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Lectionary Index for Psalms

How does the Revised Common Lectionary use Psalms?

I've been right through the 3 year cycle of the Lectionary and drawn up an index of which Psalms are used for which seasons in which years. This has highlighted for me how the Lectionary chooses Psalms and verses within Psalms. I find the results troubling.

Full Lectionary Index of Psalms

Analysis of Lectionary use of Psalms
 
The ‘Top 10’ Psalms for special occasions are:
 
Psalm 96: Christmas & World Communion
Psalm 97: Christmas
Psalm 98: Christmas
Psalm 149: Christmas
Psalm 126: Harvest Festival
Psalm 51: Ash Wednesday
Psalm 31: Palm Sunday
Psalm 22: Good Friday
Psalm 118: Easter
Psalm 104: Pentecost
 
Other Psalms well used (3 or more times) in the Lectionary are:
1
8: New Year
19
23
29: Epiphany
36: Holy Week
45
47: Ascension
70: Holy Week
71: Holy Week
72: Holy Week and Epiphany
76: Anzac Day
78
84: Mother’s Day
85: Peace Sunday
93: Ascension
99: Transfiguration
105
106: Reformers
107
114: Easter
116: Holy Week
119
130
139
144: Waitangi Day

57 Psalms are omitted from the Lectionary – about 40%
 
What kind of Psalms are chosen or rejected by the Lectionary?
 
Lectionary Psalms tend to be the ‘we’ Psalms of public worship and praise
19
 
The ‘I’ Psalms of persecution and pain tend to be omitted,
e.g. 18 (I called to the Lord in my distress)
6 (my pillow is drenched with tears)
140-143
 
except for 31. 70, 71 which are used in Holy Week
Lent includes a few personal plea Psalms like 63, 40, 42, 43
Psalms of confession are included:
32
51
 
Where Psalms of personal struggle are included they have a strong hopefully positive resolution, e.g. 130 (Out of the depths I call … I wait for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning)
42 (as a deer longs for flowing streams)
 
The Lectionary avoids the difficult Psalms, of anguish, questioning, struggle & pain, like
10 (Why do you hide in times of trouble?)
60 (You have rejected us)
69 (Save me, God, I’m drowning!)
38 (my wounds are festering)
73 (I tried to understand this)
74
79
88
94 (how long??!!)
102
 
and the violent Psalms
7 (rise up, Lord, in your anger!)
11 (rain burning coals & sulphur on the wicked)
35 (disgrace & humiliate them!)
109
 
e.g., all the 120 Psalms are included except for 129 & 120, psalms of suffering
 
Some wonderful praise Psalms are omitted, e.g. 33, 47, 108, 150
Too short: the Lectionary does not include sweet little 131, surely a favourite of many! –& 117 is also left out.
Don’t know why 115 is left out.
or 136 (God’s steadfast love lasts forever! refrain)
 
Selection of verses:
The Lectionary carefully leaves out violent or angry verses,
9 (v 6, the enemy come to eternal ruin)
17 includes the elements of confident confession, but leaves out the plea for protection from attack (my deadly enemies lying in wait like lions)
and in the process leaves out the best bit (guard me as the apple of an eye)
 
Clearly the Lectionary comes from a phase of Christian life when the experience of being under attack was a foreign one, and it was deemed impolite to mention in public worship.
 
Some verse selection is simply for length.
 
Links and prophecies
 
My bigger problem with the Lectionary is that it does not often reveal the points of connection between the New Testament books and the Psalms. Psalm references and quotes are everywhere. Occasionally these are reflected in the Lectionary
e.g. Acts 2 & Psalm 16
(it is a more major problem that little of Acts comes up in the Lectionary)
 
but mostly they are not
e.g. Roman 3 & Psalm 14
Hebrews
Ephesians 4:8 & Psalm 68
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Written by Silvia Purdie 

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