Daily Devotion for Friday 2nd October 2026

Ephesians 2: 1 – 10
 
You were dead through the trespasses and sins in which you once lived, following the course of this world, following the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work among those who are disobedient. All of us once lived among them in the passions of our flesh, following the desires of flesh and senses, and we were by nature children of wrath, like everyone else. But God, who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which he loved us even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,  so that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God—  not the result of works, so that no one may boast.  For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life.

Reflection
 
On Monday I commented that the renegade monks here in Orkney see themselves as good Catholics and the Catholic church as having fallen into heresy; by definition the Catholic Church regards them as, at least, schismatic and, probably, heretics too.  We tend to smile at this but forget we belong to a tradition which was deemed heretical by the Catholic Church, which saw the Catholic Church itself as heretical, and which, with some glee over the years, has seen dissent within its own tradition as heretical. 
 
Much historical and theological examination has been undertaken over the years to explore the causes and results of the Reformation.  At its heart were differing understandings of a few key doctrines – like Paul’s assertion in today’s reading that we are saved by God’s loving kindness through faith and not through any good things we may have done ourselves.  I’m not at all sure that contemporary Catholicism teaches anything different but, perhaps, with a slightly different emphasis.  Four hundred years of pondering these doctrines in response to each other has meant Catholic and Protestant theology has been influenced and informed by each other. 
 
We don’t call each other “heretics” these days which is good but, at the same time, I wonder how much doctrine we know and care about.  It is said that in 4^th Century Constantinople everyday conversation around the marketplaces focused on the weighty matters being discussed at the great ecumenical councils (though remember what I wrote about sources on Tuesday!).  The unfortunate line in a promotional video “you can believe what you like in the URC” still makes me smile and shake my head.  Yet doctrine is something the modern Church does feel uncomfortable with, and rather ill equipped to debate as it faces ever new problems in a world which cares less and less about what the Church thinks.  That disinterest is why the very term “heretic” seems gloriously medieval but, as we shall see tomorrow, is still alive and well in our contemporary world.   
 
Prayer
 
Help us, dear Lord,
to appreciate Your mercy, ever new,
which reaches through our decay,
seats us with the Lord of life,
showers immeasurable riches upon us,
and saves from all that drags us down. 
Teach us Your ways,
that we may, with confidence
explain what we believe.
Amen.