We imagine angels as people all dressed in white with feathery wings. The word which the Gospel uses which we translate as angel means messenger. So these were messenger from God. Artists usually draw angels with wings because it symbolises there job to move with messages from God to men [...]
James McPolin SJ looks at the Exodus account of the liberation of the people of Israel and reads it as an expression of God’s will that all his people would be able to worship him freely, without suffering oppression or injustice.
Fr Oliver Treanor looks at the miracle of Jesus calming the waters of the storm and draws out the fuller significance of it for us Christians.
Sean Freyne presents a set of essays which reflect his thought on the role of the Bible in modern theology. He shows throughout his abiding concern to read the Bible with an awareness of the different contexts in which the texts were produced and are received.
This is the second chapter of Henry Wansbrough’ book “The Story of the Bible: how it came to us”. It tells the story of what Karl Rahner calls the Church’s own “self-definition”, that is how it came to decide which gospels and texts define its own reality and which do [...]
When Joseph and Mary got to Bethlehem, they looked for somewhere to stay. Unfortunately, as all the people from the area were travelling to just twelve towns to get registered for the census, Bethlehem was packed. So there was no room in any of the places that normally took guests. [...]
Sean Goan sees Jeremiah as one of the most appealing of the Old Testament prophets, especially because of his very human struggle with his calling.
Louis Power gives an interesting outline drawing from myths, legends, historical and biblical sources about what happened to the 12 apostles after Pentecost.
Matthew Byrne focuses on the biblical accounts of the birth of Jesus and the leading personalities involved – not just Joseph and Mary, but Zachariah and Elizabeth, the shepherds, the wise men, Simeon and Anna, and, of course, Herod. Each has a great human interest.
This article is Chapter 7 of Henry Wansbrough’s book “The Story of the Bible: how it came to us” published by Darton, Longman and Todd. It deals with arguments about whether there are two sources of revelation – scripture and tradition, inerrancy and the kind of truth the Bible teaches.
“Mary gave birth to her baby in a stable and wrapped in in swaddling clothes and laid him in a manger.” Although the stable would have been a bit smelly and not very clean, I’m sure Joseph and Mary did their best to make the place as cosy as possible [...]
Thomas Brodie OP takes a close look at the motifs of harmony and disharmony in the Book of Genesis and at the stories it tells of God’s response to his people.
Included in these Gnostic discoveries by Marvin Meyer are several gospels of Jesus’ life that never made it into the modern Christian Bible, as well as a treasury of lost and esoteric wisdom. He also includes an overview of all the texts and their contents, and discusses their meaning and [...]
James McPolin looks at some biblical that arise for the Hebrews experience of their Exodus – liberation, community, covenant, fidelity, remembering, land, justice and sharing.
According to James McPolin SJ, we come to know Christ better when we understand more about the nature of Jewish society – its politics, economics, religion, and so on – during his lifetime.
Sean Goan sees the book of Ezekiel, characterised by prophecies based on four strange visions, as one of the most interesting and challenging in the Old Testament.
Wilfrid Harrington OP examines some Gospel parables which are centred on the theme of prayer and sees what lessons we can draw from them.
This book gives a balanced and entertaining introduction to the controversial story of how the Bible came to us – its original languages and various translations. It also tells why the books included were accepted and others were not. Henry Wansbrough OSB is a leading international authority.
This is the wonderful story of how the Bible as a human document was put together and how this should guide our interpretation of it. The Bible is at once a human construction as well as the word of God. Henry Wansbrough OSB gives us the facts and helps us [...]
James McPolin S.J examines the nature of religious life in the Holy Land at the time of Christ, specifically at the four groups which most feature in scripture: the Pharisees, the Saducees, the Essenes, and the Zealots.
Many churches have stained-glass windows of the Tree of Jesse. This is a family tree of Jesus. Jesse was the father of King David of Israel. King David was the first king to really bring together the whole of Israel, and his time is seen as a happy and successful [...]
In this article on the parables Seán Goan focuses on stories about Christian living and prayer. As we have come to expect from Jesus the teacher the parables on these topics are not lengthy sermons but short stories that paint vivid pictures.
Gordon Oliver examines the difficulties and opportunities that arise in using the Bible in conjunction with contemporary pastoral practice and modern scripture studies, and in doing so opens up new possibilities for interpreting the Bible as practical theology. He guides the reader through the various approaches and perspectives that will [...]
James McPolin S.J. pays attention to the important role of women in the gospel accounts of the time of Christ.
Philip Fogarty SJ takes a look at the circumstances behind the writing of the Gospel of St John, which emerged from the tension between early Christian communities and Jewish leaders.
Philip Fogarty SJ in his commentary on Mark’s Gospel deals with the questions: What does following Jesus mean? Did he have women followers? Were they different from “the Twelve”? These questions left people guessing. And we who read the gospel today are left with these questions too.
The wonderful thing about Jesus’ parables is that they nearly always have an element of surprise, of counter-culture, which he uses to force the listener to make a decision about accepting or rejecting the kingdom of God in their heart. Jim McPolin SJ explains.
Wilfred Harrington says that in Luke’s gospel that we find a Jesus of sensitivity, compassion and great gentleness. Luke reflects on God as the God of sinners. Luke does not seek to suppress the tragedy and mystery of the cross nor undervalue its saving role but his Jesus helps lift [...]
