Sunday, Quinquagesima: The Sunday Next Before Lent, 19 February 2023
Introit. Esto mihi. Ps. 31
Be thou my strong rock, and house of defence, that thou mayest : for thou art my strong rock, and my castle : be thou my guide and lead me for thy Name's sake. Ps. ibid. In thee, O Lord, have I put my trust, let me never be put to confusion : but rid me and deliver me in thy righteousness. V. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be. world without end. Amen.
Collect.
O LORD, who hast taught us that all our doings without charity are nothing worth : send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, and the very bond of peace and of all virtues without which whoever liveth is counted dead before thee. Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ's sake. [Who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the same Holy Ghost, ever one God, world
without end. Amen.]
The Lesson from the Epistle of blessed Paul the Apostle to the Corinthians. (1 Cor 13.1-)
Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
The continuation of the HOLY Gospel according to Luke. (St Luke 18.31-)
Then he took unto him the twelve, and said unto them, Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the Son of man shall be accomplished. 32 For he shall be delivered unto the Gentiles, and shall be mocked, and spitefully entreated, and spitted on: 33 And they shall scourge him, and put him to death: and the third day he shall rise again. 34 And they understood none of these things: and this saying was hid from them, neither knew they the things which were spoken. 35 And it came to pass, that as he was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the way side begging: 36 And hearing the multitude pass by, he asked what it meant. 37 And they told him, that Jesus of Nazareth passeth by. 38 And he cried, saying, Jesus, thou son of David, have mercy on me. 39 And they which went before rebuked him, that he should hold his peace: but he cried so much the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. 40 And Jesus stood, and commanded him to be brought unto him: and when he was come near, he asked him, 41 Saying, What wilt thou that I shall do unto thee? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. 42 And Jesus said unto him, Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee. 43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed him, glorifying God: and all the people, when they saw it, gave praise unto God.
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Homily by Fr Dcn. Maverick
I am currently working through several books, and I have been contemplating the mystery of the incarnation. The gospel reading presents us with Christ's prediction of his own death, he refers to himself as "the Son of Man." The term usually means "the human one" or "the human being." I believe it was the scholar Michael who said, "Isn't it a bit odd to call oneself the human one? No kidding!" The affirmation of Christ as the human one has within it an implicit or probably explicit reference to Jesus' divine-humanity, that He is the One Son of God, with "two natures." He is identified as the "son of man" referencing his divinity, but also his human form (Daniel 7:13-14).
As Anglican Catholic Christians, we confess with our Latin, and Eastern brethren the confession of Christ as "true God of true God, begotten not made, of one substance with the Father." It is perhaps even more startling that in this affirmation of the divine-human Son of Man, he would die.
Saint Paul the apostle states, that Jesus Christ is "our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ ... who gave himself as a ransom for us." (Titus 2:13-15, my own paraphrase) How could the Great God and Saviour die? How could they crucify "the Lord of Glory" (1 Cor 2:8)?
St Cyril of Alexandria, the defender of Nicene and Ephesine Orthodoxy. gave an explanation as to how both could be true in his book On the Unity of Christ. The affirmation of the One Son of God.
This day marks anticipation of the Christian fasting season of Lent. And as in the gospel reading, we should be seeking Christ's face with the "Jesus Prayer." The "Jesus Prayer" is a common prayer amongst our Eastern brethren, it is based on Scripture, it says "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me the sinner." Let us come unto the Fast, with cries unto the Lord Jesus, our Savior.
We should meditate on the incarnation of Christ, the fact that God became a man, and the fact that the divine word and plan of God are his Son, we should think of how Christ's humanity gives us access to his divinity.
Now, with regard to the Epistle reading. We should remind ourselves that Lent is a preparation of our hearts, a preparation of our full person. Remembering Christ's incarnation and self-giving for the life of the world, was in fact the revelation of God's love and light.
It is a time to reflect God's love, light, and love into the world. It is time for us to do good works, to help those in need, to reflect the Cross, and God's loving kindness in the world. God's nature is not hatred, God's nature is love, mercy, and loving-kindness.
This warns us about approaching Lent unworthily, the time of Lent is not a time for boasting about our fasting, almsgiving, and good works, because as the Apostle Paul warns; it will mean nothing without love. Love is not a funny feeling with hearts and kisses, although it might certainly manifest in hearts and kisses. Rather, love is a reflection of God's nature and character. To do good works, we must first be filled with the love of God, or as per the reading the "charity" of God. What exactly is this love? Is it something vacuous? Well, it's not being rude or ill-mannered when preaching the gospel. It is not making excuses to be rude, or constantly mentioning God's wrath and judgement as a way to evade everything.
1 Cor 13 says, "Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part."
Love is this! If we are not living according to this text. we are not showing God's love into the world. It is also important to note however that one can only reflect and overflow with God's love if one is intimate with the one who himself is Love. Intimacy with God in prayer, in praise, and in worship is the way forward if we seek to be those marked by God's Spirit and love:
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