Tuesday, February 19, 2008
The story of Jesus' encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well is found within an account of a whole town coming to believe in Jesus through the testimony of a woman. The whole narrative can be read together with John 1:35-51 as the continuing story of how people come to know and believe in... Sign in to see full entry.
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Matthew 17:1-9 The Transfiguration of Jesus
The account of the Transfiguration is closely associated with the Confession of Peter and Jesus' response to Peter's protest against his suffering and death. The synoptics provide us with common elements in the story: Jesus brings Peter, James and John to a mountain while on the mountain, Jesus is... Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Victorious in Temptation
Right after Jesus' baptism and before he begins his ministry in Galilee as the light that shines on those who sit in darkness, Jesus is tempted by the Devil. Matthew (4:1-11) follows Mark's outline here and like Luke expands the narrative to include the dialogue between the Tempter and Jesus. The... Sign in to see full entry.
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Light of the World
How does one reconcile a passage like Jesus saying "I am the light of the world" (Jn. 8:12) and "Ye are the light of the world" (Mt. 5:14)?. Augustine in his De doctrina christiana III, mentions a rule of interpretation from Tyconius wherein it is stated that there are passages that refer to someone... Sign in to see full entry.
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Eternal Life: An Exercise in Free Association
Someone who read my article on the Lectio Divina ( Parallel Texts, Textual Resonances and the Liturgy ) asked me for another example of how free association works in meditating on a text of Scriptures. The example I gave was based on Luke 18:18-30. The narrative begins with a question posed by a... Sign in to see full entry.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Matthew 5:1-12 Blessed Are You
Matthew 5:1-7:29 is the famous Sermon on the Mount. It is the first major discourse of Jesus in the Gospel of Matthew and is the first time that Jesus is formally presented as the New Moses. In Matthew 2:13-23, Matthew had presented Jesus as the New Moses through well-placed fulfillment passages... Sign in to see full entry.
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Matthew 4:12-23 The Light Begins To Shine
After a brief description of Jesus' temptation in the Desert (Mk. 1:12-13), Mark immediately proceeds to narrate the beginnings of Jesus' ministry (Mk. 1:14-15) and the call of the first disciples (Mk. 1:16-20). Matthew for his part, while retaining the Marcan outline builds up the narrative with... Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, January 11, 2008
Luke 2:41-52 "My Father's Business"
Luke's narrative of Jesus' childhood ends with the account of Jesus' finding in the Temple in Luke 2:41-52. It is a sort of snapshop of the twelve-year old Jesus who now begins to go about his "Father's business" by staying in Nazareth under the guidance of Mary and Joseph. The narrative is somewhat... Sign in to see full entry.
Monday, January 7, 2008
To Fulfill All Righteousness
Matthew's account of Jesus' baptism is a rewriting of traditional materials so as to explain why Jesus "the One Mightier" had to be baptized by John. Below is a table showing the accounts of Matthew, Mark and Luke in the NAB translation (click on the image for a larger, printable view) Mark's... Sign in to see full entry.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Guided By A Star
Matthew 2:1-12 continues the story of Jesus' birth which began with Matthew 1:18. At the same time, it is the first part of a sub-plot that will show how Divine Providence protects "its investment" through Joseph (cf. Matthew 2: 13-23 ). Here however, Matthew's intention is to recount the meeting of... Sign in to see full entry.