Sunday’s Readings: Acts 4:32-35; Psalms 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24; 1 John 5:1-6; John 20:19-31 SO THAT YOU MAY BELIEVE It is not often that the author of one of the books of the Bible comes right out and tells us directly why he is writing what he is writing. In this Sunday’s Gospel reading, taken from the…
Sunday’s Readings: Acts 10:34, 37-43; Psalms 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23; Corinthians 3:1-4; John 20:1-9 PROCLAIM THE RISEN CHRIST On Easter morning everything—the spring weather, the flowers, birds and butterflies, the people around us in their finery, the beautiful liturgy and music—everything seems to bear witness that Jesus Christ is risen today! Like the eye-witness accounts in today’s…
Sunday’s Readings: John 12:12-16; Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalms 22:8-9, 17-18, 19-20, 23-24; Philippians 2:6-11; Mark 15:1-39 PASSION The contrast between the processional reading in today’s liturgy and the proclamation of the Passion is striking. We are given a glimpse of how profoundly the word of God is fulfilled in Jesus. First he must be hailed as the…
Sunday’s Readings: 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23; Psalms 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6; Ephesians 2:4-10; John 3:14-21 COMMUNAL RESPONSIBILITY The people of God forgot the covenant and flouted God’s laws. They did not listen to the prophets among them, who spoke for God in warning them. Prophets are sent from God to remind us why we are here,…
Sunday’s Readings: Exodus 20:1-17; Psalms 19:8, 9, 10, 11; 1 Corinthians 1:22-25; John 2:13-25 KEEP HOLY THE SABBATH There’s no better way to deepen our Lenten practice than to review the Ten Commandments. The first three, having to do with our right relationship to God, get the most ink. The one we busy people probably have…
Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 22:1-2, 9, 10-13, 15-18; Psalms 116:10, 15, 16-17, 18-19; Romans 8:31-34; Mark 9:2-10 THE OBEDIENCE OF ABRAHAM AND JESUS God tested Abraham by asking not for an ordinary sacrifice, which would have been a partial burning with the meat divided between God and the people and eaten by those who sacrificed, but for…
Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 9:8-15; Psalms 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9; 1 Peter 3:18-22; Mark 1:12-15 PEOPLE OF THE COVENANT If there is one word that stands out in today’s readings, it is “covenant.” God’s faithfulness and goodness serve as examples to us of how to live. Genesis tells the story of Noah and of God’s covenant not only…
Sunday’s Readings: Leviticus 13:1-2, 44-46; Psalms 32:1-2, 5, 11; 1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1; Mark 1:40-45 GIVE GOD THE GLORY A curious feature of the first half of Mark’s Gospel is the pattern of Jesus working a miracle, then telling the recipient of the miracle to keep still about it. Many theories have been offered: Mark is setting…