Bible on the Back Porch
Reading, pondering and studying God’s Word is sometimes best done “on the back porch.” Each week we will try to offer something for you and your “back porch time.”
Current and Upcoming Sunday Readings
7th Sunday, Year C | Love of Enemies
What We Celebrate
Do unto others, love your enemies – phrases that are part and parcel of the language of Church – with its parallels in the “golden rule.” And yet we are sometimes people who cite: an eye for eye… This is quid pro quo plain and simple and speaks of retribution and revenge, a bit of “tit for tat.” Or maybe it is the rule in the Book of Sirach: “No good comes to him who gives comfort to the wicked, nor is it an act of mercy that he does. Give to the good man, refuse the sinner; refresh the downtrodden, give nothing to the proud man.” (Sirach 12) In this gospel Jesus notes the old models of action needs to give way to a new model that reflects the Kingdom of God
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel
Sermon on the Mount | Carl Block, 1887 | Museum of Natural History at Frederlksborg Castle – Hillerod, Denmark | PD-US
8th Sunday, Year C | Character and Commitment
What We Celebrate
Over the previous two Sundays you have read the “Sermon on the Plain” – Luke’s version of the Sermon on the Mount. The gospel for this Sunday is a capstone to the Sermon. It asks that one incorporates the lessons into a practical way of life – how one is to go about the world. He cautions about who you follow. If the guide is blind, expect the path to be other than towards the Kingdom. Even if you follow the good guide, have you embraced the teachings fully into your thoughts, words, and actions? Jesus pointedly asks: “Why do you notice the splinter in your brother’s eye, but do not perceive the wooden beam in your own?
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel
A detail of The Parable of the Mote and the Beam | Domenico Fetti, 1619 | Metropolitan Museum of Art NYC | PD-US
1st Lent, Year C | Testing the Son of God
What We Celebrate
As we move into Lent, the Sunday gospel from Luke takes a “step back.” In the three preceding Sundays we explored the “Sermon on the Plain,” but now we return to the first pericope following Jesus’ baptism. “Filled with the holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days, to be tempted by the devil.” (Luke 4:1-2) What is the purpose of “tempting” Jesus? Was there a “chance” that Jesus would fail? Does it offer us something to consider when we are tempted? Is tempting the same as testing?
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel
Image credit: The Temptation in the Wilderness, Briton Rivière (1898) | Public Domain
Below is a short film illustrating Christ’s forty days in the wilderness where, prior to beginning His earthly ministry, He was tempted by Satan. The director adds some dialogue to animate and further the narrative, but even that added dialogue is taken from Scripture.
2nd Lent, Year C | The Transfiguration
What We Celebrate
Each 2nd Sunday of Lent – regardless of the Liturgical Year – the gospel recounts the story of the Transfiguration of Jesus. What is it about this scene that causes the Church to proclaim this Sunday as well as on August 6th, the traditional feast day? What does the mountain top scene reveal to us about Jesus that will form and inform our Lenten journey? Just prior to this scene in Luke’ gospel, everyone is asking questions about Jesus’ identity. And while Peter has just confessed Jesus as Messiah it is unclear what Peter thinks that means. The Transfiguration recalls all of salvation history to this point and points the way forward to the Glory of God and the Kingdom.
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel
Detail of “The Transfiguration of Jesus” by Raphael (1516-1520) | Vatican Museum | PD-US
3rd Lent, Year C | The Parable of the Fig Tree
What We Celebrate
At the start of the gospel narrative, people bring Jesus an account of Pilate’s horrific actions among the Galileans as well as a construction accident in Jerusalem. One set of deaths is caused by human choices; the other was accidental. One set of deaths is among people far from Jerusalem; the other happens to people within the holy city’s walls. In the moment, Jesus addresses what likely lies on the hearts and minds of the people gathered: was all this because of their sinfulness that such tragedies befell them? He directly tells them that the answer is “no.” The point is clear. Tragedies occur, whether intentionally by oppressive governors such as Pilate or accidentally by imperfections in the kind of world we live in. In neither case must one conclude that tragedies are necessarily an indication of divine judgment against sinners. Rather, in view of the uncertainty of life and the unpredictability of the future one must be warned to examine one’s own life and repent. And this leads us to the parable of the fig tree in the orchard.
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel
Image credit: The Vine Dresser and the Fig Tree | James Tissot, 1886-1894 | Brooklyn Museum | PD-US
Reaching into the treasure trove that is Rev. Billy Grahm – a simple message of repentance.
4th Lent, Year C | The Prodigal Son
What We Celebrate
The parable of the “Prodigal Son” does not stand alone. It is framed by the opening verses of the chapter and the parables which come before. One must always keep in mind that the three parables (Lost Sheep, Lost Coin, and the Prodigal Son) are told in response to the complaint that Jesus welcomes and eats with “tax collectors and sinners.” The former being traitors to their religious family and the latter already standing condemned by the Laws of the family. They are people “outside the camp” – they are lost.
In the first parable when the lost sheep is found the shepherd invites others to “Rejoice with me.” (Lk 15:6). Jesus notes that there is “joy in heaven” (v.7) because – not that one was found – but that the lost one repented. In the second parable the woman invites others to rejoice with her because she has found the lost coin. Again, Jesus notes “there will be rejoicing among the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” (v.10) Again the focus is on repentance.
What is different about the third parable is that the dynamic is no longer property, but family.
There is a lot to unpack in these verses, so grab your favorite beverage and take some time on the back porch.
Full Text of the Sunday Readings
Detailed Commentary on the Gospel