How to deal with “those others” is a perennial question. At one end of the spectrum is Jesus’ initial response to the pagan woman. His mission, he asserted, was to the lost sheep of Israel. He said to her, “Let the children be fed first. For it is not right to take the food of… Read More »

The queen of Sheba witnessed Solomon’s great wisdom. The Biblical story of the Queen of Sheba has echoes in many cultures. Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Coptic, Yoruba legends all tell her story. The kings of Ethiopia claimed descendence from her and Solomon’s child. In more modern times there have been songs, plays, paintings, movies about the… Read More »

There was a book a few years ago, Jesus, the Pharisee, that pointed out that both Jesus and the Pharisees were trying to help ordinary people live God’s commands in their daily lives. Their differences can be summarized as minimalism versus maximalism. The Pharisees minimalist approach — what’s the least I have to do to stay… Read More »

Solomon said, “The LORD intends to dwell in the dark cloud; I have truly built you a princely house, a dwelling where you may abide forever.” Solomon apparently did not notice the contradictory nature of his statement. The LORD lives “in the dark cloud” and is not about to be limited or constrained by human… Read More »

Pope Francis has called Catholics to become “missionary disciples.” The founder of my religious congregation, Fr. Judge, had a similar idea when he said “Every Catholic is called to be an apostle.” For most of us the idea of being a missionary or being an apostle can be overwhelming. We’re not that confident in our… Read More »

My guess is the disciples were really happy when Jesus said it was time for a vacation. “Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.”  My guess is they were really disappointed when the crowds showed up and caring for them ruined their time away. Every parent can relate to the… Read More »

Ben Sirach, writing 800 or 900 years after the events, has high praise for David as the ideal king. Like the choice fat of the sacred offerings, so was David in Israel. He kind of glosses over the crimes that characterized David’s reign with a reminder that “the Lord forgave his sins.” This contradicts the… Read More »

St. Mark describes the apostles as self-absorbed, ambitious, seeking benefits, rivaling. To break that cycle of focus on little old me Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out. He wanted them to understand that sharing in his mission is about what others are going through, not what I am going through. The students… Read More »

Many themes run through today’s feast of the Presentation of the Lord. As the scripture readings emphasis, Jesus as the hope of God’s people as the incarnate Son of God is presented to the people. The feast also remembers that on the fortieth day after the birth of a child a mother would be “purified”… Read More »

You can imagine how happy Jairus was when Jesus agreed to come to heal his daughter … and how frustrated he was when the woman with a hemorrhage stopped the Lord on his way. My guess is that he thought “you have been sick for twelve years. Can’t you wait one more day so that… Read More »