Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 138, Wednesday 23 September 2026

‘Then Jesus called the twelve together and … sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God’ (Luke 9: 1-2) … the Twelve Apostles, an icon in the church in Panormos, east of Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2025)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVI, 21 September).

Wednesday, Friday and Saturday in this week in the Church Calendar are also known as Ember Days. Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, and for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

Mosaic figures of the Twelve Apostles by Antonio Salviati on the tympanum of Saint Andrew’s Cathedral in Amalfi (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Luke 9: 1-6 (NRSVA):

1 Then Jesus called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, 2 and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. 3 He said to them, ‘Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money – not even an extra tunic. 4 Whatever house you enter, stay there, and leave from there. 5 Wherever they do not welcome you, as you are leaving that town shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.’ 6 They departed and went through the villages, bringing the good news and curing diseases everywhere.

The 12 disciples in an icon of the True Vine in the church in Piskopianó in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

The story of the Twelve being called and sent out in mission and ministry, ‘to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal,’ is an appropriate Gospel on the first of the Ember Days in September.

Ember Days are often been associated with prayer and fasting and Common Worship describes them ‘as days of prayer for those to be made deacon or priest.’ Traditionally they have been observed on the Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays within the weeks before the Third Sunday of Advent, the Second Sunday of Lent and the Sundays nearest to 29 June and 29 September.

Common Worship suggests: ‘Ember Days may also be kept even when there is no ordination in the diocese as more general days of prayer for those who serve the Church in its various ministries, both ordained and lay, and for vocations.’

This traditional association explains why the invitations sent out to ordinations are known as Ember Cards.

In sending out the Twelve, recalled in today’s Gospel reading at the Eucharist (Luke 9: 1-6), Jesus ‘gave them power and authority’. What is the nature of that ‘power and authority’, and where do we find that in ministry and discipleship?

This Gospel reading might be a good reading for an ordination or a commissioning service. This incident comes after a number of well-known stories in Saint Luke’s Gospel, including the calming of a storm on the lake, the healing of a demoniac, the raising of Jairus’s daughter and the healing of a woman with a haemorrhage.

Now we are moving into a turning point in Christ’s public life and in his relationship with his disciples.

This is, in fact, the third tour of Galilee by Jesus. On the first tour, he is accompanied just by the four fishermen he had called first – Peter, Andrew, James and John. On the second tour, all of the 12 are with him. Then, on this third tour of Galilee, we will find him left on his own after he sends the Twelve out on this on their own first mission.

In this reading, Christ sends out the 12 on their first mission, their first time on their own without his being with them.

They are not to be choosy about where they go or where they stay. They are to stay in the first house that accepts them. Wherever they find that they or their message is not welcome, they are to shake the dust from their feet – for it is not the disciples who are rejected, but the Good News of Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of God itself, and the one in whose name they have been sent them that are being rejected.

And so the 12 go out, from town to town, proclaiming the Gospel and restoring people to wholeness wherever they go.

This is the same mission each of those we pray for on Ember Days will be entrusted with. They are being called, individually and together, to proclaim the Gospel by word and by lifestyle, to be sources of healing and wholeness, to live lives that are witnesses to the Risen Lord.

Now, I wonder how many new ordinands would like to be sent out in ministry being told to cure, to preach and to heal, but being told to take nothing with them.

The limits imposed on the 12 are even more restrictive than those I experience travelling with Ryanair or EasyJet: they are to take no bag, no food, no money and no change of clothes.

And if you think budget airlines send you to airports in places you never heard of instead of sending you to places you plan to visit, imagine how perplexed the 12 must have been about their prospective destinations.

We are not told what happened to the 12. Instead, the narrative is interrupted by a discussion of some of Herod’s delusions (verses 7-9).

By the time Herod has finished his self-questioning, the 12 are back. Jesus takes them off to Bethsaida. They are followed by the crowds, and Jesus shows the 12 exactly what they should have been doing in mission: he welcomes the crowd, he speaks to them of the Kingdom of God, and he cures those who need healing (verse 11).

I imagine the story of the 12 being sent out is a bit like the first pastoral placement for students preparing for ordination. How many are left free to make a bags of it? And then, in the process of reflection and evaluation, they learn from those gaffes and those mistakes, from those times they went in with both feet first, when we found we were not welcome or said the wrong things, and were left to shake the dust from our feet.

When Jesus takes the 12 off to Bethsaida he tries to show them how to do it. But do they learn? It seems not. Instead, they ask him to send the crowd away, to go out also and look for places to stay (verse 12). They have not healed them, they have not cured them, they have not spoken to them of the Kingdom, and they are reluctant to feed them or to shelter them.

We can see this is an image of their refusal to allow the outsiders to become the insiders, to invite them to hear the Gospel and to join in fellowship at the sacred meal.

And so Christ puts the same questions to them that Herod has put to himself (verses 18-22), he challenges them to take up the Cross (verses 23-27), and offers some of them a vision of his glory (verses 28-36).

Perhaps it was because the disciples were aware of their weaknesses that they learned anew, that they did not resent the episode in the following chapter when the 70 are sent out, two-by-two.

There are times when those in ministry and mission feel not perhaps that we have failed but that we have only risen to second best.

But in our failures, in our weaknesses, in those moments when we rise up to being only at our second best, we must never be discouraged, for God does not call the equipped to ministry – instead, God equips the called.

A willingness to learn must include a willingness to learn by my mistakes – and, as I know only too well, I make many of them.

We know the disciples made many more mistakes – Peter went on to deny Christ three times at the most crucial moment; Thomas doubted Christ after his death and resurrection; Philip was admonished (see John 14: 8); the 12 are even caught squabbling among themselves.

We all have our weaknesses. But when we accept our vulnerability, we not only learn, but we also become humble before Christ, who accepted vulnerability and emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness … humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death – even death on a cross (Philippians 2: 7-8).

Those sent out in ministry and mission must seek to put confidence and trust not in our own skills and abilities, but be willing to learn from our mistakes, be accepting of our weaknesses, be open to our own vulnerability, and be confident that we will be continually equipped and continually strengthened by Christ who calls us and who sends us.

Christ sending the Apostles to preach the Gospel, depicted in the mosaic in the Triclinium of Pope Leo III on the north side of Piazza di Porta San Giovanni (Saint John Lateran) in Rome (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Wednesday 23 September 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 20 to 26 September 2026 (pp 40-41), is ‘For God and Country’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a reflection by Rosie Dawson, USPG Trustee and freelance journalist.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Wednesday 23 September 2026) invites us to pray:

Lord God, strengthen the leaders and members of the Iglesia Filipina Independiente as they witness courageously, serve selflessly, and live out their mission of proclaiming God’s justice.

The Collect of the Day:

O Lord, we beseech you mercifully to hear the prayers
of your people who call upon you;
and grant that they may both perceive and know
what things they ought to do,
and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil them;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Collect (for the ministry of all Christian people):

Almighty and everlasting God,
by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church
is governed and sanctified:
hear our prayer which we offer for all your faithful people,
that in their vocation and ministry
they may serve you in holiness and truth
to the glory of your name;
through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Almighty God,
you have taught us through your Son
that love is the fulfilling of the law:
grant that we may love you with our whole heart
and our neighbours as ourselves;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The Post Communion Prayer (Ember Days):

Heavenly Father,
whose ascended Son gave gifts of leadership and service to the Church:
strengthen us who have received this holy food
to be good stewards of your manifold grace,
through him who came not to be served but to serve,
and give his life as a ransom for many,
Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Lord of creation,
whose glory is around and within us:
open our eyes to your wonders,
that we may serve you with reverence
and know your peace at our lives’ end,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

‘Wherever they do not welcome you, as you are leaving that town shake the dust off your feet’ (Luke 9: 6) … sandals on a stall outside a shop in Rethymnon (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 135, Sunday 20 September 2026, Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVI)

‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard’ (Matthew 20: 1) … at work in a vineyard in Platanias near Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and today is the Sixteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XVI, 20 August 2026). Later this morning I hope to be part at the Parish Eucharist in Saint Mary and Saint Giles Church, Stony Stratford.

Yom Kippur begins at Kol Nidre at sunset this evening (Sunday 20 September 2026) and ends at nightfall tomorrow evening (Monday 21 September 2026). Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement is the peak of the High Holidays and the holiest day in the Jewish calendar, when people fast, pray, seek forgiveness from God and from others.

I plan to spend Kol Nidre this evening with at the local synagogue with the locl Jewish community. But, before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right’ (Matthew 20: 4) … neglected vines and a lost harvest of grapes at an abandoned house in Platanias, east of Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 20: 1-16 (NRSVA):

[Jesus said:] 20 ‘For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire labourers for his vineyard. 2 After agreeing with the labourers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. 3 When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the market-place; 4 and he said to them, “You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.” So they went. 5 When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. 6 And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, “Why are you standing here idle all day?” 7 They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You also go into the vineyard.”

8 ‘When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, “Call the labourers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.” 9 When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. 10 Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. 11 And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12 saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” 13 But he replied to one of them, “Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? 14 Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. 15 Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?” 16 So the last will be first, and the first will be last.’

‘I will pay you whatever is right … Call the labourers and give them their pay …’ (see Matthew 20: 4, 8) … ‘Permanent jobs for all contract workers’ … a trade union march in Thessaloniki (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

Covid, a stroke and personal problems meant that times I have missed out on my regular visits to Greece. I missed not just the blue skies and blue seas, but also the vineyards and the olive groves, and especially my friends there. So, after an absence of some years, it was good to be back to Crete last year and the year before.

Of course, it was sad to see how a small vineyard I had known for almost 10 years in Platanias, east of Rethymnon, was uprooted and turned into a site for a development close to the beach. On the other hand, it was good to meet old friends in Rethymnon, Platanias, Panormos and Iraklion last year.

The year before, I went back to Piskopianó to meet Manoli and other friends I have known for over 30 years. When my sons were small children, he was like an uncle to them. Early one summer in the 1990s, he was excited when he rang me and realised I was returning to his village in the hills above Hersonissos, to the east of Iraklion. Gushing with enthusiasm and delight, he told me how I must come and see what he had done with the ‘graveyard’ in Piskopianó.

‘The graveyard?’

Now, I am interested in visiting churches and churchyards, and graveyards and gravestones provide rich material for social, local and family history. But a graveyard is not the first place you think your friends want you to visit on a holiday in the Mediterranean.

I asked again: ‘The graveyard?’

‘Yes, you’re going to be delighted to see how the vines are growing with new life. You remember how I trimmed back the vines and the branches and how I built new trellises. Now there is a rich crop in the grapeyard this year.’

The grapeyard! Of course. Now it makes sense.

I had shown an interest in his vines and his grapes … and a healthy interest in wine.

Now a new lesson awaited me on how to grow grapes, how to trim the vines, and how vines, like people, only make sense in clusters.

We are all workers in the vineyard, and Christ even refers to himself as the true vine. But unless we have worked in a vineyard, some of the illustrations in today’s Gospel reading (Matthew 20: 1-16) may not fully resonate with us. And this helps to understand how some of the people who are depicted in today’s parable, and many of the people who first heard it, may have missed some of the subtle points Jesus was making as he told this story.

This Parable of the Labourers in the Vineyard, despite being well-known, is found only in Saint Matthew’s Gospel.

As the story unfolds, the landowner (οἰκοδεσπότης, oikodespotés), the head of the household or the owner of the land, is revealed to be not merely the owner of the vineyard, but as the Lord (ὁ κύριος, ho kyrios).

The labourers (εργάτες, ergates) are called at five different times in the day: early in the morning, at 9 o’clock, at noon, at 3 and at 5.

There are different tasks in the grapeyard, in the vineyard. Those who come early in the morning, at sunrise, can suffer from literal burnout later in the day as the heat of the sun becomes intense.

A variety of skills is needed: those who look after the soil; those who look after other plants such as the olive trees or lemon trees that help to protect the vines; those who watch the roses for the first signs of any disease that might hit the vines; those who prune the vines; those who pick the grapes and sort them out; those who tidy up in the vineyard at the end of the day – each and everyone plays a role in producing that bottle of wine as it makes its way to the shelves of shops and to our tables.

To some of the workers – and to us, at our first reading – the landowner appears to be unfair in the way he rewards those who work on his behalf. But did you notice how this passage begins ‘… the kingdom of heaven is like …’ and that the wages stand for God’s grace?

God chooses to give the same to all: the landowner pays ‘whatever is right’ – there is no social discrimination or class distinction in the Kingdom of Heaven.

I lived in Askeaton, Co Limerick, for five years. For those five years, I was a late arrival and I was a ‘blow-in’, although the term was used with me affectionately, and I knew I was welcome. People understood I had arrived there late in the day, in my 60s, and I understood the parishioners had been there far longer than I ever knew.

Good partnership means mutual understanding, and can produce good fruit, not just in the vineyard, but in every aspect of life.

As people are more mobile these days, moving from city to countryside, and from provincial towns to the city, the term ‘blow-in’ may be beginning to die a slow death in many smaller towns and communities in Ireland. But I wonder whether the attitude it encapsulates is still prevalent in other aspects of Irish life.

Are newcomers to the Church equally as welcome as long-standing members of the Church, whose parents were regular parishioners before them?

How difficult is it for new churchgoers to find an invitation onto church committees, to read lessons, to be counted in, and to be seen to be counted in?

Sorcha Pollak’s column in The Irish Times, ‘New to the Parish,’ later a book, has shown how new arrivals are regularly treated rudely, from the moment they show their passports at the airport, to taking up jobs, constantly being asked, ‘But where are you really from?’

Over the past few years, there have been far-right riots and protests across England, in Belfast, Ballymena and Dublin in Ireland, fear that has been created in the minority communities, there have been shocking attacks on places housing and sheltering asylum seekers and refugees, and there are deeply disturbing reports of racist abuse suffered by people throughout these islands.

How early do you have to have arrived in the vineyard before your labour is valued fully?

God is generous to all. This is God’s free choice. As the Lord of the vineyard asks in this morning’s Gospel reading, ‘Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’

Jesus begins this morning’s parable saying, ‘For the kingdom of heaven is like …’

The kingdom of God is like a place where all are welcome, where no-one is treated rudely or abusively because they are new arrivals or treated favourably because they have been here since the early days.

In the Kingdom of God, there is no discrimination, no racism; in the kingdom of God, there are no late arrivals or blow-ins.

Grapes near their harvesting time at the Hedgehog Vintage Inn in Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Sunday 20 September 2026, Trinity XVI):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 20 to 26 September 2026 (pp 40-41), is ‘For God and Country’. This theme is introduced today with a reflection by Rosie Dawson, USPG Trustee and freelance journalist:

There was a lot to take in when I arrived at the Church of Saint Nino (Holy Child) in Manila, but the most arresting moment was when – as happens every week – the Filipino flag was brought to the altar and the national anthem played. True, the British anthem sometimes features in Church of England services, but I still felt uncomfortable. As a journalist, I cover too many stories in which Christianity is used to justify state narratives of domination – in Putin’s Russia, Trump’s America, and, yes, even in Britain.

Bishop Dindo Ranojo put me straight. The Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI) was born out of the struggle for independence at the end of the nineteenth century. “Singing the anthem reminds us that we are free from foreign domination,” he said. It doesn’t mean the IFI is uncritical of whichever government is in power. Indeed, IFI leaders have frequently been harassed, imprisoned or worse.

The Ramento Human Rights Project was set up in memory of Bishop Alberto Ramento, murdered in 2006 for his support for landless people. It is helping people like Amalia whose son was among 32,000 victims of the extrajudicial killings carried out as part of former President Duterte’s so-called war on drugs.

Before I left the Philippines, I visited the IFI’s national cathedral. “Father give us our independence”, said a banner to my left. To my right, the words of Micah; “The Lord requires you to do justice, to love kindness and to walk humbly with your God.” The National Anthem was sung again. I didn’t feel uneasy this time.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Sunday 20 September 2026, Trinity XVI) invites us to pray as we read and meditate on Matthew 20: 1-16.

The Collect of the Day:

O Lord, we beseech you mercifully to hear the prayers
of your people who call upon you;
and grant that they may both perceive and know
what things they ought to do,
and also may have grace and power faithfully to fulfil them;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Almighty God,
you have taught us through your Son
that love is the fulfilling of the law:
grant that we may love you with our whole heart
and our neighbours as ourselves;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Lord of creation,
whose glory is around and within us:
open our eyes to your wonders,
that we may serve you with reverence
and know your peace at our lives’ end,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Collect on the Eve of Saint Matthew:

O Almighty God,
whose blessed Son called Matthew the tax collector
to be an apostle and evangelist:
give us grace to forsake the selfish pursuit of gain
and the possessive love of riches
that we may follow in the way of your Son Jesus Christ,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

Grapes on a vine in Aghios Georgios in Corfu (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Grapes ripe for harvesting in Panormos, east of Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 100, Saturday 15 August 2026, the Blessed Virgin Mary

The icon of the Dormition by Alexandra Kaouki in the old town of Rethymnon in Crete

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and this week began with the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X), and tomorrow is the Eleventh Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XI). The calendar of the Church of England in Common Worship lists today simply and plainly as ‘the Blessed Virgin Mary’, without specifying what aspect of her life or death is being commemorated.

The Greek Orthodox Church in Stony Stratford began celebrating the Feast of the Dormition last night (14 August) with Festal Vespers with Artoclasia for the Dormition of the Theotokos at 6:30 pm, and the celebrations continue today with Matins and Divine Liturgy for the Dormition of the Theotokos at 9 am and Vespers at 6 pm.

Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 99, Friday 14 August 2026

Potiphar names Joseph administrator … Potiphar is a Biblical example of a married eunuch (Bode Museum, Berlin)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and this week began with the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X). The Church Calendar today remembers Maximilian Kolbe (1894-1941), Friar and Martyr in Auschwitz. Later this evening, at 6 pm, there are Great Vespers with Artoclasia for the Feast of the Dormition of the Theotokos in the Greek Orthodox Church in Stony Stratford.

Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

An icon of Saint Philip the Deacon with the Ethiopian Eunuch, by Ann Chapin (2008)

Matthew 19: 3-12 (NRSVA):

3 Some Pharisees came to him, and to test him they asked, ‘Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any cause?’ 4 He answered, ‘Have you not read that the one who made them at the beginning “made them male and female”, 5 and said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”? 6 So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.’ 7 They said to him, ‘Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?’ 8 He said to them, ‘It was because you were so hard-hearted that Moses allowed you to divorce your wives, but at the beginning it was not so. 9 And I say to you, whoever divorces his wife, except for unchastity, and marries another commits adultery.’

10 His disciples said to him, ‘If such is the case of a man with his wife, it is better not to marry.’ 11 But he said to them, ‘Not everyone can accept this teaching, but only those to whom it is given. 12 For there are eunuchs who have been so from birth, and there are eunuchs who have been made eunuchs by others, and there are eunuchs who have made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. Let anyone accept this who can.’

Alessandro Moreschi (1858-1922), the last surviving castrato of the Sistine Chapel’s Choir

Today’s Reflections:

This morning’s Gospel reading comes in two parts that are both difficult and painful to read, to the point that it would be easier to reflect on one of the other appointed readings in the Lectionary (Ezekiel 16: 1-15, 60-63; Psalm 118: 14-18 or the Canticle Song of Deliverance; Isaiah 12: 2-6).

As a priest who is divorced and remarried, I find the first part of the Gospel (Matthew 19: 3-11) is a challenge every time I read it, even though I have dealt with its topics on many occasions in sermons I have preached in a parish and pastoral setting, in preparing couples for marriage, and in my own life. I wish some of my priest colleagues had been as generous to me in the past as I hope they are to their own parishioners when it comes to providing true pastoral care, understanding and support.

The second part of the reading (Matthew 19: 11-12) causes me even greater confusion and all my attempts to understand its context still leave me in search of meaning and understanding. But then even the text itself warns that some readers will not be able to receive what is being said.

Jesus’ words seem to find echoes in Saint Paul’s writings when, for example, he seems to advocate remaining single if someone is called to do so (see I Corinthians 7: 24-28), yet says it is wrong to forbid marriage to anyone (I Timothy 4: 1-3). However, both Jesus and Paul stress that relatively few people were called to a life of celibacy, a lifestyle that was generally unacceptable socially in their time.

I wince and even imagine physical pain when it comes to thinking about the concept of a eunuch, thinking of references to men who had been castrated before puberty, especially the castrati or male singers who, for the sake of retaining their high voices, underwent surgical castration before puberty.

Castration affected boys’ vocal cords, but it also had a profound effect on the rest of their body. By disrupting normal growth hormones, castration could result in a variety of unusual physical attributes, including remarkable height and an abnormally large chest cavity – which, in singing terms, meant powerful thoracic muscles and extra lung capacity. As such, castrati were uniquely equipped to produce the loud, sustained, highly ornamented phrases that Baroque audiences loved.

The earliest records of castrati date from the 1550s. At the time, castrati sang only sacred music. A supposed biblical injunction against women singing in church left a dearth of singers able to sing the high parts in sacred choral works.

When opera became part of the musical scene ca 1600, the castrato’s unusual voice was quickly embraced by composers working in the new genre. Claudio Monteverdi’s opera Orfeo (1607) featured castrati singing the opera’s Prologue as well as two female roles. Yet the castrato’s vocal powers lead them to be cast as the manliest role in opera: the primo uomo, or heroic male lead.

Successful castrati were the rock stars and celebrities of their day. The castrato known as Farinelli, born Carlo Broschi (1705-1782) was knighted by the King of Spain and held a ministerial role at the Spanish court.

By the 19th century, however, changing operatic styles and new conceptions of medical ethics meant the castrato tradition was quickly dying out. The Vatican banned castrati in 1903, and the last known castrato, Alessandro Moreschi, died in 1922. Recordings of Moreschi singing are the only surviving example of this voice type.

The Biblical references to eunuchs include impotent men and men not capable of sexual relations. In this morning’s reading, however, Jesus says that some men were born this way, some were made impotent by men and some made themselves impotent to better serve the kingdom of God.

The terms also described men who were trusted in royal courts to serve as chamberlains and to care for harems (see Esther 2: 15) or men trusted in royal courts with high positions and authority (see Daniel 1: 3-18; Acts 8: 27). Because eunuchs often served in the courts of kings, the words translated as ‘eunuch’ may have come to be used as a label for many senior officials, whether or not we would now regarded them as having been castrated.

The Hebrew word in the Bible is סְרִ֨יס (sarís) and it means ‘to castrate’. But this word is translated ‘officer’ or ‘officers’ 12 times in the Old Testament (see Genesis 37: 36; 39: 1; 40: 2; and 40: 7) and as ‘chamberlain’ or ‘chamberlains’ 13 times (see Esther 1: 10, 12, 15; 2: 21; and 4: 4-5).

In the Septuagint, the Hebrew word סְרִ֨יס is translated into Greek by εὐνοῦχος, and the word also has the meaning ‘eunuch’. However, in its context in the Tanakh, the word almost always refers to ministers or high servants at the court of a king. Not all of them were castrated in order to hold their posts, maybe they were merely bound to practise celibacy; the Bible, in Genesis, mentions at least one married eunuch, Potiphar, who is one of Pharoah’s courtiers in Egypt.

The Greek word εὐνοῦχοι (eunouchoi is usually understood as castrates, but the context speaks for understanding εὐνοῦχοι as ‘single’, and its etymology suggests the Greek word εὐνοῦχος (eunouchos) originally meant either ‘bedroom guard’ or ‘of good mind.’ Later, the word rendered ‘eunuch’ came to refer to a castrated man, to an impotent man and to an unmarried man.

At the time Jesus is speaking, the word ‘eunuch’ may have simply referred to a senior and trusted official in royal courts, a courtier who could be trusted not to take advantage of others, particularly people who depended on royal justice and who must not be exploited for personal financial or sexual advantage.

In the Roman world, the word eunuch was used to refer to a homosexual man. Some translations refer to ‘men who never marry,’ instead of ‘eunuchs’. Both terms were used as euphemisms for homosexual men.

Some commentators suggest that at the time of Jesus the word eunuch was used as a euphemism for people who were seen as being different or even outsiders because of their sexuality, men who were gay but dismissed as being ‘effeminate’, people who were gay and found it difficult to explain why they remained single in a society where marriage was the norm and celibacy was frowned on, individuals whose sexuality was not of their own choice but would have been unacceptable if they admitted to it publicly.

In the any case, in both the Hebrew and Christian texts, eunuchs had the same standing in God’s eyes as anyone else (see Isaiah 56: 3-5; Acts 8: 26-39).

These definitions might mean that those who make themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven are simply men who remained unmarried to spend more time seeking the Lord and spreading the Gospel.

This morning’s passage was interpreted so literally in some parts of the early Church that Origen of Alexandria (185-254 CE), in the impetuosity of youth, castrated himself. In later life he knew better. In his commentary on Saint Matthew’s Gospel, Origen rejects the literal interpretation of the words. He acknowledges that he once accepted a literal reading, but came to accept the saying should be understood spiritually and not ‘according to the flesh and the letter.’ But it was too late by then to reverse the process, I imagine, as I wince yet again this morning.

Perhaps, this passage should no more be taken literally than Christ’s words about cutting off my hand or foot, or gouging out my eye. If so, should the preceding verses on divorce be taken literally either? Perhaps they too are hyperbole, raw humour or reminders of the ideals of marriage which some may attain but many cannot live up to.

Both parts of this morning’s Gospel reading may be read more easily if we hear Jesus saying that all Christians, are representatives of the Kingdom of God, courtiers or ambassadors of that kingdom, irrespective of our marital status, our gender, our sexuality or what others may see as inappropriate or unacceptable lifestyles judged only by the cultural standards of the world today. We are called by Christ into the Church and into the kingdom, and some of us are even called to give up everything in order to pursue this calling.

Origen of Alexandria (185-254 CE), in the impetuosity of youth, castrated himself … in later life he knew better (Icon: Eileen McGuckin)

Today’s Prayers (Friday 14 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (9-15 August 2026, pp 28-29), is ‘Mission to the Mangyans’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a Programme Update by the Revd Jewel B Tumaliuan, Programme Director, Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI).

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Friday 14 August 2026) invites us to pray:

God of mission, we give thanks for our partners, the Iglesia Filipina Independiente, and for the growth of the ministry to Mangyans as well as other joint projects. Bless bishops, clergy, and lay leaders, and strengthen shared work in building resilient communities and sustainable futures.

The Collect:

Let your merciful ears, O Lord,
be open to the prayers of your humble servants;
and that they may obtain their petitions
make them to ask such things as shall please you;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

God of our pilgrimage,
you have willed that the gate of mercy
should stand open for those who trust in you:
look upon us with your favour
that we who follow the path of your will
may never wander from the way of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Lord of heaven and earth,
as Jesus taught his disciples to be persistent in prayer,
give us patience and courage never to lose hope,
but always to bring our prayers before you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Collect on the Eve of The Blessed Virgin Mary:

Almighty God,
who looked upon the lowliness of the Blessed Virgin Mary
and chose her to be the mother of your only Son:
grant that we who are redeemed by his blood
may share with her in the glory of your eternal kingdom;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

Joseph and Potiphar’s wife … a ceramic plate produced in Urbino ca 1537 … Potiphar is a Biblical example of a married eunuch (National Museum of Bargello, Florence)

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 96, Tuesday 11 August 2026

‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 18: 3) … a stained-glass window in the Comberford Chapel in Saint Editha’s Church, Tamworth (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X).

In the calendar in Common Worship, the Church of England today remembers Saint Clare of Assisi (1193-1253), founder of the Minoresses (Poor Clares), and Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890), Priest, Tractarian and newly-proclaimed Doctor of the Church. As this day begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

The Preaching of the Kingdom of God … an icon in the Lady Chapel in Lichfield Cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14 (NRSVA):

1 At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ 2 He called a child, whom he put among them, 3 and said, ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. 4 Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. 5 Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.

10 ‘Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.

12 ‘What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. 14 So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.’

‘Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven’ (Matthew 18: 4) … a stained-glass window in the Chapel in Saint John’s Hospital, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

All of us are disturbed in recent years months abobyut the terrors that are being rained down on children in the world today, in the war in the Gaza Strip, the war in Ukraine, the US bombing of Iran, and among the children who are part of the plight of refugees and migrants in small boats on the seas.

I say ‘children’ and not ‘innocent children,’ because there is no such being as a guilty child – there are only innocent children.

And the suffering and plight of children is all the more distressing when is caused by the calculations of adults who dismiss this suffering as merely the collateral damage brought about by war or because these children are dismissed as foreigners or outsiders.

For Christians, this distress must always be acute, must always demand our compassion, must always call for our response.

Surely it should never matter what label is placed on these children – whether the suffering Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip are Christians or Muslims; whether the children kidnapped from a kibbutz in Israel are from secular or religious Jewish families; whether the 120 children bombed to death in a school in Minab in southern Iran come from families that support or oppose the regime; whether the children on boats in the English Channel are from Africa, Asia or the Middle East; whether the refugee children Charlotte and I visited across Europe on behalf of USPG three years ago are Ukrainian or Russian.

The disciples ask Christ in today’s Gospel reading at the Eucharist (Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14): ‘Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?’ He responds by calling a child, puts the child among them, and tells them: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.’

We are not told whether this child is a boy or girl, Jew or Samaritan, Greek or Roman, a street urchin or the child of one of the Disciples.

Indeed, in all likelihood, the Disciples never noticed, for at that time a child was of no economic value and a burden on families until the child could earn his or her own way, or become the equivalent of a pension scheme for parents.

But Christ tells us: ‘Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven … it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.’

The Kingdom of Heaven is like little things. The Gospels remind us time and again that the Kingdom of Heaven is like small things:

• Sowing a seed;

• Giving a nest to the birds of the air;

• Mixing yeast;

• Turning small amounts of flour into generous portions of bread;

• Finding hidden treasure;

• Rushing out in joy;

• Selling all that I have because something I have found is worth more – much, much more, again and again;

• Searching for pearls;

• Finding just one pearl;

• Casting a net into the sea;

• Catching an abundance of fish;

• Drawing that abundance of fish ashore, realising there is too much there for my personal needs, and sharing it;

• Writing about it so that others can enjoy the benefit and rewards of treasures new and old.

And this morning we are told that Kingdom of God is like a little child – imagine a child playing on a beach in Gaza, falsely feeling secure in a school or hospital in Ukraine, Russia or Iran, maimed and injured in a mother’s arms at home, dying in a Gaza hospital, kidnapped at a music festival in Israel or in her parent’s home in a kibbutz, caught in terror in the midst of a far-right riot on our city streets, starving and despised in a refugee camp or in the war the world ignores in Sudan, sea-sick in a crowded small boat in the English Channel, cowering in a cramped hotel room as rioters try to set the hotel alight.

In the face of these images I find myself thinking of the prophets, like Ezekiel who was called to speak ‘words of lamentation and mourning and woe’ and compelled to ‘go to the house of Israel and speak [God’s] very words to them’ (see Ezekiel 2: 8 to 3: 4).

But I have hope too, for I hear Christ’s words today: ‘in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven … it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.’

‘Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me’ (Matthew 18: 5) … a stained-glass window in Saint Mary’s Church, Lichfield (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Tuesday 11 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (9-15 August 2026, pp 28-29), is ‘Mission to the Mangyans’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a Programme Update by the Revd Jewel B Tumaliuan, Programme Director, Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI).

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Tuesday 11 August 2026) invites us to pray:

Heavenly Father, we give thanks for lay leaders like Nanay Norma Abnay, serving with dedication and care. Grant strength, wisdom, and joy in leadership, as communities gather in faith and unity.

The Collect of the Day:

God of peace,
who in the poverty of the blessed Clare
gave us a clear light to shine in the darkness of this world:
give us grace so to follow in her footsteps
that we may, at the last, rejoice with her in your eternal glory;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

Merciful God,
who gave such grace to your servant Clare
that she served you with singleness of heart
and loved you above all things:
help us, whose communion with you
has been renewed in this sacrament,
to forsake all that holds us back from following Christ
and to grow into his likeness from glory to glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

‘So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost’ (Matthew 18: 14) … a stained-glass window in Saint Michael’s Church, St Albans (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 95, Monday 10 August 2026

A traditional fishing boat by the old Venetian Harbour in Rethymnon … Izaak Walton points out that fishing can teach us patience and discipline (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X, 9 August 2026). The calendar of the Church of England in Common Worship today remembers Saint Laurence (258), Deacon at Rome, Martyr.

Later today, I have GP appointments for my regular injections needed because of my severe Vitamin B12 deficiency, for my sarcoidosis symtoms, and to follow up on my stroke four years ago. But, before the day begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘Go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up’ (Matthew 17: 27) … a variety of fish on display in a seafood restaurant at the harbour in Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 17: 22-27 (NRSVA):

22 As they were gathering in Galilee, Jesus said to them, ‘The Son of Man is going to be betrayed into human hands, 23 and they will kill him, and on the third day he will be raised.’ And they were greatly distressed.

24 When they reached Capernaum, the collectors of the temple tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the temple tax?’ 25 He said, ‘Yes, he does.’ And when he came home, Jesus spoke of it first, asking, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their children or from others?’ 26 When Peter said, ‘From others’, Jesus said to him, ‘Then the children are free. 27 However, so that we do not give offence to them, go to the lake and cast a hook; take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a coin; take that and give it to them for you and me.’

‘Fishing Trips’ … fishing boats and tourist trips in Georgioupoli in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflections:

I have been a vegetarian most of my life, which has contributed to the health issues surrounding my severe B12 deficiency. But I still find the rewards of fishing at the Lake in Capernaum in this morning’s Gospel reading are worth working with. Ernest Hemingway, in The Old Man and The Sea, says ‘Il faut (d’abord) durer … It is necessary, above all else, to endure. It is necessary to endure.’

Over half a century ago, when I hitchhiking in the Peaks on the borders of Staffordshire and Derbyshire in my late teens, and staying in Ilam Hall, I came across the work of the great Anglican writer Izaak Walton (1593-1683), known for his biographies of John Donne, George Herbert and Richard Hooker, and also as the author of The Compleat Angler.

In The Compleat Angler, Izaak Walton points out that fishing can teach us patience and discipline. Fishing takes practice, preparation, discipline; like discipleship, it has to be learned, and learning requires practice before there are any results. And sometimes, whether it is fishing in a river, fishing in a lake or fishing in the sea, the best results can come from going against the current.

Walking along the piers in coastal fishing towns and villages or on holidays on Greek islands, I sometimes watch the careful early morning work of the crews in the trawlers and fishing boats, and I am reminded that good fishing does not come about by accident. It also requires paying attention to the nets, moving them carefully, mending them, cleaning them after each and every use, hanging them out to dry.

And fishing is also about noticing the weather, watching the wind and the clouds. Good fishing takes account of contexts … it is incarnational.

Time and again in the Gospels, the Kingdom of God is compared to a huge net cast over different numbers of people and species. We are the ones called to cast that net, and we cannot hang any sign outside on our office doors saying: ‘Gone Fishin’.

Nor can we stand by the bank or on the shore, content with two sizes of fish. We are called to go after the ones that others let get away, not just those who come to Church regularly, but also those people who sit in darkness and in the region of the shadow of death.

Peter is sent to go fishing in the lake. He is told to take the first fish that comes up and that he is going to find a treasure beyond his expectations. It is an image of what working for the kingdom of God can be like.

There are days when fishing seems pointless, and there will be days when we are happy with our work together. And as we work together, hopefully, there will be days when we are surprised with what we can achieve together, all in Christ’s name and all for the sake of the one that otherwise might get away.

A fishing boat and fishing nets on the Greek island of Samos (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Monday 10 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week (9-15 August 2026, pp 28-29), is ‘Mission to the Mangyans’. This theme was introduced yesterday with a Programme Update by the Revd Jewel B Tumaliuan, Programme Director, Iglesia Filipina Independiente (IFI).

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Monday 10 August 2026) invites us to pray:

Lord, we pray for communities in remote areas where distance shapes daily life. May connection, support, and opportunity grow, and may your presence bring encouragement and hope.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty God,
who made Laurence a loving servant of your people
and a wise steward of the treasures of your Church:
fire us with his example to love as he loved
and to walk in the way that leads to eternal life;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

Eternal God,
who gave us this holy meal
in which we have celebrated the glory of the cross
and the victory of your martyr Laurence:
by our communion with Christ
in his saving death and resurrection,
give us with all your saints the courage to conquer evil
and so to share the fruit of the tree of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s reflectionss

Continued tomorrow

‘Gone Fishin’ … fishing boats and nets by the harbour in Iraklion (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2025)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org