“We should understand, beloved, that the paschal mystery is one once old and new, transitory and eternal, corruptible and incorruptible, mortal and immortal. In terms of the Law is it old, in terms of the Word it is new. In its figure it is passing, in its grace it is eternal. It is corruptible in the sacrifice of the lamb, incorruptible in the eternal life of the Lord, It is mortal in his burial in the earth, immortal in his resurrection from the dead.
Easter Homily by St. Melito of Sardis
There are no Scripture passages that describe Holy Saturday. There are no accounts of disciples huddled in the Upper Room wondering how the life of Jesus came to an end on Calvary. There are no stories of what the disciples were thinking… or not thinking. Their world had been torn asunder. But were they hopeful? Were they well grounded in the meaning of the word “hope“? Are we?
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Part of the daily prayer of the Church (Divine Office, Liturgy of the Hours) is the Office of Readings. This morning’s readings are part particularly poignant here on this Good Friday and so I offer them for your reading and reflections Continue reading
There have been many a Good Friday in the course of my life. I have heard the Passion narrative. I led the Passion narrative during Good Friday liturgies. Over the many years of Bible study I have covered the Passion narrative more than a few times. And now thru the gift of my friends Jerry and Maureen, I experienced Good Friday in a way not to ever be forgotten. Continue reading
A few years ago, William J. O’Malley wrote about “taking the long way home.” It was a wonderful “musing” on the classic movie, “The Wizard of Oz.” We were reminded about the archetypal scene when Dorothy’s house lands on the Wicked Witch and then Glinda, the good witch, shows up and magically transfers the ruby slippers to Dorothy. As the ending of the movie makes clear, all Dorothy had to do was click her heels and proclaim, “There’s no place like home. There’s no place like home.” Why didn’t Glinda tell Dorothy that at the very beginning? Continue reading
As we move closer to the events of Holy Thursday and Good Friday, a cloud of darkness this way comes. For the past week of so we have been hearing about members of civic and religious leadership plotting to kill Jesus. The dark clouds have been on the horizon for some time. In today’s gospel, a scene from the Last Supper, the betrayal is becoming more public. Continue reading
A reflection for the Readings on Spy Wednesday: Holy Week is a story told in three acts.
Act 1: Love Portrayed. All Lent we have seen Love Portrayed: Jesus transfigured on the mountain top. The glory of God revealed and yet what would seem to be the final scene of the play is but the beginning. We’ve more to hear, more to see. Especially in the daily gospels we have acts of love. A man born blind who now sees. Lessons on unlimited forgiveness. Teachings on the great commandments of loving God and neighbor. And so many more scenes of love portrayed. The disciples believe because they have seen and heard the power of God in the world. Continue reading
Your average Catholic only needs to stand next to a born-again, evangelical Christian to understand how private we are about our life in faith. Of course, you’re thinking, “All that public praying and witnessing, that’s their thing. Our faith was more discrete, more private, more, well…… more sophisticated than asking someone in the local WalMart if they had been saved. Ours is a faith steeped in tradition, liturgy, sacraments. This is how we serve the Lord.” Continue reading
The gospel reading for today has a rather odd phrase: Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, I said, ‘You are gods’”? I think there is a tendency to be mystified and at the same simply think, “OK, Jesus said it…. That’s enough for me.” And then move on. But there is a lot going on in John 10, of which this gospel selection is just a portion. The whole of John 10 offers several questions, one being whether Jesus is the “good shepherd” promised in Ezekiel 34, but the one that concerns our reading today is whether Jesus is the unique Son of God, and conversely, whether God is in a very unique way his Father. Continue reading
In today’s gospel we see Jesus in an encounter with the Pharisees as time rapidly approaches the events we know as Holy Week. One of the basic threads of this narrative is about the ability to see, to intuit, to recognize the swirl of events that are around you. At first glance they might seem random, chaotic, or singularly isolated. At second glance there might not be any greater clarity, but something edges up to the corner of consciousness – maybe only to be dismissed, to be misconstrued, lost, or attach itself in that nagging way some thoughts do. The thoughts that just won’t be on their way. Continue reading
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