We know God’s goodness by God’s generosity-everything we have comes from God. Today’s passage begins with two key thoughts, one having to do with God, the other with human nature. It’s likely, given the overall tone and concerns of the text, that it was written in a relatively poor Christian community, for the text is concerned throughout with issues of wealth and poverty. Even the author is unknown, the title attributes it to James, clearly an apostolic reference, and it’s clear that the author identifies Jesus as Lord, and awaits his return. It’s generic, there’s very little in it that would characterize it as Christian. As we will see over the next few weeks, it is a collection of ethical advice, using imagery from biblical as well as Hellenistic sources. While it has the form of a letter, it is not an an actual piece of correspondence. While it’s called a “letter” scholars actually debate what genre it is. The letter of James is something of an anomaly among the writings of the New Testament. It has also been interpreted both in the Jewish and Christian traditions, as an allegory of God’s love, in Judaism’s case, God’s love for the Jewish people, in the Christian case, as Christ’s love for the church, or Christ’s love for the individual soul. In fact, it is erotic poetry filled with sensual imagery, as two lovers speak to and about one another.
![god takes care of the widows and orphans god takes care of the widows and orphans](https://cccfellowship.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Icon-Widow-Orphan-Care-purple-1.jpg)
The Song of Solomon, as the title suggests, is associated with King Solomon, and is included as an example of the writings associated or attributed to him.
![god takes care of the widows and orphans god takes care of the widows and orphans](https://thewayhomeafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Bible-Verse-ps.png)
Undoubtedly, it is there because we have been hearing the story of the Israelite monarchy, the rise of David and Solomon. What’s especially disorienting for those of you who have been paying attention to the lectionary readings this summer is the sudden appearance of the Song of Solomon. And the gospel brings us back to the Gospel of Mark after a five week detour into John’s gospel. The second lesson comes from the letter of James, which we will read for the next four Sundays as well. In the case of the first reading, from the Hebrew Bible, we read from the Song of Solomon, the only time we read this text in the three-year lectionary cycle. For all of us today, we will be hearing from new biblical texts. In the 10:00 service, we will be changing Eucharistic prayers, not changing for the sake of change, but in order for us to hear familiar words in a slightly different way, to reflect on what they might mean. But I hope all of you find today’s worship somewhat disorienting. Our worship is so familiar that we may not even notice if there is change. Over time, if they have the stamina, the courage, the obstinacy to persist, they too will come to find our worship familiar and comfortable, and before long, they might even complain if something is different. They certainly find our building disorienting. They often find our worship disorienting. Everything to them is unfamiliar, unknown. They may have no idea what is going on, whether to kneel or stand, which book to use, what’s coming next. Visitors or newcomers have a very different experience. We sit in the same pews, we greet the same people. We sing from the same hymnal, and usually hymns that we have sung often before.
![god takes care of the widows and orphans god takes care of the widows and orphans](https://imageproxy.youversionapi.com/320x320/https://s3.amazonaws.com/static-youversionapi-com/images/base/69827/1280x1280.jpg)
We repeat our liturgy week after week, with relatively little variation. When Episcopalians gather to worship on Sundays, we expect the familiar.