[[NOTE: As much as I don't like reposting old material, I continue to think that the Epistle reading assigned to today is one of the most undervalued in all of Scripture and I don't think I have much more to add about it from what I wrote the last time it came up in the … Continue reading Everything is Permissible: A Reflection on 1 Corinthians 6.12-20 (Re-Post)
Yesterday was the great feast of Epiphany, which is celebrated on the thirteenth day after Christmas. It’s a feast with a strange and murky history, but I think it’s instructive for this whole midwinter season. It seems that Epiphany, which means ‘shining forth’, was originally a general midwinter feast that, at the darkest time of … Continue reading God’s Shining Forth: A Reflection on Epiphany and Genesis 1.1-5
On the eastern side of Vancouver Island there’s a stretch of highway that cuts across a local summit. At this highest point, the forest suddenly breaks away, revealing a stunning vista: On a sunny day, you can see across the fertile green of the Saanich Peninsula, past the Gulf Islands, all the way to Mount … Continue reading Into the Luminous Darkness: A Reflection on Matthew 17.1-9
For the past couple of weeks, our Sunday readings have focused on the essentials of our faith. This hasn’t been in terms of doctrine — no creeds or catechism — but in terms of our posture before God and the world. Two weeks ago, we looked at the common assessment in the Law, Prophets, and … Continue reading The Moment of Decision: A Reflection on Deuteronomy 30.15-20
Last week’s readings asked the basic question, What does God want from us? We saw that the answer the Prophet Micah gave — to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God — is a pithier version of answers provided in the rest of the Old Testament, which can be summarized … Continue reading The Law of Jesus: A Reflection on Matthew 5.13-20
Matthew Root 