A Vincentian reading of the Sunday readings

Noise, Driving Wind, Tongues of Fire

Jesus sends us the Holy Spirit that comes from the Father (Jn 15, 26).  And not to have this Spirit is not to belong to Christ, and not be but noise. It is not that God likes noise.  In fact, he was in a soft whisper (1 Kgs 19, 12).  But he has to vie for people’s...

Heaven, Where the Risen Christ Is

Jesus went up to heaven and sits at the right hand of God.  That is why we gaze on him, the same one who also came down to earth. To rise with Christ means to seek what is in heaven (Col 3, 1).  But after the ascension, the eleven go forth to preach.  Is it due to...

Commandments that Make Love Known

Jesus embodies love.  And he sees to it that we catch this love.  Hence, he gives us commandments that will lead us to love as he loves. Jesus loves his own who are in the world not in theory but in practice.  And he does so before he teaches them his commandments; he...

Branches that Remain on the Vine

Jesus is the vine, and we are the branches.  That we remain in him, and he in us, is what makes us bear much fruit. In Ps 80, the Shepherd of Israel is asked to bring back his people.  This people started out as a vine that God brought out of Egypt and transplanted. ...
Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Name that Is above Every Other Name

Christ is the reason why his followers bear the name of Christians.  They are other Christs, then, anointed to announce repentance and the kingdom of God. Jesus assures those who gather in his name and pray together that they will receive what they ask.  And it will...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Knowledge for Christian Service

Knowledge of Christ is what matters above all.  Those who know him receive in trust keys of authority to serve others faithfully and caringly. The Father, Lord of heaven and earth, gives to the childlike the knowledge he hides from those who are wise.  Peter is among...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Caring for Those in the Outskirts

To see Jesus is to see the merciful God who is caring towards those in the outskirts who cry out to him. Jesus is a Jew.  It seems he is even portrayed as siding with those who show their contempt for the Gentiles by calling them dogs or swine.  This closed and...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Astounding Very Much Indeed!

Jesus, the astounding Son of Man, will astound us even at the last judgment.  He wants us to put him in the center. Among other things, the way Jesus teaches is astounding.  He teaches with authority.  This means, says St. Gregory the Great, that his authority does...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Figure of God and of the Disfigured

Even without a figure that would draw us, Jesus is still the epiphany of God. The figure of Jesus makes appear above (epiphanein in Greek), that is, on the surface, the mystery of God.  But it is hard for us who are still in the world to welcome Jesus. The ambivalence...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Patience like the Patience of a Farmer

Jesus is the patience of God.  God is, undoubtedly, great and does wondrous deeds.  Yet he is merciful at the same time. We need patience, those of us who are in a hurry.  So, little wonder we love fast food. We do not like, besides, long lines of people at the bank...

Lover of Sinners and Outcast

Better for Us Is Shame, Rather Than Praise

Jesus is the embodiment of the truth that it is better to receive shame than praise from the world. The world cannot accept the Word.  The Word is in the world but the world does not know him even.  Though coming to his own, the Word is still not acceptable.  Worldly...

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