January 10
January 10The Baptism of Our Lord The Baptism of Our Lord by Walter F. Modrys SJ 1. Pastor's Podcast Baptism of the Lord Contact Us 321 Willings AlleyPhiladelphia, PA 19106215.923.1733office@oldstjoseph.org Mass Times Sunday at 7:30...Beginning, Middle and End
When my own children were very young, a more seasoned parent told me that family photo albums (and I suppose now, Instagrams) are filled with pictures of firsts–first smile and first steps, first day of school and so on. Nobody, she said to me, pays as much attention to the lasts. And so I decided to try to capture those moments: waiting for the bus on the last day of school, sunset photos on the last day of a beach vacation, even a sweet snapshot of furry goodbye kisses before the grouchy old cat’s last trip to the vet.
But when I page through the old photo albums, there are a lot more pictures than just those firsts and lasts. There are sandbox construction sites, kite flying and bubble blowing, prom dates and school concerts, and lots and lots of cousins and friends, lined up on the front steps or squeezed around the kitchen table. There’s a lot happening in the middle, between the beginnings and endings, of our family story.
The author of the gospel of Mark seems to have taken to heart a similar understanding of beginnings and endings. Mark’s is thought to be the earliest gospel and it is the shortest, but it is far from the first draft of the good news of Jesus Christ. Mark gave us an intricately-constructed theological statement, and the gospel for the Baptism of Our Lord on January 10 shows his masterful use of beginnings and endings to draw our attention to what’s in the middle.
January 3
Epiphany of Our Lord
January 3 Epiphany of Our Lord Epiphany of Our Lord by Walter F. Modrys SJ 1. Pastor's Podcast Epiphany Contact Us 321 Willings AlleyPhiladelphia, PA 19106215.923.1733office@oldstjoseph.org Mass Times Sunday at 7:30 AM, 9:30AM, 11:30...
Epiphany:
Born to Change the World
How unlike are the gospel of Luke and the gospel of Matthew in telling the story of Jesus’s birth! This may frustrate historians, but the different perspectives guide us toward a fuller understanding of what this good news will require of us.
The Church reads Luke’s version on Christmas: as soon as Mary gives birth and swaddles her son, angels appear, praising God and drawing the shepherds to the place he was born. The first people to hear the good news of his birth are the lowest and least among us that Jesus has come to save.
Not so in Matthew, whose gospel the Church reads on Epiphany
