Commandment 5 ~ Old Testament Context When the people of Israel assembled on the outskirts of the promised land and received for a second time the stipulations of the covenant God made with them, Moses warned the people in the following words: these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You…
It should come as no surprise that Roman Catholics, by and large, do not accept the validity of Anglican orders, as to do so would severely undermine their own claim to be the One True Church. Ever since the Church of England became independent, then, Romanists have lodged a number of arguments against those orders….
The Eighth Sunday after Trinity O Thou who camest from above, the pure celestial fire to impart kindle a flame of sacred love upon the mean altar of my heart. Providence is knowing that God knows where you are, even when you do not. Providence is a blanket in the night under a cold, starry…
Commandment 4 And the Lord said to Moses, “You are to speak to the people of Israel and say, ‘Above all you shall keep my Sabbaths, for this is a sign between me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I, the Lord, sanctify you. You shall keep the Sabbath, because it…
World Of Wonders: A Spirituality of Reading. By Jeff Crosby. Brewster, MA: Paraclete Press, 2025. 176 pp. $18.99 (paper). I have put forth the suggestion that books are a way that our lives can be opened up, expanded, sharpened, deepened, and made more vibrant and whole. Reading as part of our practice of spiritual disciplines is…
Break Thou the bread of life, dear Lord, to me, As Thou didst break the loaves beside the sea; Beyond the sacred page I seek Thee, Lord; My spirit pants for Thee, O living Word! Preparation is key before any trek into the wilderness. There are essentials one must consider prior to stepping out into the great outdoors. Packing requires prep work,…
St. Thomas Aquinas, concerning the order of the Decalogue, wrote, “the end of human life and society is God. Consequently it was necessary for the precepts of the decalogue, first of all, to direct man to God.”[1] The decalogue begins with our end because the goal of human life and action is God. Man’s happiness,…
As Browne observes, it is commonly agreed with respect to the Homilies that The kind of assent, which we are here called on to give to them, is general, not specific. We are not expected to express full concurrence with every statement, or every exposition of Holy Scripture contained in them, but merely in the…
Broad is the road that leads to death, And thousands walk together there; But wisdom shows a narrow path, With here and there a traveler. The Sixth Sunday after Trinity We all begin our journey the same: dead on the side of the road. Then the Stranger approaches and sees our predicament. Compassion overflows from…
This is the first of a number of planned meditations upon the Decalogue (from the Greek, meaning “ten words”) or Ten Commandments. The Decalogue has an enduring place in the life of all Abraham’s children, Jews and Christians alike,[1] and forms one of the three basic building blocks of Christian catechesis for those entering the…