Faith
The search for meaning, purpose, and relationship. Our need for love compels us to seek it out, and when we find it, share it.
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The concept of usury—the lending of money immorally, to exploit another—is widely condemned by religions. And practiced everywhere.
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Preparing for this week’s sermon begins, not with talk of talents, but of usury—and why Jesus seems to encourage us all to sin.
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Late in the gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells several parables that are dark and deceptive. I’m sure he’s doing this on purpose. It’s a test.
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Do we give ourselves permission to read this parable with grace and honesty? Do we even realize what we’re reading and why?
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We usually read the parable of the bridesmaids as a teaching about preparedness. But it is a chilling challenge to selfish comforts.
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This week’s gospel comes to us as a final exam—not a random teaching. That context, in the last days, is central to our understanding of it.