Reflections for Lent

What kind of a relationship do we have with Jesus? Or, perhaps a better question, what kind of relationship does he have with us? During the Easter season we’ve followed the gradual unveiling of the answer to this question. At first it was as companion and teacher (on the road to Emmaus), then as protector […]

We started our Lent with reflections on the humanity and divinity of Jesus. As we come towards the end we find ourselves returning to these themes, drawn together now as the climax of Easter approaches.  From the Letter to the Hebrews, our second reading (Heb 5:7-9) points out how Jesus wasn’t some perfect angelic being

Last week we had commandments, this week condemnation (Jn 3:16). “Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned”.  Couple that with the angry God of the Book of Chronicles burning down Jerusalem (2 Chr 36:14-16, 19-23) and we have a pretty gloomy picture. No wonder we’d rather

We seem to be a society obsessed with laws. To judge by news coverage of court proceedings and so many attempts to create laws to control how other people behave, one might imagine the majority of the population is employed full time in such processes! In reality most of us have very little interaction with

Last week we heard how Jesus was tempted, something in his life which brings out the reality of his humanity, and can make us feel closer to him, as another human being.  Today we hear a story (Mk 9:2-10) which seems to take us in the opposite direction – how, on going up this mountain,

After his baptism in the River Jordan, Jesus goes into the desert (Mk 1:12-15). Mark tells the story in two sentences; none of the elaborate discussion with Satan that we find in Matthew and Luke. But the sparseness of Mark’s account makes the central point much clearer.  Jesus was tempted.  The Son of God, identical

Our Gospel for Ash Wednesday emphasizes a very private form of penance (Mt 6:1-6, 16-18). This is something that we feel comfortable with. We are unlikely to be amongst those who want to make an exhibition of ourselves. The crazies who walk up and down with placards declaring the end is nigh – that’s definitely

Hosanna, hosanna, let the good times roll! … the whole multitude of his disciples began to praise God aloud with joy for all the mighty deeds they had seen. They proclaimed: “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord. Peace in heaven and glory in the highest.” Our Sunday with palms

All of us live our lives moving from our past into our future. For some we are driven forward by our past: our awareness of heritage, our upbringing, people we have known who have inspired us, challenges we want to overcome. These things push us into our future. For others, the future pulls us forward: