Deep Calls to Deep 2nd SUN LENT – Part Deux of Homily
On the mountain, Peter spoke for the disciples, offering to build 3 booths for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah. What’s up with that??? This reply seems to come from the same place in Peter as his reply to Jesus previously, “God forbid that you should suffer & die!” Peter and the others want to domesticate Jesus and God […]
2nd SUN LENT – back to the same mountain?
Jesus was tempted on a high mountain. He was transfigured on a high mountain. Hmmm. Matthew 17:1 (NRSV) — 1 Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. Matthew 4:8 (NRSV) — 8 Again, the devil took him to a […]
1st SUN LENT – Homily #2 / audio
The Third Temptation – Our daydreams about our/my greatness, to control for every outcome, can help us be situated with Christ in Lent. So, “How did you Marquette University fans prepare for the game against Creighton, to prepare against loss?” Should I wear my lucky Creighton sweatshirt or not? I was seeking a way of managing […]
1st SUN LENT – Homily #1 audio
Jesus fasted. He was hungry. Implications? My first homily explored what I wrote about the last couple days. Perhaps you will find it helpful for your Lent. –roc,sj
1st SUN LENT – “Jesus fasted…”
It’s my sense that the temptations/tests Jesus faced called into question his fidelity in the midst of the deepest hungers of the human heart he experienced from fasting. He did not shield himself from those very hungers that drive us to fill ourselves. Rather, he embraced our hungers without acting out. It seems to me, then, that […]
1st SUN LENT – Basic Temptation
Jesus hungered in the wilderness. He was tempted there and in that state – ‘make stone bread’. Actually, the Greek says, “Say this stone is bread.” He wasn’t tempted to exercise divine power or to perform magic. He faced the fundamental temptation we all face: Make something be what it isn’t. A stone isn’t […]
1st SUN LENT – A Time of Testing…
The Greek, peirazo, can be translated “to tempt” or “to test.” There are lots of reasons to render it “to test.” In which category would you put Jesus’ temptation/testing? Matthew 4:1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tested by the devil. God tested Abraham. Genesis 22:1f After these […]
8th SUN ORD – [An Aside]
We’ve had such challenging gospels on Sundays since the Sermon on the Mount began. Same for the weekdays of the 8th Week – tough to deal with. I hope this aside clarifies where I’m going with the Sunday gospel from the 8th Week. And it’s a pretty darn good set-up for Lent. YIKES! Monday, February […]
8th SUN ORD – “Let’s talk serving…”
Yep, let’s talk “serving…” The Greek word below translates the Hebrew, abodah, “to serve… to worship.” We’ll see how it shows up in Exodus as the difference between serving / worshiping Pharaoh or God. Or in Deuteronomy as serving idols in the Promised Land. Or in the prophets… You get the picture. To serve; worship; bond […]
7th SUN ORD – “The other side…”
If I love my enemy, I will feel vulnerable, exposed, unprotected, and defenseless. If I step out of my fortress – and the fortress of my ideologically compatible group – I will be vulnerable, exposed, unprotected, and defenseless. It’s a helluva conundrum, wanting to be conformed to Christ. Scares the stuffing out of me. You?
Deep Calls to Deep 