Theology Update for the Week of March 22

Dear friends in Christ,

At 12:40pm today, I will repeat yesterday’s Bible study on Genesis 22, the sacrifice of Isaac. There is apparently a little Hebrew word that means “please” at the introduction of God’s speech to Abraham: “Please, take your son …” If you are in the area, drop in – we meet on the 2nd floor, and have coffee and tea. (You can bring a sandwich if you want.) We finish at 1:20.

Then at 6:15pm today, the Good Books & Good Talk seminar will take up Josephine Tey’s Miss Pym Disposes. I suppose the question is, should she have disposed? And what does it really mean to say that God disposes? If you’ve read the book, you’re welcome to the conversation: in Andrew Hall. We finish at 7:45pm.

Tomorrow, March 24, the Rector’s Christian Doctrine Class is on “Mission and Ministry: Holy Orders, Vocation, Gifts, and Talents.” As part of this discussion, I’ll be taking a look at the ordination rites in our Prayer Book, putting orders (deacon, priest, and bishop) in the broader context of the church’s mission and God’s call to the church as a whole (and his bestowal of the gifts and talents we need). Anyone interested in the topic is welcome: Andrew Hall, 6:30 to 7:30pm.

On Palm Sunday, there will be a 10 o’clock theology class, continuing the discussion of chapter 22 to the end (where we find the announcement of the birth of the woman who will become Isaac’s wife). On Palm Sunday, the class is shortened to 30 minutes; we end at 10:30 to give people plenty of time to get seated in the church for the 11 o’clock liturgy.

Please note that there will be no other classes in Holy Week, no class on Easter Day, and no classes during Easter Week. So, after March 29, the next class will be on Sunday, April 12.

When I decided to preach on Jeremiah for yesterday’s sermon, it was in part because I had just preached on the gospel five weeks earlier. In our lectionary, the New Testament reading for Evensong on the last Sunday after Epiphany is John 12:24-32. That same passage is the Gospel for the 5th Sunday in Lent every three years. So, once every six years, we get them as we did this year. If you’d like to see what I said about John 12:24-32, the sermon is here. I also preached on the same passage in 2007 and 2009!

Blessings to each of you as we approach the holy week,
Father Austin