Talk about stress and distress, read the account of Saint Stephen's trial and martyrdom in Acts 6-7. Stephen's feast day is today, December 26. Strange, but not really, as his liturgical feast day is actually older than Christmas.
The Responsorial Psalm at Mass is Psalm 30, a long psalm, which the Latin Rite Mass truncates to about six verses. The Anglican liturgy keeps the psalm intact - all 25 verses. I wonder if we do that because we don't like struggling spiritually with the difficult bits.
Anyway, click on the late 15th century, painted wood statue of Stephen above (he holds a Gospel Book and stones) to hear the psalm read. Below are some thoughts about the verses - all of them.
Verse 1-3: Right out of the gate, the worn down psalmist is declaring he's all wrapped up in troubles and shame. He asks God to rescue him, speedily.
Verse 4: The psalmist uses vivid language reflecting the depth of his plea: "Be a refuge, stronghold and rock; lead me; guide me."
Verses 5-6: This fellow is in some kind of trouble unknown to us. It doesn't really matter; we know life is hard, dangerous and sometimes menacing. We can each identify this personally. We hear the words of Jesus on the cross, "Into your hands I commend my spirit." They are not quite the same as "Thy will be done," but they are God-pleasing.
Verses 7-8: God detests the empty gods we create: money, pride, militarism, power-lust...you name it. The psalmist disowns these false deities and declares his happiness is found in God's love.
Verse 9: His trouble is deep indeed - he says he's soul-sick. Who is the enemy he's troubled by? We don't need to know. Rather, to live on this planet is to experience at some time or other, a personal problem that is niggling and enervating - something that could take me off my feet.
Verse 10: Is the psalmist exaggerating the depth of his problem? He's crying over it. This is poetic language to describe a person who is broken-hearted or heart-sick.
Verse 11: This trouble has afflicted him for years, leaving him worn out and wasted. Could anything really be so bad? Ask a depressed person, or a parent who has lost a child, or a war-damaged soldier, or someone who can't get out of poverty, or has an addicted spouse or child...
Verse 12: What an awful condition this fellow is living in! His life-picture is one of lonely alienation. I think he is setting us up for some spiritual surprise.
Verse 13: The psalmist feels "Like a thing thrown away." And I am thinking of how the world throws God away, like a worn out or broken thing we consider garbage. Throwing God away in our cultural thinking, in our politics, in our hatreds. It's increasingly hard to find a Christmas card with a nativity scene on it.
Verse 14: The poor fellow is riddled with fears. He feels there's even a plot to take his life. Have I ever felt overwhelmed with fear? He hears he's being slandered. "Every priest has his detractors" a pastor told me when I was a young priest.
Verses 15-16: Ah, there it is, the spell has been broken! Despite all his sorrow, "You are my God, my life is in your hands..."
Verse 17: The psalmist loves the idea of seeing God's face, which he likens to light. He is pleased that God has love in store for him, but he can't imagine yet that God loves his enemies as well.
Verse 18-19: He still wants God to do his bidding and to take out his revenge on these enemies. Oh my! "Let them be silenced in their graves, strike them dumb." It's not the Christian way, though there are many spiritually immature Christians who think like this.
Verse 20: The psalmist declares God's goodness. Fearing God, doesn't mean shaking in your boots, but fearing the loss of God. After the words "fear you" the next line echoes with "trust you."
Verse 21: Life can un-ravel, leaving us fragmented and in a heap, can't it? But God's sheltering is sure. God has us in his tent.
Verse 22: The wonders of his love. Not miracles, but wonders! Miracles are rare, but wonders are all around and every day. Can I name this for myself?
Verse 23: Poor thing; he can't help himself. He falls back into his dejection for a moment. Don't we do that - ruminating on what's wrong, spinning round and round in the troubles? How do we get far removed from God's sight? Maybe our illusions and anxieties do that.
Verse 24: Love the Lord, the psalm invites; the God who guards us. And don't be prideful - let God be God.
Verse 25: And his final thought: through all the troubles, disappointments, set backs, distractions and weariness - Let your heart take courage. It never fails - no matter how the psalmist goes down the road of woe and complaint, he always ends on a note of confidence and strength renewed.
