The annual Easter proclamation reminds us of St Augustine rsquo s hymn to beauty God ever ancient ever new At the door of the tomb the realm of death the women hear an affirmation of life He is not here but he has been raised Echoing through the centuries this is the foundation of Christ

Each year Holy Week begins with a re-enactment of Jesus entering Jerusalem amid shouts of praise The week soon moves to his rejection suffering and death and concludes with the preconium paschale the ringing proclamation that he has been raised Each Evangelist highlights different aspects Luke

As the sequence of Sundays proclaiming repentance draws to a close the Gospel presents one of the most graphic of all New Testament narratives on the mercy of Christ that leads to new life The reading from Isaiah prepares the way as the Lord says to the returning exiles See I am doing something

Today rsquo s readings are the second of the three Sundays before Holy Week all of which stress the summons to return to God repentance Paul states the theme crisply ldquo The old things have passed away behold new things have come And all this is from God who has reconciled us to himself t

Shortly before Christmas 1997 a much beloved Jesuit died Harry Corcoran charter member of the Catholic Theological Society of America and first dean of the Jesuit School of Theology at Berkeley but above all a shining person who walked constantly in God rsquo s presence Once Harry was talking

The Gospel this week is the second half of the diptych that presents Jesus rsquo anticipated suffering the temptation and his ultimate exaltation the transfiguration All the Synoptic Gospels recount the transfiguration but each has its distinctive accents While Mark and Matthew locate it aft