There are pages in the Bible that keep me awake at night. This Sunday’s reading from the book of Jeremiah is one of those, but I know I am not alone in my deep discomfort about it when I compare the different ways the first verse has been translated.
Sunday Scriptures
Who do People Say That The Son of Man Is?
If newspapers as we know them only date to the 17th Century, how did the earliest followers of Jesus find out what was going on? Had there been such thing as the Nazareth News, it wouldn’t have lasted because very few people of that era knew how to read. So how did the disciples stay on top of things? Simple: word of mouth has never gone out of style!
Real Faith Wouldn’t Take No for an Answer
It takes more than a map or an app to figure out this Sunday’s Gospel reading, which tells us that Jesus “withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.” These were cities on the Mediterranean coast, quite a distance from Gennesaret (on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee), where Jesus and the disciples landed the boat after the eventful crossing about which we heard in last Sunday’s Gospel. It’s a long enough walk to make us wonder what Jesus was up to!
He who Calms Every Storm And Hears Every Prayer
Unfazed by the request, Jesus tells him “come,” and so he does! Yet as Peter walks toward Jesus on the water, the force of the wind frightens him and he begins to sink. “Lord, save me!” he calls out, the first of countless times since that these words have been uttered in prayer! Jesus reaches out to take Peter by the hand, gently asking him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Do You Believe in Miracles?
Do you believe in miracles? Thomas Jefferson, the chief architect of the Declaration of Independence, certainly didn’t! Still, he held Jesus in high esteem, writing that Jesus was responsible for “the most sublime and benevolent code of morals” ever offered.
Predestined? Yes, to Be Conformed To the Image of His Son
The human being, the highest and most exalted of God’s creatures, is its own agent in determining its salvation, making use of God’s gifts of free will, rationality, and the sanctifying grace that is actively bestowed upon it. This pathway to eternal life is made accessible through the Redemptive Sacrifice of the Cross, which makes it possible for every human being, past and present, to attain eternal life.
For True Growth to Happen, Wheat and Weed Must Grow Side-by-Side
Bishop DiMarzio’s column for the last edition of The Tablet, “The Birth of our Democracy,” spoke much truth regarding the recent calls and attempts (some successful) to tear down statues and monuments throughout the nation. He writes that “the statues that are now being taken down with public authority or by acts of individuals betray a misunderstanding of human nature. It is human nature that has been wounded by Original Sin, but it has been redeemed by the Blood of Jesus Christ. There are no perfect people.”
Is the Seed Scattered, or Sown?
Realizing that we are a constant work- in-progress — and that God is merciful — lays the groundwork for receiving God’s Word as fertile ground that allows the seed to be received, nurtured with the help of God, and grown into fruit that solely gives glory to Almighty God.
Take My Yoke Upon You
Truth be told, as a late 20th-century-born Brooklynite, whenever Jesus uses farming imagery in His teaching, my mind gravitates to a television show that was always on in the Panicali household, whether in original episodes or in reruns: Little House on the Prairie.
A Step Into the Unknown And Unpredictable
Although this is not usually the forum for personal messages, I do want to make an exception today and wish my classmate, Fr. Dave Dettmer, the Pastor of St. Edmund’s parish in Brooklyn, a very Happy 40th Anniversary of Ordination.