This blog provides a meditation on the Episcopal daily readings along with a headline from world news:

CAMERON ASSERTS UK IDENTITY 
Zechariah 1:7-17

7 On the twenty-fourth day of the eleventh month, the month of Shebat, in the second year of Darius, the word of the Lord came to the prophet Zechariah son of Berechiah son of Iddo; and Zechariah said, 8In the night I saw a man riding on a red horse! He was standing among the myrtle trees in the glen; and behind him were red, sorrel, and white horses. 9Then I said, ‘What are these, my lord?’ The angel who talked with me said to me, ‘I will show you what they are.’ 10So the man who was standing among the myrtle trees answered, ‘They are those whom the Lord has sent to patrol the earth.’ 11Then they spoke to the angel of the Lord who was standing among the myrtle trees, ‘We have patrolled the earth, and lo, the whole earth remains at peace.’ 12Then the angel of the Lord said, ‘O Lord of hosts, how long will you withhold mercy from Jerusalem and the cities of Judah, with which you have been angry these seventy years?’ 13Then the Lord replied with gracious and comforting words to the angel who talked with me. 14So the angel who talked with me said to me, Proclaim this message: Thus says the Lord of hosts; I am very jealous for Jerusalem and for Zion. 15And I am extremely angry with the nations that are at ease; for while I was only a little angry, they made the disaster worse. 16Therefore, thus says the Lord, I have returned to Jerusalem with compassion; my house shall be built in it, says the Lord of hosts, and the measuring line shall be stretched out over Jerusalem. 17Proclaim further: Thus says the Lord of hosts: My cities shall again overflow with prosperity; the Lord will again comfort Zion and again choose Jerusalem.

the horses of intelligence

The words of the prophet Zechariah reflect the condition of Israel when the exiles returned from Babylon around the end of the 6^th century BCE, but the date of the composition and editing of the words may be much later. The most immediately impressive feature of this passage is the vision of God’s inspectors who quarter the world to bring intelligence to God. In this instance they bring what sounds like good news: the earth remains at peace. There are not many times in history when they could have truthfully brought this intelligence. Peace is good but Judah is still suffering poverty and the results of ruin. God promises mercy to Judah and anger towards the powerful nations who have carved themselves out an advantageous peace. The prophecy suggests that the world’s peace may be disrupted in order to give justice to Judah.

The prophet values a time of settled peace in his world but he also knows that no peace is altogether just. His own nation has suffered disaster and remains under the thumb of others. God ordains that an unjust peace will not be sustained. The breadth and subtlety of this prophecy is impressive. The Soviet Union’s power compelled a blessed peace in Yugoslavia. As it was an unjust peace it didn’t last but the consequences were such that many who had railed against the injustice longed for its return.

Matthew 24:15-31

15 ‘So when you see the desolating sacrilege standing in the holy place, as was spoken of by the prophet Daniel (let the reader understand), 16then those in Judea must flee to the mountains; 17someone on the housetop must not go down to take what is in the house; 18someone in the field must not turn back to get a coat. 19Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing infants in those days! 20Pray that your flight may not be in winter or on a sabbath. 21For at that time there will be great suffering, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, and never will be. 22And if those days had not been cut short, no one would be saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short. 23Then if anyone says to you, “Look! Here is the Messiah!” or “There he is!”—do not believe it. 24For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and produce great signs and omens, to lead astray, if possible, even the elect. 25Take note, I have told you beforehand. 26So, if they say to you, “Look! He is in the wilderness”, do not go out. If they say, “Look! He is in the inner rooms”, do not believe it. 27For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. 28Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.

29 ‘Immediately after the suffering of those days

the sun will be darkened,

and the moon will not give its light;

the stars will fall from heaven,

and the powers of heaven will be shaken.

30Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see “the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven” with power and great glory. 31And he will send out his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.

national boundaries not visible from space

This prophecy of Jesus is understood by Matthew, and perhaps subtly altered for this reason, to predict the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 CE and event which was as catastrophic for Jewish Christians as for orthodox Jews. The first part focuses on the severity of the suffering; the second on a kind of messianic hysteria amongst shocked and displaced people who see Messiahs everywhere; and the third on the coming of the Son of Man. This phrase from Daniel 7:13-14 refers to the rule of God’s saints on earth. The dramatic cosmic imagery is simply the celestial counterpart to a dramatic change of power on earth-in this case the destruction of Israel. Now the Christian missionaries will “gather the elect” from all over the world. The mission of the disciples to gather a multinational community is presented as the culmination of God’s purposes.

This is a very bold response for a tiny Jewish sect to make to the death of their national identity. They leave one identity behind in order to find a new one which welcomes rather than excludes the people of other nations. Doubtless they were prepared for this venture by the prophetic words of Jesus.

We might compare Roman Imperialism to the destructive global capitalism which exercises control over all nations today. As it threatens our culture and national identity we are tempted to adopt nationalist or sectarian identities. The Christian Church should respond by continuing to build peaceful communities across political boundaries which bear witness to the possibility of peace and justice.