Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 26: A Baptismal Prayer to Renounce Evil and Live Faithfully in Christ—The ancient liturgy of Holy Baptism includes the renunciation of the devil with all his wicked works and all his wicked ways and a firm confession of faith in the Triune God. Psalm 26 is a precursor of that liturgy. Faith in Christ, to which we are all called in our Baptism, renounces all idolatry and every wicked work and scheme of the devil and of those who reject Christ. These themes are echoed in the psalm, along with the confident expression of faith in the Lord who will both uphold those who trust in Him and who daily cleanses us in the call to the repentant life that renounces all uncleanness and hypocrisy. The Lord will “vindicate” His people, showing forth to those who have rejected the Lord that He indeed preserves His own from all the sinister schemes of those who hate the Gospel. The baptized faithful not only renounce the devil and all evil, but they also delight to be in the congregation of the faithful where the Lord’s preaching and the Lord’s Supper sustains, comforts, and strengthens them against every attack upon their faith. “Lord, I have loved the habitation of Your house, and the place where Your glory dwells… My foot stands in an even place; in the congregations I will bless the Lord.”CP240721