Commemoration of Ruth

Today, July 16th, is a day set aside to commemorate Ruth of Moab, the subject the Biblical book that bears her name. By doing so, we praise God for His mercy and favor shown to Ruth, and through Ruth (as an ancestor of our Lord Jesus Christ) to us. SDG.

Ruth of Moab ... is an inspiring example of God's grace. Although she was a Gentile, God made her the great grandmother of King David (Ruth 4:17), and an ancestress of Jesus himself (Matthew 1:5). A famine in Israel led Elimelech and Naomi of Bethlehem to emigrate to the neighboring nation of Moab with their two sons. The sons marriend Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth, but after about ten years, Elimelech and his sons died (Ruth 1:1–5). Naomi then decided to return to Bethlehem and urged her daughters-in-law to return to their families. Orpah listened to Naomi's but Ruth refused, replying with the stirring words: “Where you go I will go, and where you lodge I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God my God” (Ruth 1:16). After Ruth arrived in Bethlehem, Boaz, a close relative of Elimelech, agreed to be Ruth's “redeemer” (Ruth 3:7–13; 4:9–12). He took her as his wife, and Ruth gave birth to Obed, the grandfather of David (Ruth 4:13–17), thus preserving the Messianic seed. Ruth's kindness and selfless loyalty toward Naomi, and her faith in Naomi's God, have long endeared her to the faithful and redounded to God's praise for his merciful choice of one so unexpected.

  Source: LCMS biographies 

For a prayer today, I commend to you verses 1, 3, 7, and 4 of "For All the Faithful Women" (LSB 855). To God our heavenly Father, in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ we pray:

1 For all the faithful women
    Who served in days of old,
To You shall thanks be given;
    To all, their story told.
They served with strength and gladness
    In tasks Your wisdom gave.
To You their lives bore witness,
    Proclaimed Your pow'r to save.

7 For Ruth, who left her homeland
    And ventured forth in faith,
Who pledged to serve and worship
    Naomi's God till death,
We praise You, God of Israel,
    And pray for hearts set free
To bind ourselves to others
    In love and loyalty.

3 O God, for saints and servants,
    Those named and those unknown
In whom through all the ages
    Your light of glory shone,
We offer glad thanksgiving
    And fervent prayer we raise
That, faithful in Your service,
    Our lives may sing Your praise.

4 All praise to God the Father!
    All praise to Christ the Son!
All praise the Holy Spirit,
    Who binds the Church in one!
With saints who went before us,
    With saints who witness still,
We sing glad Alleluias
    And strive to do Your will. Amen.

Commemoration of St. Irenaeus of Lyons, pastor

Today, June 28th, is the day in the church calendar which celebrates Irenaeus of Lyon, an early church father (c. A+D 130 - 202) who battled the Gnostics.

In terms of background, it is believed that Irenaeus was native of Smyrna (modern Izmir, Turkey) who studied in Rome and later became pastor in Lyons, France. Around 177, while Irenaeus was away from Lyons, a fierce persecution of Christians led to the martyrdom of his bishop. Upon Irenaeus' return, he became bishop of Lyons.

Among Irenaeus' most famous writings is a work condemning heresies, especially that bewildering array of loosely-affiliated heresies called gnosticism (which is making a huge 21st century comeback, by the way). Since most gnostics taught all that matter is fundamentally flawed and evil and that our central goal in life is denying the material and embracing the spiritual only, Irenaeus in turn defended the worthiness of earthly creation and matter to be the creation of the true and only God and upheld the incarnation of Christ was a crucial event in salvation history.

Irenaeus also affirmed the teachings of the Scriptures handed down to and through him as being normative for the Church. He also defended the Chrsitian faith as "Apostolic" against the Gnostics who claimed a separate, secret Christian tradition apart from the apostles. Irenaeus insisted that it was the apostles and the Scriptures they wrote which gave true knowledge of Christ and the Father and our salvation.

Here is a small bit of his writing on that subject:

We have learned from none others the plan of our salvation, than from those through whom the Gospel has come down to us, which they did at one time proclaim in public, and, at a later period, by the will of God, handed down to us in the Scriptures, to be the ground and pillar of our faith. For it is unlawful to assert that they preached before they possessed "perfect knowledge," as some do even venture to say, boasting themselves as improvers of the apostles. For, after our Lord rose from the dead, [the apostles] were invested with power from on high when the Holy Spirit came down [upon them], were filled from all [His gifts], and had perfect knowledge: they departed to the ends of the earth, preaching the glad tidings of the good things [sent] from God to us, and proclaiming the peace of heaven to men, who indeed do all equally and individually possess the Gospel of God. Matthew also issued a written Gospel among the Hebrews in their own dialect, while Peter and Paul were preaching at Rome, and laying the foundations of the Church. After their departure, Mark, the disciple and interpreter of Peter, did also hand down to us in writing what had been preached by Peter. Luke also, the companion of Paul, recorded in a book the Gospel preached by him. Afterwards, John, the disciple of the Lord, who also had leaned upon His breast, did himself publish a Gospel during his residence at Ephesus in Asia.

These have all declared to us that there is one God, Creator of heaven and earth, announced by the law and the prophets; and one Christ the Son of God. If any one do not agree to these truths, he despises the companions of the Lord; nay more, he despises Christ Himself the Lord; yea, he despises the Father also, and stands self-condemned, resisting and opposing his own salvation, as is the case with all heretics.

                       Source: Against Heresies, Book III, Chapter 1.

Commemoration of St. Patrick, Bishop and Evangelist

Paul T. McCain on his Cyberbrethren blog has a fantastic account of St. Patrick, along with a description of why the Christian Church commemorates him as bishop and evangelist. St. Patrick was a wonderful orthodox missionary in the 4th century and his story is one that has inspired the saints of Christendom ever since. Unfortunately, today in America, his story is almost entirely unknown. St. Patrick's Day is simply a day for dressing in green (lest one be pinched) and for guzzling alcohol (often beer infused with green food coloring). I would say that America's celebration of St. Patrick has nothing at all to do with the real account of this humble, devout man of God. Read it here: Commemoration of St. Patrick, Bishop and Evangelist

Commemoration of Polycarp, Pastor and Martyr

Our churches teach that the remembrance of the saints is to be commended in order that we may imitate their faith and good works according to our calling. — Augsburg Confession 21

February 23rd is the day set aside to commemorate one of the early martyrs for the faith, Polycarp of Smyrna. Polycarp (A+D c. 70 - c. 156) was a central figure in the early church. Said to be disciple of the holy evangelist and apostle Saint John, he stands as a critical link between the first generation of believers and later Christians. His home town of Smryna (modern Izmir, Turkey) was one of the seven churches addressed in Revelation (see 2:8-11 for the details).

After serving for many years as bishop of Smyrna, Polycarp was caught up in a local persecution of Christians. An old man of 86 years, he was arrested, tried, and executed for his faith in Christ on February, 23, c. 56. An eyewitness narrative of his death, The Martyrdom of Polycarp, continues to encourage believers in times of persecution.
According to the ancient records, he was tried solely on the charge of being a Christian. When the proconsul urged him to save his life by cursing Christ, he replied: "Eighty-six years I have served Him, and He never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?" According to the customary reckoning of his birth and death, this means that he must have been baptized as an infant, raised as a Christian, and lived his entire life as in the Faith. His fidelity follows the encouragement given by the Lord to the church in Smyrna in Revelation 2: "Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life" (v.10).
The following prayer is recorded as his immediately prior to the fire being kindled for his martyrdom: Lord God Almighty, Father of Your blessed and beloved Son Jesus Christ, through whom we have received knowledge of You, God of angels and hosts and all creation, and of the whole race of the upright who live in Your presence: I bless You that You have thought me worthy of this day and hour, to be numbered among the martyrs and share in the cup of Christ, for resurrection to eternal life, for soul and body in the incorruptibility of the Holy Spirit. Among them may I be accepted before You today, as a rich and acceptable sacrifice, just as You, the faithful and true God, have prepared and foreshown and brought about. For this reason and for all things I praise You, I bless You, I glorify You, through the eternal heavenly high priest Jesus Christ, Your beloved Son, through whom be glory to You, with Him and the Holy Spirit, now and for the ages to come. Amen.
Let us pray: O God, the maker of heaven and earth, You gave boldness to confess Jesus Christ as King and Savior and steadfastness to die for the faith to Your venerable servant, the holy and gentle Polycarp. Grant us grace to follow his example in sharing the cup of Christ’s suffering so that we may also share in His glorious resurrection; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever, Amen. (Treasury of Daily Prayer:1150)

Commemoration of Valentine, Martyr

Our churches teach that the remembrance of the saints is to be commended in order that we may imitate their faith and good works according to our calling. — Augsburg Confession 21


It's always amazing to me how clueless most people are about what St. Valentine's Day is all about. Or more properly, why we would celebrate the Commemoration of St. Valentine, Martyr. Valentine's Day has nothing at all to do with flowers and cards and pink sentimentality.
So, who was Valentine? Tradition says he was a physician and a priest who was martyred on February 14, 270 A.D. Of course, there is considerable dispute about this since Valentine doesn't appear on the earliest lists of martyrs. The festival commemorating St. Valentine was first established in 496 by Pope Gelasius I, who included Valentine among those "whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose acts are known only to God."
Tradition suggests that on the day he was executde for his Christian faith, he left a note of encouragement for a child of his jailer written on an irregularly-shaped piece of paper (♥). This greeting became a pattern for millions of written expressions of love and caring that now are the highlight of Valentine’s Day in many nations.

We pray— Almighty and everlasting God, You kindled the flame of Your love in the heart of Your holy martyr Valentine. Grant to us, Your humble servants, a faith like Valentine’s and the power of love, that we who rejoice in Christ’s triumph may embody his love in our lives; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.