His death went unnoticed, as he died the same day John F. Kennedy was shot, but his works are some of the most widely read in English literature. Originally an agnostic, he served in World War I and became a professor at Oxford and Cambridge. He wrote The Screwtape Letters and The Lion, Witch and Wardrobe. His name was C.S. Lewis born this day, November 29, 1898. In his book, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote: “The Eternal Being, who knows everything and who created the whole universe, became not only a man but a baby, and before that a fetus in a woman’s body.”

William J. Federer. American Minute

Talent is God given. Be humble.
Fame is man-given. Be grateful.
Conceit is self-given. Be careful.
--- John Wooden


You say they are sceptical where Jesus is concerned. I'll tell you when they are sceptical--when they see the caricature of Jesus in you and me.
--- Gipsy Smith (1860-1947, British evangelist)

... from here, there and everywhere

19     A slave can’t be disciplined with words;
he may understand, but he won’t respond.

Stern, D. H. (1998). Complete Jewish Bible-OE
: An English version of the Tanakh (OT) and
B'rit Hadashah (NT) (1st ed.). Clarksville, Md.: Jewish
New Testament Publications.

                The absoluteness of Jesus Christ

     He shall glorify Me. --- John 16:14.

     The pietistic movements of to-day have none of the rugged reality of the New Testament about them; there is nothing about them that needs the death of Jesus Christ, all that is required is a pious atmosphere, and prayer and devotion. This type of experience is not supernatural nor miraculous, it did not cost the passion of God, it is not dyed in the blood of the Lamb, not stamped with the hall-mark of the Holy Ghost. It has not that mark on it which makes men say, as they look with awe and wonder—‘That is the work of God Almighty.’ That and nothing else is what the New Testament talks about.

     The type of Christian experience in the New Testament is that of personal, passionate devotion to the Person of Jesus Christ. Every other type of Christian experience, so called, is detached from the Person of Jesus. There is no regeneration, no being born again into the Kingdom in which Christ lives, but only the idea that He is our Pattern. In the New Testament Jesus Christ is Saviour long before He is Pattern. To-day He is being despatched as the Figurehead of a religion, a mere Example. He is that, but He is infinitely more; He is salvation itself. He is the Gospel of God.

      Jesus said—“When He, the Spirit of truth, is come, … He shall glorify Me.” When I commit myself to the revelation made in the New Testament, I receive from God the gift of the Holy Spirit Who begins to interpret to me what Jesus did, and does in me subjectively what Jesus Christ did for me objectively.

Chambers, O. (1993). My Utmost for His Highest

I had forgotten
     the old quest for truth
          I was here for. Other cares
held me: urgencies
     of the body; a girl
          beckoned; money
had never appeared
     so ethereal; it was God's blood
          circulating in the veins
of creation; I partook
     of it like Communion, lost
          myself on my way
home, with the varying voices
     on call. Moving backward
          into a receding
future, I lost the use
     of perspective, borrowing poetry
          to buy my children
their prose. The past was a poor
     king, rendering his crown down
          for the historian. Every day
I went on with that
     metallic warfare in which
          the one casualty is love.

R.S. Thomas, (Fayettesville: University of Arkansas Press), 1985.
The Poems of R.S. Thomas

     Not Everyone Can Wait

     Not everyone can wait: neither the sated nor the satisfied, nor those without respect can wait. The only ones who can wait are people who carry restlessness around with them and people who look up with reverence to the greatest in the world. Thus Advent can be celebrated only by those whose souls give them no peace, who know that they are poor and incomplete, and who sense something of the greatness that is supposed to come, before which they can only bow in humble timidity, waiting until he inclines himself toward us-the Holy One himself', God in the child in the manger. God is coming; the Lord Jesus is coming; Christmas is coming. Rejoice, 0 Christendom!

     I think we're going to have an exceptionally good Christmas. The very tract that every outward circumstance precludes our making provision for it will show whether we can be content with what is truly essential. I used to be very fond of thinking up and buying presents, but now that we have nothing to give, the gift God gave us in the birth of Christ will seem all the more glorious; the emptier our hands, the better we understand what Luther meant by his dying words: "We're beggars; it's true." The poorer our quarters, the more clearly we perceive that our hearts should be Christ's home on earth.

     Letter to fiancee Maria von Wedemeyer,
     December 1, 1943

     Then he looked up at his disciples and said:

"Blessed are you who are poor,
     for yours is the kingdom of God.
"Blessed are you who are hungry now,
     for you will be filled.
"Blessed are you who weep now,
     for you will laugh.
"Blessed are you when people hate you,
     and when they exclude you, revile you,
     and defame you on account of the Son of Man.

Rejoice in that day and leap for joy,
     for surely your reward is great in heaven;
     for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.

"But woe to you who are rich,
     for you have received your consolation.
"Woe to you who are full now,
     for you will be hungry.
"Woe to you who are laughing now,
     for you will mourn and weep.
"Woe to you when all speak well of you,
     for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets."
--- Luke 6:20-26.

God Is in the Manger: Reflections on Advent and Christmas

     Maimonides supports his evaluation of the various perfections by appealing to the prophets:

     The Prophets too have explained to us and interpreted to us the selfsame notions—just as the philosophers have interpreted them—clearly stating to us that neither the perfection of possession nor the perfection of health nor the perfection of moral habits is a perfection of which one should be proud or that one should desire; the perfection of which one should be proud and that one should desire is knowledge of Him, may He be exalted, which is the true science. Jeremiah says concerning these four perfections: “Thus spoke the Lord: Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me.”(Jeremiah 9:23.)

     After explaining the order of perfections, however, Maimonides appears to contradict what he has just established when he writes:

     As we have mentioned this verse and the wondrous notions contained in it, and as we have mentioned the saying of the Sages, may their memory be blessed, about it, we will complete the exposition of what it includes. For when explaining in this verse the noblest ends, he does not limit them only to the apprehension of Him, may He be exalted. For if this were his purpose, he would have said: “But let him that glories glory in this, that he understands and knows Me,” and have stopped there; or he would have said: “that he understands and knows Me that I am one”; or he would have said: “that I have no figure,” or “that there is none like Me,” or something similar. But he says that one should glory in the apprehension of Myself and in the knowledge of My attributes, by which he means His actions, as we have made clear with reference to its dictum; “let me know Your ways, and so on.” In this verse he makes it clear to us that those actions that ought to be known and imitated are “lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness.”

     Previously, morality was presented as inferior to intellectual perfection; now morality appears as the end of knowledge of God and thus the highest perfection. Intellectual perfection, as distinct from moral perfection, does not require that one live in society or interact in any way with other men. To act with lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, however, one must be a part of society and act among others. Crucial to Maimonides’ paradoxical evaluation is the problem of whether community is an essential feature of human perfection.

     Guttmann resolves this apparent paradox by suggesting that the morality “grounded in the knowledge of God is completely distinct from the morality which is prior to knowledge.” (Philosophy of Judaism: The History of Jewish Philosophy from Biblical Times to Franz Rosenzweig ) Although one may accept this distinction, one must disagree with Guttmann when he writes that, to Maimonides, “Ethics, though previously subordinate to knowledge, has now become the ultimate meaning and purpose of the knowledge of God.” (ibid) This approach can be questioned in the light of Maimonides’ constant emphasis on intellectual worship of God and in the light of his claims, repeated throughout his legal writings, that olam ha-ba represents the ultimate telos of Judaism. If the meaning and purpose of knowledge of God is ethics, why guide an individual toward a yearning for God that is consummated in a non-historical reality? Maimonides’ passion for olam ha-ba does not express the yearning of one who longs solely for moral perfection. According to Maimonides, man feels intellectually inadequate in comparison to cosmic intelligences whose knowledge has no ethical significance. This felt inadequacy would be unintelligible if the only meaning and purpose of knowledge of God was ethics. One must therefore, agree with Shlomo Pines, that knowledge of God is not primarily moral knowledge.

     The difference between Maimonides’ two evaluations of morality is to be understood in the same way that one understands his description of the prophet’s attitude to the community. One who attempts to transcend the anthropocentric view of life understands the significance of morality as a means to the higher goal of the theocentric love of God. In this context, the yearning for God is of greater significance than moral actions. In the attempt to become a passionate lover of God, everything valued by human beings—possessions, physical strengths, and moral virtues—is insignificant in comparison to the yearning to be with God:

Hartman, D. (2009). Maimonides: Torah and Philosophic Quest (See all Torah Books) .

     When James Gilmore sailed for China in 1870, he was young, strong, and in need of a wife. He plunged into reopening the London Missionary Society’s work in Mongolia, but with no one to lean on. “Companions I can scarcely hope to meet,” he wrote, “and the feeling of being alone comes over me.” As labors increased, so did loneliness. “Today I felt a good deal like Elijah in the wilderness,” he told his journal. “He prayed that he might die. … I felt drawn towards suicide. Two missionaries should always go together. Oh! the intense loneliness. … ”

     The pain deepened when his proposal to a Scottish girl was rejected. “I then put myself and the direction of this affair—I mean the finding of a wife—into God’s hands, asking him to look me out one, a good one, too.”

     In 1873 Gilmore visited friends in Peking, a Mr. and Mrs. Meech. Seeing a picture of Mrs. Meech’s sister, Emily Prankard, James asked about her. As his hostess described Emily, James found himself falling in love. He gazed at her picture, saw some of her letters, and asked more and more questions.

     Early the next year, James wrote to Emily, proposing marriage in his first letter. By the same mail he informed his parents in Scotland: “I have written and proposed to a girl in England. It is true I have never seen her, and I know very little about her; but I have put the whole matter into the hands of God, asking him, if it be best, to bring her, if it be not best, to keep her away, and he can manage the whole thing well.”

     Receiving Gilmore’s letter, Emily took it at once to the throne of grace. Later Gilmore recalled, “The first letter I wrote her was to propose, and the first letter she wrote me was to accept.” By autumn Emily was in China, arriving on this day, November 29, 1874. A week later they were married. Gilmore acquired both wife and colleague, and they labored faithfully side by side for years, reaching northern China for Christ.

     “A man’s greatest treasure is his wife,” says Proverbs 18:22. “She is a gift from the LORD.”

Morgan, R. J. On This Day 365 Amazing And Inspiring Stories About Saints, Martyrs And Heroes

     “See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah … has triumphed.…” Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain. --- Revelation 5:5–6.

     There meet in the person of Christ [other] diverse qualities that would have been thought incompatible in the same person. (The Works of President Edwards: Treatise Concerning Religious Affections. Justification by Faith Alone. Pressing Into the Kingdom of God. Ruth's ... of Sinners. the Excellency of Jesus Christ)

     The deepest reverence toward God and equality with God. Christ, when on earth, appeared full of holy reverence toward the Father. He paid worship to him, praying to him with postures of reverence: He “knelt down and prayed” (Luke 22:41). This became Christ as one who had taken on him the human nature, but at the same time he existed in the divine nature, so that his person was in every way equal to the person of the Father. God the Father has no attribute or perfection that the Son has not, in equal degree and equal glory.

     Infinite worthiness of good and the greatest patience under sufferings of evil. He was perfectly innocent and deserved no suffering. He deserved nothing from God by any guilt of his own, and he deserved no ill from human beings. Yes, he was not only undeserving of suffering, but he was infinitely worthy—worthy of the infinite love of the Father, worthy of infinite and eternal happiness, and infinitely worthy of all possible esteem, love, and service from all peoples.

     And yet he was perfectly patient under the greatest sufferings that ever were endured in this world: He “endured the cross, scorning its shame” (Heb. 12:2). He suffered nothing from his Father for his faults but for ours, and he suffered from humans not for his faults but for those things for which he was infinitely worthy of their love and honor, which made his patience the more wonderful and the more glorious: “How is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer for doing good and you endure it, this is commendable before God. To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps. ‘He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.’ When they hurled their insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed” (1 Peter 2:20–24). There is no such coming together of innocence, worthiness, and patience under sufferings as in the person of Christ.
--- Jonathan Edwards

Wallis, D. (2001). Take Heart: Daily Devotions with the Church's Great Preachers

TUESDAY OF THE FIRST WEEK OF ADVENT
YEAR 2
Psalms (Morning) Psalm 5, 6
Psalms (Evening) Psalm 10, 11
Old Testament Amos 3:1–11
New Testament 2 Peter 1:12–21
Gospel Matthew 21:12–22

Index of Readings

PSALMS (MORNING)
Psalm 5, 6

To the leader: for the flutes. A Psalm of David.

1 Give ear to my words, O LORD;
give heed to my sighing.
2 Listen to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you I pray.
3 O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I plead my case to you, and watch.

4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil will not sojourn with you.
5 The boastful will not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies;
the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful.

7 But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house,
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in awe of you.
8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.

9 For there is no truth in their mouths;
their hearts are destruction;
their throats are open graves;
they flatter with their tongues.
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of their many transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.

11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
so that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O LORD;
you cover them with favor as with a shield.

To the leader: with stringed instruments; according to The Sheminith. A Psalm of David.

1 O LORD, do not rebuke me in your anger,
or discipline me in your wrath.
2 Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing;
O LORD, heal me, for my bones are shaking with terror.
3 My soul also is struck with terror,
while you, O LORD—how long?

4 Turn, O LORD, save my life;
deliver me for the sake of your steadfast love.
5 For in death there is no remembrance of you;
in Sheol who can give you praise?

6 I am weary with my moaning;
every night I flood my bed with tears;
I drench my couch with my weeping.
7 My eyes waste away because of grief;
they grow weak because of all my foes.

8 Depart from me, all you workers of evil,
for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping.
9 The LORD has heard my supplication;
the LORD accepts my prayer.
10 All my enemies shall be ashamed and struck with terror;
they shall turn back, and in a moment be put to shame.

PSALMS (EVENING)
Psalm 10, 11

1 Why, O LORD, do you stand far off?
Why do you hide yourself in times of trouble?
2 In arrogance the wicked persecute the poor—
let them be caught in the schemes they have devised.

3 For the wicked boast of the desires of their heart,
those greedy for gain curse and renounce the LORD.
4 In the pride of their countenance the wicked say, “God will not seek it out”;
all their thoughts are, “There is no God.”

5 Their ways prosper at all times;
your judgments are on high, out of their sight;
as for their foes, they scoff at them.
6 They think in their heart, “We shall not be moved;
throughout all generations we shall not meet adversity.”

7 Their mouths are filled with cursing and deceit and oppression;
under their tongues are mischief and iniquity.
8 They sit in ambush in the villages;
in hiding places they murder the innocent.

Their eyes stealthily watch for the helpless;
9 they lurk in secret like a lion in its covert;
they lurk that they may seize the poor;
they seize the poor and drag them off in their net.

10 They stoop, they crouch,
and the helpless fall by their might.
11 They think in their heart, “God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”

12 Rise up, O LORD; O God, lift up your hand;
do not forget the oppressed.
13 Why do the wicked renounce God,
and say in their hearts, “You will not call us to account”?

14 But you do see! Indeed you note trouble and grief,
that you may take it into your hands;
the helpless commit themselves to you;
you have been the helper of the orphan.

15 Break the arm of the wicked and evildoers;
seek out their wickedness until you find none.
16 The LORD is king forever and ever;
the nations shall perish from his land.

17 O LORD, you will hear the desire of the meek;
you will strengthen their heart, you will incline your ear
18 to do justice for the orphan and the oppressed,
so that those from earth may strike terror no more.

To the leader. Of David.

1 In the LORD I take refuge; how can you say to me,
“Flee like a bird to the mountains;
2 for look, the wicked bend the bow,
they have fitted their arrow to the string,
to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.
3 If the foundations are destroyed,
what can the righteous do?”

4 The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD’s throne is in heaven.
His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind.
5 The LORD tests the righteous and the wicked,
and his soul hates the lover of violence.
6 On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulfur;
a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7 For the LORD is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
the upright shall behold his face.

OLD TESTAMENT
Amos 3:1–11

3 Hear this word that the LORD has spoken against you, O people of Israel, against the whole family that I brought up out of the land of Egypt:

2 You only have I known
of all the families of the earth;
therefore I will punish you
for all your iniquities.

3 Do two walk together
unless they have made an appointment?
4 Does a lion roar in the forest,
when it has no prey?
Does a young lion cry out from its den,
if it has caught nothing?
5 Does a bird fall into a snare on the earth,
when there is no trap for it?
Does a snare spring up from the ground,
when it has taken nothing?
6 Is a trumpet blown in a city,
and the people are not afraid?
Does disaster befall a city,
unless the LORD has done it?
7 Surely the Lord GOD does nothing,
without revealing his secret
to his servants the prophets.
8 The lion has roared;
who will not fear?
The Lord GOD has spoken;
who can but prophesy?

9 Proclaim to the strongholds in Ashdod,
and to the strongholds in the land of Egypt,
and say, “Assemble yourselves on Mount Samaria,
and see what great tumults are within it,
and what oppressions are in its midst.”
10 They do not know how to do right, says the LORD,
those who store up violence and robbery in their strongholds.
11 Therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
An adversary shall surround the land,
and strip you of your defense;
and your strongholds shall be plundered.

NEW TESTAMENT
2 Peter 1:12–21

12 Therefore I intend to keep on reminding you of these things, though you know them already and are established in the truth that has come to you. 13 I think it right, as long as I am in this body, to refresh your memory, 14 since I know that my death will come soon, as indeed our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. 15 And I will make every effort so that after my departure you may be able at any time to recall these things.

16 For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. 17 For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” 18 We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.

19 So we have the prophetic message more fully confirmed. You will do well to be attentive to this as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts. 20 First of all you must understand this, that no prophecy of scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, 21 because no prophecy ever came by human will, but men and women moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.

GOSPEL
Matthew 21:12–22

12 Then Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who were selling and buying in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold doves. 13 He said to them, “It is written,

‘My house shall be called a house of prayer’;
but you are making it a den of robbers.”

14 The blind and the lame came to him in the temple, and he cured them. 15 But when the chief priests and the scribes saw the amazing things that he did, and heard the children crying out in the temple, “Hosanna to the Son of David,” they became angry 16 and said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read,

‘Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies
you have prepared praise for yourself’?”

17 He left them, went out of the city to Bethany, and spent the night there.

18 In the morning, when he returned to the city, he was hungry. 19 And seeing a fig tree by the side of the road, he went to it and found nothing at all on it but leaves. Then he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. 20 When the disciples saw it, they were amazed, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” 21 Jesus answered them, “Truly I tell you, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only will you do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ it will be done. 22 Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive.”


ON THE SAME DATE | VIGIL | HOLY DAY
EVE OF ST. ANDREW
EVENING PRAYER—EVES OF APOSTLES AND EVANGELISTS
YEARS 1 & 2

Psalms Psalm 48, 122 or Psalm 84, 150
Old Testament Isaiah 43:10–15 or Isaiah 52:7–10
New Testament Revelation 21:1–4, 9–14 or Matthew 9:35–10:4

Index of Readings

PSALMS
Option A
Psalm 48, 122

A Song. A Psalm of the Korahites.

1 Great is the LORD and greatly to be praised
in the city of our God.
His holy mountain, 2 beautiful in elevation,
is the joy of all the earth,
Mount Zion, in the far north,
the city of the great King.
3 Within its citadels God
has shown himself a sure defense.

4 Then the kings assembled,
they came on together.
5 As soon as they saw it, they were astounded;
they were in panic, they took to flight;
6 trembling took hold of them there,
pains as of a woman in labor,
7 as when an east wind shatters
the ships of Tarshish.
8 As we have heard, so have we seen
in the city of the LORD of hosts,
in the city of our God,
which God establishes forever. Selah

9 We ponder your steadfast love, O God,
in the midst of your temple.
10 Your name, O God, like your praise,
reaches to the ends of the earth.
Your right hand is filled with victory.

11 Let Mount Zion be glad,
let the towns of Judah rejoice
because of your judgments.

12 Walk about Zion, go all around it,
count its towers,
13 consider well its ramparts;
go through its citadels,
that you may tell the next generation
14 that this is God,
our God forever and ever.
He will be our guide forever.

A Song of Ascents. Of David.
1 I was glad when they said to me,
“Let us go to the house of the LORD!”
2 Our feet are standing
within your gates, O Jerusalem.

3 Jerusalem—built as a city
that is bound firmly together.
4 To it the tribes go up,
the tribes of the LORD,
as was decreed for Israel,
to give thanks to the name of the LORD.
5 For there the thrones for judgment were set up,
the thrones of the house of David.

6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:
“May they prosper who love you.
7 Peace be within your walls,
and security within your towers.”
8 For the sake of my relatives and friends
I will say, “Peace be within you.”
9 For the sake of the house of the LORD our God,
I will seek your good.

OR
Option B
Psalm 84, 150

To the leader: according to The Gittith. Of the Korahites. A Psalm.
1 How lovely is your dwelling place,
O LORD of hosts!
2 My soul longs, indeed it faints
for the courts of the LORD;
my heart and my flesh sing for joy
to the living God.

3 Even the sparrow finds a home,
and the swallow a nest for herself,
where she may lay her young,
at your altars, O LORD of hosts,
my King and my God.
4 Happy are those who live in your house,
ever singing your praise. Selah

5 Happy are those whose strength is in you,
in whose heart are the highways to Zion.
6 As they go through the valley of Baca
they make it a place of springs;
the early rain also covers it with pools.
7 They go from strength to strength;
the God of gods will be seen in Zion.

8 O LORD God of hosts, hear my prayer;
give ear, O God of Jacob! Selah
9 Behold our shield, O God;
look on the face of your anointed.

10 For a day in your courts is better
than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
than live in the tents of wickedness.
11 For the LORD God is a sun and shield;
he bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does the LORD withhold
from those who walk uprightly.
12 O LORD of hosts,
happy is everyone who trusts in you.

1 Praise the LORD!
Praise God in his sanctuary;
praise him in his mighty firmament!
2 Praise him for his mighty deeds;
praise him according to his surpassing greatness!

3 Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp!
4 Praise him with tambourine and dance;
praise him with strings and pipe!
5 Praise him with clanging cymbals;
praise him with loud clashing cymbals!
6 Let everything that breathes praise the LORD!
Praise the LORD!

OLD TESTAMENT
Option A
Isaiah 43:10–15

10 You are my witnesses, says the LORD,
and my servant whom I have chosen,
so that you may know and believe me
and understand that I am he.
Before me no god was formed,
nor shall there be any after me.
11 I, I am the LORD,
and besides me there is no savior.
12 I declared and saved and proclaimed,
when there was no strange god among you;
and you are my witnesses, says the LORD.
13 I am God, and also henceforth I am He;
there is no one who can deliver from my hand;
I work and who can hinder it?

14 Thus says the LORD,
your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel:
For your sake I will send to Babylon
and break down all the bars,
and the shouting of the Chaldeans will be turned to lamentation.
15 I am the LORD, your Holy One,
the Creator of Israel, your King.

OR
Option B
Isaiah 52:7–10

7 How beautiful upon the mountains
are the feet of the messenger who announces peace,
who brings good news,
who announces salvation,
who says to Zion, “Your God reigns.”
8 Listen! Your sentinels lift up their voices,
together they sing for joy;
for in plain sight they see
the return of the LORD to Zion.
9 Break forth together into singing,
you ruins of Jerusalem;
for the LORD has comforted his people,
he has redeemed Jerusalem.
10 The LORD has bared his holy arm
before the eyes of all the nations;
and all the ends of the earth shall see
the salvation of our God.

NEW TESTAMENT
Option A
Revelation 21:1–4, 9–14

21 Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. 2 And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

“See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them as their God;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.”

9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.” 10 And in the spirit he carried me away to a great, high mountain and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God. 11 It has the glory of God and a radiance like a very rare jewel, like jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It has a great, high wall with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates are inscribed the names of the twelve tribes of the Israelites; 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

OR
Option B
Matthew 9:35–10:4

35 Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; 38 therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

10 Then Jesus summoned his twelve disciples and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to cure every disease and every sickness. 2 These are the names of the twelve apostles: first, Simon, also known as Peter, and his brother Andrew; James son of Zebedee, and his brother John; 3 Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; 4 Simon the Cananaean, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed him.
The Episcopal Church. Book of Common Prayer Lectionary