The Passion of our Lord, as told in Saint John’s Gospel. Here presented as a meditation with a relaxing background on YouTube:
The Passion | Audio Bible | KJV
In the face of Judas’ betrayal, Jesus openly and honestly acknowledges himself to those who are come to arrest him. ‘I am he.’ Jesus does this three times, even while those who have come to arrest him shrink back from such simplicity of giving. The courage of Jesus at this point is absolutely remarkable. Jesus has reconciled himself through prayer to his Father. His self-composure at this point as he goes to save us is a shining example to us all.
Peter’s impetuousness shows again as he draws his sword to attack those who have come to arrest Jesus. It is a natural and human reaction, but Jesus tells Peter to recall all that he has taught him: Jesus must be taken and go to the cross; that is why Jesus is here. Peter must continue to learn his place within God’s plan of salvation [ … ]
Read more: Holy Week | Good Friday | The Passion And Death Of Jesus | King James Audio Bible | KJV
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May the love of Jesus Christ be with us always.
The second reading for today’s Office of Readings is taken from Apologia ad Autolycum (Apology to Autolycus), the only surviving work of Saint Theophilus of Antioch, a second-century Christian apologist and bishop. This work is a defence of Christianity addressed to a pagan named Autolycus, who was sceptical of Christian beliefs. In this passage, Theophilus argues that the ability to perceive God is not dependent on physical sight but on the inner purity of the soul. He draws a comparison between bodily vision and spiritual insight, explaining that just as blindness prevents one from seeing the light of the sun, so too does sin obscure one’s ability to recognize God [ … ]
Herbert structures the poem as a dramatic monologue, with Christ narrating his journey to the Cross. The refrain not only highlights the unmatched sorrow of Christ’s ordeal but also serves as a rhetorical question that invites readers to contemplate such depth of Christ’s sacrifice. The refrain anchors each stanza and reinforces a theme of unparalleled grief [ … ]
In the Discourse of the Mission, in Chapter 10 of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus has instructed his disciples about evangelization. Now, in Chapter 11, we are told more of Jesus’ Mission in the region of Galilee – also known as the Lake of Gennesaret and as Lake Tiberius. The area in which Jesus preaches and performs his healing miracles is relatively small, and it is an obscure part of the Empire. In some ways, though, it is a microcosm of the world beyond and the world of later history to come, as we learn of those who will accept and those who will reject Jesus [ … ]
