Month: February 2020

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What Does The Scripture Say?

Seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time (A): Matthew 5:38-48

 

Our Gospel reading for today offers us abundant riches and abundant challenges.  Three years ago, the last time we saw this Gospel, I addressed the question of what Jesus meant by “Be perfect”.  You can find that post here. This time, I will focus my attention on a different issue that our Gospel reading raises: the issue of how we understand the Bible.

The Bible plays an extremely important role in the lives of Catholics and, indeed, of all Christians.  This seems so obvious that it might not need to be said.  In the Mass, we not only have the Liturgy of the Word, comprised of readings from Scripture; many of the prayers and responses during Mass are based on Scripture.  We are all encouraged to read the Bible regularly and to use it as a source of divine wisdom to guide our lives.  We venerate the Bible as a unique record of God’s dealings with His people. Continue reading “What Does The Scripture Say?”

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Fulfilling the Law

Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time (A): Matthew 5:17-37

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.” – Matthew 5:17

Calling something – or, God forbid, someone – old is never a compliment. In our society, with constant technological improvements, we have come to assume that the new is better than the old. In our ads which glorify youth (because young people are more vulnerable to advertising as a rule), we have come to assume that being or looking young is better than being or looking old. Therefore, when we look at the Bible, we will instinctively prefer the “New” Testament over the “Old”, and view the “Old” as somehow obsolete. It’s as though, in computer lingo, the Old Testament was the beta version of the Bible, and the New Testament the official release.  Continue reading “Fulfilling the Law”

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Purifying Our Worship

Presentation of the Lord

 

February 2.

Long before it was Super Bowl Sunday… long before it was Groundhog Day… it was known as Candlemas, or the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord.  It celebrates the time, forty days after the birth of Jesus, when Mary and Joseph went to the Temple in Jerusalem to present the infant Jesus and to be purified of their ritual uncleanness after childbirth. This they did to follow the commandments in the Law of Moses.

This Feast of the Presentation does not capture the attention or the imagination of most Catholics these days.  It falls within that liturgical neutral zone between the Christmas season and Lent.  It reminds us of Christmas long after we have had our fill of Christmas carols and decorations.  Nevertheless, the readings for this day, and the liturgy itself, invite us to stop, look, listen and ponder.  Something very important is going on. Continue reading “Purifying Our Worship”