The Sacred Page

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Thursday, December 27, 2007

At The Angel's Behest (Matthew 2:13-23)

The infancy account in Matthew 2:13-23 is a continuation of the events narrated in 2:1-12 where the magi from the East are the main actors. Bidden by Herod to inform him of the location of the new born king, they, after paying homage, went back home via a different route. This they did after an... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, December 15, 2007

Joseph: Father and Husband (Matthew 1:18-25)

The story-tellers of the bible are notorious for being terse. They write down what is only essential to their story and leave their audience to fill in the gaps. Matthew is no different from them in this regard. After showing in his genealogy that Jesus belongs to the sons of Abraham through Israel... Sign in to see full entry.

Saturday, December 8, 2007

Matthew 11:2-11 "Are You The One...?"

Matthew 11:2-11 is a narration involving an embassy sent to Jesus by John the Baptist while in prison. Matthew mentions the arrest of John in 4:12. As in Mark, there is a close connection between the arrest of the Baptist and the beginning of Jesus' ministry. Later, Matthew will narrate the death of... Sign in to see full entry.

Friday, November 30, 2007

Matthew 3:1-12 Preparing For A Time of Consolation

Matthew 3:1-12 begins the account of Jesus' ministry with an account of John the Baptist's work and teaching. He does it in a way that highlights the role of John the Baptist as the one who prepares Israel for Jesus' work. An outline of Matthew 3:1-12 can be drawn thus... John the Baptist appears... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, November 26, 2007

Keep Watch (Matthew 24:37-44)

Matthew 24:37-44 forms part of the Eschatological discourse of Jesus. These are sayings that are found both in Matthew and Luke but used in different ways. While the sayings have a different distribution in Luke, Matthew puts them within the complex that is formed by Jesus's teaching about the... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

The Repentant Thief

The story of the repentant thief is one of the features unique to Luke's passion story. It is presented as one of the highlights of the passion narrative and is set within a context of a comparison among the characters beneath the cross in their attitude towards the Crucified Messiah. Running... Sign in to see full entry.

Monday, November 5, 2007

The End of all Human Securities

Luke 21:5-36 for the most part contains the discourse of Jesus about the destruction of Jerusalem and about "the end", to teloV to telos. Some sayings of Jesus in the previous chapters prepare for the present discourse. And despite the apparent "frightening" tone of the speech, a closer look shows... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007

God of the Living

The twentieth chapter of Luke shows Jesus in a series of controversies with different groups associated with the Temple and the Law. It is within the context created by these controversies that the discussion with the Sadducees is situated. Who are the Sadducees? We know so little about the... Sign in to see full entry.

Tuesday, October 23, 2007

To Seek and Save What Was Lost

Towards the end of the journey to Jerusalem, Luke reports a narrative that highlights the teachings on discipleship and recalls many of the themes presented during the journey narrative. It should be remembered that Mark ends his journey narrative with the healing of Bartimaeus. With the blind man's... Sign in to see full entry.

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Reading the Letter to the Romans

Last Monday we began reading from the letter of Paul to the Romans. Contrary to what people think, inspite of Paul's mention of "God's wrath" and "God's justice" he isn't a prophet of doom but a proclaimer of the Gospel (Rom. 1:16), that is the Good News that God is putting mankind and the world in... Sign in to see full entry.

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