“He shall not judge by what his
eyes see or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness, he shall
judge the poor and decide with equity for the meek of the earth.”
There is an internet video clip
that shows a large group of young adults lined up on a field to begin a running
race. The winner of the race will be given one hundred dollars. The person who
is organizing the race …
“Oh Lord, how long shall I cry for help, and you will not listen? … Destruction and violence are before me; strife and contention arise.” Whether it is news about environmental degradation, or about the undermining of the democratic process, news about migrants dying as they try to reach a place of safety or news about the violence in Yemen or Syria or Hong Kong, news about increases in gun violence in Toronto or about the recent spate of suicides …
In today’s second reading Paul appears to
celebrate suffering: “we boast in our
sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces
character …” Working in the hospital, I come face to face with suffering on
a daily basis; but I cannot recall ever meeting someone who was glad for the
suffering. Occasionally, people talk about offering up the suffering; and
sometimes I hear people quote today’s scripture passage and comment on the fact
that they already have more …
Monday Paris, accompanied by the world,
watched as the Cathedral of Notre Dame burned. In those hours so much seemed to
be swallowed by flames, not just a phenomenal piece of gothic architecture, but
also a tangible promise of hope, continuity and resilience. News image after
news image showed the faces of people looking lost, bewildered and devastated …
and it struck me that once again the Cathedral was serving the purpose for
which it was built. It was …
Over and over again I meet people in the hospital
whose pain cannot be alleviated by medications, because even though they feel
it in their body, it is soul pain. It is the pain of being out of synch with
the world in which they live, the pain that grips when an important
relationship (with self, with others, with nature or with God) has been
severely damaged and a person can see no way past the brokenness.
For most of my life I have associated the Feast of the Holy Family with homilies that emphasize the value of the traditional nuclear family in today’s changing world. For this reason, I approached today’s scripture passages with the assumption that I would be writing about the importance of celebrating the gift of family as we finish out 2018 and prioritizing family as we prepare for the year ahead. When I actually read the lectionary, however, I was struck by …
“Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone!” These words, known as the Shema are the centerpiece of Jewish morning and evening prayer and the focus of all biblical teaching. Because there is only one God we are told: “Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.” From this foundation everything else follows. Rabbi Hillel, one of the most well …
All we need to do is spend a few minutes listening to the news, or perhaps checking our Facebook or Twitter feed and we will find reasons to be afraid: fires burning out of control; storms ravaging communities; unprecedented numbers of refugees; wars and threats of war; economic uncertainty; abuse within the community of faith; gun violence in “peaceful” neighborhoods; devastating illnesses … the list goes on and on. It often seems as if all of life is out of …
At first glance, today’s second reading appears to have two contradictory messages. We are told that we must obey the commandments of Jesus or there is no truth in us; but we are also told that if we sin, Jesus will be our advocate, and what he has done through his death on the cross is already an atonement for anything that we might do. As I pondered this apparent contradiction, I thought of the work of Brene Brown, an …
Many years ago I entered the hospital room of an elderly lady who greeted me with the words, “you shouldn’t have gone to all that trouble for me. I’m so ashamed. I was always been a clean person.” It took me a moment to realize that she was embarrassed because I had to put on a mask, gown and gloves before entering her room. She had tested positive for an antibiotic resistant “superbug.” that she had picked up in the …