Musings From The High Desert

We are familiar with this parable from Matthew 18; the point seems to be clear. But let's look at it again, first, within the context of the chapter, and then secondly, in relation to the whole concept of death and resurrection. Perhaps there is something new to be learned here this week.

Have you ever thought about that phrase "faith as a mustard seed"? Often we bypass passages like this because they are so cryptic. This week Fr. Gabriel Rochelle looks at the idea of faith in relation to healing and discipleship.

Every once in a while you look at a text that is as familiar "as the back of your hand," and then you notice something new. In this case it is nothing that is in the text. It's actually what is NOT in the text; namely, the note that this is a miracle, one of the "signs and wonders," as Apostle and Evangelist St. John would call it. Let's think together about the significance of the feeding of the 5000 being an ordinary rather than an extraordinary event.

This passage, Roman 15:1-7, comes as the conclusion to a long argument begun at the start of chapter 14, in which Paul considers how to treat those who, for one reason or another, are "weaker." (A better translation would be unable, in contrast those who are able). The passage is hard-hitting for the clear reason that we are not very gifted at support naturally; we need to submit ourselves to Christ's witness, sacrifice, and ministry in order to enable our own ministry.

Forgiveness and healing: do they go together, and how shall we understand their connection? That's the question posed by today's Gospel lesson. Furthermore, do these actions have continuity in the church of today?

In chapters 9-11 of Romans, Paul thinks about the relationship of Messianic and non-Messianic Jews. In chapter 10, he begins by talking about "zeal without knowledge." This is the stopper for this week. Fr. Gabriel Rochelle works with this principal passage and explains Paul's emphasis on the two ways: righteousness grounded in your own ideas, concepts, and behaviors versus righteousness grounded in the Gospel.

Classic passage that is at the heart of not only Paul's Gospel but certainly at the heart of the dominant force in American Christianity, Protestantism. Fr. Gabriel Rochelle looks in particular at the interesting construction in verse 17, what it implies, and how we might be responding to this passage in these troubled times.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle focuses on the meaning and nature of Mammon and its meaning in our lives, particularly in our current time. Jesus calls us to focus on the Kingdom of God and the righteousness of God, but this is not beyond the edge of our own lives, history, or the world. This means to make choices in this life that are colored by our understanding of eternity.

Romans 5:1-11 is the core of Paul's Gospel. Fr. Gabriel Rochelle discusses the subtle differences between Paul's approach to the the Law and the approach of his age, along with the problems that we inherit from the overwhelming witness of Protestantism in our country.

Veering from his usual homiletical practice, Fr Gabriel reviews the life of St. Herman for us as we commemorate the Saints of North America this Sunday.

The question is: was the Lord really serious? Are we do leave ancestry and progeny, land and life, behind? What is this call to such a radical Gospel? This week we consider these awesome and sometimes frightening words.

One of the greatest gifts of the Spirit is the reunion of people above and beyond and through the medium of language, the great turnaround and reversal of the Tower of Babel. Fr. Gabriel Rochelle dwells on this gift in the light of this past weekend when four new members entered the faith in our parish through the awesome rites of initiation.

This week we commemorate those who, under the influence of the Holy Spirit, crafted a narrow passage between denying Christ as fully human and Christ as fully God. This faith still informs and undergirds the faith to this day.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle looks at an overview of the Gospel of John, noting that all that needs to be said about the sacraments of baptism and the eucharist has been completed by the sixth chapter. Then the Gospel moves us to understand the fullness of the sacramental life beyond the rituals themselves, to see that we are caught up in God's Presence in the everyday, if only we can see it. In this time of coronavirus, when not all of us can participate in the rites of the sacraments, we can understand ourselves in a larger context.

What do the soliloquies of Jesus Christ (as we find in the Gospel of St. John) lead us to? What is the confusing language leading to? How are we like the Samaritan Woman? Listen in.

We all experience some sort of paralysis in our lives, some inability to move off dead center and take a step forward into new life. How does this paralysis affect us, how do we respond to it, and how can the message of the resurrection come to us in the midst of our own paralysis? That's at the heart of today's gospel, and especially important is the news that we can change with Christ's help.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle uses a waterfall of quotes from early fathers of the church to show the cosmic meaning of the resurrection of Christ, ending with reflections on St. Maximos the Confessor. Christ is risen!

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle asks us to set aside the preconceptions we approach the entry with, chiefly the compartmentalization of aspects of our lives. This would not have been the case in the time of Jesus Christ and so we need to hear this message from a different perspective. We are "prisoners of hope" (the third lesson from Vespers) and we look forward to our release and the constitution of a new life in keeping with the servanthood of Christ.

Fr. Gabriel Rochelle takes off from one of the stichery from Vespers, which has the words (about St. Mary) "through violence you broke the rebellion of your flesh, taking the Kingdom of God by force." This is a reference to Matthew 11:12, which forms the basis for reflections on that passage and on both the Gospels assigned for this Sunday.

Father Gabriel Rochelle considers the humor in this week's Gospel and, as an aside, muses on why the text was placed on this Sunday by the ancient lectionary compilers. (The texts for the Sunday of Orthodoxy precede the commemoration historically and have remained in place.)