If You Don’t Get It, You Don’t Get It
In this week’s Gospel reading,* Jesus tells a parable about two men who had gone to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, whose prayer reminded God that he wasn’t like other people, but someone who conscientiously followed demanding spiritual practices. The other was a tax collector, slumped in a dark corner not daring […]
We’re Invited
I pay special attention whenever I read Gospel accounts of Jesus engaging with the guardians of religious orthodoxy, as he does in today’s passage from Luke.* The Gospels detail Jesus’ continuing challenge to the moral legalism of the nation’s religious authorities; and I, too, have a long-standing proclivity to being judgmental. I’ve been clear about […]
What We Really Long For
Today’s Gospel reading* is one of the most well-known Gospel passages. Jesus returns from a time of prayer, and a disciple asks Jesus to teach them how to pray. In response, Jesus teaches what we know as the Lord’s Prayer, and other wisdom about prayer. Since we have become so familiar with these words, the […]
Enough to Make You Crazy
There’s deep and timely wisdom in today’s gospel account of Jesus healing the Geresene demoniac.* The key is in Jesus’ exchange with the demon itself: “What is your name?” asks Jesus. The demon answers, “Legion.” And while we may think of this word first as meaning “many”, in Jesus’ time it specifically referred to a […]