This blog provides a meditation on the Episcopal daily readings along with a headline from world news:
Black community prostest shooting of teenager by neighbourhood watchman 
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
On the other hand the bible notes the capacity of ordinary men and women to stand firm against injustice. The “midwives who feared God” more than they feared Pharaoh are the first of many heroines in the bible. They honour their profession by their reverence for the creator God who values all his children; and they use their professional knowledge to bamboozle Pharaoh as to why his orders have not been carried out. Their opposition gives the lie to all who have excused their actions by saying that they were commanded by authority. Above all earthly authority is the authority of God. The names of Shiprah and Puah are preserved because they testified to this truth by their actions.
Mark 8:27-9:1
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Peter’s Confession of Christ
27 Jesus went out, along with His disciples, to the villages of Caesarea Philippi; and on the way He questioned His disciples, saying to them, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 They told Him, saying, “John the Baptist; and others say Elijah; but others, one of the prophets.” 29 And He continued by questioning them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered and said to Him, “You are the Christ.” 30AndHewarned them to tell no one about Him.31 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again. 32 And He was stating the matter plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. 33 But turning around and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and *said, “Get behind Me, Satan; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.”
34 And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. 35 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it. 36 For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? 37 For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? 38 Forwhoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation,the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when Hecomes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.”
Mark 9
The Transfiguration
1 And Jesus was saying to them, “Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God after it has come with power.”
Peter is simultaneously right and wrong. Right-because he sees in this carpenter from Galilee, in his teachings and healings amongst the countryside poor, the promised Messiah of his people. Wrong-because he imagines that the Messiah’s worldly power will grow from such humble beginnings and he’s devastated to be told that it will in fact be dissipated in failure, defat and death. Jesus deals harshly with Peter because he’s already had to deal harshly with himself as he came to accept the suffering which lay ahead.
This issue divides Christianity from Islam. The prophet Mohammed (peace upon him) was a good and holy man who stood for right and justice. But he would have taken Peter’s side in this argument. How can here be justice on earth if just people do not stand up forcefully against injustice? How can people be protected from the great killers of the earth, if not by the right use of force? What good is a crucified Messiah to the thousands of victims of imperial power? Many who have taken the Christian view have done so because they or their nation is in power and it’s convenient to ask the poor and the dispossessed to take the way of the cross. Jesus believed that God’s rule in the world would come only by patient, forceful, suffering witness to His justice and His love. The sincerity of his followers belief in the cross must be seen in their passionately peaceful pursuit of justice rather than in their passive acceptance of injustice.