Rulers call out Jesus for being unjust, “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” “So, to them, Jesus addressed this parable” of an unjust son who “squandered his inheritance.” Suffering the consequences, the Prodigal Son wisely returns home to a loving father. An older brother is angry about the father’s loving spirit. He…
Is there ever any justification for a man to treat a woman disrespectfully? A Pharisee in this Sunday’s Gospel thinks there is. The Pharisee considers himself just and judges others as unjust. He judges a woman who touches Jesus as unjust, meaning sinful. The “sinful woman” is less worthy than he. He is a…
The woman caught in adultery is a well-known Gospel story. Perhaps we have heard it too often to any longer feel its terror. Officials are purposeful about dragging a frightened woman into public to execute a death penalty plan against her. They intend murder and set upon stoning her to death. Before doing so,…
There’s an old joke, not so old that Jesus heard it, but old nonetheless – You can tell Monopoly is an old game because it’s got a luxury tax and it’s possible for rich people to go to jail. The possibility of either or both happening is greater in the board game than in…
Jesus is accosted in Sunday’s Gospel by the ruling class. They are upset with his and disciples’ lack of appreciation for law and order. Law and order is frequently extolled, even made godly – by the ruler class. But it is not as beneficial as supposed. Law and order is another name for military…
God really is not a father that lives in the sky, though John’s Gospel imagines it in today’s reading. This father God does not grant salvation to those who believe in him and obey him. Neither does this imagined deity condemn those who do not. All of that is just a projection put onto…
Are you the only person who does not know of the things going on in the U.S.? Are you the only one unaware of all that is taking place in these times? Christian priests and pastors are guilty of sex abuse. Christian priests and pastors are building million dollar mansions for themselves. Christian businessmen…
There are millions of people within institutional christianity who reject Jesus’ witness with the man born blind. Jesus taught and demonstrated with the blind man that external suffering or deprivation of any kind is not God’s will. Illness, poverty, disadvantage of any type is not from God. Suffering caused by blindness or any other…
The longer version of this Sunday’s Gospel includes a reference Jesus made to the law. Jesus says he has not come to abolish the law and that not the smallest letter of the law would not pass away. He was not however referring to the Old Testament law of Moses. Jesus already abolished that…
As important as justice might seem for disciples it gives way to the more important virtue of love. This truth is exemplified in Sunday’s Gospel when John the Baptist gives way to Jesus. John revealed a just God. John’s God was concerned with denouncing sinners and cleansing the world of evil. As it was…