The Spirit leads Jesus into the desert to be tempted by the devil, and we hear this: “He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry.” Seems like a questionable battle preparation plan. When I fast, I usually feel grouchy at best, and at worst, like I might pass out from longing for a hamburger. Isn’t it better to be well-fed and fully hydrated, especially to face spiritual struggles? Why fast?

READ MORE

Of all the things Jesus says which seem totally bat-crazy, this one might take the cake: “But I say to you, love your enemies, and pray for those who persecute you.” An enemy is someone who desires the destruction of you, your projects, or those you care about. To love and pray for them is to want their health, strength, and flourishing. But if they thrive, they are more likely to hurt you and others. So, aren’t you indirectly willing your own destruction, or that of your friends? If you doubt that this problem is embedded in this teaching, when was the last time you actually prayed honestly for the people you really hate?

READ MORE

It’s often said that the Catholic Church lays heavy rules on her members, rules that can almost seem impossible. Mass every Sunday? No lying ever? Sexual purity all the time? I recently said to some non-Catholic friends that more than fifty adults were baptized at my parish at the Easter Vigil. One responded spontaneously with shock, “Why would anyone do that?” In other words, why would someone willingly place themselves in a system with such demanding and rigorous rules? 

READ MORE

READ MORE

Our readings this week all speak of the distinctive characteristics of the people God gathers to achieve God's purposes. The deep communion of love that God envisions requires a community that is humble and lowly, as Zephaniah describes. God chooses the weak and foolish to reveal God's strength and wisdom, as Paul says. And in the Beatitudes, Jesus teaches that a people who know their weakness and vulnerability can most fully place their trust in God and work for a just world.

READ MORE

To introduce the beginnings of Jesus’ ministry in Matthew’s Gospel today, the evangelist quotes from Isaiah 9, which is presented to us more fully in our first reading. Isaiah acknowledges the darkness of oppression from the conquest of the Galilee region by Assyria, but reminds his people of the hope God offers them. Matthew, writing in the time of the Roman Empire centuries later, points to Jesus and his proclamation of the kingdom of heaven, to overturn all forms of oppression.

READ MORE

As we the Church begin Ordinary Time, we reflect upon the Baptism of Jesus, and its significance in our own lives and communities. The Gospel of John does not narrate the Baptism like the other Gospels. Instead, John the Baptist gives testimony, emphasizing that Jesus has received the Holy Spirit. Jesus will go on to baptize with this same Spirit, as he did immediately after his resurrection (John 20). What might this mean for us, who share in this same Baptism? Today's reading from Isaiah suggests that we are to be a “light to the nations,” a people proclaiming and sharing God's love. Paul's greeting to the church in Corinth reminds us that we are simultaneously God's sanctified people and yet continually called to become holy. Baptism begins our journey, where we know the Spirit dwells within, and the same Spirit summons us to full maturity in Christ.

READ MORE

Epiphany is a day when popular customs mostly overshadow scriptural accuracy. Matthew’s Gospel never refers to kings coming to see Christ, nor to their number (only the gifts are enumerated), nor to their names. Matthew tells us only that some “magi” came with gold, frankincense, and myrrh. Magos referred to members of the Persian priestly class; later it had the connotation of magicians and astrologers.

READ MORE

A Hebrew word that many people are familiar with is shalom, commonly translated into English as “peace.” However, the word is much richer, deeper, and broader than that. As a matter of fact, when the blessing in today’s first reading concludes with shalom, it serves as a summary of the entire blessing: shalom is God’s wholeness, well-being, longevity, harmony, as well as God's peace.READ MORE

The four Gospel portraits of Jesus take very different approaches to his origins. Mark has no record of Jesus’ ancestry, except for his connection to John the Baptist. Matthew traces his genealogy back to Abraham; Luke even farther back, to Adam. The Gospel of John outdoes them all, tracing Jesus’ origins back to the time before time, before the world was created! Jesus is the eternal Word of God.

READ MORE

Advent’s four Sundays each have their own focus: “Stay awake!” (First); John the Baptist (Second); Rejoice! (Third); Joseph/Mary (Fourth). We might need to have little pity on the Fourth Sunday, however, since the hectic realities of the secular calendar can overwhelm it, particularly in those years when there are only one or two (or zero!) days before Christmas. This year we have the luxury of a whole week!

READ MORE

Good news is good news is...Today's messages from Isaiah (prophetic ancestor of John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth) and James (spiritual offspring of John and Jesus) both have messages that resonate across the five centuries that separate them: hope in the coming power and presence of God. Isaiah was attempting to comfort and encourage the people of Israel in geographic and spiritual exile. Their exile will end, Isaiah says, with God's presence shown forth through spectacular occurrences in nature.

READ MORE

In our scripture translations, word choices matter. When today’s first reading tells us that a “stump” will bring forth a new shoot, it's Isaiah’s way of telling us that God's miraculous power is at work. Seeds bring forth shoots. Even buried roots can bring forth shoots. But a stump? When we look at a stump, essentially we are seeing the corpse of what used to be a tree.

READ MORE