Lowly, meek and patient, Jesus bears with the weak and annoying. We learn from him to bear with one another and not rush to judge.
A Vincentian reading of the Sunday readings
Optimists, for They Rely on the Word
Jesus is at once the Good News of the kingdom and he that preaches it. He wants us to be optimists, preaching with him bountifully, not sparingly.
Yoke That Is Easy, Burden That Is Light
Jesus soothes those who are weary and carry heavy burden. To take his yoke and learn from him is to know the Father...
Obsess about Having Money and Security
Jesus teaches by word and deed that we cannot serve God and money. Hence, to obsess about making money is to reject his teaching. The man who draws to Jesus seems to obsess about being saved. For he runs up to him and quickly kneels down. Of course, he also...
Delight Others, and Not Ourselves
The wisdom of God made flesh dwells with us. He is delighted to be with us. But he wants, first of all, to delight us. The scribes and the Pharisees time and again test Jesus. At best, they seek to connect with him. At worse, they set a snare for his steps. But...
Constitutive, Indispensable, Crucial
Jesus is constitutive of the Christian community. Do we say and live this as St. Vincent? Moises makes clear what truly matters. Jesus does so too. For the two of them, it is not about us. Or the group that we make up, chosen and gifted so as to serve others. ...
Zealous for the House, the Kingdom, of God
Jesus burns with zeal for the house, for the kingdom, of God. Needless to say, the disciples are to be as zealous as their Teacher. John and Joshua show that they are zealous. John’s zeal is for those to whom Jesus has given the power to drive out demons. And...
Foolish and Slow to Believe, and Afraid
Jesus alone is Lord, the Most High, for there is no better and more lowly servant of all than he. Hence, to mistake his greatness with that of the world is to be foolish before him. As it turns out, Jesus is right to ask his disciples to tell no one that he is the...
Rumors, No; Intimate Knowledge, Yes
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Anointed. To know and confess him so is to go beyond rumors; it is to live and die like him. There are rumors that Jesus is John the Baptist who is back to life. Or is Elijah who is expected to come before the Day of the Lord...
Gestures and Words That Heal and Proclaim
Jesus opens our ears and makes loose the strings of our tongues. He enables us to make gestures that heal and speak words that proclaim God’s kingdom. Amazing magic for the sake of a deaf and mute in a place where pagans live? If this is what Jesus’ gestures make us...
Fresh Start in Life for Us Men and Women
Jesus shows us the new that one has yet to see or hear or think of. To be his disciples, we have to make a fresh start. The Pharisees and scribes ask Jesus why his disciples do not follow the tradition of the elders. It is because the disciples eat with hands that...
Rise or Fall, Live or Die, Yes or No
Jesus comes down from heaven and dwells among us. He takes up our flesh of death to give us spirit and life. He wants us to rise. The Jews were the ones who grumbled before when Jesus said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven.” Those who grumble now are...
