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As
you just heard, the tax collectors and prostitutes are going into the kingdom
of God ahead of us. If this was a parable to be taken literally, I would be
encouraging you all to work for Revenue Canada or to don fishnet stocking and
hang out on street corners. The underlying message, nonetheless, is to be taken
seriously. Jesus is addressing the chief priests and the elders, those who are
supposed to be doing it all correctly, yet …

There
are two things to keep in mind when we try to grapple with this parable (Mt.
20:1-16).  Firstly, Matthew is writing
for his faith community that is a mixture of Jewish Christians and Gentile
(non-Jewish) Christians. The Jewish Christians know that their faith has come
down to them through the centuries beginning with Abraham, Moses, and all the
great prophets. It is a long-standing and rich relationship with God who
selected them as the Chosen People. The Gentile …

In the first reading, the Book of Sirach poses a question
to us, and I do not think it is just a rhetorical question. Does anyone
harbour anger against another, and expect healing from the, Lord? The
answer unfortunately, is: of course! I know lots of people, including myself,
who want God’s healing mercy for themselves but who also want punishment for
others. Our logic goes something like this: that person over there, by their
sin, has crossed a …

Back
in 1983 while taking an introductory psychology course in college, the
professor told us students, on the first day of class that our term paper, due
at the end of the semester, could be on any topic we wanted. He did, however,
offer a list of suggestions, and I chose the topic of death and dying. By pure
chance, three weeks later, the world’s authority on the topic of death and
dying, Elizabeth Kubler-Ross, was coming to town …

Here is a line from the sacramentary (big, red book
on the altar from which the priest prays the Eucharistic prayer) that I have
publicly prayed numerous times over the past 23 years without giving it the
attention it deserves. It goes like this; notice the last part especially. “Therefore,
as we celebrate the memorial of his Death and Resurrection, we offer you, Lord,
the Bread of Life and the Chalice (Cup) of salvation, giving thanks that you
have …

Peter,
in last weekend’s gospel account, made his profession of faith, “You are
the Christ, Son of the living God,” in a place surrounded by pagan
images and Roman power. This was a difficult place, to say the least, to
profess your faith in the one, true God. Jeremiah, in today’s first reading,
also struggles and succeeds, like Peter, in speaking God’s truth as a prophet.
He felt he was too young and inadequate for the job God was …

A
little bit of context usually helps us understand the Word of God better. Here
goes. Hezekiah was a good king in Judah. Although appointed by the pagan
emperor in Rome, the king in Judah was still a Jewish king, and he looked after
the interests of his Jewish brothers and sisters making sure they could still
practice their faith in the one, true God with little interference from Rome.
Unfortunately, Hezekiah’s chief of staff, the highest ranking official …

Historically we have said that, as a Church, the two major ways our faith is passed on is through Scripture and Tradition. Scripture is what was huddle around each time we gather for liturgy and each time we open and read our Bibles at home. It is God’s Word preserved, interpreted, and passed on so that we can know how God called our ancestors to live back then and how God calls us to live here and now. Tradition, …

The Scripture stories we have today are about the
importance of discerning the voice of God and about the importance of
community.

A little context to help us enter the first reading. The
prophet Elijah lived some 900 years before the birth of Jesus. At that time the
Jewish people were divided into two sister countries, Israel in the North and
Judah in the South. In the North, where God had called Elijah to preach, …

Of
all the miracles Jesus performed this is the only miracle found in all four
gospels. The Early Church must have thought this story was indispensable in the
lives of people. They just had to tell this story. In fact, it is found twice
in the Gospel of Matthew.

Opening lines are very telling. This is the opening line of today’s gospel account: When Jesus heard that Herod had beheaded John the Baptist, he withdrew …