Twenty Fourth Sunday of the Year

Today’s gospel is very confusing and illustrates what is wrong with religion where it has been used to justify violence, guilt, fear and economic exploitation and presents an intimidating, punishing, torturing and unforgiving God. Sit with the discomfort and challenge of today’s good news in the Gospel of Matthew. We live with conflict, injury, pain in a world where we see the lengths of inhumanity people can go.  

23^rd Sunday of the Year

We are constantly reminded that we are interconnected with all living things and creation. We keep this in mind as we reflect on the readings and celebrate 2020 Season of Creation. The emphasis is on reconciliation, communion, not punishment.

Twenty Second Sunday of the Year

Despite complaints that things are going downhill, we still encounter people who refuse to be conformed to the world’s standards and show through their commitment God is passionate about people and cares about what we do to one another. Jeremiah offers a window into being engaged prophetically and vulnerability is part of the experience.

Twenty First Sunday of the Year

Mount Rushmore has images of four former US presidents carved out. Recently, Donald Trump has allegedly suggested that his image should also be carved out into the mountain because of his contribution to the nation!!  Caesarea Philippi, on a massive wall of rock, has a marble temple built to honour Caesar. It is here that Jesus brings his disciples to ask possible one of the most important questions in the gospels. At this place of imperial power and authority, it is difficult to miss the political nature of Jesus’ question: ‘Who do you say I am?’ 

Twentieth Sunday of the Year

Isaiah is offering us a way to embrace the value of others by genuinely appreciating them in our hearts which impacts on our actions by way of his prayer of the heart – the God in our heart – who says, ‘I will bring foreigners to my holy mountain. I will make them joyful in my house of prayer, says the Lord, ‘for my house will be called a house of prayer for all the peoples’. No one is excluded.