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christopherchandler's review against another edition
4.0
Rutledge is such a great thinker and preacher. She has taken some of the bigger concepts of her book The Crucifixion and made them more palatable in sermon form. The ideas are all less spelled out as you would expect (and most are only there in seed form anyway), but it's a very accessible version. I read it in a few hours :)
drbobcornwall's review against another edition
4.0
I have participated in Good Friday services for the past twenty plus years, which feature the "Seven Last Words of Christ." I published one set from my days in Santa Barbara under the title "Cries from the Cross." I have found these services, which I share with other clergy to be meaningful (our services have been designed to last one hour). I have not tried to preach on all seven words over a three hour period, which is the traditional format. Fleming Rutledge, however, did just that at St. Thomas Fifth Avenue Episcopal Church of New York. I commend her for having the stamina to take this on. The sermons are insightful as well.
Good Friday services are a rarity among Protestants, though Episcopalians and some Lutherans do make a habit of it. The danger here is that we might move from the Triumphanal Entry to Easter, without a stop at the Cross. Thus, the need for Good Friday to be observed. The Seven Last Words seem to be the best vehicle for doing this.
The sermons focus on three texts drawn from the Gospel of John, three from Luke, and one from Matthew. We begin with Jesus granting forgiveness in Luke 23 to those who "know not what they do." This is a powerful word, but Rutledge asks what to make of those who know what they're doing. She suggests that when it comes to the ungodly, including ourselves as Christians, perhaps forgiveness is too weak a word. Perhaps we need to draw upon the word justification. She closes the first word with reference to the hymn "Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended,"
The Second word also comes from Luke 23, which invites us to consider Jesus' response to the one hanging on a cross next to him, asking that Jesus remember him in the kingdom. Jesus' response is the promise that "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." She makes the good point that the focus here is not on the word paradise, but the words "with me." Yes, the invitation is to join Jesus in entering the realm of God.
The third word is the one I will reflect on this year (2019), and that is Jesus conversation in John 19 with the Beloved Disciple and his mother. Rutledge notes that John never names his mother who appears only at Cana and here. Thus, the word here is two unrelated believers, creating a new form of kinship. That is the message here then, the new kinship of the church.
For many the fourth word is the most powerful, because it's the one many identify with most. That is the cry of dereliction, found here in Matthew, in which the Gospel acknowledges the feeling of abandonment and divine silence that Jesus experienced on the cross. This word is a reminder that Jesus was fighting a spiritual battle on the cross, in which he faced the forces of hell, that sense of absence of love, light, and God.
The fifth word returns to the Gospel of John, where we hear the words of Jesus "I Thirst." Rutledge places this cry from the cross in contrast to Jesus' conversation in John 4 with the Samaritan woman, in which he speaks of the living water. Living in Michigan I appreciated her reference to the poisoned waters of Flint. What is the relationship between living water and natural waters?
The sixth word, the penultimate word again from John, in which Jesus cries out "It is Finished." Rutledge brings out the question of what Jesus is saying here. Is he simply giving up the battle to live? Or, as she believes, he is declaring that he has finished his vocation. He has brought his life calling to completion. Referring to the Resurrection, it doesn't cancel out the cross, it vindicates the crucified one. In other words, this declaration in John is one of victory.
Finally we come to the seventh word, which reflects upon the Gospel of Luke once again. We begin with Luke and end with Luke. Here Jesus commends his spirit to God. I will admit that I felt like Rutledge ran out of steam in this sermon. It seemed less deep than some of the others. This might just be me, but it is more summation than exploration of the final word.
All in all this will be a valued reflection for Good Friday. It's brief enough that one can read through in a couple of hours, perhaps on Good Friday, so as to take in the message that Paul believes is foundational to the Gospel.
Good Friday services are a rarity among Protestants, though Episcopalians and some Lutherans do make a habit of it. The danger here is that we might move from the Triumphanal Entry to Easter, without a stop at the Cross. Thus, the need for Good Friday to be observed. The Seven Last Words seem to be the best vehicle for doing this.
The sermons focus on three texts drawn from the Gospel of John, three from Luke, and one from Matthew. We begin with Jesus granting forgiveness in Luke 23 to those who "know not what they do." This is a powerful word, but Rutledge asks what to make of those who know what they're doing. She suggests that when it comes to the ungodly, including ourselves as Christians, perhaps forgiveness is too weak a word. Perhaps we need to draw upon the word justification. She closes the first word with reference to the hymn "Ah, holy Jesus, how hast thou offended,"
The Second word also comes from Luke 23, which invites us to consider Jesus' response to the one hanging on a cross next to him, asking that Jesus remember him in the kingdom. Jesus' response is the promise that "Today shalt thou be with me in paradise." She makes the good point that the focus here is not on the word paradise, but the words "with me." Yes, the invitation is to join Jesus in entering the realm of God.
The third word is the one I will reflect on this year (2019), and that is Jesus conversation in John 19 with the Beloved Disciple and his mother. Rutledge notes that John never names his mother who appears only at Cana and here. Thus, the word here is two unrelated believers, creating a new form of kinship. That is the message here then, the new kinship of the church.
For many the fourth word is the most powerful, because it's the one many identify with most. That is the cry of dereliction, found here in Matthew, in which the Gospel acknowledges the feeling of abandonment and divine silence that Jesus experienced on the cross. This word is a reminder that Jesus was fighting a spiritual battle on the cross, in which he faced the forces of hell, that sense of absence of love, light, and God.
The fifth word returns to the Gospel of John, where we hear the words of Jesus "I Thirst." Rutledge places this cry from the cross in contrast to Jesus' conversation in John 4 with the Samaritan woman, in which he speaks of the living water. Living in Michigan I appreciated her reference to the poisoned waters of Flint. What is the relationship between living water and natural waters?
The sixth word, the penultimate word again from John, in which Jesus cries out "It is Finished." Rutledge brings out the question of what Jesus is saying here. Is he simply giving up the battle to live? Or, as she believes, he is declaring that he has finished his vocation. He has brought his life calling to completion. Referring to the Resurrection, it doesn't cancel out the cross, it vindicates the crucified one. In other words, this declaration in John is one of victory.
Finally we come to the seventh word, which reflects upon the Gospel of Luke once again. We begin with Luke and end with Luke. Here Jesus commends his spirit to God. I will admit that I felt like Rutledge ran out of steam in this sermon. It seemed less deep than some of the others. This might just be me, but it is more summation than exploration of the final word.
All in all this will be a valued reflection for Good Friday. It's brief enough that one can read through in a couple of hours, perhaps on Good Friday, so as to take in the message that Paul believes is foundational to the Gospel.
timhoiland's review against another edition
5.0
“There is no other way to be a disciple of Jesus than to be in communion with other disciples of Jesus. Why do you suppose the Lord didn’t separate out each one of his followers, stand us up separately, pronounce us each a unique individual, and then bid us go off and create ourselves? He did the opposite; instead of making us independent and self-centered, he makes us mutually interdependent and other-directed.”
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