Titus. A Big Ask
Devotion by Graeme Harrison)
Lord, I am yours, I was born for you;
What is your will for me?
Let me be rich or beggared
Exulting or lamenting
Comforted or lonely;
Since I am yours, yours only,
What is your will for me?
St Teresa of Avila(1552-15820 (Book of a Thousand Prayers)
Read:
Titus 1:1-12. Read this 3 times, each time asking God’s help and thinking about those words or phrases that leap out at you.
Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ to further the faith of God’s elect and their knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness— 2in the hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the beginning of time, 3and which now at his appointed season he has brought to light through the preaching entrusted to me by the command of God our Saviour,
4To Titus, my true son in our common faith:
Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Saviour.
5The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was left unfinished and appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. 6An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. 7Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless—not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. 8Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined. 9He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
10For there are many rebellious people, full of meaningless talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision group. 11They must be silenced, because they are disrupting whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach—and that for the sake of dishonest gain. 12One of Crete’s own prophets has said it: “Cretans are always liars, evil brutes, lazy gluttons.”
(Titus 1:1-12 NIV)
Thought for the Day:
Every year the letter of Paul to his apprentice Titus is wheeled out during the Christmas readings. You would not have noticed it because it is lost amongst shepherds, angels and mangers. But this pastoral letter is a tough one and it deals with Titus’ tough assignment. He is being asked to establish a leadership team in a church of newly converted Christians. On top of that, he must deal with the fact that the social norms on Crete are pretty low. Where else would you would it be hard to find an Elder because the requirements were “not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain”?
I get the impression that Paul did not enjoy living among the Cretan community. He has sent Titus to finish the job of stabilizing the new church and helping it navigate what it means to be Christian in this community.
At least for Titus it was clear what a change God makes in our lives when Christ becomes our Lord in ‘Bogun Central’. Is it as clear to you how Christ makes you different to your surrounding culture?
Photo by Eric Prouzet on Unsplash
https://sacredspace.com/daily-prayer/
Sacred Space is inspired by the spirituality of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, a sixteenth-century Basque native, whose insights into God’s working with the human heart have been of great assistance to countless people over the centuries and are found more helpful than ever today.
Sacred Space is a ministry of the Irish Jesuits. The site originated in the offices of the Jesuit Communication Centre in Ireland in 1999. It has grown into a global online apostolate for daily prayer since that time, and now offers prayer in approximately 15 other languages.
It might seem strange to pray at your computer, in front of a screen or using your smartphone, especially if there are other people around you, or distracting noises. But God is everywhere, all around us, constantly reaching out to us, even in the most unlikely situations. When we know this, and with a bit of practice, we can pray anywhere!
We offer daily prayer on our site to guide you through a session of prayer, in six stages, including preparing your body and mind, and culminating in reflection on the Gospel of the day according to the Roman Catholic liturgical calendar. The stages are:
- The Presence of God
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- The Word
- Conversation
- Conclusion
It is worth noting that we follow the Irish liturgical calendar which may at times differ from liturgical calendars used in other countries. We hope in the future to provide a choice of liturgical calendars depending on your location and preference.
Another resource that you may like to use is our Living Space page. Here you will find commentaries on both the daily readings and the Sunday readings throughout the Church year. Originally, this was the work of Fr. Frank Doyle, SJ who passed away in 2011. The existing commentaries continue to be edited and updated, but new commentaries are not currently being posted, and every once in a while, there is a day with no commentary available. It is possible to search the Living Space collection for commentaries on particular scripture readings and saints. The collection is also searchable by Gospel (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John), by Sunday of the Year or by Saint by Month. Please note that the site is undergoing updating and revisions for functionality.
The following devotional is attributed to Kelly Woods. Kelly (she/her) is better known by some as PastoralHare. She works for the Uniting Church by resourcing communities and engaging the younger generations across the VicTas Synod.
This year the Revised Common Lectionary has us exploring the Christmas story found in the Gospel of Luke, particularly looking at Luke 2:1-14, verses 8-14 which go something like this:
8 The Shepherds were not at Jesus’ birth as they were away in the fields, keeping watch over their flocks at night. 9 Because they were unable to be onsite with Mary and Joseph, the Lord sent a message via an angel. Like a glitch in the night sky, a figure materialised before them, and the glory of the Lord radiated like waves of energy around them. The Shepherds were terrified by these radical methods of communication. 10 The angel figure then spoke to them saying, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news—even in this unconventional way—and it will cause great joy for all the people.11 In the town of David a Saviour has been born, and he is the Messiah, the Lord. 12 You must travel to go find him, and you will recognise him by this sign: a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” 13 There was another flicker in the sky, as if the surround-sound system kicked in, and suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising, tweeting, and posting about God, sharing, 14 “Glory to God who transcends all time, and peace to those in the physical realms with whom God’ favour rests.”
Luke 1:8-14 PH Translation*
This version may seem a tad different to what you have read before, however, the Christmas story and the digital world are surprisingly more connected than we may think.
You see, just like the author of Luke documented the events of Jesus’ birth within the larger narrative of scripture, our lives are also unique stories within a larger divine narrative. How we connect with each other, what we post and share across digital forums and communities document the events of our own lives.
Acknowledging our own agency is the first step in understanding the role we play in the grand scheme of the digital world, as these interactions are not just about us as individuals—they are part of the bigger story.
The second step to consider is how you are to use your agency within the digital landscape, and the Christmas story found in the Gospel of Luke can also help us with this.
The author of Luke tells us about how an angel appeared to share the good news of Jesus’ birth, and how it should bring about great joy for all people. The angel was accompanied by a throng of heavenly hosts proclaiming God’s glory, and how the peace of God is also possible on earth as it is in heaven. Perhaps this should cause us to ask whether we are living our life in such a way that we are contributing to this joy and peace for all people? Are our digital interactions documenting words, actions, and expressions of joy, encouragement, and hope to others? Are we able to see our digital platforms as part of the throng of heavenly hosts?
Another learning we can glean from the Lucan story is in the depiction of Jesus’ birth in a manger. That the Saviour of the world came to find rest in a humble manger can help us to seek out this same humility in the digital world. Despite the array of possible ways God could have chosen to enter the world, we find the Messiah to be wrapped in cloths as a baby—vulnerable and dependent on others.
Despite the array of possible ways we can interact in the digital world, are we choosing our interactions to be clothed in humility, open to learning, respectful of others, and seeking authentic community that cultivates genuine interdependent connections?
Along with a sense of authentic connection between each other, are we taking the opportunity to seek God’s presence in the digital world? Like how an angelic figure can materialise out of nothing, are we open to God speaking to us in radical, unconventional ways, too? The angelic presence spoken of in this Christmas story reminds us that God repeatedly transcends all matters of time and space. Are we on the lookout for this divine presence in our digital interactions?
The points above are just a handful of ways the Christmas story continues to speak into our current lives, by offering us lessons into the digital world. No matter how personal our algorithms get, our digital interactions are never only about us; we are connected like a web of threads woven into a divine digital tapestry.
And don’t forget that the Christmas story not only tells us of the day Jesus’ entered the world, but it can help guide us in understanding who we are and why we matter in the interconnected digital realms, too.
*PastoralHare.com Translation 2024
Posted with permission by Kelly Woods PastoralHare.com
Faith and Doubt
Devotion by Graeme Harrison)
PRAYER:
I place my hands in yours Lord
I place my hands in yours.
I place my will in yours Lord
I place my will in yours
I place my thoughts in yours Lord
I place my thoughts in yours
I place my days in yours Lord
I place my days in yours
I place my heart in yours Lord
I place my heart in yours
I place my life in yours Lord
I place my life in yours
Amen.
David Adam in The Book of a Thousand Prayers
Read:
Luke 1:5-20. Read this 3 times, each time asking God’s help and thinking about those words or phrases that leap out at you.
5In the time of Herod king of Judea there was a priest named Zechariah, who belonged to the priestly division of Abijah; his wife Elizabeth was also a descendant of Aaron. 6Both of them were righteous in the sight of God, observing all the Lord’s commands and decrees blamelessly. 7But they were childless because Elizabeth was not able to conceive, and they were both very old.
8Once when Zechariah’s division was on duty and he was serving as priest before God, 9he was chosen by lot, according to the custom of the priesthood, to go into the temple of the Lord and burn incense. 10And when the time for the burning of incense came, all the assembled worshipers were praying outside.
11Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to call him John. 14He will be a joy and delight to you, and many will rejoice because of his birth, 15for he will be great in the sight of the Lord. He is never to take wine or other fermented drink, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit even before he is born. 16He will bring back many of the people of Israel to the Lord their God. 17And he will go on before the Lord, in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the hearts of the parents to their children and the disobedient to the wisdom of the righteous—to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.”
18Zechariah asked the angel, “How can I be sure of this? I am an old man and my wife is well along in years.”
19The angel said to him, “I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God, and I have been sent to speak to you and to tell you this good news. 20And now you will be silent and not able to speak until the day this happens, because you did not believe my words, which will come true at their appointed time.”
(Luke 1:5-20 NIV)
Thought for the Day:
What a strange scene. An angel appears and Zechariah knows it is an angel judging by his reaction. The angel brings astonishing good news that he and his wife are to have a miraculous birth in old age. And Zechariah asks the miraculous angel standing right in front of him in plain sight, how he can be sure?
And yet is Zechariah so different from us. His problem was the clash of world views that was taking place in his life. Life experience and social norms say that old people can’t have babies whereas God was assuring him that when God is involved other alternatives open up in life. Does that not sound like your experience and mine? Isn’t it true that God asks us to do abnormal things like loving the ‘unlovable’, and sharing Good News that changes lives. Don’t we believe in a loving personal God when the world appears as secular?
And yet sometimes, when we are called to defy the norms of society by Christ do we not hesitate and say “How can I be sure?”
Doubt and hesitation are not dealt with by denial and suppression but by accepting the feelings and bringing them before God. Sitting with God and praying with the father of so long ago, “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief”.
Epilogue. God gave Zechariah the proof he asked for; miraculous muteness. Strangely his silence communicated God’s message to the community better than his spoken words.
Photo by Tachina Lee on Unsplash