Category: Jesus of Nazareth

To understand the story of the Transfiguration, you have to know when it takes place. In all three synoptic gospels, the Transfiguration follows two critical events: First, Jesus asks his apostles who they say he is, and Peter proclaims that Jesus is “the Messiah, the Son of the living God”

The third Luminous Mystery, the Proclamation of the Kingdom, is the only mystery of the Rosary that does not deal with a discrete event in the life of Jesus or Mary. Rather, it calls our attention to the core message of the gospel: After John had been arrested, Jesus came

Saint Luke gives us two accounts of Jesus’ Ascension, one at the end of his gospel, and one (more detailed) at the beginning of Acts. Let’s look at the gospel account first: “Then he led them out as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. As he blessed

The Resurrection of Jesus is fundamentally about hope. Hope that God can take even the greatest evil and use it for the greatest good. Hope that despair is always temporary. Hope that love must always triumph, because love is stronger than hate. The Church gives us the Sorrowful Mysteries of

There is a profound mystery alluded to in what seems like an interesting footnote to the Passion narrative: They pressed into service a passer-by, Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. (Mark 15:21) At first glance, it’s

The second sorrowful mystery deals with the physical torture of our Lord. The crown of thorns, however, was not to meant to torture Jesus. Rather, the point was to mock him (just as he is mocked and belittled in so many circles today). Here is the full account from Mark:

All five meditations on the Sorrowful Mysteries could focus on the intense physical suffering Jesus endured for our sake, but the second mystery, The Scourging at the Pillar, brings the physical torment of Christ into stark relief. Scourging was a common practice for the Romans prior to a crucifixion. (1)

The mysteries of the Rosary celebrate the three events that forever changed the destiny of mankind: the Incarnation, when Jesus came down from Heaven to share in our humanity the Crucifixion, when Jesus paid the price for our sins through his death on the Cross the Resurrection, when Jesus triumphed

Mary’s “yes” to God, her willingness to become the mother of Jesus, set her on a journey she could never have expected. She put her complete trust in God’s love and mercy through all the trials of her life. And her trials were many, including the Nativity. Mary must have