Monday, January 24, 2011

Episcopalian Daily Readings For Monday, 24 January

From forewardmovement.org, satucket.com and wapedia.com:

Daily Readings:


Saints/Martyrs/Heroes/Feasts/Fasts to be observed/commemmorated/celebrated;  FLORENCE LI TIM-OI


FIRST WOMAN PRIEST IN THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION
 
ORDINATION OF FLORENCE LI TIM-OI


FIRST WOMAN PRIEST IN THE ANGLICAN COMMUNION, 24 JANUARY 1944



Florence Li Tim-Oi was ordained a priest by Bp. Ronald Hall of Hong Kong in 1944, primarily because of difficulties occasioned by the Japanese occupation of China. A storm of protest after the war forced her to refrain from exercising her role as a priest. Towards the end of her life, she emigrated to Canada where she was able to resume her priestly duties. She died in 1992.



More is available in a short article about her from the Anglican Journal of Canada, and from the Li Tim-Oi Foundation.


From Anglican Journal.com:
 
College award honors first woman priest


By: Archbishop Edward W. Scott



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Renison College at the University of Waterloo, has created an award in memory of one of the Anglican church's true pioneers: Florence Li Tim-Oi - the first woman to be ordained in the Anglican Communion.



She began her ordained ministry in 1944, in Hong Kong, and spent the last decade of her life in Canada. The Florence Li Tim-Oi Memorial Award is a full tuition award for a student of high academic achievement who is entering the college's bachelor of social work program, has shown an interest in working with the elderly, and is active in a faith community. It was created through the generosity of Rita Lee-Chui, Ms. Li's sister, and Rita's husband, Siu Ting Chui.



Renison has also announced that its current building campaign, started in June 2001, will include the construction of the Florence Li Tim-Oi Memorial Resource Centre and Archives.



This centre will provide the college, a leader in the teaching of East Asian language and culture, with its first proper archival and rare books facility and will house Ms. Li's personal papers and other materials related to her life and work. In connection with these events, a special service commemorating the life of Ms. Li will be held on Sunday May 5, 2002 at All Saints Anglican Church, Markham, Ont. It will be followed by a fundraising dinner. (For more information, see the Calendar section.)



In 1944, faced with a situation in the diocese of Hong Kong that called for pastoral care, Bishop Ronald Hall ordained Ms. Li to the priesthood. Although this action was well received in the diocese, it caused a storm of protest in the wider communion and pressure was brought to bear on the bishop, requesting that she relinquish the title and role of a priest.



When Ms. Li became aware of the concern of the wider church and of the pressure on Bishop Hall, she did not get angry and leave the church but made the decision to resign the exercise of her ministry in 1946. For the next 39 years, she served faithfully under very difficult circumstances, particularly after the Communists took over mainland China.



In 1983, arrangements were made for her to come to Canada where she was appointed as an honorary assistant at St. John's Chinese congregation and St. Matthew's parish in Toronto.



The Anglican Church of Canada had by this time approved the ordination of women to the priesthood and in 1984, the 40th anniversary of her ordination; Ms. Li was, with great joy and thanksgiving, reinstated as a priest.



This event was celebrated not only in Canada but also at Westminster Abbey and at Sheffield in England even though the Church of England had not yet approved the ordination of women.



From that date until her death in 1992, she exercised her priesthood with such faithfulness and quiet dignity that she won tremendous respect for herself and increasing support for other women seeking ordination.



The very quality of Ms. Li's ministry in China and in Canada and the grace with which she exercised her priesthood helped convince many people through the communion and beyond that the Holy Spirit was certainly working in and through women priests. Her contribution to the church far exceeded the expectations of those involved in her ordination in 1944.



Archbishop Edward W. Scott served as primate of the Anglican Church of Canada from 1971 to 1986.

Commemmorative Readings:



Psalm 116


Thanksgiving for Recovery from Illness

1 I love the Lord, because he has heard

my voice and my supplications.

2 Because he inclined his ear to me,

therefore I will call on him as long as I live.



Jeremiah 17:14-18


Jeremiah Prays for Vindication

14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed;

save me, and I shall be saved;

for you are my praise.

15 See how they say to me,

‘Where is the word of the Lord?

Let it come!’

16 But I have not run away from being a shepherd* in your service,

nor have I desired the fatal day.

You know what came from my lips;

it was before your face.

17 Do not become a terror to me;

you are my refuge on the day of disaster;

18 Let my persecutors be shamed,

but do not let me be shamed;

let them be dismayed,

but do not let me be dismayed;

bring on them the day of disaster;

destroy them with double destruction!


Galatians 3:23-28


23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. 24Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. 25But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, 26for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. 27As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.

 
Luke 10:1-9


The Mission of the Seventy10After this the Lord appointed seventy* others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest. 3Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 5Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!” 6And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. 7Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. 8Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”*

 
Luke 10:1-9


The Mission of the Seventy10After this the Lord appointed seventy* others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. 2He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest. 3Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. 4Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. 5Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!” 6And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. 7Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the labourer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. 8Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; 9cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”*

 
Preface of a Saint (2)






Prayer (traditional language):

Gracious God, we thank thee for calling Florence Li Tim-Oi, much-beloved daughter, to be the first woman to exercise the office of a priest in our Communion; By the grace of thy Spirit inspire us to follow her example, serving thy people with patience and happiness all our days, and witnessing in every circumstance to our Savior Jesus Christ, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the same Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.



Prayer (contemporary language):

Gracious God, we thank you for calling Florence Li Tim-Oi, much-beloved daughter, to be the first woman to exercise the office of a priest in our Communion; By the grace of your Spirit inspire us to follow her example, serving your people with patience and happiness all our days, and witnessing in every circumstance to our Savior Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the same Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.





Lessons revised at GC 2009.



Return to Lectionary Home Page



Webmaster: Charles Wohlers



Last updated: 12 Dec. 2009









Scriptural Readings:


Morning Office:

Psalm 41


Assurance of God’s Help and a Plea for HealingTo the leader. A Psalm of David.

1 Happy are those who consider the poor;*

the Lord delivers them in the day of trouble.

2 The Lord protects them and keeps them alive;

they are called happy in the land.

You do not give them up to the will of their enemies.

3 The Lord sustains them on their sickbed;

in their illness you heal all their infirmities.*





4 As for me, I said, ‘O Lord, be gracious to me;

heal me, for I have sinned against you.’

5 My enemies wonder in malice

when I will die, and my name perish.

6 And when they come to see me, they utter empty words,

while their hearts gather mischief;

when they go out, they tell it abroad.

7 All who hate me whisper together about me;

they imagine the worst for me.





8 They think that a deadly thing has fastened on me,

that I will not rise again from where I lie.

9 Even my bosom friend in whom I trusted,

who ate of my bread, has lifted the heel against me.

10 But you, O Lord, be gracious to me,

and raise me up, that I may repay them.





11 By this I know that you are pleased with me;

because my enemy has not triumphed over me.

12 But you have upheld me because of my integrity,

and set me in your presence for ever.





13 Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

from everlasting to everlasting.Amen and Amen.



Psalm 52


Judgement on the DeceitfulTo the leader. A Maskil of David, when Doeg the Edomite came to Saul and said to him, ‘David has come to the house of Ahimelech.’

1 Why do you boast, O mighty one,

of mischief done against the godly?*

All day long 2you are plotting destruction.

Your tongue is like a sharp razor,

you worker of treachery.

3 You love evil more than good,

and lying more than speaking the truth.

Selah

4 You love all words that devour,

O deceitful tongue.





5 But God will break you down for ever;

he will snatch and tear you from your tent;

he will uproot you from the land of the living.

Selah

6 The righteous will see, and fear,

and will laugh at the evildoer,* saying,

7 ‘See the one who would not take

refuge in God,

but trusted in abundant riches,

and sought refuge in wealth!’*





8 But I am like a green olive tree

in the house of God.

I trust in the steadfast love of God

for ever and ever.

9 I will thank you for ever,

because of what you have done.

In the presence of the faithful

I will proclaim* your name, for it is good.



Isaiah 48:1-11


God the Creator and Redeemer48Hear this, O house of Jacob,

who are called by the name of Israel,

and who came forth from the loins* of Judah;

who swear by the name of the Lord,

and invoke the God of Israel,

but not in truth or right.

2 For they call themselves after the holy city,

and lean on the God of Israel;

the Lord of hosts is his name.





3 The former things I declared long ago,

they went out from my mouth and I made them known;

then suddenly I did them and they came to pass.

4 Because I know that you are obstinate,

and your neck is an iron sinew

and your forehead brass,

5 I declared them to you from long ago,

before they came to pass I announced them to you,

so that you would not say, ‘My idol did them,

my carved image and my cast image commanded them.’





6 You have heard; now see all this;

and will you not declare it?

From this time forward I make you hear new things,

hidden things that you have not known.

7 They are created now, not long ago;

before today you have never heard of them,

so that you could not say, ‘I already knew them.’

8 You have never heard, you have never known,

from of old your ear has not been opened.

For I knew that you would deal very treacherously,

and that from birth you were called a rebel.





9 For my name’s sake I defer my anger,

for the sake of my praise I restrain it for you,

so that I may not cut you off.

10 See, I have refined you, but not like* silver;

I have tested you in the furnace of adversity.

11 For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it,

for why should my name* be profaned?

My glory I will not give to another.


Galatians 1:1-17


THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THEGalatians

Salutation1Paul an apostle—sent neither by human commission nor from human authorities, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised him from the dead— 2and all the members of God’s family* who are with me,

To the churches of Galatia:

3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4who gave himself for our sins to set us free from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.





There Is No Other Gospel6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7not that there is another gospel, but there are some who are confusing you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8But even if we or an angel* from heaven should proclaim to you a gospel contrary to what we proclaimed to you, let that one be accursed! 9As we have said before, so now I repeat, if anyone proclaims to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let that one be accursed!

10 Am I now seeking human approval, or God’s approval? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still pleasing people, I would not be a servant* of Christ.

Paul’s Vindication of His Apostleship11 For I want you to know, brothers and sisters,* that the gospel that was proclaimed by me is not of human origin; 12for I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.

13 You have heard, no doubt, of my earlier life in Judaism. I was violently persecuting the church of God and was trying to destroy it. 14I advanced in Judaism beyond many among my people of the same age, for I was far more zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. 15But when God, who had set me apart before I was born and called me through his grace, was pleased 16to reveal his Son to me,* so that I might proclaim him among the Gentiles, I did not confer with any human being, 17nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were already apostles before me, but I went away at once into Arabia, and afterwards I returned to Damascus.

 
 
Evening Office:

Psalm 44


National Lament and Prayer for HelpTo the leader. Of the Korahites. A Maskil.

1 We have heard with our ears, O God,

our ancestors have told us,

what deeds you performed in their days,

in the days of old:

2 you with your own hand drove out the nations,

but them you planted;

you afflicted the peoples,

but them you set free;

3 for not by their own sword did they win the land,

nor did their own arm give them victory;

but your right hand, and your arm,

and the light of your countenance,

for you delighted in them.





4 You are my King and my God;

you command* victories for Jacob.

5 Through you we push down our foes;

through your name we tread down our assailants.

6 For not in my bow do I trust,

nor can my sword save me.

7 But you have saved us from our foes,

and have put to confusion those who hate us.

8 In God we have boasted continually,

and we will give thanks to your name for ever.

Selah





9 Yet you have rejected us and abased us,

and have not gone out with our armies.

10 You made us turn back from the foe,

and our enemies have taken spoil for themselves.

11 You have made us like sheep for slaughter,

and have scattered us among the nations.

12 You have sold your people for a trifle,

demanding no high price for them.





13 You have made us the taunt of our neighbours,

the derision and scorn of those around us.

14 You have made us a byword among the nations,

a laughing-stock* among the peoples.

15 All day long my disgrace is before me,

and shame has covered my face

16 at the words of the taunters and revilers,

at the sight of the enemy and the avenger.





17 All this has come upon us,

yet we have not forgotten you,

or been false to your covenant.

18 Our heart has not turned back,

nor have our steps departed from your way,

19 yet you have broken us in the haunt of jackals,

and covered us with deep darkness.





20 If we had forgotten the name of our God,

or spread out our hands to a strange god,

21 would not God discover this?

For he knows the secrets of the heart.

22 Because of you we are being killed all day long,

and accounted as sheep for the slaughter.





23 Rouse yourself! Why do you sleep, O Lord?

Awake, do not cast us off for ever!

24 Why do you hide your face?

Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?

25 For we sink down to the dust;

our bodies cling to the ground.

26 Rise up, come to our help.

Redeem us for the sake of your steadfast love.

 
Mark 5:21-43


A Girl Restored to Life and a Woman Healed21 When Jesus had crossed again in the boat* to the other side, a great crowd gathered round him; and he was by the lake. 22Then one of the leaders of the synagogue named Jairus came and, when he saw him, fell at his feet 23and begged him repeatedly, ‘My little daughter is at the point of death. Come and lay your hands on her, so that she may be made well, and live.’ 24So he went with him.

And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. 25Now there was a woman who had been suffering from haemorrhages for twelve years. 26She had endured much under many physicians, and had spent all that she had; and she was no better, but rather grew worse. 27She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak, 28for she said, ‘If I but touch his clothes, I will be made well.’ 29Immediately her haemorrhage stopped; and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease. 30Immediately aware that power had gone forth from him, Jesus turned about in the crowd and said, ‘Who touched my clothes?’ 31And his disciples said to him, ‘You see the crowd pressing in on you; how can you say, “Who touched me?” ’ 32He looked all round to see who had done it. 33But the woman, knowing what had happened to her, came in fear and trembling, fell down before him, and told him the whole truth. 34He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace, and be healed of your disease.’

35 While he was still speaking, some people came from the leader’s house to say, ‘Your daughter is dead. Why trouble the teacher any further?’ 36But overhearing* what they said, Jesus said to the leader of the synagogue, ‘Do not fear, only believe.’ 37He allowed no one to follow him except Peter, James, and John, the brother of James. 38When they came to the house of the leader of the synagogue, he saw a commotion, people weeping and wailing loudly. 39When he had entered, he said to them, ‘Why do you make a commotion and weep? The child is not dead but sleeping.’ 40And they laughed at him. Then he put them all outside, and took the child’s father and mother and those who were with him, and went in where the child was. 41He took her by the hand and said to her, ‘Talitha cum’, which means, ‘Little girl, get up!’ 42And immediately the girl got up and began to walk about (she was twelve years of age). At this they were overcome with amazement. 43He strictly ordered them that no one should know this, and told them to give her something to eat.

 
 
Eucharistic Office:

Hebrews 9:15,24-28


15 For this reason he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, because a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions under the first covenant.* 24For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made by human hands, a mere copy of the true one, but he entered into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. 25Nor was it to offer himself again and again, as the high priest enters the Holy Place year after year with blood that is not his own; 26for then he would have had to suffer again and again since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the age to remove sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27And just as it is appointed for mortals to die once, and after that the judgement, 28so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.

 
Psalm 98


Praise the Judge of the WorldA Psalm.

1 O sing to the Lord a new song,

for he has done marvellous things.

His right hand and his holy arm

have gained him victory.

2 The Lord has made known his victory;

he has revealed his vindication in the sight of the nations.

3 He has remembered his steadfast love and faithfulness

to the house of Israel.

All the ends of the earth have seen

the victory of our God.





4 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth;

break forth into joyous song and sing praises.

5 Sing praises to the Lord with the lyre,

with the lyre and the sound of melody.

6 With trumpets and the sound of the horn

make a joyful noise before the King, the Lord.





7 Let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

the world and those who live in it.

8 Let the floods clap their hands;

let the hills sing together for joy

9 at the presence of the Lord, for he is coming

to judge the earth.

He will judge the world with righteousness,

and the peoples with equity.

 
Mark 3:19-3019and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him.


Jesus and BeelzebulThen he went home; 20and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. 21When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, ‘He has gone out of his mind.’ 22And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, ‘He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons.’ 23And he called them to him, and spoke to them in parables, ‘How can Satan cast out Satan? 24If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but his end has come. 27But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his property without first tying up the strong man; then indeed the house can be plundered.

28 ‘Truly I tell you, people will be forgiven for their sins and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit can never have forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin’— 30for they had said, ‘He has an unclean spirit.’







Daily Devotion/Meditation:

Today's Meditation


TUESDAY, January 25 The Conversion of Saint Paul

Matthew 10:16-22. Do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say; for what you are to say will be given to you at that time; for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.



A friend found a table blessing that he wanted to use when guests came to dinner, but he wasn’t sure he could remember it. His wife typed it out and placed it under the glass plate.



We think of putting on the “whole armor of God” as we face each day but perhaps having the Holy Spirit with us is also having a glass plate to read through. You begin each day believing that you know most of the answers and you will get through it safely. But what a great comfort to know that when you are stuck, all you must do is drop your head in prayer. The Holy Sprit will tell you, not in typewritten lines slightly magnified by the glass plate, but with a voice and in words of scripture, what to say and do.



God provides us with his guidance. May we never hesitate or be embarrassed to squint a little just to make sure we have the right words. (1973)



PRAY for the ordering of our life together, that in all things we may show the glory of God.



Ps 67; Acts 26:9-21; Galatians 1:11-24



No comments:

Post a Comment