June 26
Out of the Depths
2 Samuel 1:1, 17-27;Psalm 130;2 Corinthians 8:7-15;Mark 5:21-43
For the last week of June, the days of which the poet sings,
"O what is so rare...?," our lectionary takes us to the
somber halls of death.
We begin with the superb dirge for Saul and Jonathan, believed
to be an authentic composition of David, a poem to secure his
place among the poets of the world. It is marked by moving
repetition and simplicity of language. No trace of bitterness for
the man who tried to kill him mars the poem, and the grief David
felt at the loss of his "brother" Jonathan is effective
in its restraint. "How the mighty have fallen" speaks
to many times and occasions.
The mood of sorrow and sadness is deepened by Psalm 130, a
masterpiece of a lament for personal sins. Because there are no
specifics about the cause of the experience of the depths, the
psalm has a universality that speaks to the lost condition of the
human race and the grace and mercy of God. What humility and
wisdom are in the lines,
If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
Lord, who could stand?
And what trust! "There is forgiveness with you."
As we watch for the morning, this psalm is a good
companionwhether it is the morning of the next day or of
our life!
There is so much gold in the gospel story that one days
meditation or one weeks or ones lifetime is not
sufficient to mine it. In one story Mark gives us a vivid picture
of Jesus the healer and Jesus the teacher.
Jesus responds equally to calls from the high and from the
lowly. His healing ministry reaches out beyond the ancient taboos
of a religious system. He knows who he is and what he can do and
knows when he has accomplished the task. His very being heals. He
incarnates the ritual.
Can you imagine the emotions that surged through the leader of
the synagogue who saw and heard it all? But then the final word
comes. The synagogue leaders child is dead. There is no
more you can do. The depths. But this teacher lives out that
there is always something else you can do. Do not pay attention
to the counsels of despair.
After this high gospel drama, the epistle seems to plunge to
mundane issues of institutional survival. Do what you can,
counsels Paul. Your offering is acceptable according to what you
have, not according to what you have not. Quoting a later Paul,
"You are accepted." Out of the depths. n
VERNA J. DOZIER is an educator and lay theologian in
Washington, D.C. She is the author of The Dream of God: A
Call to Return (Cowley Publications) and The Authority of
the Laity (The Alban Institute).
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