I am an emeritus professor from Cornell University and was a Commissioned Lay Preacher in the Presbyterian Church (USA). For many years I have followed the Daily Lectionary as printed in the Mission Yearbook of my church. For each day of a two-year cycle, the lectionary lists four psalms and three other scriptural passages--usually one from the Old Testament and two from the New Testament. My practice is to copy down a verse or two from one of the psalms and from each of the other three passages. After I have written out all four selections, I reflect upon them, rearrange their order, and incorporate them into a meditation. Sometimes I retain much of the original wording; sometimes all that remains of a selection is an idea that was stimulated when I read the original words. All selections are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible. For the Daily Lectionary, see the link below.

A Prayer for the Oppressed--March 12, 2016


Merciful God, you have heard the cries
of the victims of oppression;
you know the misery that comes to them
on account of their taskmasters.
Pray have pity on them and help them;
defend their cause; deliver them
from all deceitful and unjust powers.
They have had to bear suffering,
endure poverty and hunger and shame;
may we strive to give them hope
and reason to believe in the power of love.

Lectionary Readings
Ps. 43; 149; 31; 143
Exod. 2:23-3:15
1 Cor. 13:1-13
Mark 9:14-29

Selected Verses
Ps. 43:1
Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause
          against an ungodly people;
from those who are deceitful and unjust
          deliver me! 

Exod. 3:7
Then the LORD said [to Moses], "I have observed the misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings…"

1 Cor. 13:7
[Love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Mark 9:22
"…[The unclean spirit] has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you are able to do anything, have pity on us and help us."  [The boy's father to Jesus]

No comments:

Post a Comment