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The Sunday gospel lectionary for the Third Sunday before Advent at the end of this Year B is Mark 1.14-20, the beginning of Jesus’ active ministry in Galilee following his baptism in the Jordan and testing in the wilderness. I have to say I have found what the lectionary does with the opening chapter of Mark’s … Continue Reading
The Sunday lectionary gospel reading for the Fourth Sunday before Advent in Year B is the dialogue that includes Jesus’ summary of the law in Mark 12.28–34. As we count down the lectionary year, preparing to enter Advent with its focus on Jesus’ return, Mark is counting down the days and hours to Jesus’ trial … Continue Reading
The gospel lectionary reading for the so-called Last Sunday after Trinity (or Trinity 21) in Year B is the story of the healing of blind Bartimaeus in Mark 10.46–52. (Apologies to my regular readers for the lack of comment on the previous two weeks of readings.) This reading has an appeal at two levels. First, … Continue Reading
The Sunday gospel lectionary reading for Trinity 18 in Year B is Mark 10.2–16. I think it is impossible to preach on this passage without dealing with the question of the consequences of Jesus’ teaching for our own attitude to and the Church’s practice in relation to divorce and remarriage, and this will make it … Continue Reading
The Sunday lectionary gospel reading for Trinity 17 in Year B is Mark 9.38–50. It is a rather unusual reading; it completes the collection of sayings that we began last week, and there is some continuity across the two passages; and it does belong (as we noted last week) to a section of teachings of … Continue Reading
The Sunday gospel lectionary reading for Trinity 16 in Year B is Mark 9.30–37. In our reading of Mark, we have leap-frogged from the confession at Ceasarea Philippi, over the Transfiguration (which is considered at other times in the lectionary) and the following deliverance episode, to a short cluster of sayings, though stopping short of … Continue Reading
The reading for Trinity 15 in Year B is Mark 8.27–38, the encounter with forms the pivot in the second gospel: until now, there has been power, success, dynamism and crowds, but from now on, Jesus walks the lonely path to suffering and the cross. At the northernmost point of his ministry, Jesus turns from … Continue Reading
The gospel lectionary reading for Trinity 14 in Year B is Mark 7.24-37, which includes the episode of Jesus’ encounter with the Syrophoenician woman that often brings readers up short, containing as it does what appears to be a rather shocking insult. Jesus is seeking to withdraw from public attention, needing some time for rest … Continue Reading
The Sunday lectionary reading for Trinity 13 in Year B is Mark 7.1–8, 14–15, 21–23. We have chewed over the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6, and gathered up every last morsel of the ‘bread of life’ discourse over the last five (five!) weeks—and now our fast from Mark’s gospel is at an end! Reading … Continue Reading
We are in the fourth of five weeks in the lectionary winding our way slowly through the feeding of the 5,000 in John 6 and the following discourse, in which Jesus declares he is the bread of life, and that he will feed all who come to him. The reading for Trinity 11 in this … Continue Reading
The lectionary gospel reading for Trinity 10 in Year B is John 6.35, 41–51 which continues our exploration of the ‘Bread of Life’ discourse from last week, following on from the feeding of the 5,000. Once again, we have an odd selection of passage: we are given only 11 verses, since the intermediate verses John … Continue Reading
Ian Paul: theologian, author, speaker, academic consultant. Adjunct Professor, Fuller Theological Seminary; Associate Minister, St Nic's, Nottingham; Managing Editor, Grove Books; member of General Synod. Mac user; chocoholic. Tweets at @psephizo
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