Daily Office Readings – Gospel Today’s gospel reading is about the wedding in Cana. I’ve always marveled at this bit of scripture. First, when younger, that Jesus turned water into wine. Then, as I got older, and I started drinking wine myself, I became amazed at how much normal human behavior is found in this…
Forgetting What Lies Behind
I’ve been working my way through Paul Tillich’s collection of sermons in The Eternal Now, and came to the sermon entitled Forgetting and Being Forgotten. Tillich says the following: Forgetting is probably more difficult for a religious tradition than any other human heritage. But God is not only the beginning from which we came; He…
Just a wee bit crazy?
Daily Office Readings – Gospel In today’s reading, Jesus gets confronted by the Pharisees who tell him that because he is testifying on his own behalf, his testimony is not valid. The law, it seems, requires at least two witnesses to make a testimony valid. And Jesus says he has a witness, and that he…
Taking a Different Route
Sunday Lectionary Readings – The Epiphany When most people hear the word epiphany, the don’t think of the twelfth day after Christmas, or about the story of the wise men coming from various lands to see the baby Jesus. Instead, when most people think of the word epiphany, they think of an “aha!” moment like…
Cast the First Stone
Daily Office Readings – Gospel Recently, here in Arizona, the director of the Department of Public Safety was caught speeding at 90 miles an hour, weaving in and out of traffic. Anything over 85 miles per hour in Arizona is considered criminal speeding, and usually brings with it a fine. After flashing his badge, the…
Unexpected
Daily Office Readings – Gospel In today’s Gospel reading Jesus says the following: “But about that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.” He goes on to say that “then two will be in the field; one will be taken and one will be…
Everyone Is a Hypocrite
Daily Office Readings – Gospel Jesus has been going on a tear, ripping into the Jewish leadership in this chapter of Matthew, using multiple “Woe to you!” statements when calling out the Scribes and the Pharisees for their behavior. Jesus is giving them a warning that if they continue in their behavior, terrible things will…
Rolemodels
Daily Office Readings – Gospel The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. Matthew 23:2-3 In the news recently, at a race in Georgia, a man came up behind a TV…
The Love of Power
Today’s Daily Office Readings – Gospel The interesting thing in today’s Gospel, I thought, was the very first verse: “When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together, and one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question to test him.” When the Pharisees heard that he had silenced the Sadducees… With…
Beads, Mantras and Memories
Just recently I attended a retreat, during which we had the opportunity to learn about prayer beads and mantras from a licensed yoga instructor. One of the things that they tried to make clear to us is that any repetitive phrase is a mantra, and that any string of beads used to help focus your…