Out of Place

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Have you ever been in a place where you feel as though you are out of place? Not unwelcomed in a broad sense, but a bit of an intruder. The realization can come upon you unexpectedly and you enter into a liminal space where time freezes and you quickly process what is unfolding. You are entering a party at the home of a friend and you sense these folks are not your acquaintances. You feel under dressed – too casual in a room full of fashionistas. A beer-will-be-just-fine person in a room of upscale wine aficionados whose vocabulary is foreign. Surrounded by discussions of foreign films among people for whom “the MCU” has no meaning. But it was your good friend who invited you and has warmly welcomed you. Continue reading →

Questions

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This coming Sunday is the 31st Sunday in Year B. Our gospel is taken from the Gospel of Mark and is one of the most well known passages. Jesus is asked about the commandments: 28 One of the scribes…asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” The response is very familiar to Christians: 29 Jesus replied, “The first is this: ‘Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is Lord alone! 30 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”  Continue reading →

Kyrie Eleison

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“Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” (Mark 10:47)  Chuck Roberts was not an exceptional person – at least not in the way the world would account for such things. He graduated high school, held a number of jobs, saved a little, married, and settled down to have a family. He was laid to rest at age 32 on a gray raining morning. His wife Marie and their two small children stood at the graveside – no money, no insurance, no near-by family. Chuck was the only wage earner. They had never been rich, but now they were on the edge of poor ready to tumble in head first. Continue reading →

Bartimaeus: another thought

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This coming Sunday is the 30th Sunday. An interesting bit of background come from Dan Clendenin at Journey with Jesus

If “Timaeus” sounds vaguely familiar, you might be channeling your college introduction to philosophy class.  Timaeus is the title of Plato’s most famous dialogue and the name of its narrator.  In the Timaeus and elsewhere, Plato famously contrasts “seeing” the mere physical world while being “blind” to Eternal Truths.

And so Bartimaeus begs Jesus, “Rabbi, I want to see!” Continue reading →

Life, Purification, Covenant, and Atonement

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The first reading from Tuesday was taken from St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians. One verse stood out for me: “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the Blood of Christ.” (Eph 2:13) … and in a reflection two days ago I asked “this is “the good news?” In that reflection I pointed out how often the New Testament refers to the Blood of Christ as central to the entire plan of salvation – and provided a sampling of verses from across the entire New Testament. It raised the question of why the “blood of the Cross” was the path by which we are redeemed. Continue reading →

Bartimaeus: the Petition

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51 Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” 52 Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.

This coming Sunday is the 30th Sunday. Jesus replied, “What do you wish me to do for you?”  One might note that either I miscopied v.51, but the astute student will know that I am citing v.36 when James and John ask for the places of honor. In both verses the verb is thelō. Again Mark is drawing our attention to the differences, this time between Bartimaeus and the disciples. Where they ask for glory, power, and prestige, the blind ask for mercy and healing. The blind man’s faith was recognized by the Lord as an affirmation of confident trust in the gracious mercy of God and his power to heal (cf Mark 5:34). The healing was immediate. Continue reading →

The Sacrifice of the Cross

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The first reading from Tuesday was taken from St. Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians. One verse stood out for me: “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have become near by the Blood of Christ.” (Eph 2:13) … and in a reflection two days ago I asked “this is “the good news?” In that reflection I pointed out how often the New Testament refers to the Blood of Christ as central to the entire plan of salvation – and provided a sampling of verses from across the entire New Testament. It raised the question of why the “blood of the Cross” was the path by which we are redeemed. Continue reading →

What’s on your refrigerator

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The gospels for today’s daily Mass readings have been taken from Luke 12:49-53:

49  “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing! 50  There is a baptism with which I must be baptized, and how great is my anguish until it is accomplished! 51 Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52 From now on a household of five will be divided, three against two and two against three;  53 a father will be divided against his son and a son against his father, a mother against her daughter and a daughter against her mother, a mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

Not exactly the magnet saying you’re going to put on the refrigerator in the family kitchen. Continue reading →

Bartimaeus: the Call

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This coming Sunday is the 30th Sunday. Neither the blind man’s social status or the crowds’ rebuke matter to Jesus. It is evident that Bartimaeus has heard about Jesus of Nazareth and that his relentless crying of “Son of David, have pity upon me” reflects a conviction, formed on the basis of what he had heard, that Jesus could restore his sight. Continue reading →

Bartimaeus: Mercy

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This coming Sunday is the 30th Sunday. Though Bartimaeus was blind, he understood a great deal about Jesus. There is a division of opinion about the expression “Son of David.” Some scholars hold that it is a generally accepted, polite moniker for a Jew. Others hold that it is a title with Messianic overtones as indicated in documents from the Qumran community. Others take it more literally because in Judaism there was a tradition that Solomon, as David’s son, was specially enabled by God to heal (Josephus Antiquities 8.41–47). There is something compelling, in the shadow of the City of David, to suspect that the Markan Messianic “secret” is becoming unveiled. Continue reading →