Archive for November 2012

Proper for Liturgists   1 comment

Above:  The Author, November 27, 2012

Within the hour, while seeking a good proper for liturgists in official volumes from various denominations, I found no such thing.  So I wrote a prayer and selected the readings.

Holy God, whose majesty surpasses all human definitions and capacity to grasp,

thank you for those (especially N.)

who have nurtured and encouraged the reverent worship of you.

May their work inspire us to worship you in knowledge, truth, and beauty.

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

1 Chronicles 25:1-8

Psalm 145

Revelation 15:1-4

John 4:19-26

I am and am not a traditionalist regarding worship.  I am not a traditionalist in the sense of traditionalism that objects to calling God “You” instead of “Thee,” considers any new idea a bad one reflexively, or idolizes the 1928 Book of Common Prayer or some other older liturgical volume.  Yet I am sufficiently traditional to think that anyone who brings a guitar to church needs to be there to play classical guitar.  And I am enough of a traditionalist to have complete disdain for “contemporary worship,” accurate synonyms for which are inappropriate for a G-rated blog.  (Use your imagination, O reader; you might guess correctly.)  And “blended worship” bears the taint of “contemporary worship.”

Here I stand; I can and will do no other.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 27, 2012 COMMON ERA

THE FEAST OF SAINT JAMES INTERCISUS, ROMAN CATHOLIC MARTYR

THE FEAST OF HENRY SLOANE COFFIN, U.S. PRESBYTERIAN THEOLOGIAN

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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/06/17/proper-for-liturgists/

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Time and Vocations   2 comments

Above:  The Author, November 7, 2012

(Photograph by the author via the computer camera)

The weather becomes colder,

Daylight Savings Time has ended,

darkness falls before 7:00 PM,

and the year has entered its final stretch.

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Where has the year gone?

It seems to have passed so quickly,

more rapidly than winged Mercury,

with greater speed than the Road Runner,

with a dizzying pace.

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Yet here we are,

in November.

Yet here we are,

close to Thanksgiving and Christmas.

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May the rest of the year

be for all of us a time of blessings,

and may the  next year

be for all of us a time of even more blessings.

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May we all love God and each other actively,

behave charitably toward each other,

seek to understand each other,

and behave merely decently.

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May we act responsibly toward each other,

seek the common good,

upon which our own benefit depends,

and care for each other.

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May God bless others through us,

bless us through others,

and be evident in our midst,

in deeds more than in words.

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And may we be where we ought to be

when we ought to be there

doing what we ought to do

the way we ought to do it.

KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR

NOVEMBER 9, 2012 COMMON ERA

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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/06/17/time-and-vocations/

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