I recently heard a businessman speaking about his least favorite scripture passages. First was Jesus’ story about the vineyard owner recruiting workers throughout the course of a day (Matthew 20:1–16 ). He didn’t like the ending, with those hired toward…
Jesus calls us sheep in this Sunday’s gospel reading (Jn 10:11-18). From anybody else this would be an insult, but it actually says more about him and his role as our shepherd than about us being among the dumbest animals…
On the first few Sundays after Easter Sunday we are treated to a variety of cases of mistaken identity. Jesus appears to various people after returning from the dead and nobody recognizes him—at least right away. As holy as these…
Non-Christians have a lot in common with my saintly namesake, St. Thomas—the Doubter. Even he converted to all-in Christianity reluctantly, as we read in this Sunday’s gospel account. It took the risen Christ himself to accomplish that hands-on conversion. Thomas…
Last Sunday we all played a bit part in the reading of Christ’s Passion—and it wasn’t a very sympathetic role, either. We were the angry rabble, and our big line of dialog was easy to memorize: “Crucify him!” The good…
This Sunday we read of Christ’s passion. But it’s not just his passion we remember, it’s that of all those around him—people who had no idea who he was. We wouldn’t have a Passion Sunday if it weren’t for the…
People who make New Year’s and Lenten resolutions often have similar goals but different outcomes. Many promises made on New Year’s Eve are broken by New Year’s Day. Lent offers many more opportunities to succeed and more time to become…
In last week’s gospel reading Jesus told his persecutors that he could raise God’s fallen temple in three days. Of course he was referring to his own body. The message this week is that we are all houses of God,…
“Destroy this temple and in three days I will raise it up.” Jesus’ disciples heard him say this to the Jews after he overthrew the marketplace that had been set up in the temple. They had no idea what he…
Isn’t it funny that when man first wanted to learn what it was like to be God we went to the devil? That serpent in the Garden made us believe that God was afraid that if we ate of the…