Daily Office Readings – Old Testament ( Joshua 2:1-14 ) Today the Old Testament passage was about the two spies that Joshua sent into Jericho and their interaction with the prostitute Rahab. I’ve read this story multiple times, and for whatever reason, today what jumped out at me was not the fact that Rahab was…
Pinch Me
Some old men came to see Abba Poemen, and said to him: Tell us, when we see brothers dozing during the sacred office, should we pinch them so they will stay awake? The old man said to them: Actually, if I saw a brother sleeping, I would put his head on my knees and let…
Do As I Say
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matthew 23:1-12 ) [Today’s entry is less of a full-fledged thought and more of a compilation of separate thoughts on different portions of the scripture, more in line with what I had originally expected from the Daily Office Reflections.] Do As I Say Once again, in today’s Gospel reading,…
The Heavy Burden
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Luke 13:10-17 ) These past few weeks have seen a lot of protests concerning the persistent racism in this country. Those protesting have pointed out that the amount of racism hasn’t changed, but what has changed is that technology has helped to bring it to the light. One of…
God is Here
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matthew 19:23-30 ) Yesterday’s Gospel reading dealt with a rich young man who wanted to know what he needed to do in order to receive eternal life. When Jesus told the young man that he needed to sell all his possessions and follow him, the young man went away…
On Moving Mountains
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matthew 17:14-21 ) As I read through this morning’s Gospel reading, I was, of course, struck by Jesus rebuking his disciples. They had tried to cast out a demon, and they couldn’t get the demon to leave a boy who suffered from seizures and would fall into the fire…
Love, or Power?
Today’s Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matt. 16:21-28 ) “Get behind me Satan!” Peter doesn’t want Jesus to die, as is natural for someone who has become your teacher, friend and mentor. But instead of turning around and saying, “Thanks, Peter, that’s awfully kind of you,” he turns around and says, “Get behind me…
Home Alone?
Lectionary Readings – 7th Sunday of Easter This past Thursday, we celebrated the Feast of the Ascension. Or at least we thought really hard about celebrating the day because it fell in the middle of work week, and so we thought it might be best to push it off until today. Ascension Day is a…
Just Can’t Get Much Worse…
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matthew 7:1-12 ) The other day, I ran across a Twitter stream ripping on everyone and anyone who had caused the Tweeter even a most minor offense. On and on the rant went, with name calling, spreading of lies and misinformation, and just plain meanness. So much hate and…
Don’t Worry, Be Happy
Daily Office Readings – Gospel ( Matthew 6:25-34 ) Thirty six and a half million people unemployed as of today, May 14, 2020. And three million of that number were added just this past week. People are stressed out, looking at the shrinking savings (if they had any) and wondering how quickly they may be…