Proper 15/Pentecost 13/Ordinary Time 20
Preaching
Hear My Voice
Preaching The Lectionary Psalms for Cycles A, B, C
Object:
(See Advent 4, Cycle A, and Advent 1, Cycle B, for alternative approaches.)
The focus of this psalm is a recurring refrain found in three different verses. The refrain is a petition in which the worshiping community calls upon God to "let your face shine" (vv. 3, 7, 19). The phrase is a Hebrew idiom that means something like, "to be present with someone with good results." Offering the expression in the form of a blessing, "May God's face shine upon you," has the force of a wish or a hope for someone's well-being and prosperity. But that is not the force of the prayer in this psalm. Psalm 80 is a community lament. In this prayer, we encounter people in pain. Their call for God's face to shine upon them carries a poignant and slightly understated "Again -- let your face shine, again." This part of the plea is found in the recurring call for God to "restore."
This is a difficult tone for modern Americans to incorporate into our worship services. It is rare, if ever, that a service of worship would include recognition, even a tacit recognition, that the community is in the throes of the absence of God.
We may want to take issue with the tendency in the psalm to equate suffering with God's absence, and prosperity with God's presence. But we cannot deny in our own experience the feelings of abandonment and alienation that are often the result of tragedy or displacement in our world. It matters little whether or not God is "truly" absent, if we cannot -- because of our pain -- experience "God's face shining upon us."
The psalmist here is not interested in entering into a discussion about theodicy. As the worship leader, he is only interested in connecting the worshiping community with the source of their hope and life. To do that, he leads them in a fervent prayer that God might again bless the people with God's presence.
We may be tempted to see the use of repetition of words and phrases as examples of a cultural literary device, and certainly there is something to that. But at a deeper level, as we ponder the anguish of a community desperate to know again the presence of God through the recurring phrase, "let your face shine" and the word "restore," we also see an illustration of persistence.
The psalmist uses the image of a vine: transported out of Egypt and transplanted in a new land. But the vine has come under siege, and, either by pain or neglect or personal failure, the vine is languishing. We are naive to expect that our way back to health and vitality (back to God's presence) will be an easy one. Only through persistent and disciplined care can we once again experience God's attention. The psalmist would have us pursue and plead with God relentlessly for the restoration of our hope. Every worship hour, every moment in prayer must be directed toward urging God to "turn again," and have regard for the community (v. 14). To do any less might suggest a lack of adequate desire.
-- J. E.
The focus of this psalm is a recurring refrain found in three different verses. The refrain is a petition in which the worshiping community calls upon God to "let your face shine" (vv. 3, 7, 19). The phrase is a Hebrew idiom that means something like, "to be present with someone with good results." Offering the expression in the form of a blessing, "May God's face shine upon you," has the force of a wish or a hope for someone's well-being and prosperity. But that is not the force of the prayer in this psalm. Psalm 80 is a community lament. In this prayer, we encounter people in pain. Their call for God's face to shine upon them carries a poignant and slightly understated "Again -- let your face shine, again." This part of the plea is found in the recurring call for God to "restore."
This is a difficult tone for modern Americans to incorporate into our worship services. It is rare, if ever, that a service of worship would include recognition, even a tacit recognition, that the community is in the throes of the absence of God.
We may want to take issue with the tendency in the psalm to equate suffering with God's absence, and prosperity with God's presence. But we cannot deny in our own experience the feelings of abandonment and alienation that are often the result of tragedy or displacement in our world. It matters little whether or not God is "truly" absent, if we cannot -- because of our pain -- experience "God's face shining upon us."
The psalmist here is not interested in entering into a discussion about theodicy. As the worship leader, he is only interested in connecting the worshiping community with the source of their hope and life. To do that, he leads them in a fervent prayer that God might again bless the people with God's presence.
We may be tempted to see the use of repetition of words and phrases as examples of a cultural literary device, and certainly there is something to that. But at a deeper level, as we ponder the anguish of a community desperate to know again the presence of God through the recurring phrase, "let your face shine" and the word "restore," we also see an illustration of persistence.
The psalmist uses the image of a vine: transported out of Egypt and transplanted in a new land. But the vine has come under siege, and, either by pain or neglect or personal failure, the vine is languishing. We are naive to expect that our way back to health and vitality (back to God's presence) will be an easy one. Only through persistent and disciplined care can we once again experience God's attention. The psalmist would have us pursue and plead with God relentlessly for the restoration of our hope. Every worship hour, every moment in prayer must be directed toward urging God to "turn again," and have regard for the community (v. 14). To do any less might suggest a lack of adequate desire.
-- J. E.
