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Preface

This book brings together my reflections based on the weekly biblical readings in the official lectionary now in use in the Church of England. The pieces first appeared in the Church Times; the encouraging response to them suggested that they should be made available in a more permanent form.

The lectionary offers a three-year cycle of readings, set out in The Christian Year (Church House Publishing, 1997). This volume of reflections covers Years A, B and C. No attempt has been made to cover the readings for the various Saints’ Days that may from time to time fall on a Sunday. Every possible regular Sunday, however, has been covered, including the extra ‘Propers’ provided after Epiphany when Easter is late and after Trinity when Easter is early. I have used the ‘continuous’ set of readings for the Sundays in Ordinary Time after Trinity, rather than the ‘related’ set in each case.

Where the official lectionary suggests a ‘passage’ consisting of clumps of verses selected out of a longer paragraph or chapter, I have sometimes simply listed, and commented on, the entire passage. I am well aware that it is often impossible to read as much Scripture during the course of a well-ordered liturgy as the integrity of the text might seem to require. But it is important that the serious reader, let alone the preacher, be aware of the whole from which the parts are taken, and interpret those parts in the light of that whole.

I assume that the reader will have the biblical texts to hand, preferably in more than one good modern translation. These pieces are not, of course, a full commentary on the passages. They are personal reflections designed to stimulate fresh thought. If they prompt the reader to his or her own exploration, understanding and love of the text, and of the God of whom it speaks, my purpose will have been more than accomplished.

My thanks are due to Paul Handley, Editor of the Church Times, and to the editorial assistant Yolande Clarke, for the invitation to write these reflections in the first place and for the patient encouragement which has kept me to the task. I am grateful, too, to SPCK for accepting the project, and to Joanna Moriarty and Mary Matthews who have helped bring it to completion.

Tom Wright