This past Wednesday, January 25, marked in our church calendar the Festival Day of the Conversion of Saint Paul, and with it, the conclusion of this year’s annual observance of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Not familiar with the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity? Well, the Week – sometimes referred to as…

Today’s Gospel recounts an outstanding educational experience. The people of the Capernaum synagogue find that they have run right smack into the truth. Their encounter with Jesus leaves them awestruck. In contrast to their usual teachers, he speaks and acts with an authority that is undeniable. What do these people learn from hearing Jesus? What…

Many scholars think that St. Mark’s Gospel was set down somewhere between 60 and 65 AD. The presumed primary audience is the Jewish Christian community, not in Judea, but perhaps in Rome. If these scholarly theories are true, then the story about Jesus’ authority takes on a special kind of power and import. If the…