G.K. Chesterton
Born in 1874, Gilbert Keith Chesterton was one the intellectual giants of his day, and was known for his writing that spanned fields as diverse as literary criticism, fiction and fantasy, satire, and Christian apologetics. Chesterton often blended elements of such genres together, as indicated in his famous novel The Man Who Was Thursday, which combines a mystery plot with Christian imagery and symbolism. As a young man, Chesterton had been fascinated with spiritualism and the occult, but his faith grew stronger over the years, as he devoted himself to the defense of what he called “orthodoxy,” which was for him, among other things, an acknowledgement of the mystery and paradox of Christian faith in an age of increasing skepticism. His spiritual journey toward the ancient faith of the Church culminated in his conversion to the Roman Catholic Church in 1922. In works such as Orthodoxy and The Everlasting Man, Chesterton defended Christian faith with a unique blend of wit and religious fervor, while simultaneously satirizing the prevailing viewpoints of the day that often sought to dismiss faith as irrational and unnecessary. He died on this day in 1936. HWHM
Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/82bxbpwa
Like the deer that yearns for running streams,
so my soul is yearning for you, my God;
my soul is thirsting for God, the living God. Psalm 42
Almighty God,
to whom all hearts are open,
all desires, known,
and from whom no secrets are hid:
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts
by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit,
that we may perfectly love you
and worthily magnify your holy name;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Music: https://tinyurl.com/ycn4djk5
O Lord, open my lips.
And my mouth will declare your praise.
Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
make haste to help me, O Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Praise to you, O Christ, Alleluia!
HYMN: G.K. Chesterton
Tune: King’s Lynn https://tinyurl.com/td3uc5j4
1 O God of earth and altar,
bow down and hear our cry,
our earthly rulers falter,
our people drift and die;
the walls of gold entomb us,
the swords of scorn divide,
take not thy thunder from us,
but take away our pride.
2 From all that terror teaches,
from lies of tongue and pen,
from all the easy speeches
that comfort cruel men,
from sale and profanation
of honour and the sword,
from sleep and from damnation,
deliver us, good Lord!
3 Tie in a living tether
the prince and priest and thrall,
bind all our lives together,
smite us and save us all;
in ire and exultation
aflame with faith, and free,
lift up a living nation,
a single sword to thee.
PSALMS
Psalm 73 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/vztsodf)
1 Truly God is loving unto Israel *
even unto such as are of a clean heart.
2 Nevertheless, my feet were almost gone *
my treadings had well-nigh slipt.
3 And why? I was grieved at the wicked *
I do also see the ungodly in such prosperity.
4 For they are in no peril of death *
but are lusty and strong.
5 They come in no misfortune like other folk *
neither are they plagued like other men.
6 And this is the cause that they are so holden with pride *
and overwhelmed with cruelty.
7 Their eyes swell with fatness *
and they do even what they lust.
8 They corrupt other, and speak of wicked blasphemy *
their talking is against the most High.
9 For they stretch forth their mouth unto the heaven *
and their tongue goeth through the world.
10 Therefore fall the people unto them *
and thereout suck they no small advantage.
11 Tush, say they, how should God perceive it *
is there knowledge in the most High?
12 Lo, these are the ungodly, these prosper in the world,
and these have riches in possession *
and I said, Then have I cleansed my heart in vain,
and washed mine hands in innocency.
13 All the day long have I been punished *
and chastened every morning.
14 Yea, and I had almost said even as they *
but lo, then I should have condemned the generation of thy children.
15 Then thought I to understand this *
but it was too hard for me,
16 Until I went into the sanctuary of God *
then understood I the end of these men;
17 Namely, how thou dost set them in slippery places *
and castest them down, and destroyest them.
18 O how suddenly do they consume *
perish, and come to a fearful end!
19 Yea, even like as a dream when one awaketh *
so shalt thou make their image to vanish out of the city.
20 Thus my heart was grieved *
and it went even through my reins.
21 So foolish was I, and ignorant *
even as it were a beast before thee.
22 Nevertheless, I am alway by thee *
for thou hast holden me by my right hand.
23 Thou shalt guide me with thy counsel *
and after that receive me with glory.
24 Whom have I in heaven but thee *
and there is none upon earth that I desire in comparison of thee.
25 My flesh and my heart faileth *
but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
26 For lo, they that forsake thee shall perish *
thou hast destroyed all them that commit fornication against thee.
27 But it is good for me to hold me fast by God, to put my trust in the Lord God *
and to speak of all thy works in the gates of the daughter of Sion.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 73 (Karl Kohlhase: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-73-KH.mp3)
Surely God is good to Israel,
to those who are pure in heart!
But my feet came near to stumbling;
my steps had almost slipped.
I was envious of the arrogant,
when I saw the wicked prosper
In their death there are no pains,
and their bellies all are full.
They’re not burdened like the people,
nor struck like common men.
So pride becomes their necklace,
and violence is their garment.
Their eye is set on fatness,
and the fantasies of their heart.
They mock and threaten with cruelty;
and they speak as if on high.
But whom have I in heaven but you?
On earth I long for nothing else but you.
Though my heart and flesh may fail,
God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.
They set their mouth in heaven,
their tongue parades on the earth.
So the people keep returning to drink their waters in full.
They are saying, “What does God know?
Is knowledge with the Most High?”
Behold, these are the wicked,
at ease and gaining wealth.
In vain I kept my heart pure,
in innocence washed my hands;
I’m stricken all day long
and chastened every morning.
If I said, “I’ll speak in this way,”
I’d betray your generations.
When I pondered to understand this,
it was troublesome in my sight
But whom have I in heaven but you?
On earth I long for nothing else but you.
Though my heart and flesh may fail,
God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.
When I came into God’s sanctuary;
then I perceived their end.
you set them in smooth places,
then cast them down to slavery.
In a moment they are destroyed,
swept away by sudden terror!
Like a dream when awakened, Lord,
when aroused despise their form.
When my heart was thus embittered
I inwardly was pierced,
I was ignorant and senseless,
before you like a beast.
Yet I am always with you;
take hold of my right hand.
you will guide me with your counsel,
then will take me into glory.
For whom have I in heaven but you?
On earth I long for nothing else but you.
Though my heart and flesh may fail,
God is the rock of my heart and my portion forever.
See, how the distant perish,
the unfaithful are destroyed;
but the nearness of God is my good
The Lord GOD is my refuge,
so I will tell of your works.
Psalm 74 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/r9v5c9y)
1 O God, wherefore art thou absent from us so long *
why is thy wrath so hot against the sheep of thy pasture?
2 O think upon thy congregation *
whom thou hast purchased, and redeemed of old.
3 Think upon the tribe of thine inheritance *
and mount Sion, wherein thou hast dwelt.
4 Lift up thy feet, that thou mayest utterly destroy every enemy *
which hath done evil in thy sanctuary.
5 Thine adversaries roar in the midst of thy congregations *
and set up their banners for tokens.
6 He that hewed timber afore out of the thick trees *
was known to bring it to an excellent work.
7 But now they break down all the carved work thereof *
with axes and hammers.
8 They have set fire upon thy holy places *
and have defiled the dwelling-place of thy Name, even unto the ground.
9 Yea, they said in their hearts, Let us make havock of them altogether *
thus have they burnt up all the houses of God in the land.
10 We see not our tokens, there is not one prophet more *
no, not one is there among us, that understandeth any more.
11 O God, how long shall the adversary do this dishonour *
how long shall the enemy blaspheme thy Name, for ever?
12 Why withdrawest thou thy hand *
why pluckest thou not thy right hand out of thy bosom
to consume the enemy?
13 For God is my King of old *
the help that is done upon earth he doeth it himself.
14 Thou didst divide the sea through thy power *
thou brakest the heads of the dragons in the waters.
15 Thou smotest the heads of Leviathan in pieces *
and gavest him to be meat for the people in the wilderness.
16 Thou broughtest out fountains and waters out of the hard rocks *
thou driedst up mighty waters.
17 The day is thine, and the night is thine *
thou hast prepared the light and the sun.
18 Thou hast set all the borders of the earth *
thou hast made summer and winter.
19 Remember this, O Lord, how the enemy hath rebuked *
and how the foolish people hath blasphemed thy Name.
20 O deliver not the soul of thy turtle-dove unto the multitude of the enemies *
and forget not the congregation of the poor for ever.
21 Look upon the covenant *
for all the earth is full of darkness, and cruel habitations.
22 O let not the simple go away ashamed *
but let the poor and needy give praise unto thy Name.
23 Arise, O God, maintain thine own cause *
remember how the foolish man blasphemeth thee daily.
24 Forget not the voice of thine enemies *
the presumption of them that hate thee increaseth ever more and more.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 74 (Karl Kohlhase: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-74-KH.mp3)
O God, have you rejected us forever?
Will your anger burn against the sheep you pasture?
Remember your assembly, which of old you pledged,
you redeemed to be the tribe of your inheritance;
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
And toward these everlasting ruins now turn your feet;
the foe has broken down the sanctuary.
your adversaries roared within your meeting place;
They set up their own signs and banners of disgrace.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
See how an axe was lifted in a glade of trees.
Their hatchets and their hammers smash its artistry.
Unto the ground how they have burned your Holy Place;
Defiled the habitation of your glorious name.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
They said in their heart, “Let us utterly subdue.”
They burned all God’s meeting places down.
We do not see our signs; there’s no prophet anymore,
not even one among us knows how long.
How long, O God, how long, will the enemy revile,
Will the foe forever ridicule your name?
Why now withdraw your hand, even your right hand?
From within your bosom, strike them down!
Yet God has been my king since when it all began,
performing all His saving works throughout the land.
For by your strength the great sea was divided;
and there within the waters broke the dragon’s heads.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
In this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
Yes, of Leviathan you trampled on his heads;
gave him as food for people in the wilderness.
you opened up for them the fountains and the springs;
you shriveled up the strong and ever-flowing streams.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
Yours is the day, yours also is the night time;
you prepare the moonlight and the sunshine.
You have set the boundaries of all the earth;
both the summer and the winter you bring forth.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
Remember this, O LORD, how the enemy reviled,
and how your name the foolish ones despised.
Deliver not the soul of your dove to wild beasts;
and do not long forget your poor ones’ lives.
Look towards the covenant, for the darkness of the land
is full of habitations for the mean.
O let not the oppressed all turn back and be ashamed;
and let the poor and needy praise your name.
Arise, O God, and plead for your own righteous case;
remember how the foolish have reproached all day.
Do not forget the voice of all your enemies,
the noise of their revolt ascends continually.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
For this Mount Zion, where you have dwelt.
PRAYER
God our strength,
you give honor to the pure in heart
and uphold all who trust in you.
Deliver us from chasing after this world’s illusions
that we may follow instead
the imperishable truth of your Word
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. BCW
THE WORD OF GOD
Reading: 1 Kings 19:1-9a
Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah, saying, ‘So may the gods do to me, and more also, if I do not make your life like the life of one of them by this time tomorrow.’ Then he was afraid; he got up and fled for his life, and came to Beer-sheba, which belongs to Judah; he left his servant there.
But he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a solitary broom tree. He asked that he might die: ‘It is enough; now, O Lord, take away my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.’ Then he lay down under the broom tree and fell asleep. Suddenly an angel touched him and said to him, ‘Get up and eat.’ He looked, and there at his head was a cake baked on hot stones, and a jar of water. He ate and drank, and lay down again. The angel of the Lord came a second time, touched him, and said, ‘Get up and eat, otherwise the journey will be too much for you.’ He got up, and ate and drank; then he went in the strength of that food for forty days and forty nights to Horeb the mount of God. At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there.
HYMN: Fred Kaan ©
Tune: St Leonard https://tinyurl.com/2ajd7krp
When, O God, our faith is tested
and our hope is undermined,
when our love of living shrivels
and we feel bereft and drained,
Then we turn to you and cry
for your answer to our ‘why?’
With emotions taut to breaking,
hearts with hurt and havoc frayed,
reason by remorse diminished,
souls distraught as if betrayed,
God of bleakness and abyss,
why have you forsaken us?
As we question and accuse you
out of depths of being tried,
could it be, God! that in weakness
you yourself are crucified?
Are you with us in our grief?
Help us in our unbelief!
Reading: 2 Corinthians 1:12-24
Indeed, this is our boast, the testimony of our conscience: we have behaved in the world with frankness and godly sincerity, not by earthly wisdom but by the grace of God—and all the more towards you. For we write to you nothing other than what you can read and also understand; I hope you will understand until the end— as you have already understood us in part—that on the day of the Lord Jesus we are your boast even as you are our boast.
Since I was sure of this, I wanted to come to you first, so that you might have a double favour; I wanted to visit you on my way to Macedonia, and to come back to you from Macedonia and have you send me on to Judea. Was I vacillating when I wanted to do this? Do I make my plans according to ordinary human standards, ready to say ‘Yes, yes’ and ‘No, no’ at the same time? As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been ‘Yes and No.’ For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we proclaimed among you, Silvanus and Timothy and I, was not ‘Yes and No’; but in him it is always ‘Yes.’ For in him every one of God’s promises is a ‘Yes.’ For this reason it is through him that we say the ‘Amen’, to the glory of God. But it is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us, by putting his seal on us and giving us his Spirit in our hearts as a first instalment.
But I call on God as witness against me: it was to spare you that I did not come again to Corinth. I do not mean to imply that we lord it over your faith; rather, we are workers with you for your joy, because you stand firm in the faith.
HYMN: Georg Neumark; trans. Catherine Winkworth
Tune: Wer nur den lieben Gott https://tinyurl.com/y7zb8rds
1 If thou but suffer God to guide thee,
and hope in him through all your ways,
he’ll give thee strength, whate’er betide thee,
and bear thee through the evil days:
who trusts in God’s unchanging love
builds on the Rock that naught can move.
2 What can these anxious cares avail thee,
these never ceasing moans and sighs?
What can it help, if thou bewail thee
o’er each dark moment as it flies?
Our cross and trials do but press
the heavier for our bitterness.
3 Only be still, and wait his leisure
in cheerful hope, with heart content
to take whate’er thy Father’s pleasure
and all-discerning love hath sent;
nor doubt our inmost wants are known
to him who chose us for his own.
4 All are alike before the Highest;
’tis easy to our God, we know,
to raise thee up, though low thou liest,
to make the rich man poor and low;
true wonders still by him are wrought,
who setteth up and brings to naught.
5 Sing, pray, and keep his ways unswerving,
so do thine own part faithfully,
and trust his Word–though undeserving,
thou yet shalt find it true for thee;
God never yet forsook at need
the soul that trusted him indeed.
Reading: John 8:12-20
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’ Then the Pharisees said to him, ‘You are testifying on your own behalf; your testimony is not valid.’ Jesus answered, ‘Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid because I know where I have come from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. You judge by human standards; I judge no one. Yet even if I do judge, my judgement is valid; for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. In your law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is valid. I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me testifies on my behalf.’ Then they said to him, ‘Where is your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’ He spoke these words while he was teaching in the treasury of the temple, but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.
CANTICLE Isaiah 60
(Uptown Worship Band: https://tinyurl.com/yb6c8bhv)
Arise and shine, for your light has come,
and the glory of the Lord has dawned upon you.
For behold, darkness covers the land;
and deep gloom enshrouds the people.
But over you the Lord will rise,
and his glory will appear upon you.
Nations will stream to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your dawning.
Your gates will always be open;
by day or night they’ll never be closed.
They will call you the City of the Lord,
the Zion of the Holy One of Israel.
And violence will be no more,
no need for the sun or the moonlight,
the Lord will be your light,
and your God will be your glory.
Glory to the Father, the Son, and Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen.
THE PRAYERS PWC, alt.
Show us your mercy, O God;
and grant us your salvation.
Ruler of all, guide our leaders;
and teach their counsellors wisdom.
Let your bishops, priests and deacons be clothed with righteousness;
let your faithful people sing with joy.
Let your ways be known upon earth;
your saving health among all nations.
Give your people the blessing of peace;
and may all the earth be filled with your glory.
Create in us clean hearts, O God,
and renew a right spirit within us.
(Plainsong: https://tinyurl.com/ahnrtv59)ELW
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your Name,
your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread;
and forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
O God of earth and altar, you gave G. K. Chesterton a ready tongue and pen, and inspired him to use them in your service: Mercifully grant that we may be inspired to witness cheerfully to the hope that is in us; through Jesus Christ our Savior, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. HWHM
Music: https://tinyurl.com/y9efvwm5
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. 2 Cor. 13:14
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BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.
ELW The Lord’s Prayer is from Setting Five in Evangelical Lutheran Worship.
PWC PRAY WITHOUT CEASING: Morning and Evening Prayer for the Seasons of the Church Year Prepared by The Rev’d Dr Richard Geoffrey Leggett on behalf of The Liturgy Task Force of the Anglican Church of Canada, May 2016.
HWHM Holy Women, Holy Men © 2010 The Church Pension Fund.
The three main scripture readings are from the The New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised Edition, The New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, 1995 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
The traditional language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern language psalms are in the version sung by Karl Kohlhase http://www.k4communications.com/karl/index.html
Musical links are usually either to artists’ albums posted on Spotify or to recordings made available at smallchurchmusic.com. Audio stripped from YouTube videos is footnoted accordingly above.
Compilation © 2022 Stephen T. Benner. All links worked at the time they were created, but I cannot accept responsibility for their content or any damage resulting from their use. The linked content is under the control of the respective content creators and is subject to change at any time. Any copyright texts included in this compilation are provided for non-commercial purposes related to study or worship. Please contact the respective copyright holders for permission to use the texts in other contexts.
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