In last week's Gospel reading, Jesus taught his disciples about scandals, or tripping points, and how we're responsible for how we react when we get tripped up. It's a variation on a common, and important, theme: that so much in life is not about what we experience but how we respond to it. I'd like … Continue reading How’s Your Heart? A Reflection on Mark 10.2-16
We've all been there, from the clumsiest of us (like me!) to professional athletes: Just walking or running along minding our own business, when suddenly something trips us up and we stumble. It's an apt metaphor for life itself, and specifically the life of faith. Months and years can pass by without incident — we … Continue reading Tripping Points: A Reflection on Mark 9.38-59
As I write this, the news here in Canada is dominated by two major stories: tomorrow's federal election and protests by a small but very loud contingent of people opposed to ongoing public health measures to help our society withstand the COVID-19 pandemic, especially proof-of-vaccination measures for accessing non-essential services. The theme of both of … Continue reading Sin and the Question of Pleasure: A Reflection on James 3.13-4.3, 7-8
Today's Gospel reading is Mark's version of the famous interaction between Jesus and his disciples in which he asks them the all-important question, "Who do you say that I am?" It's famous not only because it's the scene in which Jesus is identified for the first time as the Messiah, but also because right on … Continue reading Who do you say that I am?
A recurring theme in the Sunday lessons this Summer has been the question of insiders and outsiders. We saw this playing out in the Acts of the Apostles of few weeks ago, when Peter received a lesson from the Holy Spirit that the rules of engagement had changed and that the old ritual markers of … Continue reading Insiders and Outsiders: A Reflection Mark 7.24-37 and James 2.1-17
Matthew Root 