The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

July 13, 2025 – Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Luke 10:25-37

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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Who needs help and what can I do to help? These are questions we all face at times. It may be a family member who is facing rough times. It may be a neighbor who is struggling with one thing or another. It might even be ourselves. Today’s gospel is well known, sometimes followed, sometimes ignored. It’s also a gospel most all know. It occasionally seeps into ordinary conversation. We only have to hear the words, “the good Samaritan” and we know what’s being noted.

A few comments about its meaning. It begins with an incident that would be well known to those who first heard it from Jesus. Travelers in those days were often set upon by robbers. Cities and towns and villages were well fortified and protected. The paths between them were not. So anyone traveling in that open land were literally putting their lives in harm’s way. So no surprise that if Jesus wanted to illustrate danger and challenge and need, begin by saying, “A man fell victim to robbers as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.” All his listeners knew what was next. But they might also be surprised, too.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

July 6, 2025 – Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Luke 10:1-20

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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Think of Jesus assembling a team of seventy-two as one of his initial strategies of “spreading the gospel message.” We are not told of any special qualifications of these “missionaries” except that they are disciples of Jesus. They already knew him and his basic message.

I have wondered about how his selection took place. And how many were women or married couples. Upon being chosen, they were given respectful and practical directives on how to acquaint people with Jesus. Clearly, they were to deliver a very important message: “The Kingdom of God is at hand.” That was the heart of the message of Jesus. God was not distant, but was present among them.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

June 29, 2025 – Saints Peter and Paul, Matthew 16:13-19

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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In my earlier years I enjoyed participating in competitive team sports. I was quite conscious of the difference between warm-ups and the real game. I could drain two or three jump shots prior to the actual game, but I knew that they were not counted in the final score. Draining a couple of long putts on the practice green had no bearing on the actual score of my round of eighteen.

Today’s gospel recalls the very important exchange between Jesus and his disciples. Peter is singled out for a very important exchange with the Lord. Jesus asks him what was being said about those who knew Jesus. Think of this as a sort of a personal opinion poll being conducted by Jesus.

Peter’s own reply was “spot on” when he responded that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Or to put it another way, Peter affirmed that Jesus was directly connected with God. Peter and others can be assured that when they see Jesus, they were also seeing something about God. Heaven had landed on Earth in the person of Jesus.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

June 22, 2025 – Body and Blood of Christ , Luke 9:11-17

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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To sustain human life, we need nourishment. Primarily that comes from consuming healthy food and drink. In most parts of the world there is enough food. But in some regions, insufficiency reigns. And this is not just a personal problem, but it is also a moral one. The Earth probably produces enough for all, but it is poorly distributed in some areas. Feeding the hungry is one of the corporal works of mercy. Lessening hunger should be a goal for all of us.

Today’s gospel is chosen for this Sunday when we recall the gift of spiritual nourishment Jesus instituted in the Eucharist as food for our spirits. But it is also an opportunity for us to reflect on the matter of world hunger, one of the more unacknowledged and pressing needs in our world today. To help us make feeding the hungry more of a concern to us, we do well to meditate about the feeding of the multitudes by Jesus on a day when there seemed to be not enough food for those gathered to hear him. His close disciples, being ever vigilant (sometimes), noticed that the day was well on and they were far from any place that might serve them needed food. The crowd needed to be fed.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

June 15, 2025 – The Most Holy Trinity, John 16:12-15

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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A recent Sunday New York Times article summarized the results of dozens of studies over the last few decades attempting to determine what single thing most contributes to human happiness. Perhaps those who were blessed with good health were the happiest. Or those who were deeply immersed in religious practices. Or those who were most educated. Or were financially well off. No to all of those “blessings.”

What was clearly shown in the research was that the primary cause of human happiness was the existence of deep, ongoing, positive social relationships among family and friends.

I have dedicated my whole professional life inquiring about the nature and value of interpersonal life in multiple fields in inquiry. So, I admit that I was not surprised by the result of research into human happiness. I’ve suspected its truth for decades.

Today, we celebrate the feast of the Blessed Trinity. And what we are reminded of this Sunday is that as Christians we believe that there is plurality even in God. Yes, we believe in the oneness of God, but there is also “threeness.” Which implies, I assume, that there is eternal relationality in God’s own existence. I believe it is accurate and helpful to think of these eternal bonds between them as essential to their “happiness.” This belief is an essential part of the deepest mysteries of our faith.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

June 8, 2025 – Pentecost Sunday, John 14:15-16, 23-26 or John 20:19-23

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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Many years ago, when I was in Catholic grade school, I recall hearing from our nun teacher telling us that God saw everything we did. This idea was communicated to us in case any of us Catholic kids thought that we might not be punished when we did something against God’s rules. When God was not looking. Impossible, she said. God was always looking.  

I’m fairly sure that my nun teacher was well intentioned, but she seemed to have left out the belief that God is always present to us. Later (thank God) I learned better news that God remains close to us through all our joys and sufferings.

Here’s a brief summary of how the Bible describes God’s presence. Think of it as three chapters in a total narrative. Chapter one, primarily in the Book of Genesis, describes God at work in Creation during a time of six days. We might think of this as God being present at the very beginning. Next, chapter two, we have God becoming human in the person of Jesus. It begins with the angel’s visit to Mary and ends with Jesus ascending into heaven. Finally, in act three, God is present in the coming of God’s Spirit at Pentecost, today’s feast. And that presence continues to this present moment.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

June 1, 2025 – Seventh Sunday of Easter, John 17:20-26

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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The Gospel of John offers us some of the most thought-provoking and deeply spiritual ideas in all the Bible. Especially the words of today’s gospel, which were spoken by Jesus during the Last Supper. In prayerful fashion he prayers to God: “You loved me before the foundation of the world” and I pray “that the love with which you loved me may it be in them, and (that) I (be) in them.”

One of my deepest interests focuses on the history and nature of the entire universe. We are so blessed by the recent discoveries and findings provided us in the science of astronomy. The pictures being sent to us daily by the James Webb Space Telescope bring tears to my eyes when I allow these images to penetrate my consciousness.

For the last fifty years I have tried to keep abreast of all that we are learning about the created universe, and our place in it with its incredible vastness, populated by billions and billions of stars and galaxies. We have also become aware of its ever-changing nature involving the birth and demise of countless stars every day. I am especially impressed by our many discoveries and findings, particularly learning in the last century about the age of the universe. Some ancients imagined it to be eternal. In other words, it was always there. We now know with certainty that this was not true.

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

May 25, 2025 – Sixth Sunday of Easter, John 14:23-29

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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A few years back, an imaginative English cartoonist created a figure known to many as “Waldo.” (He was also known as “Wally” in some renditions.)  Waldo was first introduced in illustrated children’s books in the 1980s and later made it into a television program and finally into one of today’s most enjoyed pastimes, video games. Waldo wore a red striped shirt which should have made him stand out when he was made part of a scene. But that’s not how he was depicted. His creator would fill the scene with countless complex elements that may have looked like Waldo, or were interesting in their own right, but weren’t Waldo. That’s because Waldo was carefully hidden in a complex array of foregrounds and backgrounds. But the question was always put to the observer: Where’s Waldo?

The appeal to those on the hunt for Waldo was the creativity involved in hiding him. One might assume that given his funny face and outlandish outfit that he would be immediately found. But that didn’t happen. Once found, however, searchers would berate themselves for taking so long to find Waldo.

One of the leading scientific research projects of today is the search for what’s called dark matter and dark energy.  Most scientists have good reasons for believing that most of creation itself is made of up these two entities. But for now, they remain elusive and “unseen.”

The Nazareth Page - A gospel meditation for your home

May 18, 2025 – Fifth Sunday of Easter, John 13:31-35

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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John’s gospel begins with the profound statement: “The word became flesh.” That means that in the person of Jesus the reality of God is present in human form. To see and know Jesus is to see and know God. Jesus reveals what God is like to those he lived with and those who came to know him later.

It was this idea that gave birth to the gospels. These inspired accounts of the life of Jesus are not created to provide later generations simply with historical information about a person who lived long ago. Rather, they are written to provide an example (a very important example) of how to best live on earth as God intends.

The Nazareth Page- A gospel meditation for your home

May 11, 2025 – Fourth Sunday of Easter, John 10:27-30 

REFLECTION QUESTIONS:
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Today is called “Good Shepherd Sunday.” The gospel today is quite brief, but its meaning is huge. Jesus likens himself to a good shepherd who enjoys a close and caring relationship to his sheep. That includes us!

Sheep can feel the care and protection of their shepherd simply by his presence near them. Close relationships create feelings of safety and security. Such is also the way we are invited to think of God, the One who created us, sustains us, and is with us always.

As I write about today’s gospel, like so many around the world I have in mind the recent death of Pope Francis. In the many interviews that accompanied his passing, we hear repeatedly how he touched so many with authentic gestures of love and concern. He wanted to be close to his flock. He too was a good shepherd, and we have been blessed by his presence and leadership of the church.