Celebrating Our Diversity, A Message from ELCA Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

Presiding Bishop Yehiel Curry issues his fifth in a series of monthly messages that continue through the end of this year, titled “All Together in One Place.” Each message will share a pastoral word, rooted in Scripture, that witnesses to God’s presence today, our rich theological tradition and the social teaching that connects us.

Celebrating Our Diversity

Dear beloved children of God, 

As a church, we collectively continue to celebrate the diversity with which God has created the world. Scripture tells us that, from the very beginning, we were made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). In the book of Acts, many were gathered in one place when the Holy Spirit came upon them. Each was given the power to witness to the resurrection of Jesus Christ and the promise of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:32-33). In 1 Corinthians 12:12-14, the human body serves as a metaphor, demonstrating that a healthy Christian community relies on the many distinct gifts and qualities of each unique member — emphasizing unity through continuing to be a connected church.    

I am thankful to serve this church in the office of presiding bishop. I am also grateful for my experience as an activist and leader in communities and congregations that are at the margins. Whatever our role and wherever our place in the church, God calls us to develop trusting relationships with our neighbors. In the service of Affirmation of Baptism, the presiding minister asks, “Do you intend to continue in the covenant God made with you in holy baptism … to serve all people, following the example of Jesus, and to strive for justice and peace in all the earth?” (Evangelical Lutheran Worship, p. 236). Striving for justice involves learning about underlying causes of division and inequity. It is a commitment our church makes because of baptism. 

Celebrating diversity and striving for equity, inclusion and accessibility for all reflect this baptismal call. The words “diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility” and the initialism “DEIA” mean different things to different people. For the ELCA, as church together, these terms reflect our “delight in the fact that the people called, gathered, and enlightened” by God represent such a wide array of identities, backgrounds and life stories (ELCA social statement Freed in Christ: Race, Ethnicity, and Culture, 1993, p. 3). The terms remind us of the gospel vision of community, in which all are truly welcome. They are terms this church has chosen to include in its teachings and constitutions as reflections of our faith in God, who creates, redeems and sustains all people.   

Everyone matters in this church. I have celebrated with synods and congregations as they build communities that reflect the people and neighborhoods around them. I have worshiped in places where many languages are spoken and people from different backgrounds feel welcome. Together we have expanded our understanding of what it means to be church through relationships with companion churches around the world and through relationships between congregations in rural, urban and suburban settings here in the United States. We are joined together through holy baptism, through which God calls us to strive for justice and peace in all the earth.  “Diversity,” “equity,” “inclusion” and “accessibility” are reflections of justice when it is fulfilled. Like many saints before us have said, justice is the form love takes in society.     

The road is long, but we go forth in faith, trusting in the risen Christ and inspired by one another for the work ahead. Let us continue in the covenant God has made with us, to serve all people in love. 

In Christ,

The Rev. Yehiel Curry
Presiding Bishop
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America 

All Together in One Place

– – –

About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.6 million members in 8,200 communities worshiping in 41 languages across the 50 states and in the Caribbean. Known as the church of “God’s work. Our hands.,” the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA’s roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.

Readings and Psalm for November 15, 2026, Twenty-Fifth Sunday after Pentecost

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

Our readings during November speak of the end times. Zephaniah proclaims that the coming day of the Lord will be filled with wrath and distress. Paul says it will come like a thief in the night and urges us to be awake and sober. Jesus tells the parable of the talents, calling us to use our gifts, while we still have time, for the greater and common good. In a world filled with violence and despair, we gather around signs of hope—word, water, bread, and wine—eager to welcome the good news of Christ’s coming among us.

Prayer of the Day

Righteous God, our merciful master, you own the earth and all its peoples, and you give us all that we have. Inspire us to serve you with justice and wisdom, and prepare us for the joy of the day of your coming, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Readings and Psalm

Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18
Psalm 90:1-8, 12
1 Thessalonians 5:1-11
Matthew 25:14-30

First Reading: Zephaniah 1:7, 12-18

 7 Be silent before the Lord God,
  for the day of the Lord is at hand!
 The Lord has prepared a sacrifice;
  he has consecrated his guests.

 12 At that time I will search Jerusalem with lamps,
  and I will punish the people
 who settle like dregs in wine,
  those who say in their hearts,
 “The Lord will not do good,
  nor will he do harm.”
 13 Their wealth shall be plundered
  and their houses laid waste.
 Though they build houses,
  they shall not inhabit them;
 though they plant vineyards,
  they shall not drink wine from them.

 14 The great day of the Lord is near,
  near and hastening fast;
 the sound of the day of the Lord is bitter;
  the warrior cries aloud there.
 15 That day will be a day of wrath,
  a day of distress and anguish,
 a day of ruin and devastation,
  a day of darkness and gloom,
 a day of clouds and thick darkness,
  16 a day of trumpet blast and battle cry
 against the fortified cities
  and against the lofty battlements.

 17 I will bring such distress upon people
  that they shall walk like the blind;
  because they have sinned against the Lord,
 their blood shall be poured out like dust
  and their flesh like dung.
 18 Neither their silver nor their gold
  will be able to save them
  on the day of the Lord’s wrath;
 in the fire of his passion
  the whole earth shall be consumed,
 for a full, a terrible end
  he will make of all the inhabitants of the earth.

Psalm: Psalm 90:1-8, 12

 1 Lord, you have been our refuge
  from one generation to another.
 2 Before the mountains were brought forth, or the land and the earth were born,
  from age to age you are God.
 3 You turn us back to the dust and say,
  “Turn back, O children of earth.”
 4 For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past
  and like a watch in the night; 
 5 you sweep them away like a dream,
  they fade away suddenly like the grass:
 6 in the morning it is green and flourishes;
  in the evening it is dried up and withered.
 7 For we are consumed by your anger;
  we are afraid because of your wrath.
 8 Our iniquities you have set before you,
  and our secret sins in the light of your countenance.
 12 So teach us to number our days
  that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

1 Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers and sisters, you do not need to have anything written to you. 2 For you yourselves know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. 3 When they say, “There is peace and security,” then sudden destruction will come upon them, as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and there will be no escape! 4 But you, brothers and sisters, are not in darkness, for that day to surprise you like a thief; 5 for you are all children of light and children of the day; we are not of the night or of darkness. 6 So, then, let us not fall asleep as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober, 7 for those who sleep sleep at night, and those who are drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we belong to the day, let us be sober and put on the breastplate of faith and love and for a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God has destined us not for wrath but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we may live with him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, as indeed you are doing.

Gospel: Matthew 25:14-30

[Jesus said to the disciples:] 14 “For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; 15 to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. At once 16 the one who had received the five talents went off and traded with them and made five more talents. 17 In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. 18 But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. 19 After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. 20 Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ 21 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 22 And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ 23 His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things; I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ 24 Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow and gathering where you did not scatter, 25 so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ 26 But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow and gather where I did not scatter? 27 Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. 28 So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. 29 For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. 30 As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ ”

From sundaysandseasons.com. Copyright © 2026 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SAS022632. New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Revised Common Lectionary, Copyright © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts, admin Augsburg Fortress. Used by permission.

Readings and Psalm for November 8, 2026,

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

The prophet Amos calls for justice to roll down like waters. Paul urges us to encourage one another with the promised coming of the Lord. Jesus tells the parable of the wise and foolish bridesmaids. Surrounded by the faithful of every time and place, we celebrate Christ’s coming in our midst in the word of life and the feast of victory—the marriage feast of the Lamb.

Prayer of the Day

O God of justice and love, you illumine our way through life with the words of your Son. Give us the light we need, and awaken us to the needs of others, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Readings and Psalms

Amos 5:18-24
Psalm 70
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
Matthew 25:1-13

First Reading: Amos 5:18-24

 18 Woe to you who desire the day of the Lord!
  Why do you want the day of the Lord?
 It is darkness, not light,
  19 as if someone fled from a lion
  and was met by a bear
 or went into the house and rested a hand against the wall
  and was bitten by a snake.
 20 Is not the day of the Lord darkness, not light,
  and gloom with no brightness in it?

 21 I hate, I despise your festivals,
  and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.
 22 Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings,
  I will not accept them,
 and the offerings of well-being of your fatted animals
  I will not look upon.
 23 Take away from me the noise of your songs;
  I will not listen to the melody of your harps.
 24 But let justice roll down like water
  and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Psalm: Psalm 70

 1 Be pleased, O God, to deliver me;
  O Lord, make haste to help me.
 2 Let those who seek my life be put to shame and confounded;
  let those who take pleasure in my misfortune draw back and be disgraced.
 3 Let those who say to me “Aha!” and gloat over me
  turn back because of their shame.
 4 Let all who seek you rejoice and be glad in you;
  let those who love your salvation say forever, “Great is the Lord!”
 5 But as for me, I am poor and needy; come to me quickly, O God.
  You are my helper and my deliverer; O Lord, do not tarry.

Second Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

13 We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters, about those who have died, so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. 14 For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have died. 15 For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who have died. 16 For the Lord himself, with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet, will descend from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up in the clouds together with them to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will be with the Lord forever. 18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.

Gospel: Matthew 25:1-13

[Jesus said to the disciples:] 1 “Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten young women took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. 2 Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. 3 When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, 4 but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. 5 As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. 6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ 7 Then all those young women got up and trimmed their lamps. 8 The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ 9 But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ 10 And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet, and the door was shut. 11 Later the other young women came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ 12 But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ 13 Keep awake, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

From sundaysandseasons.com. Copyright © 2026 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SAS022632. New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Revised Common Lectionary, Copyright © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts, admin Augsburg Fortress. Used by permission.

Readings and Psalm for October 25, 2026, Reformation Sunday

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

Rooted in the past and growing into the future, the church must always be reformed in order to live out the love of Christ in an ever-changing world. We celebrate the good news of God’s grace, that Jesus Christ sets us free every day to do this life-transforming work. Trusting in the freedom given to us in baptism, we pray for the church, that Christians will unite more fully in worship and mission.

Prayer of the Day

Almighty God, gracious Lord, we thank you that your Holy Spirit renews the church in every age. Pour out your Holy Spirit on your faithful people. Keep them steadfast in your word, protect and comfort them in times of trial, defend them against all enemies of the gospel, and bestow on the church your saving peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Readings and Psalm

Jeremiah 31:31-34
Psalm 46
Romans 3:19-28
John 8:31-36

First Reading: Jeremiah 31:31-34

31 The days are surely coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. 32 It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt—a covenant that they broke, though I was their husband, says the Lord. 33 But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the Lord: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 No longer shall they teach one another or say to each other, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the Lord, for I will forgive their iniquity and remember their sin no more.

Psalm: Psalm 46

 1 God is our refuge and strength,
  a very present help in trouble.
 2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be moved,
  and though the mountains shake in the depths of the sea;
 3 though its waters rage and foam,
  and though the mountains tremble with its tumult.
 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
  the holy habitation of the Most High.
 5 God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be shaken;
  God shall help it at the break of day.
 6 The nations rage, and the kingdoms shake;
  God speaks, and the earth melts away.
 7 The Lord of hosts is with us;
  the God of Jacob is our stronghold.
 8 Come now, regard the works of the Lord,
  what desolations God has brought upon the earth;
 9 behold the one who makes war to cease in all the world;
  who breaks the bow, and shatters the spear, and burns the shields with fire.
 10 “Be still, then, and know that I am God;
  I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth.”
 11 The Lord of hosts is with us;
  the God of Jacob is our stronghold.

Second Reading: Romans 3:19-28

19 Now we know that, whatever the law says, it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world may be held accountable to God. 20 For no human will be justified before him by deeds prescribed by the law, for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.

  21 But now, apart from the law, the righteousness of God has been disclosed and is attested by the Law and the Prophets, 22 the righteousness of God through the faith of Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction, 23 since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; 24 they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, 25 whom God put forward as a sacrifice of atonement by his blood, effective through faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over the sins previously committed; 26 it was to demonstrate at the present time his own righteousness, so that he is righteous and he justifies the one who has the faith of Jesus.
  27 Then what becomes of boasting? It is excluded. Through what kind of law? That of works? No, rather through the law of faith. 28 For we hold that a person is justified by faith apart from works prescribed by the law.

Gospel: John 8:31-36

31 Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in him, “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are descendants of Abraham and have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean by saying, ‘You will be made free’?”
  34 Jesus answered them, “Very truly, I tell you, everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not have a permanent place in the household; the son has a place there forever. 36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.”

From sundaysandseasons.com. Copyright © 2026 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SAS022632. New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Revised Common Lectionary, Copyright © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts, admin Augsburg Fortress. Used by permission.

Readings and Psalm for October 11, 2026, Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

In Isaiah we are given a vision of the great feast to come, when God will wipe away death forever. In Jesus’ parable about a great banquet, those invited do not come, so the invitation is extended to others. In our liturgy God spreads a table before us. Even amid anxiety and hardship we rejoice in the peace of God which surpasses all understanding. With great joy we feast at the table of the Lord, and we go forth to share the wonderful invitation with others hungering and thirsting for the abundant life of God.

Prayer of the Day

Lord of the feast, you have prepared a table before all peoples and poured out your life with abundance. Call us again to your banquet. Strengthen us by what is honorable, just, and pure, and transform us into a people of righteousness and peace, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Readings and Psalm

Isaiah 25:1-9
Psalm 23
Philippians 4:1-9
Matthew 22:1-14

First Reading: Isaiah 25:1-9

 1 O Lord, you are my God;
  I will exalt you; I will praise your name,
 for you have done wonderful things,
  plans formed of old, faithful and sure.
 2 For you have made the city a heap,
  the fortified city a ruin;
 the palace of foreigners is a city no more;
  it will never be rebuilt.
 3 Therefore strong peoples will glorify you;
  cities of ruthless nations will fear you.
 4 For you have been a refuge to the poor,
  a refuge to the needy in their distress,
  a shelter from the rainstorm and a shade from the heat.
 When the blast of the ruthless was like a winter rainstorm,
  5 the noise of foreigners like heat in a dry place,
 you subdued the heat with the shade of clouds;
  the song of the ruthless was stilled.

 6 On this mountain the Lord of hosts will make for all peoples
  a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wines,
  of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear.
 7 And he will destroy on this mountain
  the shroud that is cast over all peoples,
  the covering that is spread over all nations;
  8 he will swallow up death forever.
 Then the Lord God will wipe away the tears from all faces,
  and the disgrace of his people he will take away from all the earth,
  for the Lord has spoken.
 9 It will be said on that day,
  “See, this is our God; we have waited for him, so that he might save us.
  This is the Lord for whom we have waited;
  let us be glad and rejoice in his salvation.”

Psalm: Psalm 23

 1 The Lord is my shepherd;
  I shall not be in want.
 2 The Lord makes me lie down in green pastures
  and leads me beside still waters.
 3 You restore my soul, O Lord,
  and guide me along right pathways for your name’s sake.
 4 Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil;
  for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
  you anoint my head with oil, and my cup is running over.
 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
  and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Second Reading: Philippians 4:1-9

1 My brothers and sisters, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, my beloved.

  2 I urge Euodia and I urge Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. 3 Yes, and I ask you also, my loyal companion, help these women, for they have struggled beside me in the work of the gospel, together with Clement and the rest of my coworkers, whose names are in the book of life.
  4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. 5 Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

  8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. 9 As for the things that you have learned and received and heard and noticed in me, do them, and the God of peace will be with you.

Gospel: Matthew 22:1-14

1 Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. 4 Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ 5 But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, 6 while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. 8 Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. 9 Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ 10 Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad, so the wedding hall was filled with guests.
  11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, 12 and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. 13 Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 For many are called, but few are chosen.”

From sundaysandseasons.com. Copyright © 2026 Augsburg Fortress. All rights reserved. Reprinted by permission under Augsburg Fortress Liturgies Annual License #SAS022632. New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Revised Common Lectionary, Copyright © 1992 Consultation on Common Texts, admin Augsburg Fortress. Used by permission.

Readings and Psalm for October 4, 2026, Nineteenth Sunday after Pentecost

Posted on by Our Savior Lutheran Church and Campus Ministry

In Sunday’s gospel reading, Jesus tells a vineyard parable, which serves as an image of Israel, the prophets’ mission, and Christ’s death. For Christians, the vineyard also speaks of God’s love poured out in the blood of Christ, given to us for the forgiveness of sin. Grafted onto Christ the vine at baptism, we are nourished with wine and bread so that we may share Christ’s sufferings and know the power of his resurrection.

Prayer of the Day

Beloved God, from you come all things that are good. Lead us by the inspiration of your Spirit to know those things that are right, and by your merciful guidance, help us to do them, through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.

Readings and Psalm

Isaiah 5:1-7
Psalm 80:7-15
Philippians 3:4b-14
Matthew 21:33-46

First Reading: Isaiah 5:1-7

 1 I will sing for my beloved
  my love song concerning his vineyard:
 My beloved had a vineyard
  on a very fertile hill.
 2 He dug it and cleared it of stones
  and planted it with choice vines;
 he built a watchtower in the midst of it
  and hewed out a wine vat in it;
 he expected it to yield grapes,
  but it yielded rotten grapes.

 3 And now, inhabitants of Jerusalem
  and people of Judah,
 judge between me
  and my vineyard.
 4 What more was there to do for my vineyard
  that I have not done in it?
 When I expected it to yield grapes,
  why did it yield rotten grapes?

 5 And now I will tell you
  what I will do to my vineyard.
 I will remove its hedge,
  and it shall be devoured;
 I will break down its wall,
  and it shall be trampled down.
 6 I will make it a wasteland;
  it shall not be pruned or hoed,
  and it shall be overgrown with briers and thorns;
 I will also command the clouds
  that they rain no rain upon it.

 7 For the vineyard of the Lord of hosts
  is the house of Israel,
 and the people of Judah
  are his cherished garden;
 he expected justice
  but saw bloodshed;
 righteousness
  but heard a cry!

Psalm: Psalm 80:7-15

 7 Restore us, O God of hosts;
  let your face shine upon us, and we shall be saved.
 8 You have brought a vine out of Egypt;
  you cast out the nations and planted it.
 9 You cleared the ground for it;
  it took root and filled the land.
 10 The mountains were covered by its shadow
  and the towering cedar trees by its boughs.
 11 You stretched out its tendrils to the sea
  and its branches to the river.
 12 Why have you broken down its wall,
  so that all who pass by pluck off its grapes?
 13 The wild boar of the forest has ravaged it,
  and the beasts of the field have grazed upon it.
 14 Turn now, O God of hosts,
  look down from heaven;
 15 behold and tend this vine;
  preserve what your right hand has planted.

Second Reading: Philippians 3:4b-14

[Paul writes:] 4b If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: 5 circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; 6 as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.
  7 Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. 8 More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. 10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, 11 if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead.

  12 Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal, but I press on to lay hold of that for which Christ has laid hold of me. 13 Brothers and sisters, I do not consider that I have laid hold of it, but one thing I have laid hold of: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal, toward the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

Gospel: Matthew 21:33-46

[Jesus said:] 33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a winepress in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went away. 34 When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 35 But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36 Again he sent other slaves, more than the first, and they treated them in the same way. 37 Then he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ 39 So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41 They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.”
  42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures:
 ‘The stone that the builders rejected
  has become the cornerstone;
 this was the Lord’s doing,
  and it is amazing in our eyes’?
43 “Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces its fruits. 44 The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
  45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 46 They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.

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