Cruz demonstrated with hand movements. He placed one hand up and positioned the other lower. Then he moved the upper hand below the other hand and lifted up the latter.
Last Wednesday we observed Ash Wednesday, the beginning of the 40 days of Lent. It was inspiring to see churches full for the Masses and, as one evening newscast reported, a lot of young people filled the churches.
TODAY is sinners’ Sunday. The readings are powerful, showing three of the most beloved and admired figures in scripture: David, Paul and Jesus, who all tackle the question of sin and freedom.
This Sunday’s Gospel is interesting not just for the principle —“Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God”—but also for the context.
(This piece is a homily that was delivered at the 10th anniversary Mass of the Magna Anima Education System, Inc., a social enterprise that has been working with public schools focusing on teacher formation.)
THERE is, across cultures and eras, a vision of the end times—one that is almost always preceded by cataclysmic events before a new order reigns. We see this in today’s Gospel.
For five Sundays, starting the last Sunday of July, we are taking the Gospel reading from John 6. We opened with the multiplication of the loaves and fish, and for the rest of the four Sundays we will hear the discourse on the bread of life. John 6 is a defining moment in the ministry and mission of Christ.
“An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.” The lex talionis, as this Old Testament law is called, is supposedly the oldest recorded or known principle in the world. While this may seem like a tit-for-tat law, bordering on the vengeful, it is important to go back to its roots—the context in which it was formulated and the value it wanted to uphold.
“Who do you say that I am?” This is a question that lies at the core of our Christian faith. Who is Christ to us in a very personal way?
There seems to be a consensus among scripture commentators that the reference to children in today’s Gospel carries two ideas: one, children who were counted among the poor, the disadvantaged and the helpless; and two, children who in their simple innocence showed humility.
