In the Gospel According to Matthew, Jesus tells a parable about a master who pays laborers the same wage whether they worked for the entire day or only a few hours at the end. This generosity causes those who worked the entire day to complain, leading the master in the …

The Book of Sirach 28:1 (NABRE) focuses on vengeful people and God’s vengeance. On the surface, this seems like a bit of an odd sentiment as we much prefer to see God as merciful rather than vengeful. The Book of Sirach is one of the Old Testament books originally written …

In the Gospel According to Matthew 18:18 (NABRE), Jesus says to his disciples “Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” A lot has been made of this important statement. As we …

The frequently quoted verse from the Book of Jeremiah 20:7—”You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped“—is an interesting concept made even more complex because in this instance the liturgical reading disagrees with the text from the New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE), which has “seduced” instead of …

In the Gospel According to Matthew 16:13–23 (NABRE), Simon proclaims Jesus the Son of God, and Jesus in turns renames Simon as Peter or rock. Typically in the Bible, a renaming is a deeply serious matter of profound significance regarding who that person is intended to become, and this particular …

In the Gospel According to Matthew 15:26 (NABRE), Jesus responds to a Canaanite woman’s request for assistance by saying: “It is not right to take the food of the children and throw it to the dogs.” Jesus’ response initially seems rather harsh. The Greek word translated here as dogs, κυνάριον …

The idea of becoming perfect and complete as a person is a spiritual goal for all Christians. Jesus’ instruction to his disciples found in the Gospel According to Matthew 5:48 (NABRE) to “be perfect just as your heavenly father is perfect” remains a call that applies to us all. What …

In the Gospel According to Luke 20:27–38 (NABRE), Jesus talks with the Sadducees about resurrection. In the Gospels, resurrection is an interesting term that is connected with eternal life but not synonymous with it. The Greek word for resurrection is ἀνάστασις (anastasis). This word literally means “standing up” and so also means …

In the Second Letter to the Thessalonians 1:11—2:2 (NABRE), Paul prays that God may make the Thessalonians worthy of their calling. This is quite a significant ask. In our society where we so often feed a sense of entitlement to whatever it is that we want, any sense of worthiness …

In the first chapter of his First Letter of Paul to Timothy (NABRE), Paul describes how he was a blasphemer and a sinner and how God treated him mercifully—emphasizing the great mercy of God and our tremendous need before him. The Greek word ἔλεος (eleos), “pity” or mercy, suggests kindness …