The Good Word

In a German television news segment just before Christmas it was reported that the portion of the German population who called themselves religious stood at 70 Another 18 within that considered themselves deeply religious a definite highpoint within the last twenty-five years 1 Only the

The plunging of an adult or an infant into the baptismal font three times is the most important moment in the baptismal ceremony and meant to be the most moving one as well Most of us understand that this action is associated with the Trinity It is But the more ancient association is with the th

Paul states in Romans 5 5 the second reading for the Third Sunday in Lent that hope does not disappoint Really Hope does not disappoint It seems to me that everyone at some time or another has had their hopes dashed or named a situation hopeless While it might be true that looking back

The Exodus reading is difficult if we don t take it deep enough At the surface we have a narrative where God s people whine and God seems to withhold basics providing water only after a scene has been made Beneath the water shortage is an accusation that God s plan is to kill the people and

To begin Lent the Church asks us to consider the three temptations that Jesus underwent in the desert according to Matthew and Luke nbsp What is important about the scene of the temptations is the answers Jesus gives to each temptation nbsp If you read again Jesus s responses to them it will

The gospel reading for the First Sunday of Lent is the testing of Jesus in the wilderness After fasting for forty days Jesus is subjected to the devil s temptations I have always been struck by how the devil prefaces his first two attempts to trip up Jesus at least in Matthew s account If

Jesus does not talk about the story of Adam and Eve though Paul does giving it a powerful interpretation that may overwhelm our initiative to continue to reflect on it But Paul s view is not the only way forward here The Genesis story treats in a sophisticated and subtle way the profound que

Many avocations contribute greatly to the well-being of all of us to whatever happiness we might have on this earth Among these avoctions is teaching And a great promoter of teaching us when we first need learning is John Bosco His feast day January 31 recalls the vital significance of teac

There are so many passages in the Bible that lend themselves to the development of an ecojustice perspective Such a section is found in the Wisdom of Solomon a relatively little known and even less frequently cited source of ancient Israelite wisdom It is a reinterpretation of an earlier traditio

St Luke tells about the conversion then missioning of St Paul on three different occasions Acts 9 22 and 26 nbsp Though the number of details which change in these three accounts is great there is one repeated phrase which runs through them all nbsp Saul Saul why do you persecute Me nb