The Twelfth Sunday after
Trinity.
Psalm 119.89-96
In aeternum. Domine
89. O LORD, thy word : endureth for ever in heaven.
90. Thy truth also remaineth from one generation to
another : thou hast laid the foundation of the earth, and it abideth.
91. They continue this day according to thine
ordinance : for all things serve thee.
92. If my delight had not been in thy law : I
should have perished in my trouble.
93. I will never forget thy commandments : for with
them thou hast quickened me.
94. I am thine, O save me : for I have sought thy
commandments.
95. The ungodly laid wait for me to destroy me :
but I will consider thy testimonies.
96. I see that all things come to an end : but thy
commandment is exceeding broad.
(***N.B. I was delighted when
Primus Pilus I, Mark, directed me to this link and I found that the 1549 BCP
actually put a psalm portion with the Collect:
The Collect.
ALMIGHTY
and
everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art
wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the
abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is
afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but
through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen.
Old
Testament Reading: Isaiah 29.18-24
Psalter:
Psalm 76, 77 | 71, 72
Epistle
Reading: 2 Corinthians 3.1-9
Gospel
Reading: St. Mark 7.31-37
Barbee
and Zahl: “Taken from the Sacramentary of Leo and revised by Gelasius, this
prayer was altered in 1662. ( . . . ) Bishop Cosin added, “and giving us those
good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation
of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord.” The thought of our own just deserts is
balanced by the merits of the Redeemer. ( . . . ).
This Collect is a treasure chest, truly
overflowing, of uplifting insights drawn from our religion:
·
God is more ready to hear us than we are to
pray. We pray too little, too timorously, and too pallidly. We seldom pray for
what we really need and while we are unceasingly preoccupied with our perceived
needs, we simply pray too seldom! ( . . . ).
·
God wills to give us more than we want and
certainly more than we deserve. ( . . . ) On the one hand, He wants to do more
for us, in our impoverished frangibility*, than we can conceive. On the other
hand, He wants to do good to us rather than judge us according to our
deservings. ( . . .).
·
We ask Him to forgive us the things that weigh
on our conscience and cause us to fear to look Him in the eye. ( . . . ).
·
We ask Him to give us what we cannot even
imagine asking Him to give us. ( . . . )” (92-3).
*
“Frangibile adj. breakable; fragile” (Oxford American Desk Dictionary and
Thesaurus, Second American Edition, 2002).
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