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by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon Although the Apostle Peter enthusiastically confessed the identity of Jesus, he was much slower in accepting the message of the Cross. In fact, when Jesus first spoke of his coming Passion, Peter's immediate response was, "Far be it from you, Lord; this shall not happen to you!" So Jesus, having declared Peter "blessed" for his profession of faith, was obliged---within the span of just a few verses---to tell … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon When we speak of excruciating pain, we do well to look at the etymology of that adjective: ex cruce, "out of the cross." It is nearly impossible to exaggerate what the Savior suffered on the cross. Whether the cause of Jesus' death was asphyxiation, or hypercarbia, or hypovolemic shock, or heart failure, or exsanguination, or total physical exhaustion brought on by tetanic contractions throughout his entire … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon Among the evils associated with the sin of murmuring (arguably the vice most often condemned in Holy Scripture), first place probably goes to the disposition of murmurers to feed the grievances of one another. Fred and Ralph, for example, may entertain very different grievances against George. Perhaps Fred thinks George too flamboyant, whereas Ralph considers him overbearing. As long as Fred and Ralph don’t … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon According to the indications in the gospels, a bit over two years elapsed between the event at Cana and the final events of his life. This estimate is based on the Gospel of John, which mentions three different observances of the Passover, one just after the marriage at Cana (John 2:13), a second around the time of the multiplication of the loaves (6:4), and a third at the end of Jesus' life (11:55). There is no … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon A question is just as likely to convey truth as to seek it. If asking questions is a good way of learning, it is an even better way of teaching, Good teachers ask questions. Consequently, Jesus chiefly employs the interrogatory form as a mode of teaching. Jesus asks questions, moreover, just about as much as he tells parables. For this reason, we need to consider Jesus more closely as the Teacher, the … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon The moment of the Incarnation was not static. To be a living human being is not a static thing. Strictly speaking, the doctrine of the Incarnation does not refer simply to a state, but to a full human life. The Word became a specific human being. This is why St. Cyril of Alexandria---manifestly the standard bearer of orthodox Christology---often spoke of Christ as "one of us" (heis ex hemon). As one of us, Jesus was … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon In Jewish worship, it was customary to address God as "Father." Abinu, Malkinu---"Our Father, our King" has always been a standard praise formula in the synagogue. It is not surprising, therefore, that we find this form of address in the teaching of Jesus, even as we find it in His own prayer (Matthew 11:25-26; 26:39, 42; Mark 14:36; Luke 22:42; 23:34, 46; John 11:41; 17:1, 5, 11, 21, 24, 25). When, in His sermons … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon Edgar Allen Poe, in his penetrating review of Bleak House, remarked that no reader can comprehend the real wealth of that work in a single reading. Numerous shades of nuance, Poe explained, and dozens of subtle connections were woven so deeply into the fabric of Bleak House that their presence was not even suspected on a first reading. On a second reading, however, the now enlightened reader knows what to … [Read more...]
by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon Before he ever met the Apostle Paul, the life of young Timothy was already full of blessings. Indeed, Paul himself, among the last lines he wrote on this earth, reminded Timothy of those blessings: “But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to … [Read more...]
Early Christian Teaching on the Incarnation & Redemption by Fr. Patrick Henry Reardon Advent and the Christmas season form an ideal time, surely, during which to ponder the meaning—especially the soteriological meaning—of the Incarnation. The question, Cur Deus homo—“Why did God become man?”—rises spontaneously to the healthy Christian mind, I believe, and it is a fact that Christians began addressing that question … [Read more...]
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