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Tag: Isaiah

Feasting and Recognizing God

Feasting and Recognizing God

December 1, 2021 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year CLeave a comment

Wednesday in the 1st Week of Advent: Isaiah 25:6-10a, Matthew 15:25-37. Below is a reflection I first wrote on these readings last year (2020). I’ve lightly edited it. In today’s readings, we encounter a stunning prophecy of the Christ Event from Isaiah and a passage from the gospel that aligns …

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New Heavens and a New Earth

New Heavens and a New Earth

March 15, 2021 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent: Isaiah 65:17-21, John 4:43-54. Yesterday we leapt forward, pushing our clocks ahead an hour as we transitioned into Daylight Savings Time. My wife spent her life getting up early to swim (around 5 am!) and so this transition always bothered her because just …

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Set Things Right

Set Things Right

March 2, 2021 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Tuesday of the Second Week in Lent: Isaiah 1:10, 16-20, Matthew 23:1-12. The prophet Isaiah utters a simple phrase in today’s reading that might serve as a saying for all of Lent: “Come now, let us set things right, says the LORD.” I love God’s gentleness here, like someone seeking …

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Embracing God’s Offer

Embracing God’s Offer

February 20, 2021 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Saturday after Ash Wednesday: Isaiah 58:9b-14, Luke 5:27-32. God shows us in todays’ readings His great desire to redeem us. Consider how different our God is from the gods in classical Greek culture or the nature-oriented gods of other pagan cultures. These deities have either complex personal, selfish desires that …

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The Spirit of Fasting

The Spirit of Fasting

February 19, 2021 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Friday after Ash Wednesday: Isaiah 58:1-9a, Matthew 9:14-15. Today’s readings cast some doubt on fasting, and it’s worth digging into them to understand the teaching God delivers to us. The verses from Isaiah are some of the longest in the Old Testament dealing with fasting. This chapter in Isaiah tackles …

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Justice Like Gentle Rain

Justice Like Gentle Rain

December 16, 2020 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Wednesday in the 3rd Week of Advent: Isaiah 45:6c-8, 18, 21c-25, Luke 7:18b-23. Justice is something I’ve been considering a lot in the face of crooked politicians making themselves rich while being morally abhorrent in behavior and policy. Of course it’s important to remember that this is nothing new — …

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A Day of Vindication by our God

A Day of Vindication by our God

December 13, 2020 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year B2 Comments

Third Sunday of Advent: Isaiah 61:1-2a, 10-11, 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24, John 1:6-8, 19-28. One of my favorite passages from Isaiah occurs in today’s readings. It seems to have been especially significant for Christ as well since we see Him read it to His hometown synagogue in Luke’s gospel. (I have …

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The Lukewarm and the Cynical

The Lukewarm and the Cynical

December 11, 2020 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BOne Comment

Friday in the 2nd Week of Advent: Isaiah 48:17-19, Matthew 11:16-19. Today’s readings put an exclamation mark on yesterday’s message about being enflamed with the passion of God’s transformative love and seizing the Kingdom of Heaven offered to us. God promises much to us if we listen to His Redeemer, …

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The Violent Transformation of Love

The Violent Transformation of Love

December 10, 2020 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BOne Comment

Thursday in the 2nd Week of Advent: Isaiah 41:13-20, Matthew 11:11-15. Today’s readings appear to be head-scratchers. The gospel, in particular, quotes Jesus speaking in an ominous-sounding tone about the violent taking the Kingdom of Heaven by force. But as we dig into them, the readings reveal a consistent truth …

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Yoked to the Lord

Yoked to the Lord

December 9, 2020 NT reflection / OT reflection / Year BLeave a comment

Wednesday in the 2nd Week of Advent: Isaiah 40:25-31, Matthew 11:28-30. Today’s readings strike me as a sort of Catholic Labor Day. Rather than celebrating all those who labor, today (my make-believe Catholic Labor Day) celebrates our being yoked to the Lord in spiritual work — something that eclipses whatever …

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