Deep Calls to Deep 5th SUN ORD – audio version of homily
I can’t believe this either, but my homily went just over 9 minutes! Will miracles never cease? Peace to you today! –roc,sj
5th SUN ORD-“Light of the world? Whaaa…???”
Here’s my best guess about what Jesus probably would have taught the disciples in the house. That is, the Light shone on the hidden and night-time parts of their lives (our lives) that disciples, like us, might come into the light as we are. Reading 1 Isaiah 58:7-10 Thus says the LORD: Share your bread with the hungry, shelter […]
5th SUN ORD – “Light in the House”
So far we’ve seen that foolish salt needs to be thrown out (ballo). And right eyes, right hands, stumbling feet (all that leads to sin), and unfruitful trees also need to be thrown out. Jesus’ continuing instruction (between chapters 5 & 7 and throughout) will teach us about both what unhealthy eyes look like and what healthy eyes look like. [Literalists, beware!] […]
5th SUN ORD – “One-Eyed Christians???”
The brief selection from Sunday’s gospel creates a web of relationships within the gospel of Matthew itself and ties together significant bits from the Greek Old Testament. The verb, ballo, “to throw out,” connects to Jesus other teaching about discerning action: Jesus teaches us to take which causes us to sin/be unfruitful/stumble/become foolish and throw it out. So, […]
5th SUN ORD Time – “Salt of the Earth”
What the heck does “salt of the earth” mean? Can salt lose it’s taste? Don’t think so, but it can become insipid. And that’s a tad closer to the meaning than what the NAB gave on Sunday. Too colloquial. Matthew 5:13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if salt has lost its taste, […]
Roc Homily – Sermon on the Mount situates us. (A) 2017
Perhaps we caught a glimpse of what “Poor” looks like in “Poor in Spirit.” Let’s look at “Spirit” today. The Greek, pneuma, refers to two different realities – the spirit of God and the human spirit. First, the human spirit (which calls out for conversion)… It ain’t pretty. Numbers 5:13f …if a spirit of […]
Roc Homily (a) – 4th SUN ORD (A) 2017
Sermon on the Mount: Who made up the crowd Jesus saw before going up the mountain? Wounded people came to him then drawn by the promise of healing. Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people. So his fame […]
Roc Homily (d) – 3rd SUN Ord Time (A) 2017
I concluded my homily last Sunday with this: “I now fully support the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. I believe that all in this country should receive the same insurance as Senators and members of the House of Representatives. So, take away the first and bring on the second.” Here is the audio version […]
Roc Homily (c) – “Silence” and the Call of the Disciples…
Last night, I viewed the movie, “Silence.” It touched me in many ways and led me to reflect on the Call of the Disciples in last Sunday’s gospel. First, a bit of exegesis on the call. Matthew 4:15f “Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali, on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee […]
Roc Homily (b) – 3rd Sunday Ordinary Time (A) 2017
The significance of the sea in Matthew. A lot happens by the sea, on the sea, or in the sea in Matthew’s gospel. Sunday’s gospel referred to the sea three times. Unusual, eh? Two main themes stand out: Both Matthew and the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament, present the sea as the symbol of everything that is opposed to […]
Deep Calls to Deep 