The first reading today comes from the Book of Ruth, named for the Moabite woman who commits herself to the Israelite people by an oath to her mother-in-law Naomi and becomes the great-grandmother of David by marriage to Boaz of Bethlehem. Thus she is an ancestor in the messianic line that leads to Jesus (cf. Matthew 1:5, the genealogy). Continue reading
Daily Archives: August 25, 2023
The developing Church
This coming Sunday is the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time. Jesus’ words, “upon this rock I will build my church” (v.18) has also contributed to exegetical controversy. Some scholars hold this passage is a later addition and is not authentic, but betrays a later ecclesiastical interest in interjecting that later period’s hierarchy and organization onto Jesus’ words. Continue reading