So many times in the gospels we hear Jesus questioned by people who are trying to trick him into giving himself away. In today’s reading I’m pretty sure the man asking the question of Jesus is sincere – he genuinely wants to know what he must do to have eternal life, to book his seat in heaven.
His approach is respectful and he is attentive to the answers Jesus gives him. On the surface it appears to be an honest exchange. But when Jesus looked at him he knew that there was something that the man was not acknowledging in his quest for eternal life. And, as we hear, the man did not get the answers he wanted ….
Category Archives: Reflections
A Broader View
This telling incident (the disciples have been arguing among themselves about who was the greatest) reveals to us how, when we become obsessed with self-interest, we miss truths of global significance that are right in front of us ….
Appreciating Mary, Mother of Jesus
Today we give thanks for the part Mary played in the story of God, bringing new life and redemption into this world, through Jesus, God, and Mary’s son.
I also wish to probe what might have been going on in that Nazareth home as Jesus and his siblings grew up there.
Mary, the mother of Jesus, has had a place of honour in the church from the beginning.
The Bread of Life
…. how to get beyond the temporal solutions to open the way to the eternal offer? The answer comes, “that they must believe in the one God has sent”. They must have faith in what he says and in what he shows himself to be. That is the work God wants of them – Belief.
Jesus says, “The truth of the matter is you want me because I fed you, not because you believe in me!” He is telling them they are making a profound mistake, and he is bringing to them a new way of thinking and of being: to realise that life is more than eating!
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