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The collective, a vineyard, is the focus of this week’s readings. In Hebrew Scripture, the chosen people are often pictured as a vineyard, such as in Psalm 80, and in three prophets, Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Isaiah (today’s reading). No wonder Jesus also uses that image in today’s Gospel. Both Jesus…
A book club I belong to recently discussed the novel “Klara and the Sun.” Klara is an “artificial friend,” and the novel asks the question: what makes a human a human? Although Klara cannot “feel” like humans, or do some other human kinds of things, in the novel it is…
I still remember my outraged seventh grade self. We went to Mass as a family, and I had matured enough to really absorb the Gospel for this Sunday. It’s the one about the workers who all get paid the same, no matter how long they worked — all day long,…
In the mega California Catholic parish where I was the leader, I asked the staff to observe a code of conduct. One item in it said that any staff person in conflict with another had 48 hours to resolve it — because reconciliation is not an option! But reconciliation is…
I get to help immigrants learn English, and for them it’s like learning two languages, basic English, and then idiomatic English. According to Wikipedia, in English there are 25,000 idiomatic expressions of different kinds! Several I was thinking about as I read today’s Gospel: “Don’t rock the boat,” “See no…
You duped me, O Lord, and I let myself be duped, says Jeremiah, in our first reading this Sunday. Jeremiah had resisted God’s call as a prophet, saying he was too young. When he eventually did surrender himself to God, instead of being held in honor as a prophet, he…
Our Hebrew Scripture reading today (Is 22:19-23) is about the Lord’s demotion of Shebna, “master of the palace,” and the ceremonial elevation of His chosen new official, Eliakim. Our Gospel is Jesus’ choice of Peter to lead “my church.” Note that in both readings, the authority given to Eliakim and…
A Canaanite woman is the main character in today’s Gospel from Matthew; Mark also has the story, but calls her a Phoenician. The Canaanites were historical enemies of the Hebrews, people who worshiped a popular false god named Baal. So this woman faced a hostile audience when she begs the…
Humanity has just come through a huge storm called COVID. Many nations are still struggling to overcome the disruptions to their economies that resulted from the long shutdowns. In our Gospel today, the apostles are caught in a squall on the “sea” of Galilee. When Jesus appears, walking on the…
We need today’s feast. It gives us hope in what seems a very troubled world of multiple armed conflicts and a planet in trouble. The disciples and early Christians also lived in a troubled world. Perhaps that’s why the account of the transfiguration, our Gospel today, was so important to…
