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Luke 2:41-52
Christmas 1C
We know where to find him. That’s the sense I keep coming back to with this lone story about Jesus as a teenager. Maybe it’s the stage of life I’m in. Maybe it’s world events and how some of us seem to have lost the plot on what it means to be a Christian. Maybe…
Luke 1:39-45 (46-55)
Advent 4C
We don’t hear Mary and the angel’s conversation this year but we do witness its aftereffects. Seized with anticipation of a fellow miracle-receiver, Mary hastens to the countryside to find her elder cousin Elizabeth. The thing is, we’re told that Mary was given the scoop about Elizabeth’s pregnancy from the angel Gabriel, but not vice…
Luke 3:7-18
Advent 3C
Comments, Questions, and Observations Throughout this passage, there is a contrast of powers for transformation. That contrast is most thoroughly set forth in the two baptisms John talks about—his and the one of the Messiah. One is like John himself, human; the other is filled with the power of God. One has power that is…
Luke 1:68-79
Advent 2C
We could call it Psalm 151. Because that is what Zechariah’s song sounds like. Not only does it sound like some of the actual 150 psalms in the Hebrew Psalter, it sounds very much like an Old Testament passage even though it is of course in the New Testament (which may be why the Year…
Luke 3:1-6
Advent 2C
Comments, Questions, and Observations With his list of the powerful, Luke establishes us well under the thumb of Roman rule. From Caesar and his representatives in Palestine and the surrounding regions, to the Roman supported high priests, there can be no doubt who is in charge in Jerusalem. The infamous Roman road system was not…
Luke 21:25-36
Advent 1C
We open the Advent season by naming hardship and hope as our bedfellows. Jesus warns us that things will look and feel worse and worse—that chaos will threaten to overwhelm and even shake the foundations of heaven. Some of us will numb ourselves to the hardship, like how alcohol numbs our senses and thoughts so…
Luke 24:36-48
Easter 3B
We have a different version of last week’s text. It is a gift to us because it highlights another aspect of the human condition. Instead of last week’s gripping fear keeping the disciples from action and belief, this week they are confused and trying to reason things out. The results are the same: both situations…
Luke 2:22-40
Christmas 1B
We have a number of characters in this story. There’s the rather passive Jesus, who is brought to the Jerusalem for a dedication by Mary and Joseph. Then there’s Simeon and Anna, seemingly fixtures of the temple community. What links all of these characters is one trait: piety. Specifically, each participant’s piety is borne from…
Luke 1:26-38
Advent 4B
The last Sunday of Advent finally brings us to the Incarnate one himself. Well, sort of. Because this is also a calling story for Mary, the servant of God. Mary is a compelling character in the Scripture narrative. Her calling is like that of the prophets before her: a messenger from the Lord comes to…
Luke 1:46b-55
Advent 4B
The Year B Lectionary makes Mary’s song, “The Magnificat,” an alternative Psalm lection for both the Third and Fourth Sundays in Advent. For Advent 4B the main Psalm lection is from Psalm 89:1-4, 19-26. This commentary will be on Luke 1 and Mary’s song but if you want to read a prior Advent sermon commentary…
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