Today’s daf continues a discussion that began yesterday, about a field in which someone has been buried. Graves, as we now know, communicate death impurity to anyone who comes in contact with them, and to anything that is built nearby or grows on top. Therefore, graves were marked — often
Whatever we think of Origen today, his commitment to the Scripture is undeniable. He is known for his allegorical approach to biblical interpretation. Unlike other Christian theologians of his time, he studied the Hebrew language and consulted rabbinic interpretations of the Jewish Scriptures. Yet, beyond these commonly known facts, there
As we’re venturing into the last week of the Advent season, let’s take a few more moments to discuss the importance of peace. Use the opportunity to share how peace relates to a life lived with Christ. As you gather to discuss the events of your week, reflect on the
All Hallows Evening Prayer is a service of worship in the evening for all pilgrims on the journey to the heavenly city. A wedding. A miraculous sign. Water turned into wine. Jesu’ glory revealed. But does it fill us with awe as did those who were present? As it
I have been thinking about forgiveness a lot lately. Jesus taught his disciples that they should not limit the number of times that they forgave people but should forgive people ad infinitum, placing no limit on the number times that they forgave people. He also taught his disciples that if
The Rev. Rob Renfroe, president of Good News By Rob Renfroe – Welcome to the mission field! That may sound strange to those of you living within the United States, but it’s true, and it’s important for us to understand that we are living on a mission field. That reality
Tu Bishvat, the so-called Jewish new year for trees, will be celebrated by many Jews on Sunday evening with seders full of fruits, readings from Kabbalah or sacred texts about the earth. The Tu Bishvat seder originally arose to celebrate the kabbalists’ vision of the Tree of Life, a branching
Background: Iris Murdoch Iris Murdoch was an atheist and a Platonist moral philosopher who taught at Oxford from 1948-1963 before retiring to spend the rest of her life writing racy novels. At first glance, she seems an unlikely candidate to offer a fresh vision of moral theology to Catholic thinkers.