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Welcome (back) to “read the Bible – expand your mind:”

The Book of Common Prayer says that by taking part in Holy Communion, Christians become “very members incorporate in the mystical body” of Jesus. The words “corporate” and “mystical” are key. They show that a healthy church has two sides, with the often-overlooked “mystic” side asking the question, “How do I experience God?” This blog tries to answer that.

It has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (John 6:37.) The second is that God wants us to live lives of abundance.(John 10:10.) The third is that Jesus wants us to read the Bible with an open mind. (As Luke 24:45 says: “Then He [Jesus] opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.”) The fourth theme – another one often overlooked – is that Jesus wants us to do even greater miracles than He did. (John 14:12.) 

And this thought ties them together:

The best way to live abundantly and do greater miracles than Jesus is: Read, study and apply the Bible with an open mind. For more see the notes or – to expand your mind – see the Intro.

In the meantime:

October 25, 2026 – My apologies. This blog has been out of circulation since last July, mostly due to a techno-error on my part. I tried to add a “Donations” plug-in, and it cut off access, leaving only a “fatal error” message in its wake. Which means I have a lot of catching up to do, so I’ll start with the most recent feast day, the one for St. Luke, aka Luke the Evangelist.

His feast day – last October 18 – commemorates the man who wrote the third and last synoptic gospel. (See below.) The first one – Mark’s – was written “as early as the mid 50s.” (A.D.) Matthew’s came somewhere between 61 and 70 A.D. But most scholars say Luke wrote his Gospel some time later, between 71 and 80 A.D. And about those “synoptics:”

The gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke are considered synoptic gospels on the basis of many similarities between them that are not shared by the Gospel of John. “Synoptic” means here that they can be “seen” or “read together…” The synoptic gospels are the source of many popular stories, parables, and sermons, such as Jesus’ humble birth in Bethlehem, the Sermon on the Mount, the Beatitudes, the Last Supper, and the Great Commission… The fourth gospel [John], presents a very different picture of Jesus and his ministry…

Isaac Asimov said Mark wrote for “the ordinary Christian of Jewish background” and Matthew for “those learned in Old Testament lore.” But Luke wrote his Gospel for Gentiles sympathetic to Christianity and considering conversion. Also, Luke treated Roman authorities more gently than the first two gospels, and Jesus Himself is shown as more sympathetic to Gentiles than in Matthew or Mark. Wikipedia added that Luke is “believed by many scholars to be a Greek physician who lived in the Greek city of Antioch in Ancient Syria.” The article added that going back as far as the early church fathers, Luke is considered to have written“both the Gospel according to Luke and the Acts of the Apostles.” (Originally one work called Luke-Acts.) Also:

Based on his accurate description of towns, cities and islands, as well as correctly naming various official titles, archaeologist Sir William Ramsay wrote that “Luke is a historian of the first rank [and] should be placed along with the very greatest of historians.” Professor of Classics at Auckland University, E.M. Blaiklock, wrote: “For accuracy of detail, and for evocation of atmosphere, Luke stands, in fact, with Thucydides. The Acts of the Apostles is not shoddy product of pious imagining, but a trustworthy record… it was the spadework of archaeology which first revealed the truth.”  New Testament scholar Colin Hemer [also attested to] the historical nature and accuracy of Luke’s writings. (Emphasis added.)

Scholars like archaeologist Sir William Ramsay said that in his accounts Luke accurately described towns, cities and islands, “as well as correctly naming various official titles.” Accordingly (he said), Luke is a “historian of the first rank [and] should be placed along with the very greatest of historians.” Then there’s E.M. Blaiklock, Professor of Classics at Auckland University:

“For accuracy of detail, and for evocation of atmosphere, Luke stands, in fact, with Thucydides. The Acts of the Apostles is not [a] shoddy product of pious imagining, but a trustworthy record… it was the spadework of archaeology which first revealed the truth.”

Another point: The article St. Luke: The Scribe of Christ’s Gentleness added that he “was the only Gentile to write books of the Bible.” Then too, Luke includes some distinct accounts demonstrating just how Jesus loved those “ungodly” who Paul mentioned in Romans 5:6:

Only in Luke do we hear the story of the Prodigal Son welcomed back by the overjoyed father. Only in Luke do we hear the story of the forgiven woman disrupting the feast by washing Jesus’ feet with her tears. Throughout Luke’s gospel, Jesus takes the side of the sinner who wants to return to God’s mercy… Reading Luke’s gospel gives a good idea of his character as one who loved the poor, who wanted the door to God’s kingdom opened to all, who respected women, and who saw hope in God’s mercy for everyone.

But Luke wasn’t just writer and historian, he was also an artist: “Christian tradition states that he was the first icon painter,” and that he “painted pictures of the Virgin Mary and Child.” He is said to have painted some 600 icons, including the “Black Madonna of Częstochowa and Our Lady of Vladimir. He was also said to have painted Saints Peter and Paul, and illustrate a gospel book with a full cycle of miniatures.“ So here’s to the multi-talented Luke the Evangelist, and Apostle, and historian of the highest order, and artist – not to mention a premier “scribe of Christ’s gentleness.”

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The upper image was originally courtesy of commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File: El_Greco_-_St_Luke_-_WGA10577.jpg, which included the note: “El Greco portrayed the apostles with a powerfully expressive body language. This St Luke is from a cycle for the Toledo Cathedral… El Greco included St Luke in several of his [paintings of the Apostles] although Luke was not actually one of the twelve apostles. Here the artist provided the Western version of a subject he depicted in quite different terms during his period as an icon painter.”

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

The Asimov quotes are from Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (Two Volumes in One),  Avenel Books (1981), at pages 912-15.

Romans 5:6: “For at just the right time, while we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”

The lower image is courtesy of File: Maarten van Heemskerck – St Luke Painting the Virgin, and/or “Wikimedia.”  See also Maarten van Heemskerck – Wikipedia, which noted that the artist (1498-1574) was a “Dutch portrait and religious painter, who spent most of his career in Haarlem,” and did the painting above in or about 1532.

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As noted in the opening blurb, this blog has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (See John 6:37, with the added, “Anyone who comes to Him.”) This is a consistent theme throughout the Bible. From the Old Testament, Psalm 9:10, “You never forsake those who seek you, O Lord.” (In the Book of Common Prayer version.) The second is that God wants us to live abundantly.  (John 10:10.) The third is that we should do greater miracles than Jesus. (John 14:12). A fourth theme: The only way to do all that is read the Bible with an open mind:

…closed-mindedness, or an unwillingness to consider new ideas, can result from the brain’s natural dislike for ambiguity. According to this view, the brain has a “search and destroy” relationship with ambiguity and evidence contradictory to people’s current beliefs tends to make them uncomfortable… Research confirms that belief-discrepant-closed-minded persons have less tolerance for cognitive inconsistency…

See also Splitting (psychology) – Wikipedia, on the phenomenon also called black-and-white thinking, “the failure in a person’s thinking to bring together the dichotomy of both positive and negative qualities of the self and others into a cohesive, realistic whole. It is a common defense mechanism. The individual tends to think in extremes (i.e., an individual’s actions and motivations are all good or all bad with no middle ground).

So in plain words, I take issue with what I call “Christian first graders.” Those who choose to stay in a kind of elementary-school first grade. See John the Baptist, ’24 – and “Christian First Graders,” for more. But the key point: “The Bible was designed to expand your mind,” not make it narrow. Also, there’s the idea that “Jesus was anything but negative. His goal was for you to grow and develop into all that you can be.” (For more on that see ABOUT THE BLOG, above.)

I’ve written on boot-camp Christians, the Literalists who never go “beyond the fundamentals.” But the Bible offers so much more than a narrow reading gives… (Unless you want to stay a buck private all your life…) Now, about “Boot-camp Christians” see Conservative Christian – “Career buck private?” The gist of that post: Starting the Bible is like Army Basic Training. You begin by“learning the fundamentals.” But after boot camp, you move on to Advanced Individual Training.”

And as noted in “Buck private,” one of this blog’s themes is that if you want to be all that you can be, you need to go on and explore the “mystical side of Bible reading.*” In other words, exploring the mystical side of the Bible helps you “be all that you can be.” See Slogans of the U.S. Army – Wikipedia, re: the recruiting slogan from 1980 to 2001.

Re: “mystical.” Originally the “liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity.” Mysticism – Wikipedia, and the post On originalism.  (“What the Bible was originally about!”) See also Christian mysticism – Wikipedia, “In early Christianity the term ‘mystikos’ referred to three dimensions, which soon became intertwined, namely the biblical, the liturgical and the spiritual or contemplative… The third dimension is the contemplative or experiential knowledge of God.” As to that “experiential” aspect, see also Wesleyan Quadrilateral – Wikipedia, on the theological reflection method using four sources of spiritual development: scripture, tradition, reason, and “Christian experience.”

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June 19, 2026 – Next Wednesday, June 24, is the feast day for the Nativity (Birth) of John the Baptist. The following Monday, June 29, is the feast day for remembering St. Peter and St. Paul, Apostles. Specifically, for remembering how they were both martyred in Rome at about the same time, and more specifically how their relics” – their bodily remains – were moved together to a safe place 200 years later, during another of several Roman persecutions.

Which means John comes first in this post, but I thought a title Peter, Paul and John would resonate with those of a certain age. (I.e., who actually remember Peter, Paul and Mary, the folk group “formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival.”)

That trio broke up in 1970 to pursue solo careers but then reunited in 1978. Their reunion tour was “so popular that the group decided to reunite more or less permanently in 1981,” and they continued recording and touring together until Mary died in 2009. But Saint John didn’t have such a happy end. (In the form of a reunion and continued popularity.) He fell victim to Salome, daughter of Herodias, who hated John. And so she got Salome to beguile her dad – Herod II – into beheading John the Baptist. But we’re getting ahead of ourselves.

The July 24 feast day celebrates the birth of John the Baptist, “who foretold the coming of the Messiah in the person of Jesus, whom he later baptised.” The readings include Isaiah 40:1-11, Psalm 85, Acts 13:14b-26, and Luke 1:57-80. Luke tells how Elizabeth – the cousin of Mary (mother of Jesus) – came to be a mother, and how her husband got struck dumb.

The time came for Elizabeth to give birth, and she bore a son. Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy to her, and they rejoiced…  [T]hey were going to name him Zechariah after his father. But his mother said, “No; he is to be called John.” They said to her, “None of your relatives has this name.” Then they began motioning to his father to find out what name he wanted to give him. He asked for a writing tablet and wrote, “His name is John…”

Note that Isaiah 40:1-11 – in the day’s readings – says in one translation of verse 3: “A voice cries out in the desert: ‘Clear a way for the LORD. Make a straight highway in the wilderness for our God.’” Thus, the Baptist became that voice in the wilderness, as noted in Matthew 3:3: This is he who was spoken of through the prophet Isaiah: “A voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.’” Which is another way of saying John served as precursor, forerunner or advance man for Jesus. (As in, “News Flash:  Jesus is on the way!“) 

Turning to the other feast day, June 29 remembers Saints Peter and Paul, who died together. But the date itself recalls the day when – somewhere around 258 during the Valerian Persecution – what were believed to be the remains of the two were moved to prevent them from falling into the hands of the persecutors. In formal terms that was the “translation of their relics,” referring to the “ceremonial removal of holy objects from one place to another.” (Another note: They could not have been killed during the Valerian Persecution itself because they would have had to be over 200 years old.) Anyway, as Wikipedia noted:

The Feast of Saints Peter and Paul or Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul honors the martyrdom of the apostles … in Rome and is liturgically observed on 29 June. The celebration is of ancient Christian origin, the date selected being the anniversary of either their death or the translation of their relics. (Emphasis added.)

So the day does in part honor the martyrdom in Rome of the apostles Peter and Paul, but unfortunately, the Bible doesn’t give details about the deaths of either, “or indeed any of the Apostles except for James the son of Zebedee.” (See Acts 12:2.) But early tradition said they were martyred at Rome, at the command of the emperor and were buried there:

As a Roman citizen, Paul would probably have been beheaded with a sword. It is said of Peter that he was crucified head downward[. And thus as St. Augustine wrote,] “even though they suffered on different days, they were as one. Peter went first, and Paul followed. And so we celebrate this day made holy for us by the apostles’ blood…”

Of course they didn’t always agree. There was for example the Incident at Antioch, a dispute between them about how much Old Testament law binds Christians following the New Testament. (It’s a question – including that of requiring male circumcision – that remains unsolved “even to this day.”) But to me the main point of the Feast of Peter and Paul – together – is that it’s okay to have such differences of opinion among Christians. Or even to “squabble” from time to time. So, here’s to two scholars disputing but still managing to work together.

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The upper image is courtesy of Salome – Wikipedia. The caption: “‘Salomé,’ by Henri Regnault (1870).” The article added that this Salome (III) was…

…a Jewish princess, the daughter of Herod II, who was the son of Herod the Great, with princess Herodias. She was granddaughter of Herod the Great, and stepdaughter of Herod Antipas. She is known from the New Testament, where she is not named, and from an account by Flavius Josephus. In the New Testament, the stepdaughter of Herod Antipas demands and receives the head of John the Baptist.

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

Note also: Feast days falling on a Sunday get transferred to the next Monday. Precedence, Rules of – The Episcopal Church: “Sunday takes precedence over all other feasts and observances of the church year. When a feast of our Lord or other major feast appointed cannot be observed because it occurs on a Sunday, the feast is normally transferred to the first convenient open day in the following week.”

For this post I reviewed On the Nativity of John the Baptist – 2015, On Peter, Paul – and other “relics” (also from 2015), John the Baptist, Peter and Paul – 2016, On “John T. Baptist,” Peter and Paul – 2021, John the Baptist, ’24 – and “Christian First Graders,” and Nativity of St. John the Baptist – 2025.

The lower image is courtesy of Two Scholars Disputing by REMBRANDT Harmenszoon … (web gallery of art.) The explanatory section added that the most likely explanation of the painting is that it “represents St Peter and St Paul in conversation,” or even Argument:

Rembrandt omits the attributes by which the two apostles were traditionally identified, he relies only on their physical characteristics … and on what they are seen to be doing, that is earnestly discussing a text which the one (St Peter) is explaining to the other.

See also the painting courtesy of Saints Peter and Paul by GRECO, El – Web Gallery of Art:

The two saints[,] the most influential leaders of the early Church[, are shown here] engaged in an animated discussion.  The older, white-haired Peter … inclines his head thoughtfully to one side as he looks towards the text being expounded.  In his left hand he holds his attribute, the key to the kingdom of Heaven.  His right hand is cupped as if weighing up an idea.  Paul presses his left hand down firmly on the open volume on the table, his right hand raised in a gesture of explanation as he looks directly at the viewer.

The article noted that El Greco painted the two together several times “with remarkable consistency.” Peter always has white hair and a beard, while “Paul is always shown slightly balding, with dark hair and beard, wearing a red mantle…” See also Feast of Peter and Paul – Wikipedia, with caption: “Saint Peter and Saint Paul. Oil on canvas by El Greco. circa 16th-century. Hermitage Museum, Russia.”

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June 14, 2026 – June 11 was the Feast Day for Saint Barnabas. Though not one of the original 12, he is regarded as one of the first 72 disciples, and at that he was a “most respected man in the early Church after the Apostles themselves.” As one of Christ’s earliest followers he was also responsible for welcoming Paul into the Church. (Despite serious fears and misgivings.)

Aside from the Twelve, few others receive the designation of apostle in the New Testament. Chief among them is the apostle Paul. Among the others is his one-time collaborator Barnabas, whose memorial is celebrated by the Church on June 11.

Barnabas is first mentioned in Acts 4:36: “Joseph, a Levite, born in Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (son of encouragement), sold a field he owned, brought the money, and turned it over to the apostles.” As to Paul, the website Barnabas the Apostle added that even after his Damascus Road Experience, most Christians in Jerusalem “wanted nothing to do with him. They had known him as a persecutor and an enemy of the Church. But Barnabas was willing to give him a second chance.” (Which is pretty much what Jesus is all about…)

In short, if it hadn’t been for Barnabas willing to give Paul a second chance – Paul, once a zealous persecutor of early Christians – he might never have become that Church’s most important early convert. (If not “the Founder of Christianity,” after Jesus of course.) But then came an ironic twist, after Barnabas gave that new “Apostle Paul” his Second Chance:

Paul and Barnabas went on a missionary journey together, taking Mark with them. Part way, Mark turned back and went home. When Paul and Barnabas were about to set out on another such journey, Barnabas proposed to take Mark along, and Paul was against it, saying that Mark had shown himself undependable. Barnabas wanted to give Mark a second chance [again] and so he and Mark went off on one journey, while Paul took Silas and went on another. Apparently Mark responded well to the trust given him by the “son of encouragement,” since we find that Paul later speaks of him as a valuable assistant (2 Timothy 4:11; see also Colossians 4:10 and Philemon 24).

So we could call Barnabas “the Apostle of Second Chances.” (On that note, June ’24, St. Barnabas and second chances discussed Purgatory as a second chance we may have, compared to the “pass-fail” theory advanced by some. My feeling: “I’ll take all the help I can get.”)

The bottom line: The early Church benefited greatly because Barnabas gave both Paul and Mark a second chance, and if only for that we celebrate his life on June 11. But there’s another factor: The feast day for St. Barnabas always falls just five days after June 6, when we remember the sacrifices made on D-Day in 1944. (A “key turning point in World War II.”)

Which raises a dilemma. Can good Christians take part in an armed conflict, “characterized by widespread violence, destruction, and mortality?” (Like what took place on D-Day, on a vast scale.) St. Augustine for one thought we could, depending on circumstances of course. Which is why he and others developed a system of military ethics “to ensure that a war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met for a war to be considered just. It has been studied by military leaders, theologians, ethicists and policymakers.”

One short answer? Consider it not unlike the Blessing of a Marriage: “Not to be entered into unadvisedly or lightly, but reverently, deliberately, and in accordance with” – in this case – criteria set out by St. Augustine and others after him. (To insure the violence is indeed “justified.”) That’s something our political leaders would do well to keep in mind before putting our young people – the one hope for our future – “in harm’s way.” But what is your duty if you think your country’s leaders are sending our young people to war “unadvisedly and lightly?”

Some people in power love to cite Hebrews 13:17 as support from the Bible for their saying that you should just take them at their word: “Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.”

Which may have been true enough when Hebrews was written. (Circa 63 A.D.) Kings ruled, almost always (sometimes queens), and almost always their subjects had no say whatever in how they would be ruled. But these days we have “something new under the sun.” (Qoheleth.)

The opening words of the [United States] Constitution settle who holds supreme authority: “We the People of the United States…do ordain and establish this Constitution.”¹ The government did not create itself. The people created it, gave it a defined set of powers, and kept everything else. That framing makes the United States government a delegated agent, not a sovereign in its own right.

Which is a subject I’ll address in greater length in the post covering the July 4th weekend coming up. (And after posts covering the upcoming feast days for the Nativity of St John, the Baptist on June 24, and St Peter and St Paul, Apostles on June 29.)

In the meantime, for more on this saint see Barnabas – Wikipedia, including information on how some early Christians considered him the author of the Hebrews, and how he is now the patron saint of Cyprus, and how he was eventually martyred. (Stoned to death, or bound with a rope around his neck, then dragged to the site where he would be burned to death?) Which can lead to the conclusion that standing up for Jesus, the rule of law and the American way of Life can still be a risky business. (Up to and including the risks of saying out loud that you think your country’s leaders are sending our young people to war “unadvisedly and lightly?”)

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The upper image is courtesy of St. Barnabas in Art – Christian Iconography, with text: “In Acts 14:8-18 Paul and Barnabas in Lystra heal a crippled man and the Lystrans take them for gods. A priest even brings an ox to sacrifice to them, as shown in this painting. The two have to explain that ‘we are of the same nature as you.'” See also “St. Barnabas: The Forgotten Apostle? – Simply Catholic, which provided some of the text including the “model for ministry” part.

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

Note also: Feast days falling on a Sunday get transferred to the next Monday. Precedence, Rules of – The Episcopal Church: “Sunday takes precedence over all other feasts and observances of the church year. When a feast of our Lord or other major feast appointed cannot be observed because it occurs on a Sunday, the feast is normally transferred to the first convenient open day in the following week.”

For this post I reviewed 2014’s St. Barnabas, On the DORs for June 6, 2015, D-Day and St. Barnabas – 2021, June ’24, St. Barnabas and second chances, and Pentecost and St. Barnabas – 2025.

“In Harm’s Way.” There is of course that 1965 John Wayne movie (directed by Otto Preminger) but for the original see John Paul Jones – Wikiquote: “I wish to have no connection with any ship that does not sail fast; for I intend to go in harm‘s way.”

For more on the “opening words” see What Is American Sovereignty Under the Constitution?

The lower image is courtesy of Just war theory – Wikipedia: “The purpose of the doctrine is to ensure that a war is morally justifiable through a series of criteria, all of which must be met in order for a war to be considered just.” For more information google “Christianity and just war theory.”

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June 4, 2026 – Last Sunday, May 31, would have been a busy day. Both Trinity Sunday – the first Sunday after Pentecost, 56 days after Easter Sunday – and also the Day to remember the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin both fell on that day. But because the Visitation did fall on a Sunday, it got transferred to Monday, June 1. And now for some specifics about “Trinity:”

Trinity Sunday celebrates the Christian doctrine of the Trinity, the three Persons of God: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit… The Sundays following Pentecost, until Advent, are numbered from this day.  In traditional Catholic usage, the First Sunday After Pentecost is on the same day as Trinity Sunday…  [T]he Episcopal Church in the United States of America (ECUSA) now follows the Catholic usage…

(Trinity Sunday – Wikipedia.) Also, this feast day is one of the few in the Christian Calendar to celebrate “a reality and doctrine rather than a person or event.” The idea of the Trinity is both fascinating, controversial and difficult to understand; a mystery. But by mystery “the Church does not mean a riddle,” but rather a reality above human comprehension. (So hard to understand that even a smart guy like Thomas Jefferson couldn’t make sense of it, as noted below.) On the other hand, it’s been said that the mystery of the Trinity “is not a wall to run up against, but an ocean in which to swim.” (All About Trinity Sunday | Prayers, History, Customs.)

As for Jefferson, he referred to the doctrine as a “Three-headed Monster.” (For the full quote see Thomas Jefferson quote.) But it seems to me that while Jefferson was really smart, he fell into the common error of “thinking that he could ever really understand everything there is to know about God.” (He was much like Nicodemus, in taking the Bible “way too literally.”) 

See also What does the Bible teach about the Trinity? – GotQuestions.org:

The most difficult thing about the Christian concept of the Trinity is that there is no way to completely understand it or explain it. God is infinitely greater than we are; therefore, we should not expect to be able to fully understand Him. 

There’s lots more to read in the link, but you get the idea. (Or do you?)

Moving on the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. (The formal name.) Wikipedia noted:

The Visitation is the visit of Mary with Elizabeth as recorded [in] Luke 1:39–56.  It is also the name of a Christian feast day[,] celebrated on 31 May…  Mary is pregnant with Jesus and Elizabeth is pregnant with John the Baptist.  Mary left Nazareth immediately after the Annunciation and went “into the hill country” [of Judah] to attend to her cousin.

Wikipedia added, “In the Gospel of Luke, the author’s accounts of the Annunciation and Visitation are constructed using eight points of literary parallelism to compare Mary to the Ark of the Covenant.” (Which I didn’t know.) Also, Mary’s Magnificat echoes Old Testament passages including the Song of Hannah, in 1st Samuel 2:1-10. There’s more background in Visitation – 2016, but here’s the main point: On May 31 we celebrate the early meeting of Mary and her cousin Elizabeth. “Their meeting sets the stage for all that will come later, and it is women who recognize it first.” (See also Mary Magdalene, “Apostle to the Apostles.”)

More to the point, when Mary visited Elizabeth, “John the Baptist, still unborn, leaped for joy in his mother’s womb.” Meaning the two women, one seemingly too old, would bear John, “the last prophet of the Old Covenant.” Her cousin Mary, a virgin not ready to have a child, was “destined to bear the One Who was Himself the beginning of the New Covenant.”

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The upper image was first courtesy of Trinity – Wikipedia. Caption: “An artistic depiction of the Trinity, with the hand representing the Father, the ichthys representing the Son, and the dove representing the Holy Spirit.

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

Note also: Feast days falling on a Sunday get transferred to the next Monday. Precedence, Rules of – The Episcopal Church: “Sunday takes precedence over all other feasts and observances of the church year. When a feast of our Lord or other major feast appointed cannot be observed because it occurs on a Sunday, the feast is normally transferred to the first convenient open day in the following week.”

For this post I reviewed On Trinity Sunday, 2015, On Trinity Sunday (2016) – and more, and 2018’s The Trinity – Jefferson’s “3-headed monster.” Also, On the Visitation – 2016, Mary’s Visitation – and Pentecost – 2017, and Mary’s Visitation and Jefferson’s Monster – 2023.

The lower image is courtesy of Images, “the visitation of the blessed virgin Mary.”

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April 30, 2026 – Friday, May 1, is the Feast Day for St. Philip and St. James. (The link is to the 2020 meditation on these two, with a note: “we are now in the eighth full week of the COVID-19 pandemic. And since wisdom begins with the definition of terms – said Socrates – I’ll clarify. To me, the pandemic hit full swing – the “stuff really hit the fan” – back on Thursday, March 12.”

But we digress. We have other fish to fry these days. So, back to Saints Philip and James. One problem is, we’re not sure who they are. “James” was a popular and widespread name in Jesus’ time. It was associated with Jacob, who became “Israel” by wresting with the angel in Genesis 32:24-32. The English name “James” is a variant of “Jacob,” or in Hebrew, “Ya’akov.” And the New Testament lists at least three “James” who could fit the bill, and possibly as many as eight.

Our best guess is that the James remembered on May 1 is James the Lesser, also called James the Son of Alphaeus. (Not to be confused with James the Greater, called “James the Elder.”) This lesser James “appears only four times in the New Testament, each time in a list of the twelve apostles.” But he gets his own feast day, as does St. Philip.

The best guess here is that this Philip is Philip the Apostle, but there was also a Philip the Deacon: “One of the seven men chosen by the Apostles to perform certain administrative tasks for the poor in the early Christian community at Jerusalem (Acts 6:5-7). Because of his zeal in preaching the gospel he became known as Philip the Evangelist (Acts 21:8).”

But again, our best guess is that the Philip remembered on May 1 is Philip the Apostle. Wikipedia said this Philip was a disciple from Bethsaida, and that Andrew and Peter were from the same town. Jesus tested him in John 6:6, and later he and Andrew told Jesus about some Greeks who wanted to see Him in John 12:20-22. And as noted, Wikipedia distinguished this Philip from “Philip the Deacon.” See Philip the Evangelist – Wikipedia: “He preached and performed miracles in Samaria, and met and baptised [sic] an Ethiopian man, a eunuch, on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza, traditionally marking the start of the Ethiopian Church (Acts 8:26–39).”  (Confused? In past posts I’ve been confused as well.)

As to why these two saints are celebrated together:

The two apostles Philip and James the Lesser are remembered with a single liturgical feast because their relics, transferred respectively from Hierapolis and Jerusalem, were placed together in the Basilica of the Twelve Holy Apostles [“Santi Apostoli“] in Rome.

Another note on this Philip. He was a link to the Greek community. He had a Greek name, could speak Greek, probably knew the Greek pilgrims in Jerusalem, as shown by is advising Andrew “that certain Greeks wish to meet Jesus.” (John 12:21.) Also, during the Last Supper, “when Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father, he provides Jesus the opportunity to teach his disciples about the unity of the Father and the Son.” (And we could use some of that unity today.)

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The upper image is courtesy of Saints Philip and James – Franciscan Media. Caption: “Image: Detail of reredos | Polytych by Maestà | Wikimedia.” See also “Santi Apostoli, Rome.” The article noted this “6th-century Roman Catholic parish and titular church and minor basilica in Rome, Italy, dedicated originally to St. James and St. Philip whose remains are kept here, and later to all Apostles. 

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

For this post I reviewed, from 2016, Philip and James – Saints and Apostles, On St. Philip and St. James – May, 2020, from 2022, Here’s to Saints Philip and James – “Whoever you are,” and On Saints Mark, Philip and James – 2023.

The lower image is courtesy of Philip the Apostle – Wikipedia. Caption: “‘St. Philip,’ by Peter Paul Rubens, from his ‘Twelve Apostles’ series (c. 1611), at the Museo del Prado, Madrid.”

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Welcome to “read the Bible – expand your mind:”

The Book of Common Prayer says that by taking part in Holy Communion, Christians become “very members incorporate in the mystical body” of Jesus. The words “corporate” and “mystical” are key. They show that a healthy church has two sides, with the often-overlooked “mystic” side asking the question, “How do I experience God?” This blog tries to answer that.

It has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (John 6:37.) The second is that God wants us to live lives of abundance.(John 10:10.) The third is that Jesus wants us to read the Bible with an open mind. (As Luke 24:45 says: “Then He [Jesus] opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures.”) The fourth theme – another one often overlooked – is that Jesus wants us to do even greater miracles than He did. (John 14:12.) 

And this thought ties them together:

The best way to live abundantly and do greater miracles than Jesus is: Read, study and apply the Bible with an open mind. For more see the notes or – to expand your mind – see the Intro.

In the meantime:

April 25, 2026 – Today is the Feast Day for Saint Mark, who wrote the first and shortest of the four Gospels. “In Christian tradition, Mark the Evangelist, the author of the second gospel is symbolized by a lion – a figure of courage and monarchy.” (Wikipedia.) But that “second Gospel” doesn’t mean his wasn’t the first account of the life of Jesus. As Isaac Asimov noted:

Matthew is [listed as the] first of the gospels in the New Testament because, according to early tradition, it was the first to be written. This, however, is now doubted by nearly everyone. The honor of primacy is generally granted to Mark, which is the second gospel in the Bible as it stands.

The writer of this first-in-time Gospel is generally identified as the same John Mark who “carried water to the house where the Last Supper took place” in Mark 14:13, or the “young man who ran away naked when Jesus was arrested” in Mark 14:51. See also Acts 12:25:  “Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them John, whose other name was Mark.“ Now about the lion being his symbol.

The lion is traditionally “a figure of courage and monarchy.” See also Lion of Saint Mark, which said the symbolism began with Revelation 4:7, “The first living creature was like a lion, the second was like an ox, the third had a face like a man, the fourth was like a flying eagle.” The lion also symbolizes “the power of the Evangelist’s word, the wings symbolize the spiritual elevation, while the halo is the traditional Christian symbol of holiness.” And so to summarize:

In Christianity, the four living creatures are Cherubim. A prominent early interpretation has been to equate the four creatures as a tetramorph of the Four Evangelists where the lion represents Mark the Evangelist, the calf [or “ox”] is Luke the Evangelist, the man is Matthew the Apostle, and the eagle symbolizes John the Evangelist. This interpretation originated with Irenaeus and was adopted by Victorinus.   Its influence has been on art and sculpture and is still prevalent in Catholicism and Anglicanism.

Then there’s that question of “the honor of primacy.” If Mark wrote the first Gospel, why is his listed after Matthew? It’s a story of being “disrespected,” but eventually recognized for his singular contribution. (Thanks to Bible scholars who became open-minded enough to “dig deeper.”) In other words, Mark presents a “Cinderella story,” of success after a lowly beginning.

One reason for his being dissed early on could have been that his was the shortest Gospel. Another reason might be his Koine Greek, not at all elegant. (What Garry Wills called a marketplace or pidgin Greek, a “simplified means of linguistic communication … constructed impromptu, or by convention, between individuals or groups of people.”)

In other words, his written Greek was “short and clumsy.” For this reason and others St. Augustine for one called Mark “the drudge and condenser” of Matthew. And since his Greek was “clumsier and more awkward” – clumsier than the more-polished writing of Matthew, Luke and John – his was the “least cited Gospel” in the early Christian period.  

But “this Cinderella finally got the glass slipper,” even though Mark had to wait until the 19th century to get his. (Metaphorically or otherwise.) That’s when scholars finally noticed that the other three Gospels all cited material from Mark, but “he does not do the same for them.” Their conclusion? He started the process and set the pattern of and for the other three Gospels. Since that time Mark’s Gospel “has become the most studied and influential.”

Another note: It seems that Mark wrote his Gospel at a time of great suffering in the early church. As Asimov noted, Mark’s Gospel was designed “to circulate among Christians the story of the sufferings of Jesus and his steadfastness under affliction. Perhaps this was in order to encourage Christians at a time when they, generally, were undergoing persecution.”

In turn, and as I wrote in 2020, that earthly suffering may well have been mirrored in the unforeseen and largely inexplicable “end times” of the 2020 coronavirus pandemic. And if nothing else, that Covid-19 (or the 2020 extension) reminded us of our “fragility as human beings.” Which brings us to The Plague by Camus, and a quote from Part 1, early in the book:

Everybody knows that pestilences have a way of recurring in the world; yet somehow we find it hard to believe in ones that crash down on our heads from a blue sky. There have been as many plagues as wars in history; yet always plagues and wars take people equally by surprise.

Which certainly seems true of whatever latest pestilence we may be going through. (“Let the reader understand,” from Mark 13:14.) Which brings up a Salt Lake Tribune review of “The Plague” (the Camus novel) with this point: “Being alive always was and will always remain an emergency; it is truly an inescapable ‘underlying condition.'” But there could be a silver lining: The “absurdity” of life – with all its despair at times – could lead to a “tragicomic redemption, a softening of the heart, a turning away from judgment and moralizing to joy and gratitude.”

Which brings us to the old saying noted in the Peanuts cartoon below, reminding us that in “bad times or hopelessness, it is more worthwhile to do some good, however small, in response than to complain about the situation.” See also Better to light a single candle. 

Put another way, April 25 celebrates the man the other three Gospel-writers followed and borrowed so freely from. The man whose work – for 18 long centuries – was largely disregarded and disrespected. The man who finally – after 1,800 years – got the recognition he deserved.

I think there’s an object lesson there…

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The upper image is courtesy of Peter Paul Rubens: The Four Evangelists: “Rubens portrayed the four evangelists while working together on their texts. An angel helps them… Each gospel author can be identified by an attribute. The attributes were derived from the opening verses of the gospels.  From left to right: Luke (bull), Matthew (man [angel]), Mark (lion), and John (eagle).” See also Four Evangelists – Wikipedia.

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

For this post I reviewed 2015’s On St. Mark’s “Cinderella story,” 2016’s More on “arguing with God” – and St. Mark as Cinderella, and later from On St. Mark, 2020 – and today’s “plague” – the Plague being the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S. – and On St. Mark – 2024.

The Garry Wills reference to Koine Greek is from What Jesus Meant: Wills, the 2007 book offering an “illuminating analysis for believers and nonbelievers alike.” (Said Goodreads.) The quote is from pages xi-xiii of my Penguin Books edition. See also Pidgin – Wikipedia.

Re:  Isaac Asimov. The quotes cited above are from Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (Two Volumes in One),  Avenel Books (1981), at pages 770 and 902.

From the link Why does Mark say, “Let the reader understand” in Mark 13:14:

The comment to “let the reader understand” in Mark 13:14 could be taken different ways, depending on whose comment it is. It could be a parenthetical comment, inserted by Mark, to signal his readers that Jesus’ prophecy requires discernment and careful consideration. Alternatively, the comment to “let the reader understand” could be part of Jesus’ own words… Either way, the call to “understand” highlights the need for spiritual discernment and preparedness

The “stupid darkness” cartoon is courtesy of You Stupid Darkness! | Kurtis Scaletta’s Site, which links to comics.com/peanuts, “one of the most amazing but little-known Internet resources.”  See also lightasinglecandle … com, and The 5 Greatest (newspaper) Comic Strips Of All Time.

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As noted in the opening blurb, this blog has four main themes. The first is that God will accept anyone. (See John 6:37, with the added, “Anyone who comes to Him.”) This is a consistent theme throughout the Bible. From the Old Testament, Psalm 9:10, “You never forsake those who seek you, O Lord.” (In the Book of Common Prayer version.) The second is that God wants us to live abundantly.  (John 10:10.) The third is that we should do greater miracles than Jesus. (John 14:12). A fourth theme: The only way to do all that is read the Bible with an open mind:

…closed-mindedness, or an unwillingness to consider new ideas, can result from the brain’s natural dislike for ambiguity. According to this view, the brain has a “search and destroy” relationship with ambiguity and evidence contradictory to people’s current beliefs tends to make them uncomfortable… Research confirms that belief-discrepant-closed-minded persons have less tolerance for cognitive inconsistency…

So in plain words, I take issue with what I call “Christian first graders.” Those who choose to stay in a kind of elementary-school first grade. See John the Baptist, ’24 – and “Christian First Graders,” for more. But the key point: “The Bible was designed to expand your mind,” not make it narrow. Also, there’s the idea that “Jesus was anything but negative. His goal was for you to grow and develop into all that you can be.” (For more on that see ABOUT THE BLOG, above.)

I’ve written on boot-camp Christians, the Literalists who never go “beyond the fundamentals.” But the Bible offers so much more than a narrow reading gives… (Unless you want to stay a buck private all your life…) Now, about “Boot-camp Christians” see Conservative Christian – “Career buck private?” The gist of that post: Starting the Bible is like Army Basic Training. You begin by“learning the fundamentals.” But after boot camp, you move on to Advanced Individual Training.”

And as noted in “Buck private,” one of this blog’s themes is that if you want to be all that you can be, you need to go on and explore the “mystical side of Bible reading.*” In other words, exploring the mystical side of the Bible helps you “be all that you can be.” See Slogans of the U.S. Army – Wikipedia, re: the recruiting slogan from 1980 to 2001. The related image at left is courtesy of: “toywonders.com/productcart/pc/catalog/aw30.jpg.”

Re: “mystical.” Originally the “liturgical, spiritual, and contemplative dimensions of early and medieval Christianity.” Mysticism – Wikipedia, and the post On originalism.  (“What the Bible was originally about!”) See also Christian mysticism – Wikipedia, “In early Christianity the term ‘mystikos’ referred to three dimensions, which soon became intertwined, namely the biblical, the liturgical and the spiritual or contemplative… The third dimension is the contemplative or experiential knowledge of God.” As to that “experiential” aspect, see also Wesleyan Quadrilateral – Wikipedia, on the theological reflection method using four sources of spiritual development: scripture, tradition, reason, and “Christian experience.”

For an explanation of the Daily Office – where “Dorscribe” came from – see What’s a DOR?

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April 4, 2026 – It’s that time of year again, after 46 days of Lent. (40 days mirroring the ones Jesus spent in the Wilderness, plus six Sundays “off,” as detailed in the Notes.)

Meaning it’s time to celebrate another Happy Easter Sunday. That is, the “festival and holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, described in the New Testament as having occurred on the third day of his burial after his crucifixion.”

But note first that before Jesus rose from the tomb he had to go through the Harrowing of Hell; between His Crucifixion and resurrection. “In triumphant descent, Christ brought salvation to the souls held captive there since the beginning of the world.” Which leads to a note: A harrow can be an “agricultural implement with spikelike teeth or upright disks, drawn chiefly over plowed land to level it, break up clods, root up weeds, etc.” But to harrow can also refer to causing “worry and upset, the way a truly scary movie might harrow you, making it hard to sleep:”

Harrow is an uncommon verb that was originally used in a religious context. You’re much more likely to hear the adjective harrowing used for things that are extremely distressing. But if your cat torments you nightly with her incessant meowing, you might try yelling, “Why do you harrow me?”

Which means that in this case too Jesus acted as “pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:2.) And stands ready to help us through any harrowing we might be experiencing today.

But back to the reason for the season, the Resurrection. As told in John 20:1, “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene went to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the entrance.” So this Mary was both the first person to see the empty tomb of Jesus, and one of the first – if not the first – to see the risen Jesus. 

She then went to tell Peter and the “disciple whom Jesus loved.” They both got there, looked inside and saw the burial clothes lying there. (And no body.) Then they “went back to where they were staying.” But Mary – faithful Mary, who ended up with such a terrible reputation – stayed there. (As noted in the Gospel for her feast day, John 20:11-18.) She saw two angels, who asked why she was crying. Then she turned to see another man she took to be a caretaker:

Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.”  Jesus said to her, “Mary!”  She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher).  Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father.  But go to my brothers and say to them, `I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord;” and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Which is why this Mary – from Magdala – is rightly called the “Apostle to the Apostles.”

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There’s more on Easter later – including the Easter bunny – but last Tuesday, March 31, I came across Proverbs 9:8. (For reasons detailed in the Notes.) And for the first time I can remember, this passage gave me a jolt. (Despite the fact that I started the Daily Office in 1992, which means I am now on my 16th trip through the Bible.) But to get to the point, the Amplified Bible translation of Proverbs 9:8 reads like this, “Do not correct a scoffer [who foolishly ridicules and takes no responsibility for his error] or he will hate you; Correct a wise man [who learns from his error], and he will love you.” Which took a load off my mind.

For the past few years I’ve been consumed by the demands of Ezekiel 3:16-27, better known as Ezekiel’s Task as Watchman. “Zeke” wrote about a Believer’s duty to warn others of the error of their ways. Briefly, if you don’t warn a fellow citizen of the error of his ways, and he keeps sinning, God will punish both of you. But if you warn him and he keeps on sinning you will at least have saved your own spiritual butt: “They will die for their sin; but you will have saved yourself.” Which seemed to mean I was duty-bound to somehow convince people who don’t want to be convinced that they may have been wrong in – say for example – voting in a certain person.

So, if Proverbs 9:8 outranks Ezekiel 3:16-27, that means I don’t have worry about wasting a lot of time and effort Talking to a Brick Wall. (An idiom “Commonly used in conflicts or disputes where dialogue seems pointless.”) And what a relief that would be. Which goes to show why it pays to read and study the Bible. (Or to check this Blog from time to time.)

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Meanwhile, “What’s all this about the Easter Bunny?”

For starters, the name Easter came from a pagan figure called Eastre (or Ēostre), “celebrated as the goddess of spring by the Saxons of Northern Europe. Her earthly symbol was the rabbit, known as a symbol of fertility.” And that’s how we got the Easter Bunny and Easter egg hunts. That tradition – first noted around 1682 – was based on folklore that had already been around awhile, and as practiced by German Lutherans. In turn, the Easter Bunny – or more precisely, the Easter Hare – “played the role of a judge,” evaluating whether children were good or bad, especially in the days leading up to “the start of the season of Eastertide.”

In legend, the creature carries colored eggs in his basket, candy, and sometimes also toys to the homes of children, and as such shows similarities to Santa Claus or the Christkind, as they both bring gifts to children on the night before their respective holidays.

One author noted that the “hare was the sacred beast of Eastre (or Eostre).” In turn, “Ēostre is attested solely by Bede in his 8th-century work The Reckoning of Time.” There Bede stated that during Ēosturmōnaþ (“Easter-month,” or the month of April), pagan Anglo-Saxons had held feasts in Ēostre’s honor, but that this tradition was eventually “replaced by the Christian Paschal month, a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus.” (Another case of subsumation?)

And finally, a heads up. Next Sunday – aside from having a multitude of other names – is also known as “Quasimodo Sunday,” for reasons to be explained next week. Stay tuned… 

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The upper image is courtesy of File: Rembrandt – The Risen Christ Appearing to Mary Magdalen. See also On Easter Season – AND BEYOND, and Easter – Wikipedia.

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days … the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.’”

For this post I reviewed 2015’s On Mary Magdalene, “Apostle to the Apostles,” 2017’s Frohliche Ostern – “Happy Easter!,” 2019’s On Easter, Doubting Thomas Sunday – and a Metaphor, “Happy Quasimodo Sunday” – 2022, and 2025’s ” If anyone serves Me, the Father will honor him” – Easter ’25.

Re: Mary Magdalene at the Tomb. The account in John 20:1-18 has Mary going there alone. The account in Mark 16 has Mary going with two other women: “Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body.”

On coming across Proverbs 9:8 “last Tuesday.” Proverbs 9:1-12 is the Old Testament reading for Sunday in the week of 8 Epiphany. But as noted in The Lectionary – Satucket, the readings for Epiphany end at the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany. Meaning the readings for the Sixth through Eighth weeks after the Epiphany got skipped this year. But I don’t like to skip those readings, so I go back over them after I start doing the readings for Lent, beginning on February 22. (I don’t like to leave that gap.) And that’s how I came across Proverbs 9:8 last Tuesday, March 31

For more on “Ezekiel’s task,” see On Peter, Paul, and the Bible’s “Dynamic Tension” – 2025.

Re: Days off during Lent. See 40 Days and 40 Nights [film] – Wikipedia, the 2002 film about “a San Francisco web designer who has chosen to abstain from any sexual contact for the duration of Lent.” See Why Sundays Don’t Count During Lent | Guideposts. Apparently the Hollywood writers didn’t do their Biblical homework.

Re: “Another case of subsumation.” A wide-spread theory says that early Church Fathers subsumed Saturnalia by celebrating Christmas on December 25, but others dispute the claim. See for example Did Christmas Come From Saturnalia Historical Analysis.

The lower image is courtesy of Easter – Wikipedia

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March 25, 2026 – Today is the Feast of the Annunciation. The full title is the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and it all started with the birth of Jesus. The early Church Fathers decided first that the birth of Jesus would be celebrated on December 25, then figured back nine months. And since they said Jesus was born on December 25, He had to have been conceived the previous March 25. That’s where the Annunciation comes in.

It celebrates “the announcement by the angel Gabriel to Mary that she would conceive and become the mother of Jesus … marking his Incarnation.” From there it’s not much of a leap to say that the Annunciation and Conception had to have happened on the same day. (She would conceive” became in effect “she did conceive.”) But there’s a fly in the ointment.

These days there are theories “all over the place” about which day, which month or indeed which year was Jesus born. For example, some say June, some say March, or some other date somewhere between 4 and 6 Anno Domini. (“The Year of Our Lord.”) But for the sake of tradition this post will use December 25 as the starting point. (Since Tradition is second only to Scripture in the Wesleyan Quadrilateral.) So, back to the Annunciation.

Which leads to the question: Were there any other reasons why the early Church Fathers picked December 25? Answer: Yes, there is: Nowadays we know all about the winter solstice, which marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year. We also know that from that date onward, the days do start getting longer and the nights start getting shorter. But back before the Church got started “there was never any certainty that the sinking Sun would ever return.” (As Isaac Asimov noted.) So around mid-December those old-time people kept worrying the days would keep getting shorter and shorter, until there was nothing but eternal night.

But then around December 25 they noted the cycle had stopped and the days started getting slightly longer and longer. They always felt great joy and gladness at the return of more and more hours of sunlight. So they made a “great feast in honor of what one might call the ‘birth of the sun.’” In Roman times that raucous celebration became known as Saturnalia.

At the Saturnalia, joy was unrestrained, as befitted a holiday that celebrated a reprieve from death and a return to life… It was a season of peace and good will to all men… Naturally, the joy easily turned to the extremes of licentiousness and debauchery, and there were, no doubt, many pious people who deplored the uglier aspects of the festival.

Those “pious people” included early Church Fathers. They felt the festival was “a great stumbling block to conversions to Christianity.” So, the Church “adapted itself to pagan customs” like Saturnalia. In essence they transmogrified the pagan feast. They said Christians needed only “to joyfully greet the birth of the Son rather than the Sun.” (Emphasis added. See the Notes.)

Incidentally, for a traditional view of the Annunciation – and Mary’s “Faithful Response” – see 10 Things to Know About the Solemnity of the Annunciation and Its Significance.

For an alternate view consider what Garry Wills said. (And Wills has been a devout Catholic for 90 of his 92 years.) “For me, the most convincing pictures or sculptures of the Annunciation to Mary show her in a state of panic … shrinking off from the angel, looking cornered by him.” He noted especially some 14th century paintings “where Mary is made so faint by the angel’s words that she sways back and must grab a pillar to keep herself upright.”

On that note see Luke 1:29, which in most translations has Mary “deeply troubled” by the announcement. Other translations have her “confused and disturbed,” or agitated, perplexed or alarmed. Which led Wills to ask – about Mary’s hearing that she had “found favor” with God – “Did she know already how dangerous is such a favor? God’s chosen people are commonly chosen to suffer.” (Certainly a sobering thought for good and proper Christians.)

This reaction seems supported by what Simeon said when Mary presented the newborn Jesus to the Temple. She heard him say, “you, Mary, will suffer as though you had been stabbed by a dagger.” (Luke 2:35.) Or that “a sword will run through this woman’s heart.” Thus, in some views, Mary’s “look almost of horror at what she has just been told.” Which brings up Dante Gabriel Rossetti‘s interpretation of the event, shown above. We might meditate on that during this Lent 2026. If we feel alarmed, agitated or perplexed at the world events going on around us…

Just know that we are in good company.

In the meantime, since tradition is second only to Scripture in the Wesleyan Quadrilateral, here’s a traditional view of how Mary reacted to Gabriel’s message.

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The upper image is courtesy of Rossetti Annunciation – Image Results. See also The Annunciation by Dante Gabriel Rossetti – my daily art display:

Take a while and look at Mary’s expression. How do you read Rossetti’s depiction of this young woman? Look at her facial expression. This is not one of acquiescence or pleasure. This is a look almost of horror at what she has just been told. This terrified look adds a great deal of power to Rossetti’s painting. Mary herself … looks much younger than we are used to seeing in similar scenes. She exudes a youthful beauty but only seems to be a mere adolescent with her long un-brushed auburn hair contrasting sharply with her white dress. She is painfully thin and her hesitance and sad look tinged with fear endears her to us. 

The Book of Common Prayer reference: The “corporate-mystical” prayer is on page 339, the post-communion prayer for Holy Eucharist, Rite I.

Feast days are designated days on the liturgical (church) calendar “set aside to commemorate events, saints, or doctrines that are important in the life of the Church. These can range from Solemnities, which are the highest-ranking feast days like Easter and Christmas, to optional memorials that celebrate lesser-known saints.” Feast Days: Celebrating the Church’s Calendar. See also Wikipedia’s Calendar of saints. “The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word ‘feast’ in this context does not mean ‘a large meal, typically a celebratory one,’ but instead ‘an annual religious celebration, a day dedicated to a particular saint.'”

For this post I borrowed from 2015’s The Annunciation “gets the ball rolling,” On the Annunciation (2022) – and Mary “shrinking back,” and On the Annunciation and the end of Lent – 2023.

On when was Jesus born, see Christianity, Christmas, Calendar, When Was Jesus Born? Here’s What The Evidence Says, or When Was Jesus Christ Born? – CBCG.

The Wesleyan Quadrilateral is the method of theological reflection credited to John Wesley. It uses four sources as the basis of theological and doctrinal development, Scripture, tradition, reason, and Christian experience. (Wikipedia.)

Re: Isaac Asimov. The quotes about the dating of Christmas and the “olden days” are from Asimov’s Guide to the Bible (Two Volumes in One), Avenel Books (1981), at pages 930-34. 

And as an aside, Asimov (1920-1992) was an author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. He was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards.” His list of books included those on “astronomy, mathematics, the Bible, William Shakespeare’s writing, and chemistry.” He was a long-time member of Mensa, “albeit reluctantly;  he described some members of that organization as ‘brain-proud and aggressive about their IQs.’”  See Isaac Asimov – Wikipedia.

Re: “What Garry Wills said.” See What Jesus Meant: Wills, the 2007 book, an “illuminating analysis for believers and nonbelievers alike … a brilliant addition to our national conversation on religion.” (Said Goodreads.) The quote is from page 1 of my Penguin Books edition, “The Hidden Years.” Also, the Wikipedia article notes that up until 2024 he prayed the rosary every day and wrote a book about it.” He now calls himself an “Augustinian Christian.” As for public appraisal:

The New York Times literary critic John Leonard said in 1970 that Wills “reads like a combination of H. L. Mencken, John Locke and Albert Camus.” The Catholic journalist John L. Allen Jr. considers Wills to be “perhaps the most distinguished Catholic intellectual in America over the last 50 years” (as of 2008). Martin Gardner in “The Strange Case of Garry Wills” states there is a “mystery and strangeness that hovers like a gray fog over everything Wills has written about his faith.”

Re: Luke 2:35. The “sword will run through this woman’s heart” quote came from the translation Wills used. Most other “Bible Hub” translations say the sword will pierce Mary’s “own soul;” that includes the King James Bible. (The one God uses.) As to feeling alarmed, agitated or perplexed at world events, see 1st Corinthians 10:13, “The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.” (Well, almost “no different from what others experience.” Mary was after all in a class by herself.)

The lower image is courtesy of Annunciation Mary Image – Image Results.

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