For what we pray

In this morning’s readings,  we see King Solomon going up to the high mountain to offer sacrifice to the Lord. This is at the beginning of 1 Kings 3. This follows upon Chapter 2 which recounts the passing of his father King David and the succession of his son Solomon to the throne. It is important to know that the end of David’s reign was one of court intrigue, sedition, and betrayal. Solomon inherited the results of all this and spends the remainder of the chapter taming the sedition of what appears to be a large and unruly contingent of those who would seek the halls of power. Continue reading

The Stirring of Reforms in England

In the years well before the 16th century Protestation Reformation in Germany, things were already afoot in England and Czech lands of the Holy Roman Empire. Among those helping to “stir the pot” was John Wycliffe (1320-1384), most often noted for his early translation of the Latin Vulgate scripture into English. Working with several others, they produced the “Wycliffe Bible” which, although unauthorized, proved quite popular. The church was said to not approve his project of translation.  That and other frustrations drove him to ignore the church because Wycliffe believed that studying the Bible was more important than listening to it read by the clergy. Continue reading