Week of Proper 21, Year Two
[Go to Mission St Clare for an online version of the Daily Office including today’s scripture readings.]
Today’s Readings for the Daily Office:
Psalms 101, 109:1-4(5-19)20-30 (morning) // 119:121-144 (evening)
Hosea 4:11-19
Acts 21:15-26
Luke 5:27-39
Those who are seated to one’s right hold a very special position. In our language of worship, we often place Christ at God’s right hand. The Gloria petitions Christ with the words, “you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer.” The Creed proclaims that Christ “ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father.” The right hand of God is a place from which Christ can hear our prayers and hold them to God’s heart.
This affirmation finds a counterpart in one of our Psalms this morning. Not only does Christ sit at the right hand of God, but God is at the right hand of those in need. The Psalmist declares, “I will give thanks to the Lord with my mouth; in the midst of the multitude I will praise him; / Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, to save his life from those who would condemn him.”
In addition to proclaiming Christ who sits at God’s right hand and receives our prayers, we can also proclaim the God who stands at the right hand of the needy and pleads their case. We may even find God right beside us today, saving us from condemnation, and accompanying us in all our needs.
Lora Walsh blogs about the Daily Office readings at A Daily Scandal. She serves as Priest Associate of Grace Episcopal Church in Siloam Springs and assists with adult formation and campus ministry at St. Paul’s in Fayetteville, Arkansas.