I once knew a man who was a big-time collector of sports cards. He spent thousands of dollars gathering his highly curated collection. But the greater the collection became, the more he started to worry about it. So, he spent hundreds more on insurance plans and security systems. Eventually, it got to the point where … Continue reading Treasure
Last time, we saw how Jesus warned his followers against public displays of piety. But, within this section of the Sermon on the Mount he not only teaches us how to pray (simply and in private), but also offers an example of what to pray. This has come down to us in the words known … Continue reading Our Lord’s Prayer
[Note: The post I wrote three years ago on today's Gospel reading ties in too perfectly to this week's posts in my series on the Sermon on the Mount not to re-post it today.] "All the world’s a stage, / And all the men and women merely players." These words of William Shakespeare from As … Continue reading Jesus and the Problem of Performative Religion: A Reflection on Mark 12.38-44 [Repost]
After the Beatitudes and his radicalization of the Law, Jesus turns his attention to questions of personal piety. Today’s post will explore each of these teachings through the primary lens of the common thread among them, and then see how they connect with the other parts of the Sermon on the Mount we’ve studied so … Continue reading Against Performative Religion
Last time, we saw how Jesus turned the idea of religious perfectionism on its head, arguing that if we truly want to be like God, we have to guard not just our actions, but the thoughts, feelings, and intentions that lie behind them. So, we can’t pat ourselves on the back if we don’t murder … Continue reading Fulfilling the Law (Part 2)
Matthew Root 