Congregation at Prayer

Catechesis Notes for the Week — The Week of Judica— “Vindicate…”—The Latin title for this week in Lent is “Judica” which means “judge” or better translated “vindicate me.” It is taken from the Introit for the Sunday: “Vindicate me, O God, and plead (or defend) my cause against an ungodly nation; Oh, deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!” (Psalm 43:1-2) There are times in life in which evil and deceit are perpetrated against us by wicked and deceitful people. Jesus endured all such injustices for us from those who hated His ministry of mercy. At such times, we are called to entrust ourselves to God. We identify with our Lord and draw our strength and comfort from Him who endured all manner of injustice for us. In the end, and for Jesus’ sake, He will vindicate His people and plead their case against the ungodly. In the end, God will bring forth justice for the oppressed, and right all wrongs at the last.

“Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation;

Oh, deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!

For You are the God of my strength.

Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your tabernacle.

Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God.

Why are you cast down, O my soul?

And why are you disquieted within me?

Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God.”

(Psalm 43:1-2a; Psalm 43:3-5)CP220403

Catechesis Notes for the Week — The Week of Laetare— “Rejoice…”—The Latin title for this week in Lent is “Laetare” which means “rejoice”. It is taken from the Introit for the Sunday, “Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all you who love her.” Whenever we encounter references to the city of Jerusalem within the psalter, we may safely apply the references to the Church today. So, Isaiah and David in this week’s introit are calling us to “rejoice with the church of Jesus Christ and be glad with her. We love the church because it is the place of our Lord’s saving presence. By Word and Sacrament the church is the dispenser of Christ’s saving gifts. We are glad to enter into the congregation of the faithful to receive His gifts and we pray for the Church’s peace and safety.

Rejoice with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all you who love her;

that you may feed and be satisfied with the consolation of her bosom.

I was glad when they said to me,

“Let us go into the house of the Lord.”

Our feet have been standing within your gates, O Jerusalem!

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem:

“May they prosper who love you.”

For the sake of my brethren and companions,

I will now say, “Peace be with- | in you.”

(Isaiah 66:10a, 11a; Ps. 122:1-2, 6, 8)

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — The Week of Oculi— “My Eyes Are Ever toward the Lord”—The Latin title for this week in Lent is “Oculi” which means “eyes”. It is taken from the Introit for the Sunday, “My eyes are ever toward the Lord.” During the pain, suffering, sin, and afflictions of our life—some of our own making and some through no fault of our own—faith turns to the Lord and cries out to Him for rescue, forgiveness, and peace:

My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for He shall pluck my feet out of the net.

Turn Yourself to me, and have mercy on me, for I am desolate and afflicted.

To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in You;

let me not be ashamed; let not my enemies triumph over me.

The troubles of my heart have enlarged; bring me out of my distresses!

Look on my affliction and my pain, and forgive all my sins.

Keep my soul, and deliver me; let me not be ashamed, for I put my trust in You.

(Ps. 25:15-16, 1-2, 17-18, 20)         CP220320

Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 150: A Call to Praise the Lord—Psalm 150 concludes the psalter with a call to praise the Lord—the eternal God of the promise of salvation. This praise of the Lord is rooted in His saving grace proclaimed in the Gospel of Christ and celebrated by all of creation. The song of praise begins in the church, the mouth-house of the Gospel, and extends throughout creation from the sanctuary to the mighty firmament. Every instrument is called upon to give all glory and honor to God—trumpet, lute, harp, timbrel, dance, stringed instruments, flutes, and cymbals. All the known instruments of the ancient world were employed in the service of the Lord. Finally, the psalm concludes with the simple, yet profound call to all: “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.” All living things are creatures dependent upon Him! He is both the Creator and Savior! All glory to the Lord! Praise the Lord! It is in the Lord’s praise that we find our peace and contentment, hope and optimism for the future.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 149: A Call to Worship—Psalm 149 is a call to worship. We are to praise the Lord for all His acts of salvation. We are to sing to the Lord a new song—which is the song of grace, mercy, and forgiveness in Christ. It is not the old song of works righteousness and self-justification. Every reference in the psalm to Israel and the saints can be interpreted for us today as referring to the Church and all faithful believers in Christ (the saints). We praise the Lord and sing the new song of salvation because He delights in His Church and beautifies us with His righteousness that covers all our sin. The two-edged sword is a reference to the Word of God. The Law condemns, crucifies, judges, and, therefore, calls to repentance. The Gospel proclaims the judgment of God’s righteousness, which is the honor and glory of all His saints.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 148: The Creation Praises the Lord—How does the creation praise the Lord? What is praise? Praise gives all honor and glory to God. Psalm 148 extols “the Lord”—the great “I AM” and the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as the only true God who is both the Creator of the heavens and the earth and the eternal Savior. The whole of God’s creation praises the Lord when the creation does the very things that God has given it to do and performs its work according to the Lord’s will. Psalm 148 teaches us to understand that the whole of God’s creation is in service to the Lord for His good and gracious purposes. Because of the song of praise throughout God’s creation, young men and maidens, old men and children, and every believer and faithful saint of Christ’s Church praises the name of the Lord and extols His salvation in all the earth.

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 147: The Beauty of Singing Praise to the Lord—Praise of the Lord is beautiful because true praise confesses the goodness of the Lord in all His acts under the three articles of the Creed which are understood to be performed for the benefit of His Church. Under the Third Article work of the Holy Spirit, the Lord builds up Jerusalem (the Church) and gathers together the outcasts of Israel. He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds with forgiveness and mercy. He calls to faith by His Word and blesses the children of the Church with peace and the finest wheat in the Sacrament of the Altar. Under the First Article work of the Father, the Lord covers the heavens with clouds, prepares rain for the earth, makes grass to grow, gives food to all His creatures, and gives snow, hail, and cold to replenish the earth. All of the Lord’s blessing are made possible by the redeeming work of Christ under the Second Article of the Creed. Our praise flows forth in a confession of faith in God Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Lord “does not delight in the strength of the horse; He takes no pleasure in the legs of a man. The Lord takes pleasure in those who fear Him, in those who hope in His mercy.”

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 Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 146: A Confession of Faith in the Lord—To confess the truth of who the Lord is and what He has done and continues to do for us is the source true happiness, well-being, and contentment. It is also the foundation for proper praise of the Lord which gives all glory to Him because He has done all things for us. The God who made us is also the God who saves us. Our redemption in Christ restores us to what God called us to be. The forgiveness of sins in Christ makes all things new. So the psalmist confesses this faith in a song of praise: “Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul! While I live, I will praise the Lord; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.” Politicians and princes cannot save. “Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose hope is in the Lord his God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; Who keeps truth forever.” The Lord executes justice for the oppressed in the cross of Calvary. Christ’s redeeming work then becomes the fountain and source of all blessings. “The Lord gives freedom…opens the eyes of the blind…raises those who are bowed down…loves the righteous…watches over the strangers…relieves the fatherless and widow.” For all this we “Praise the Lord!”

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 145: A Psalm of Praise for the Lord’s Sustaining Love—There is mental health and spiritual wellbeing that is the product of praise for the Lord. Proclaiming, confessing, extolling, and praising the Lord for His sustaining love in providing for every need of body and soul gives the heart of a Christian peace and contentment in the midst of the troubles of life. To say it another way, the antidote for worry, distress, and sadness over the problems of this world is the heart of faith that focuses upon everything that the Lord does for our life and salvation. Praise of the Lord gives peace and stability to our lives. “I will extol You, my God…every day I will bless You…I will meditate on the glorious splendor of Your majesty…The Lord is gracious and full of compassion…The Lord upholds all who fall…The Lord is near to all who call upon Him…The Lord preserves all who love Him…My mouth shall speak the praise of the Lord.”

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Catechesis Notes for the Week — Psalm 144: The Prayer of a Godly Ruler—Psalm 144 is the prayer of a godly king, but it also grasps the humble perspective of faith that all Christians should have in their station in life. David confesses that it is the Lord who is his Rock, who trains him for war, and establishes his kingdom. In these words, and throughout the psalm, he gives all glory to the Lord for who he is and for what he is able to do. He echoes the words of Psalm 8, but with a slight alteration, “What is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man that You are mindful of him? Man is like a breath; his days are like a passing shadow.” Compared to the Lord and His mighty acts in creation we are nothing. It is He, alone, who gives salvation. Out of these truths, David prays for the Lord to establish his kingdom and bless him with the prosperity necessary to faithfully serve his people. As a pattern for each of us, David shows us that our lives are blessed, happy, content, and at peace in so far as we draw our life and strength from the Lord alone.

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