September 2024

Paul wrote a first letter, now lost, to the Church in Corinth in the fall of 50 AD.  This letter was not well received.  The Corinthians wrote back asking for specific clarifications.  In the spring of 51, Paul wrote back, giving us what we now call 1 Corinthians.   This letter provides a detailed picture […]

With today’s Gospel reading (Mark 7:31-37) we enter a central part of Mark’s Gospel. The section begins with the healing of a deaf man and ends with the healing of a blind man. These are not just miracle stories about Jesus’ power; rather, they have a teaching purpose. Jesus has just been in the gentile

Today’s first reading (1 Corinthians 4:6-15) continues yesterday’s passage. Paul has been describing himself and Apollos as stewards or managers of God’s message. He argues that the focus should be totally on the message rather than on the messengers. The Corinthians should not be taking sides and pitting one messenger against the other, accepting one

Today’s gospel (Luke 5:33-39) refers to problems associated with change.  Jesus uses parables to teach about these problems, though his teaching is somewhat enigmatic.  First, tearing a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one does seem rather silly.  Other gospel writers record a slightly different parable, referring instead to a narrower problem

All this talk in today’s readings (1 Corinthians 3:18-23; Psalm 24; and Luke 5:1-11) about the wise being foolish, sort of has me, as people in my generation used to say, “bummed”. Probably because I am one of the wise guys that Paul is talking about in Corinthians. I am well educated. I am a

After driving out the demon from the man in the synagogue, Jesus goes to the house of Simon (Luke 4:38-44). There, He heals Simon’s mother-in-law who is sick with a severe fever.  She instantly recovers. The news of His miraculous healings and exorcisms spread throughout the district, and people begin to flock to the house

Throughout history, great leaders have arisen to lead peoples, nations, and kingdoms. There have been such leaders from ancient times until the present, leaders like Alexander the Great, Hannibal, Constantine, Tamerlane, Charles V, Suleiman the Magnificent, and Napoleon. These leaders ruled vast territory and were followed by great numbers of people. Not all these leaders

Today we begin the reading from Luke’s Gospel, which will bring us to the end of the Church year. We have already gone through Matthew’s and Mark’s, and John’s Gospel has been spread through various parts of the year, especially during the Advent, Christmas, Lent and Easter seasons. Luke’s Gospel is a companion volume to

After five weeks of reflecting on the sixth chapter of John’s Gospel and the theme of Jesus as the Bread of Life, we return today to our readings from Mark’s Gospel. The theme for today’s readings is the nature of true religion (Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23). The Law of Moses was very important for the