

You who dwell in the shelter of the Lord

Who abide in His shadow for life

Say to the Lord, "My refuge, my rock in whom I trust!"

And He will raise you up on eagles' wings Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of His hand

The snare of the fowler will never capture you

And famine will bring you no fear

Under His wings your refuge, His faithfulness your shield

And He will raise you up on eagles' wings Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of His hand

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You need not fear the terror of the night

Nor the arrow that flies by day

Though thousands fall about you, near you it shall not come

And He will raise you up on eagles' wings Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of His hand

For to His angels He's given a command To guard you in all of your ways

Upon their hands they will bear you up Lest you dash your foot against a stone

And He will raise you up on eagles' wings

Bear you on the breath of dawn

Make you to shine like the sun

And hold you in the palm of His hand

And hold you, hold you in the palm of His hand

Doxology: Sung by Rob and Deb Lewallen Eucharistic Prayer B

The Lord be with you.

People And also with you.

Celebrant Lift up your hearts.

People We lift them to the Lord.

Celebrant Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. People It is right to give him thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and every- where to give thanks to you, Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth. Through Jesus Christ our Lord; who on the first day of the week overcame death and the grave, and by his glorious resurrection opened to us the way of everlasting life. Therefore we praise you, joining our voices with Angels and Archangels and with all the company of heaven, who for ever sing this hymn to proclaim the glory of your Name:

Celebrant and People

Sung and played by Joshua Charney

Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory.

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Hosanna in the highest.

Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.

Hosanna in the highest.

We give thanks to you, O God, for the goodness and love which you have made known to us in creation; in the calling of Israel to be your people; in your Word spoken through the prophets; and above all in the Word made flesh, Jesus, your Son. For in these last days you sent him to be incarnate from the Virgin Mary, to be the Savior and Redeemer of the world. In him, you have delivered us from evil, and made us worthy to stand before you. In him, you have brought us out of error into truth, out of sin into righteousness, out of death into life.

On the night before he died for us, our Lord Jesus Christ took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, "Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me."

After supper he took the cup of wine; and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and said, "Drink this, all of you: This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me."

Therefore, according to his command, O Father,

Celebrant and People

We remember his death,

We proclaim his resurrection, We await his coming in glory;

The Celebrant continues

And we offer our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving to you, O Lord of all; presenting to you, from your creation, this bread and this wine.

We pray you, gracious God, to send your Holy Spirit upon these gifts that they may be the Sacrament of the Body of Christ and his Blood of the new Covenant. Unite us to your Son in his sacrifice, that we may be acceptable through him, being sanctified by the Holy Spirit. In the fullness of time, put all things in subjection under your Christ, and bring us to that heavenly country where, with the ever blessed Virgin Mary, and all your saints, we may enter the everlasting heritage of your sons and daughters; through Jesus Christ our Lord, the firstborn of all creation, the head of the Church, and the author of our salvation.

By him, and with him, and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father, now and forever. Amen.

Sung and played by Rob and Deborah Lewallen Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy Name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done,

on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread.

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And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those

who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Breaking of the Bread

Celebrant: Alleluia! Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us; People: Therefore let us keep the feast. Alleluia

Celebrant: The Gifts of God for the People of God. Take them in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your hearts by faith, with thanksgiving.

Communion Hymn: # 712, Dona Nobis Pacem Played and sung by Joshua Charney

Dona nobis, pacem, pacem. Dona, nobis, pacem.

Post Communion Prayer (BCP, page 365)

Almighty and everliving God, we thank you for feeding us with the spiritual food of the most precious Body and Blood of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ; and for assuring us in these holy mysteries that we are living members of the Body of your Son, and heirs of your eternal kingdom. And now, Father, send us out to do the work you have given us to do, to love and serve you as faithful witnesses of Christ our Lord. To him, to you, and to the Holy Spirit, be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

Benediction:

Dismissal:

Alleluia! Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. People: Thanks be to God!

Closing Hymn: How Great Thou Art,

Played by Stanley V. Smith, Jr. on the Hammer Dulcimer

1 O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder Consider all the *worlds Thy hand have made,

I see the stars, I hear the *rolling thunder,

Thy pow'r throughout the universe displayed!

Refrain:

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Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee;

How great Thou art, how great Thou art!

2 When thru the woods and forest glades I wander

And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees,

When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur

And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze, [Refrain]

3 And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,

Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in-

That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing,

He bled and died to take away my sin! [Refrain]

4 When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation

And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart!

Then I shall bow in humble adoration

And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art! [Refrain]

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Easter Vigil Liturgy of the Word with Comments

The Great Vigil of Easter



Following the blessing of the new fire, the lighting of the Paschal Candle and the chanting of the Exsultet, members are invited to a reading of Salvation History with responses from Canticles and Psalms followed by the corresponding Collect.

The Liturgy of the Word


The Celebrant may introduce the Scripture readings in these or similar words

Let us hear the record of God's saving deeds in history, how he saved his people in ages past; and let us pray that our God will bring each of us to the fullness of redemption.

I will read two of the lessons including the requisite lesson from Exodus.  On the others, I will provide, a “CliffsNote” abstract of the lesson and the response.  I would like for us through Easter to focus on “Receiving an identity,” which culminates in “We are an Easter People and Alleluia is our song.”



Link for all the Vigil Readings:



The story of Creation


Genesis 1:1-2:2

The creation story establishes human identity.  We are made in the “image” of God and therefore made to live up to that image.  Image=icon.  We are God’s icons.  In the world of freedom we are “tricked” by our underdeveloped state into knowing good and evil in the wrong way.  We discover that as people alienated from our “image” we can only live as imperfect beings in an imperfect world, but still a very, very God-created good world.  Evicted from Eden and alienated from our true identity as God’s children, we look for “salvation,” or a path to return to the original blessing of God’s image upon us.



Psalm 33:1-11, or Psalm 36:5-10

Psalm 33 is a Psalm which expresses rejoicing in God as the creator of the world

Psalm 36, is about God’s love, righteousness and faithfulness.  And since Light was first act of creation, the Psalmist says about God, ”In your light, we see light.”



In the Collect, we asked to be restored in our intended image and dignity.


Let us pray. (Silence)

O God, who wonderfully created, and yet more wonderfully restored, the dignity of human nature: Grant that we may share the divine life of him who humbled himself to share our humanity, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.





The Flood

Genesis 7:1-5,11-18; 8:8-18; 9:8-13


The Story of Noah’s Ark presents the sense of God personally acting in the events of nature.  Nature is treated as being in symbiotic relationship with God, except God’s can’t get humanity to comply because of the willful freedom of humanity to forsake the sacred image upon their lives.  The results are disastrous and so God is presented as One who does not give up, but rather, who starts over with a remnant on the Ark.  Noah, his family and pairs of animals, are destined to survive a worldwide flood.  It ends with a rainbow as a promise that God will not destroy the world with such events. (This can be understood as the wisdom of the writer discerning not to accept the freedom of events of nature as direct "acts of God.")  In Christian symbols, the waters of the flood are presented as dying with Christ in being immersed in the waters of baptism.  The rainbow is the promise that the waters of death are not God intended and will not destroy us.


Psalm 46

Psalm 46 is about how God is our refuge (like the Ark) in the storms and tumults of life. 



The Collect picks up the baptismal theme.  Please note how the Vigil indicates how we have Christianized the Hebrew Scriptures, which have a different presentation in synagogues today.



The “Rainbow” Collect is about it being a sign of God’s covenant not to destroy humanity and how we live under the covenant of water baptism.



Let us pray. (Silence)

Almighty God, you have placed in the skies the sign of your covenant with all living things: Grant that we, who are saved through water and the Spirit, may worthily offer to you our sacrifice of thanksgiving; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac


Genesis 22:1-18

Abraham and Sarah had a marvelous birth of an only son, Isaac, the promised heir to continue the line of Abrahamic people.  But God told Abraham in secret to sacrifice his only son away from home in the land of Moriah. (Probably if he had told Sarah, she would have prevented him and thought him crazy).  Kierkegaard called the time of the call to Abraham to sacrifice his son, the “teleological suspension of the ethical.”  Abraham had to abandon the ethical “thou shalt not kill,” and trust God for another kind of “telos” or end.  Kierkegaard called this suspension, a “leap of faith,” and in that obedient leap he discovered that God provided the ram to sacrifice in place of Isaac.  In terms of human anthropology, one could look at this event as wisdom writers understanding that God did not require human sacrifice.  The age of human sacrifice was replaced with an age of animal sacrifices, which is diagnostic of how people regarded what God required.


Certainly, Christians, borrowed the sacrifice of only son Isaac, in understanding how God the Father was seen as being in the  role of Abraham in offering his only Son to death.  And in the case of Jesus, there was no substitute for him being the Perfect Offering.  It should be an evolution in human understanding that the God does not require bloody sacrifices because to assume God needed such would be to diminish divine perfection.



Psalm 33:12-22, or Psalm 16

Psalms 33 including waiting on God for his loving kindness to be known.  Abraham waited on the Lord even as he obeyed.



Psalm 16: “For you will not abandon me to the grave,  nor let your holy one see the Pit. You will show me the path of life;”  This turned out to be true in Isaac’s rescue from death.





Abrahamic Collect

The Paschal Sacrament can be baptism and Eucharist coming to the newly baptized and to all people of the world who are invited to partake.



Let us pray. (Silence)

God and Father of all believers, for the glory of your Name multiply, by the grace of the Paschal sacrament, the number of your children; that your Church may rejoice to see fulfilled your promise to our father Abraham; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



Israel's deliverance at the Red Sea
The Hebrew Scriptures present the selection of the Abrahamic line as being chosen as exemplars in the world to show the rest of the world how God’s image on humanity was supposed to be lived out.  Israel was to exemplify God’s grace of selection.  How was this shown?  By giving them examples of his power acting on their behalf in very threatening times.  God’s exemplifying deeds were to give Israel a reason to believe, and the rest the peoples of the world, a reason to respect the God of Israel.



The escape from the Pharaoh of Egypt and the parting of the Red Sea is a Root Story event in the identity of the people of Israel.  In the regular recounting of this event of deliverance, especially at Passover time, the people are renewed in their identity as God’s people and renewed in the dynamic remembering of the power of God's deliverance.  If God did it then, then we too can access that power as we remember it afresh in our time.  The followers of Jesus Christianized the waters of the Red Sea as the baptismal path through probable death, but surviving.





Exodus 14:10-15:1

As Pharaoh drew near, the Israelites looked back, and there were the Egyptians advancing on them. In great fear the Israelites cried out to the Lord. They said to Moses, "Was it because there were no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us, bringing us out of Egypt? Is this not the very thing we told you in Egypt, 'Let us alone and let us serve the Egyptians'? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness." But Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid, stand firm, and see the deliverance that the Lord will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians whom you see today you shall never see again. The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to keep still."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to go forward. But you lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the Israelites may go into the sea on dry ground. Then I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them; and so I will gain glory for myself over Pharaoh and all his army, his chariots, and his chariot drivers. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gained glory for myself over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his chariot drivers."

The angel of God who was going before the Israelite army moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from in front of them and took its place behind them. It came between the army of Egypt and the army of Israel. And so the cloud was there with the darkness, and it lit up the night; one did not come near the other all night.

Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. The Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and turned the sea into dry land; and the waters were divided. The Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. The Egyptians pursued, and went into the sea after them, all of Pharaoh's horses, chariots, and chariot drivers. At the morning watch the Lord in the pillar of fire and cloud looked down upon the Egyptian army, and threw the Egyptian army into panic. He clogged their chariot wheels so that they turned with difficulty. The Egyptians said, "Let us flee from the Israelites, for the Lord is fighting for them against Egypt."

Then the Lord said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, so that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots and chariot drivers." So Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and at dawn the sea returned to its normal depth. As the Egyptians fled before it, the Lord tossed the Egyptians into the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the chariot drivers, the entire army of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not one of them remained. But the Israelites walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.

Thus the Lord saved Israel that day from the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead on the seashore. Israel saw the great work that the Lord did against the Egyptians. So the people feared the Lord and believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.

Then the prophet Miriam, Aaron's sister, took a tambourine in her hand; and all the women went out after her with tambourines and with dancing. And Miriam sang to them:

"Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously;

horse and rider he has thrown into the sea."



Interesting that the ecstatic song of Miriam gets entitled the “Song of Moses.”


Canticle 8, The Song of Moses

 Cantemus Domino

Exodus 15:1-6, 11-13, 17-18



Especially suitable for use in Easter Season

I will sing to the Lord, for he is lofty and uplifted; * the horse and its rider has he hurled into the sea.

The Lord is my strength and my refuge; *

 the Lord has become my Savior.

This is my God and I will praise him, *

 the God of my people and I will exalt him.

The Lord is a mighty warrior; * Yahweh is his Name.

The chariots of Pharaoh and his army has he hurled into the sea; * the finest of those who bear armor have been drowned in the Red Sea.

The fathomless deep has overwhelmed them; *

 they sank into the depths like a stone.

Your right hand, O Lord, is glorious in might; *

 your right hand, O Lord, has overthrown the enemy.

Who can be compared with you, O Lord, among the gods? * who is like you, glorious in holiness, awesome in renown, and worker of wonders?

You stretched forth your right hand; * the earth swallowed them up.

With your constant love you led the people you redeemed; * with your might you brought them in safety to  your holy dwelling.

You will bring them in and plant them *

 on the mount of your possession,

The resting-place you have made for yourself, O Lord, * the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hand has established.

The Lord shall reign * for ever and for ever.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit: * as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.  Amen.



The Red Sea Collect, Christianizes the Red Sea Waters as a Sign of Baptism.  Remember one of the key event of the Vigil is Baptism, so the baptismal theme is pronounced in all of the lessons and teaching.



Let us pray. (Silence) 


O God, whose wonderful deeds of old shine forth even to our own day, you once delivered by the power of your mighty arm your chosen people from slavery under Pharaoh, to be a sign for us of the salvation of all nations by the water of Baptism: Grant that all the peoples of the earth may be numbered among the offspring of Abraham, and rejoice in the inheritance of Israel; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



God's Presence in a renewed Israel 


The prophet Isaiah is a Utopian, envisioning ideal worlds, especially for the people of Israel who have known continuously bad times with the division into two kingdoms and threats from invading conquerors.  The vision of renewal was obviously an analgesic to people in suffering and pain.  The utopian vision, “though it means “no such place,” gives the ideal direction in a world of freedom where good and evil happening co-exist.  The image of God upon our lives include hope, not to taunt us, but to witness to the direction of perfection.  Don’t mock utopian vision or hope.  Hope provides the positive direction of our lives.



Isaiah 4:2-6



Psalm 122

Psalm 122 presents Jerusalem as the ideal city of peace where unity resides.  We are to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, not because God doesn’t love the other cities on the earth, but Jerusalem stands as the ideal city of humanity all living in peace.  This Psalm is coupled with the utopian vision of the prophet Isaiah.



Cloud and Pillar Collect


The cloud and pillar were “markers” of God’s apparent presence to God’s people.  We live toward moments when God’s Presence is apparent and the utopian visions are visions of that hope for the totally Apparency of God, when indeed tears will be wiped away.



Let us pray. (Silence)


O God, you led your ancient people by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night: Grant that we, who serve you now on earth, may come to the joy of that heavenly Jerusalem, where all tears are wiped away and where your saints for ever sing your praise; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



Salvation offered freely to all


Christian faith was born from understanding of universal or catholic salvation offered to everyone.  This means beyond those who were adherents of Judaism and inhabitants of Israel.  Israel as God’s people were to be the “leavening agent” of salvation for all of the people of the world, but in the reality of conflict and the fear of assimilating into the practices of their neighbor of being assimilated by them, it was difficult for Israel or any people to fulfill that role of being the leavening agent of salvation offered to everyone.  Early Christian readers of the Hebrew Scriptures jumped on the themes of “universal” salvation that they found in the prophets.



Isaiah 55:1-11



Canticle 9, The First Song of Isaiah, or

In this Canticle from Isaiah the universal theme is expressed directly:  Make his deeds known among the peoples;  see that they remember that his Name is exalted. (peoples would mean more than Israel).


Psalm 42:1-7

In this Psalm: The image of God on each person means that the soul is athirst for the living God.  "As the deer pants for the water, my soul longs after Thee."



Collect of Renewal


In this Collect both water and Spirit are used in a way that is explicit in the discourse of Jesus with woman at the well, in John 4.



Let us pray. (Silence)


O God, you have created all things by the power of your Word, and you renew the earth by your Spirit: Give now the water of life to those who thirst for you, that they may bring forth abundant fruit in your glorious kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.


A new heart and a new spirit



In Ezekiel, the prophet sees a time when God become accessible to everyone.  Obviously with the destruction of the Temple and people carried into exile, how could “God identity” and “Torah identity” be maintained when not in one’s land or having a Temple to go to?  God was to be portable into the human temple.  I will give you a new heart and a new spirit.

Certainly, the post-Pentecostal church relied upon this understand of what was happening in the experience of the Holy Spirit.


Ezekiel 36:24-28


Psalm 42:1-7, or Canticle 9, The First Song of Isaiah (see above)

Let us pray. (Silence)



Reconciliation Collect


In this collect, there is a petition for us to live lives congruent with the faith we confess, because we have been given access to this new covenant which provided us with a new heart and new spirit.

Let us pray. (Silence)

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who are reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



The valley of dry bones


This is the portion about “dem dry bones” of Ezekiel.  A question during the time of Jesus among religious parties was about the resurrection from the dead.  The Pharisees believed in it; the Sadducees did not because they did not think they could find reference to such in the Torah.  The Pharisees and others believed that beliefs could be established with reference to the other Hebrew Scripture writings and not just limited to the Torah.  The dry bones passage of Ezekiel is one such “resurrection” passage from the Hebrew Scriptures.  Obviously hope dwells in people who experience great disappointment and great injustice.  How can a just God be believed in when the hope of justice is not realized?  Well, God has a way of putting flesh back on the bones, a sort of reverse aging, but you get to keep all the wisdom gained from aging.  The Spirit is able to breathe new life and reconstitute a person and a people so that they can know their own continuity into the future in some way.  St. Paul referred to the Holy Spirit as the assurance or down payment of the resurrection.



Ezekiel 37:1-14


The hand of the Lord came upon me, and he brought me out by the spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of a valley; it was full of bones. He led me all around them; there were very many lying in the valley, and they were very dry. He said to me, "Mortal, can these bones live?" I answered, "O Lord God, you know." Then he said to me, "Prophesy to these bones, and say to them: O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. I will lay sinews on you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live; and you shall know that I am the Lord."


So I prophesied as I had been commanded; and as I prophesied, suddenly there was a noise, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. I looked, and there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, "Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, mortal, and say to the breath: Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe upon these slain, that they may live." I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived, and stood on their feet, a vast multitude.

Then he said to me, "Mortal, these bones are the whole house of Israel. They say, 'Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are cut off completely.' Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God: I am going to open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people; and I will bring you back to the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and bring you up from your graves, O my people. I will put my spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you on your own soil; then you shall know that I, the Lord, have spoken and will act," says the Lord.



Psalm 30, or Psalm 143


In Psalm 30, the Psalmist says, “You brought me up, O LORD, from the dead;  you restored my life as I was going down to the grave.”  One can see how these words were appropriated by Christian resurrectionists.


Psalm 143 includes a request for personal revival: "Revive me, O LORD, for your Name's sake;  for your righteousness' sake, bring me out of trouble."



Sealed by Spirit Collect


This collect refers to the “Passover” of Jesus from death to life, and in the waters of baptism we ritually go into the water of death and are raised from the water by resurrection in identity with the “Passover” of Christ.  And we received our Christian Brand on our forehead:  “You are sealed by the Holy Spirit in baptism and marked as Christ’s own forever.”



Let us pray. (Silence)


Almighty God, by the Passover of your Son you have brought us out of sin into righteousness and out of death into life: Grant to those who are sealed by your Holy Spirit the will and the power to proclaim you to all the world; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



The gathering of God's people



The prophet Zephaniah is like Isaiah, a utopian, and envisions a rescue and a return of all the people of God to their homes.  When the people of Israel could not have their own freedom in their own land, they still had the identity of hope.  And the prophet Zephaniah feeds the reality of hope with a narrative utopian vision.  Obvious, everyone wants to be “home;” home as the very best place to be, a place of familiarity, safety and comfort.  St. Paul, was not sure about comfort in earthly places or home, and he as a utopian said that we were citizens of heaven.  This is true even as we ask that God’s will be done on earth as it is in heaven.


Zephaniah 3:12-20


Psalm 98, or Psalm 126

In Psalm 98, the poet anthropomorphizes nature and has nature shouting and praising God for what he has done for his people.


Psalm 126 is about restoring the fortunes of Zion and seems to be written in the captivity of exile away from home.  But in exile, the identity with the home place of Zion formed the identity of many people who never did see Jerusalem.  Zion and the Hope of Zion seem to be the same for the Psalmist poet.



The Plan of Salvation Collect


In this prayer we understand the church as God’s providence in furthering a plan of salvation for the whole world to see.  It is a collect of admitting that we are not yet finished in the quest of perfection.


Let us pray. (Silence)


O God of unchangeable power and eternal light: Look favorably on your whole Church, that wonderful and sacred mystery; by the effectual working of your providence, carry out in tranquillity the plan of salvation: let the whole world see and know that things which were cast down are being raised up, and things which had grown old are being made new, and that all things are being brought to their perfection by him through whom all things were made, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.



The Vigil ends here.  We will begin our Easter liturgy with the Renewal of our Baptismal Vows and complete our Vigil with our Easter Eucharistic liturgy.