Whately: the circle of unmeaning

Saturday, October 10, 2015
    Feast of Paulinus, Bishop of York, Missionary, 644
Meditation:
Taste and see that the LORD is good;
    blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
    —Psalm 34:8 (NIV)
Quotation:
    If [one] attaches no meaning to the words “good,” and “just,” and “right,” except that such is the divine command, then, to say that God is good, and his commands just, is only saying in a circuitous way, that He is what He is, and that what He wills He wills; which might equally be said of any Being in the universe...
    And any one would be equally involved in a vicious circle, who, while he held [this] theory, should refer to the pure and elevated moral tone of the New Testament as an internal evidence (and in reality it is a very strong one) to prove that it could not be the unaided work of ignorant, half-crazy Jewish peasants and fishermen. For, if all our moral notions are entirely derived from that book, to say that the morality of the book is correct, is merely to say that it is what it is.
    ... Richard Whately (1787-1863), Dr. Paley’s Works: A Lecture Delivered by Richard Whately, London: John W. Parker and Son, 1859, p. 27-28 (see the book)
    See also Ps. 34:8; Jer. 31:14; Matt. 7:11; Luke 1:53; Phil. 4:8; Tit. 3:4-7; 2 Thess. 1:11; Jas. 1:17; 1 John 4:7-10
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, Your truth is absolute. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Bloesch: confronting evil

Friday, October 9, 2015
    Commemoration of Denys, Bishop of Paris, & his Companions, Martyrs, 258
    Commemoration of Robert Grosseteste, Bishop of Lincoln, Philosopher, Scientist, 1253
Meditation:
You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil;
    with you the wicked cannot dwell.
The arrogant cannot stand in your presence;
    you hate all who do wrong.
    —Psalm 5:4-5 (NIV)
Quotation:
    Evil is not God’s will but that we are brought into contact with evil is his will. He uses evil to bring evil to nought. God is not the direct cause of evil, but he is the cause of the overthrow of evil. This means that in our prayer life we should not meekly submit to evil but instead boldly lay hold of the power of God to combat evil and overcome it.
    ... Donald G. Bloesch (1928-2010), The Struggle of Prayer, Harper & Row, 1980, p. 33 (see the book)
    See also Ps. 5:4; Luke 6:27-30; Rom. 12:21; 1 Pet. 3:9,17; Jas. 1:13
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, strengthen me to overcome evil. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Gossip: how like Christ

Thursday, October 8, 2015
Meditation:
    To this you were called, because Christ suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in his steps.
    —1 Peter 2:21 (NIV)
Quotation:
    I well remember Dr. [Robert] Rainy flinging out a challenge at our communion table: “Do you believe your faith? ... Do you believe a day is coming, really coming, when you will stand before the throne of God, and the angels will whisper together and say, ‘How like Christ he is!’” That is not easy to believe. And yet not to believe it is blasphemy. For that, not less than that, is what Christ promises. And what Christ promises comes true.
    ... A. J. Gossip (1873-1954), From the Edge of the Crowd, Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, 1924, p. 12 (see the book)
    See also 1 Pet. 2:21; Lev. 21:8; Matt. 20:26-28; John 13:13-17; 15:4; Rom. 8:9-11; 1 Cor. 11:1; 15:48-49; 2 Cor. 5:17,21; Eph. 4:22-24; 5:1-2; Col. 1:27; 1 John 2:6; 4:4
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, we who are weak may rely on You. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Foster: dependence upon God

Wednesday, October 7, 2015
Meditation:
For you created my inmost being;
    you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
    your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
    —Psalm 139:13-14 (NIV)
Quotation:
    We are dependent upon God for even our sense of worth as individuals. Our uniqueness and dignity are rooted in our creation in the image of God. Our value is not tied to wealth, status, accomplishments, or position. It is a gift. Obviously, this wonderful truth flies in the face of the modern technology to define people by what they produce or what they have.
    The terrible reality of the Fall was... a repudiation of our dependence upon God.
    ... Richard J. Foster, Freedom of Simplicity, HarperCollins, 1989, p. 19 (see the book)
    See also Gen. 1:26-27; 3:6-7; Ps. 139:13-14; Isa. 40:31; John 14:6; 15:5; Eph. 2:8-9
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, You have searched me and provided everything for me. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Tyndale: He is with us

Tuesday, October 6, 2015
    Feast of William Tyndale, Translator of the Scriptures, Martyr, 1536
Meditation:
The LORD is my light and my salvation—
    whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
    of whom shall I be afraid?
    —Psalm 27:1 (NIV)
Quotation:
    Christ is with us until the world’s end. Let his little flock be bold therefore. For if God be on our side, what matter maketh it who be against us
    ... William Tyndale (1492?-1536), “The Obedience of a Christen Man”, preface [1528], Doctrinal Treatises and Introductions, Cambridge: The University Press, 1848, p. 135 (see the book)
    See also Ps. 27:1; 118:6; Matt. 28:20; John 10:28-29; Rom. 8:31; 1 John 4:4
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, You are always at my side. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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de Caussade: the desire to know

Monday, October 5, 2015
Meditation:
    Now I rejoice in what was suffered for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church.
    —Colossians 1:24 (NIV)
Quotation:
    When one is thirsty one quenches one’s thirst by drinking, not by reading books which treat of this condition. The desire to know does but increase this thirst. Therefore when one thirsts after sanctity, the desire to know about it only drives it further away. Speculation must be laid aside, and everything arranged by God as regards actions and sufferings must be accepted with simplicity, for those things that happen at each moment by the divine command or permission are always the most holy, the best and the most divine for us.
    ... Jean-Pierre de Caussade (1675-1751), Abandonment to Divine Providence, I.i.4 (see the book)
    See also Col. 1:24; Gen. 50:20; Rom. 8:28; 2 Cor. 4:17; 1 Pet. 5:10
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, grant me the patience to seek Your will. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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Francis of Assisi: that I may never turn away

Sunday, October 4, 2015
    Feast of Francis of Assisi, Friar, Deacon, Founder of the Friars Minor, 1226
Meditation:
    [Jesus:] “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
    —John 10:11 (NIV)
Quotation:
    My Lord Jesus Christ, Good Shepherd, who have shown Your very gentle mercy to us unworthy sinners in various physical pains and sufferings, give grace and strength to me, Your little lamb, that in no tribulation or anguish or pain may I turn away from You!
    ... St. Francis of Assisi (1182-1226), The Little Flowers of St. Francis, Ugolino of Montegiorgio, London: J.M. Dent & Sons, Ltd., 1912, p. 35 (see the book)
    See also John 10:11-16; Ps. 23:1-4; 80:1; Isa. 40:11; Eze. 34:12; Heb. 13:20-21; 1 Pet. 2:25
Quiet time reflection:
    Lord, Your true flock follows You. CQOD    Blog    email    RSS
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