Temple
Advent Call
4 December 2022
Second Sunday in Advent, Year A First Reading ‡ Isaiah 11:1-10He judges the poor with justice. Responsorial ‡ Psalm 71:1-2.7-8.12-13.17Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace for ever. Second Reading ‡ Romans 15:4-9Christ, the hope of all people. Gospel ‡ Matthew 3:1-12Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand. Play…
Arise and look to the east
9 December 2018
Advent, Season of Growth, Seasons, Year C
The readings today reminded me of being in Brisbane at the start of 2011, when the devastating flood waters that had claimed too many lives in the Lockyer Valley moved downstream towards the city. Authorities did not want any more lives to be lost, so did all that they could to ensure that the population…
Days of darkness (Advent)
2 December 2018
Advent, Season of Growth, Seasons, Year C
We begin the new liturgical year (Year C) in much the same tone as we concluded Year B – with a focus on the destruction of Jerusalem. So it seems appropriate to reflect on the events that would have so marked the lives of any Christians living in the forty-year period between the wonderful events…
Mary and Gabriel
21 December 2014
The scene that is presented in the Gospel today is one of my favourites. We read from the Gospel of Luke, chapter 1, verses 26-38. The angel Gabriel appears to announce the birth of a child and follows the pattern established in the Hebrew Scriptures: the angel says, ‘do not be afraid’; the recipient is…
The dedication of the Lateran Basilica
10 November 2014
It is rare for a feast day to bump-off the Sunday liturgy – usually only the feast days and solemnities of the Lord or of our Lady (but only during Ordinary Time) – but today the dedication of a basilica in the city of Rome from back in the fourth century displaces the Sunday cycle…
Render unto God
19 October 2014
In trying to understand the bible, for me, one of the most important questions to ask about any particular passage is – what is the context? Where does this passage fit within (for example) the ministry of Jesus and in this case – the Gospel of Matthew. Once we do this, it should become quickly…
Pursuing Wisdom
27 July 2014
King Solomon whose reign is normally dated from around 970/960 BCE to 930/920 BCE is best known for being extremely wise, extraordinarily wealthy and as a supremely powerful monarch. He is also described as a great lover, with the legendary harem of 700 wives and 300 concubines. He was probably also very busy 😉 He…
New Life #StartingToday – Easter Sunday
20 April 2014
When Jesus makes his triumphant entry into Jerusalem on the day that we call Palm Sunday, the crowds acclaimed him as the Messiah and welcomed him with great joy. But the first three gospels record him doing something very strange as his first act of coming into the city – he goes into the Temple…
Presentation of the Older Brother
2 February 2014
Discipleship, Solemnity, Teaching
The feast of the Presentation of the Lord, celebrated forty days after Christmas, brings the nativity stories to an end. It is a very Jewish feastday, concerned as it is with the purification of the mother after giving birth to a son (the purification period was doubled for the birth of a daughter – WTF?)…
Arise and look to the east
9 December 2012
Advent, Season of Growth, Seasons, Year C
The readings today reminded me of being in Brisbane at the start of last year, when the devastating flood waters that had claimed too many lives in the Lockyer Valley moved downstream towards the city. Authorities did not want any more lives to be lost, so did all that they could to ensure that the…
Days of darkness
3 December 2012
Advent, Season of Growth, Seasons, Year C
We begin the new liturgical year (Year C) in much the same tone as we concluded Year B – with a focus on the destruction of Jerusalem. So it seems appropriate to reflect on the events that would have so marked the lives of any Christians living in the forty-year period between the wonderful events…
The word of hope
6 December 2009
Advent, Season of Growth, Seasons, Year C
Second Sunday of Advent (Year C) – Baruch 5:1-9; Phil 1:3-11; Luke 3:1-6. Luke begins the account of the ministry of John the Baptist with a list of strange names – what is he doing and why is he doing it and how does it relate to the splendour and integrity of a people lost…
Baptism of the Lord
11 January 2009
In the ministry of John the Baptist, the son of the priest Zechariah, we see the ritual washing (the mikvah) take on a new significance, as a sign of God’s new work of creation. Now the presence of God will not be confined to the temple – the curtain in the temple that separated the…