Saint Agnes, Lamb of God

Lectionary: 312

R. I have found David, my servant.
...with my holy oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my arm may make him strong.”
R. I have found David, my servant.


The study of the Bible, our constant return to it, our hearing it in our daily and weekly liturgies, and our frequent references to it in conversation shape our imagination and our understanding of who we are. 

We are "People of the Book." We are people with roots and memories of ancient, even prehistoric, times. When we think of great men and women we skip right past Babe Ruth and Roger Maris, George Washington and Napoleon, into early times of Abraham, Moses and David, Sarah, Mariam, Bathsheba. We remember like yesterday the stories of Jesus, Mary, Joseph, Peter, Paul, John the Baptist; and we cannot ignore the presence of saints and martyrs from Stephen to Agnes to Edith Stein and Theresa of Calcutta. 

Our scriptures today take us back to an incident in Bethlehem when the old man Samuel anointed the shepherd boy David -- the youngest and least impressive of Jesse's son -- as the king of Israel. It was, at the time, a most strange gesture. Saul was already the king with sufficient power to hold his authority and squelch any challengers. If he had the divine anointing from the last judge, Samuel, he also had the loyalty of his warriors and the gratitude of the people. They were singing his praises and wearing the spoil he had captured. 

But God had rejected Saul and transferred his favor to David. The obedient Samuel secretly carried out his mission and anointed the boy, then laid low to watch how events might transpire. Sometimes that's all the religious authorities can do: we declare this practice or that attitude immoral and wait to see what comes next. We have no authority to punish and would prefer not to have it. 

Over a century ago, in the United States, the Catholic Church awkwardly denounced divorce. For a while we excommunicated divorcees, men and women. When that didn't stop the rising tide the bishops lifted the excommunication and simply refused to honor the ensuing marriages (often multiple) of divorced persons. They could not foresee wide-spread abortion, birth control, gay marriage and gender confusion as the punishment for divorce but they knew it was a curse upon the land. 

With our ancient memory we understand such things. We remember the fidelity of God and his stern discipline. His tender mercy forgives sin but cannot condone it. Saul broke with the Lord and his way of holiness. He was behaving like any other king and his warriors were as savage as those of other nations. 

So God announced to Samuel and Jesse and the world, 

R. I have found David, my servant.

...with my holy oil I have anointed him,
That my hand may be always with him,
and that my arm may make him strong.”

R. I have found David, my servant.