Morning Prayer

+ In the name of the Father and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Opening sentences

Lord, open my lips and my mouth will proclaim your praise.

I arise today, through God’s strength to pilot me:
God’s might to uphold me, God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me, God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me, God’s hand to guard me,
God’s way to lie before me, God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to secure me: against snares of devils,
against temptations of vices, against inclinations of nature,
against everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and anear, alone and in a crowd.

Revelation 17:1-6 (ESV) – to be read aloud

Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk.”

And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness, and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was full of blasphemous names, and it had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and jewels and pearls, holding in her hand a golden cup full of abominations and the impurities of her sexual immorality. And on her forehead was written a name of mystery:

“Babylon the great, mother of prostitutes and of earth’s abominations.”

And I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints, the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

When I saw her, I marveled greatly.

Reflection

THE THIRD VISION (17:1-21:8)

The Prostitute and the Scarlet Beast(17:1-18)

The vision (17:1-6)

Babylon (17:1-2)

Here the harlot is Babylon, the symbol of human civilization with all its pomp and circumstance organized in opposition to God (vs. 18)…. Babylon became the personification of wickedness, and John has taken over the Old Testament symbolism and used Babylon to represent the final manifestation of the total history of godless nations. The city had a historical manifestation in first-century Rome, but the full significance of the wicked city is eschatological… seducing all the world to worship that which is not God…. She seduces the nations to share her ungodly character. They have joined in her sins against God. (Ladd, p.221-2)

The blasphemous beast (17:3)

Blasphemy in this context refers to the self-deification of the Antichrist and his demand for the worship of his subjects. His blasphemies… consist of the derogation of deity by his own claim to self-deification. (Ladd, p. 223)

The abomination of desolation (Mt 24:15)

The phrase that describes the Antichrist in our Lord’s Olivet Discourse is literally, the abomination of desolation, i.e., the abomination that brings desolation. The main thought is that with the promise of wealth and luxury, the woman entices men away from the worship of God. (Ladd, p. 224)

Mother of harlots (17:5-6)

Babylon is the “mother of harlots.” She was not satisfied herself alone to entice men away from God; she insisted that her daughters join her in her nefarious and blasphemous designs. Along with her blasphemous harlotry she gave birth to all sorts of abominations, which filled the earth. (Ladd, p..224)

As the capital of the beast, she will be the city most noted for the persecution and martyrdom of the saints. Nothing as far-reaching as this had yet befallen the Christian church…. John looks for a day when the chief city of the beast will be infamous for her persecution of the saints primarily on religious grounds…. John is thinking of eschatological Babylon. (Ladd, p.225)

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Canticle

Christ, as a light – illumine and guide me.
Christ, as a shield – overshadow me.
Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me – on my left and my right.

Blessing

May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.

+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
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Peanut Gallery: In September, we will begin reading through the Book of Revelation (ESV). Our purpose will be devotional, i.e. to discover the word of blessing that God has for us in these troubled times… to find hope and help for our daily lives.

This will not be a Bible Study per se: we will not attempt to unravel the “mysteries” of Revelation… that is far beyond our abilities and is not our interest here. However, so as not to get too far afield, we will rely on three study resources: primary – A Commentary on the Revelation of John (George Elton Ladd); supplemental Revelation (Leon Morris) and  The Book of Revelation (Robert H. Mounce).

The general format for Morning Prayer is adapted from the Northumbrian Community‘s Daily Office, as found in Celtic Daily Prayer (see online resources here.) On Sundays, we’ll return to the USCCB readings (see online resources here) and various liturgical resources in order to reflect the Church’s worship and concerns throughout the world. Photo illustrations and music videos, available online, are included as they illustrate or illuminate the readings. I will try to give credit and link to sources as best I can.