“Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?” These words of Jesus are consoling but at the same time challenging. We are terrified because there are terrible things out there. We don’t always see the powerful word of the Lord calming the storms of life. But the message of scripture in so many ways… Read More »

St. Thomas had the right instincts. Genuine faith in Jesus comes when we are willing to touch his wounds. “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” The same is true of us. Our… Read More »

Throughout the history of the Church there have been martyrs. Certainly we remember the ancient Roman persecutions. Whenever the gospel is brought into a new land it provokes opposition and produces martyrs: Korea, Japan, Viet Nam, Uganda. When a “new order” is being imposed persecution results: the martyrs of England and Ireland, those killed during… Read More »

The encounter of Abraham and Sarah with the three heavenly visitors is a favorite story for believers. Rublev famously painted an icon of the scene as an image of the love of the Trinity. The point of the story is found in the words of “the Lord;” Is anything too marvelous for the LORD to do?… Read More »

If you want to make God laugh just describe your plans, goes the traditional saying. In the Bible it is not God but Abram and Sarai that laugh — not laughing “ha ha” but laughing “are you kidding me?” It is ridiculous to imagine that Abram at 99 and Sarai at 90 are going to… Read More »

Saints Peter and Paul are rightly viewed as the pivotal figures among the early followers of Jesus. They nurtured the Jesus movement from a small Jewish sect into a world wide Church. Of all their contemporaries they are the ones we know best. They come across as fully human characters with all of the strengths… Read More »

The sacrifice of animals is common in many religious traditions. For contemporary believers that seems bizarre. But for ancient peoples it was a reminder that dealing with God is a matter of life and death. That helps to explain the rather odd encounter between Abram and God including cut up animals, birds of prey, terrifying… Read More »

The Golden Rule is a common sense commandment that can be found in most cultures. To understand it properly it would help to append to the original saying: “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you” if you were in their circumstance. When Marie Antoinette infamously said “let them eat cake” she might… Read More »

The daily readings for the next days tells the saga of Abraham (Genesis 12-25). Abraham is considered the Father of three faiths (Judaism, Christianity and Islam). The story starts with the call of God to Abram (as he was then known) to “Go forth from the land of your kinsfolk and from your father’s house… Read More »

The “wearin’ of the green” which we say on St. Patrick’s Day is actually more appropriate for the season of ordinary time. From now until the end of November the color of the season is green, celebrating the gift of life we receive from God. During ordinary time the epistle and gospel are a lectio… Read More »