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Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A, January 20, 2008

First reading, Isaiah 49:3, 5-6

Our Liturgical Setting: It's time to begin another Sunday-by-Sunday journey with Jesus in his public ministry. Today's gospel, John1:29-34 gives us John the Baptist passing the torch, if you will, to Jesus. John first calls Jesus "Lamb of God," then ascribes to Jesus a baptism more potent than his own, and finally names Jesus "Son of God." That title, and the inaugural nature of this Sunday, may govern this choice of first reading.

The Literary and Theological Background: Scholars have called this and three similar passages from this section of Isaiah (chapters 40-55) the Songs of the Suffering Servant. They're about a mysterious figure, who sometimes speaks in the first person, and whom God sometimes addresses. Sometimes the Servant is described as a prophet, sometimes as one whose suffering brings about a benefit for the people. In the original author's mind, the servant was probably a figure for the people of Israel, or for a faithful remnant within the people. The gospels clearly show that Jesus, and the early church, saw aspects of Jesus' own life and mission foreshadowed in the Servant Songs, and the church refers to all of them throughout the liturgical year. Today's is from the second servant song; we read a more complete version of it, Isaiah 49:1-6, on the feast of the birth of John the Baptist. The first servant song, Isaiah 42: 1-7, was our first reading last week, on the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. On Passion Sunday, we proclaim the third, Isaiah 50:4-7, and on Good Friday, the fourth, Isaiah 52:13-53:12.

The Structure of This Passage: Note that the Lord speaks first ("You are my servant, ..."), then the Servant, and then the Lord again ("It is too little, ..."). Jacob and Israel are both names for the same people (indeed, they were both names of the same patriarch). Mark these changes with pauses and changes in tone of voice.

To prepare your proclamation, read this two ways:

  1. You're the Servant of the Lord. God loves you in a special way, but the mission to which God calls you is frightening.
  2. You have to announce that mission to audiences that may be indifferent or hostile. Indeed, you have to get your audience to see themselves as the Lord's Servant with you, a very tall order.
So first, read the passage as if it's the private rehearsal for the announcement, then read it as if you are actually making the speech. In your actual proclamation, give it like the forceful, dramatic speech it is.

God wants that people brought back to himself, but that's not all: God furthermore wants to make the servant, that is the people, a beacon for other nations, that God's salvation may reach all the earth. This is the revolutionary part of the message, for most peoples still conceived their gods as local, territorial and tribal. A God whose care is universal was (and remains) a hard sell, needing courageous servants who can make the case convincingly. Deliver it with a strong finish. Nothing more important was ever said.

Second Reading, 1 Corinthians 1:1-3

The Structure of Ancient Letters, and This Passage: This is the beginning of Saint Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, and you should announce it as such, not just (another) "reading from..." Remember from high school English, the first three elements of a business letter: heading, inside address, and salutation. They're all here, but in sentence form, according to the ancient standard. Let's review them, one by one.

The heading or letterhead announces that this is from Paul and Sosthenes (SOS the knees) and that Paul is "called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God." That level of authority is important for what follows, which we'll read on future Sundays.

The inside address shows the letter is for all members of the church at Corinth. This was a bawdy seaport in cosmopolitan Greece. The vices of every seaport, plus the philosophical ferment of ancient Greece, are part of these peoples' lives, and give rise, in part, to the need for this letter. Right off the bat, Paul reminds them they're "sanctified and called to be holy" like all who call on the name of Jesus.

The salutation is not just "Dear Corinthians," but a wish for their "grace and peace."

In your proclamation, pause between the elements as described above. Emphasize the word "apostle" in the first sentence. Pause before "to the church." And pause once more before "Grace to you ..."

Several other commentaries on these passages. All are thoughtful, all quite readable, from the scholarly to the popular.
Links may be incomplete more than a few weeks before the "due date."
Lutheran pastor and college teacher Dan Nelson's notes for a study group (Heading might say January 20, 2002, but the page is about our readings on January 16, 2005.) Father Roger Karban's 2002 reflections on these readings
The Text This Week; links to homilies, art works, movies and other resources on the week's scripture themes Saint Louis University's excellent Sunday liturgy-preparation site

The Lectionary selections in the frame at the left, if any, are there for your convenience. The publishers of the page in that frame have no connection, except for membership in the one Body of Christ, with the publisher of this page. Likewise the publishers of the pages on the links above.

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Last modified: January 14, 2008