Christian Carnival

XCIII is up at White Ribbon Warriors.

Where in the world

following Ms Malkin's common headline habit ...

have I been. Well I've been in L.A. at



A convention for Christian Bloggers, i.e., those bloggers who hold to the Creed of Nicea. It's been very interesting. For more, click the picture (a link) and then go to the "blog" link. There you can ... read all about it as they say.

Lectionary for September 25, 2005

The Lessons for Sunday, September 25, 2005
Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 21)

The Collect:

O God, you declare your almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity: Grant us the fullness of your grace, that we, running to obtain your promises, may become partakers of your heavenly treasure; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Old Testament Lesson:

Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32

The Psalm:

Psalm 25:1-14, Ad te, Domine, levavi, BCP version here

The New Testament Lesson:

Philippians 2:1-13

The Gospel Lesson:

Matthew 21:28-32

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Christian Carnival

Is up, oddly enough at my blog, Pseudo-Polymath.

Oddly enough because I had just volunteered to be put in the queue, when Dory asked me to step in to cover a last minute cancellation.

Rain

O God, heavenly Father, who by your Son Jesus Christ has promised to all those who seek your kingdom and its righteousness all things necessary to sustain their life: Send us, we entreat you, in this time of need, such moderate rain and showers, that we may receive the fruits of the earth, to our comfort and to your honor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

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Update: I have moved this to the top of the blog again. Even though the Gulf coast is suffering the after effects of Katrina, our area is suffering from the lack of rain. [Ed. Don't worry about the "date" of the post. I am "playing" with Blogger to force this note to stay at the top of the blog.]

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God is not responsible!

Finally, a blog response to all the nonsense floating about regarding God calling forth Katrina (and other natural disasters) as punishment for sin, etc.

Ben Witherington, a respected New Testament scholar, asks and then answers:

What do the fundamentalist Christian TV preacher and the head of Al Quaeda in Iraq have in common? Answer--- they both think that Hurricane Katrina is a judgment of God on American sin!

His reply is much more Biblically nuanced than the knee-jerk of "an angry God" crowd. As usual, read the whole thing here.

Update: I just came across another set of worthy articles regarding Katrina and the sovereignty of God. They are two articles in a short series written by Mark D. Roberts:

The title of the study is "In the Aftermath of Hurricane Katrina." Parts 7 and 8 are the two articles that caught my attention, but all eight are worthy of consideration. [Part 8 also contain "before and after" photos of three churches, two of which are episcopal.]

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Lectionary for Sunday, September 11, 2005

The Lessons for Sunday, September 11, 2005
Seventeenth Sunday after Pentecose (Proper 19)

The Collect:

O God, because without you we are not able to please you mercifully grant that your Holy Spirit may in all things direct and rule our hearts; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.

The Old Testament Lesson:

Ecclesiasticus 27:30-28:7

The Psalm:

Psalm 103, Benedic, anima mea, BCP version here

The New Testament Lesson:

Romans 14:5-12

The Gospel Lesson:

Matthew 18:21-35

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