Reflections

During this season of Easter, we are treated to two sets of readings. Both are taken from the New Testament, and both have decidedly different approaches to telling us the Good News.  Luke’s Acts of the Apostles is volume two (the first being his Gospel) of his account of Jesus and his earliest followers, after […]

In yesterday’s first reading (Acts 13:26-33) Paul continued his discourse begun on Thursday on salvation history and on how Jesus was handed over by the leaders of his people into the hands of the Romans for execution.  He addressed his words both to the Jews in his audience (“descendants of Abraham’s family”) and the gentile

Uncertainties and the unknown are a messy part of our everyday lives: Will my children find jobs in their new locations?  Will I be able to handle my aging parent’s debilitating disease?  Should I accept a new position?  What major should I declare in college? What will the medical tests reveal?  I want to trust

In yesterday’s first reading (Acts 12:24-13:5) we read how Saul and Barnabas were “set apart” by the Holy Spirit and sent from Antioch on their first missionary journey.   Today, we continue reading (Acts 13:13-25).  Paul stands up in the Temple and begins to remind the congregation of their shared history.  He reminds them of

I came into the world as light, so that everyone who believes in me might not remain in darkness. (John 12: 46) Light and darkness, sight and blindness, these are powerful images. In Jesus’ time, other than fire light, candles, or oil lamps, the only other source of light was natural light. The day’s activities

In the past weeks, Acts has shown us the followers of Jesus beginning to take that which they have received and giving it to the entire world. First, we see Bachos, the Ethiopian eunuch, not welcomed at the Temple in Jerusalem, returning to his home where he spreads the Good News to Africa.   Following

We have arrived at a watershed moment that describes the inauguration of the mission to the Gentiles (Acts 11:1-18).  While today we cannot think of Christians other than as including Gentiles, their (our) inclusion involved a radical change in thinking for the first Christians who were all Jews, still felt like Jews, and maintained many

Today, the Fourth Sunday of Easter, called “Good Shepherd Sunday”, the subject of today’s Gospel.   It is also known as “Vocations Sunday”, a day when our Church prays for new shepherds and pastors to lead our Christian communities. In some parts of the world, especially in hotter and drier climates, sheep are a rarity.

Feast The Church presents us with the Feast of Saint Mark on April 25th, a date that virtually always falls during the Easter Season. Mark is an interesting figure in the Christian tradition.  A young man identified as Mark or John Mark is referred to in the Acts of the Apostles and several of the

Saul, which is Paul’s given name, was born into a Jewish family in Tarsus (Turkey) around the year A.D. 8; he was also a Roman citizen, a fact that would play a large role later in his life. Schooled as a Pharisee, he was a tent maker by trade but was most noted for his