The Fellowship of St. Columbanus

St. Luke 24:35-48 Duccio, "On the Road to Emmaus"             When Jesus came walking, the people didn’t notice. Maybe this was because Jesus was concealing his presence (St. Luke 24:15-16). After all, Jesus had just pulled a “hell” of a joke on the Devil; it wouldn’t be out of reason for the Lord to follow up with a little prank to prove a point. Maybe it was that the faith of the people was so little at this point, there was only room for road-talk on the Emmaus way. Jesus certainly chastises his fellow travelers about this very thing.              Should Cleopas and company have recognized Jesus at once? We might be tempted to think that, following the pattern of the Apostles, these pilgrims had some great failing which clouded their eyes. But from their lack of seeing, we come to learn so much about the presence of Christ in this post-resurrection wor...

Act. 4:32-35 St. Jn. 20:19-31   The lessons for Low Sunday contain several fundamentally important texts for the faith and practice of the Catholic Church, which has made it difficult for me to choose what to focus on this week. But when we began this project of reflections, we decided that we would try, as much as possible, to relate the lessons to the mission of our Fellowship. And that guideline lead me to two portions of the Lessons. Caravaggio's The Incredulity of St Thomas from this week's Gospel Our holy father Benedict depends on this week's lesson from the Acts of the Apostles for his prohibition on private property among the Benedictines. In fact, he spends two chapters on Acts 4:32-35, emphasizing the importance of sharing possessions according to need and holding all things in common, lest greed take hold, and through greed, pride. But he concludes with an important note, "Above all, let not the evil of murmuring appear for any reason whatsoever i...

The Lord is risen indeed, Alleluia!  Surrexit Dominus vere, Alleluia!  (Source: Unidentified)  Excerpt from an Easter Oration of Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, also known as "the Theologian", Archbishop of Constantinople (329-390 AD) Yesterday the Lamb was slain and the door-posts were anointed (cf. Exodus 12) and Egypt bewailed her firstborn, and the Destroyer passed us over, and the Seal was dreadful and reverend, and we were walled in with the Precious Blood.  To-day we have clean escaped from Egypt and from Pharaoh; and there is none to hinder us from keeping a Feast to the Lord our God—the Feast of our Departure; or from celebrating that Feast, not in the old leaven of malice and wickedness, but in the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (cf. 1 Corinthian 5: 8), carrying with us nothing of ungodly and Egyptian leaven. Yesterday I was crucified with Him; today I am glorified with Him; yesterday I died with Him; to-day I am quickened w...

Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14 I Corinthians 11:23-26 St. John 13:1-15 "Take this all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, the mystery of faith, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of me." - The Roman Canon Adoration of the Mystic Lamb altar piece, Hubert and Jan Van Eck On Maundy Thursday we commemorate Christ's institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. So I wanted to reflect on that Sacrifice, and in the course of my thinking I found myself concentrating on the element of the Sacred Blood. The pouring out of sacrificial blood has a long history in the Old Testament, beginning with Noah in the immediate aftermath of the flood. God instructs Noah that he may eat any meat he desires, as long as he does not eat it "with the blood," because the blood contains the life of the animal, which belongs only to God. (Gen. 9:4-5) Herb...

Processional: Mark 11:1-10 Gospel: Mark 14:1-15:47 By: Evan   Coptic Ikon of the Triumphal Entry There is a bitter-sweetness which comes to mind each time we read of Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem. At the start, the soul of the Christian is jubilant. Here is our Lord, cloaks spread before him, the branches of the earth caressing the ground. We might hear in our hearts the roar of that crowd. I find myself thinking at last ! Here is the recognition which our Lord, our God deserves. Perhaps there is even the not altogether sweet feeling which comes with that. “At least I would have enough sense to be with that crowd, shouting the praise of Jesus, and not with the Pharisees.” The more we meditate, the more we feel that delicious, righteous, ecstasy. The stones would cry out, indeed. This scene is a momentary reprieve.                   And yet, we also know better than to get...