Month: April 2022

              Sunday 01MAY 2022(‘01): 3RD SUN of EASTER : C

1.AA5:27-32, 40-41

• Read 5:17-42! Apostles&Temple&Jesus&ThePeople!
• What other biblical narratives are evoked? & What aspects of my own local church?
• Read LK22:39-23:49! Where was Gamaliel’s moderate voice on that occasion?
• Or Pilate’s moderate if ineffectual voice on this occasion?
• How can Peter, who denied Jesus, now seek to blame TheHighPriest?
• ‘Obedience!’: In terms of ‘adult conscience‘, how do I discern ‘God’ & ‘Man’?
• ‘Humiliation!’: Why does this excerpt omit ‘TheFlogging’ (v40)?
• How risky is public&prophetic profession of Jesus in my local church?

2. THE PSALM 29:2, 4-6, 11-13

• Read29(30)1-12(13)! A condition of Illness or Oppression or DarkMood or Peril,
• was reckoned to be equivalent to sojourn in ‘TheRealmOfDeath’!
• Will it make a difference if this psalm is sung by a woman or a man?
• How might the listening EucharisticGroup ourselves become ‘TheSavingYahweh’?
• ‘Cos it’s clear from Jesus’ case, that Yahweh does nothing unless I do it!
• How do we imagine ‘Yahweh’ ( Or other narrative divinities like ‘Dionysus’)?

3. APOC5:11-14

• Read 4:1-6:17! Beginning of the complex obscure ‘Ritual-of-Unveiling’!
• Is there a basis in APOC for a much more ‘ecological‘ worldview than usual?
• ‘PowerRichesWisdomStrengthHonourGloryBlessing!’: In Irish society, who has the   giving of these? who receives them? & where am I in it all?
• To what extent might this scenario be the wishful thinking of  TheOppressed?

4. JN21:1-19

• Read 21:1-25! Why has Simon/Peter such a prominent role in these final stories?
• Read JN18:15-17! What does this ‘TripleDenial’ mirror in my discipleship?
• Is the problem of ‘recognisingJesus‘ an important reminder to myChurch?
• What about the tension between the ‘ecclesial’ images of Fish&Lambs?
• Have I found that thoroughgoing ‘AdultDiscipleship’ is the ‘Death’?
• ‘LoveMe/FeedMine!’: What does this ‘interrogation’ hint about ‘JesusIntimacy’?

5. The presence*action of the BlessedOne, is it like this?

 ‘God, Gertie, wha’ happened ya? Y’were cryin’! Excuse me f’r askin’, but was Herkalays up til ‘is tricks again?’ ‘No, y’re right, Cissie! but it was nothin’ like…’ ‘My fellss just as likely t’ try ‘is gatchees, ‘cept knows ‘e wouldn’t get away wit’ it’ ‘cos Cissie’s ..’ ‘ Looka, Cissie this jus’ came on me above ..’ ‘At Mass?’ ‘They were readin’ th’ stuff, an’ suddenly I hears, “Feed my lambs, feed my sheep!”, the man above an’Peter..’ ‘Yeah th’ first pope..’ ‘An suddenly like a big hot wave, didn’t I think a’ th’ poor wee lambs over in Louth..’ ‘ God, Gertie, I never..’ ‘An’ all their mothers an’ fathers!’ ‘God it’s a fright altogether! an’ all the other animals! all over in..’ ‘He said it was like a sacrifice! for th’ sins a’ society, th’ celtic tiger!’ ‘Wha’?’ ‘Though a’m not sure about that: ‘The man-above wouldn’t be that cruel, would he, Cissie..?’  ‘Gertie, it’s comin’ on meself now, th’ hot wave, like’! thinka th’ people over there, thereselves! God, will th’ ever recover?’ ‘Well, Cissie, let’s offer up our drinks the day f”r them all!!’ ‘Sure what more can we do?’ ‘God’s truth, Cissie! What more can any of us do!!’

6. RIDDLE    Which is more nourishingly real? Apostolic legends?

                     Eucharistic Community? Apocalyptic Fantasies?

SUN 24APR 2022(‘01): 2ndSUNofEASTER. OCTAVE OF EASTER DAY 

1. AA5:12-16

• Read 4:32 – 5:16! Idealised presentation of the original ‘basic community’!

Especially the ‘communism’, the exceptional ‘symbiosis’, & the strong ‘Peter’!

• What of the claim that ‘adultChristians’ are an endangered, even a vanishing,

species in Irish society, in terms of debate, social impact, & focussedness!

• In 15 words, what is my local church actually ‘for, & struggling to actualise’?
• How are the ‘hierarchical’ & ‘charismatic’ &’goddess’ elements interacting?
• Why is the training&encouragment of ‘healers’ shirked and poohpoohed ?

2. THE PSALM: 117:2-4, 22-27

• Read 117(118): 1-29! How is ‘YahwehPower’ active in & for a ‘disciple’?
• ‘TheStone’. In what 20 Ways is Jesus ‘CornerStone’ of my local church?
• Which other Divinities Icons Priorities Fears Obsessions vie for my attention?
• Is it possible that JesusHimself is equivalently ‘rejected’ nowadays,

By being relegated to ‘TheThirdDivision’ of ‘Rhetoric&Devotion’?

By being trappt in a medieval mindset?

By being assiduously ‘Adored’ rather than ’Embodied’?

By being maintained as ‘ThePreserveOf’ Authority?

3. APOC1:9-13, 17-19 (What about v11? & vv14-16?)

• The startingly-Jewish mindset of the author/s of APOC!
• yet why is it still such a keytext (at least polemicaly!) for many christians?
• Currently, who is writing the factors hidden in ‘OurSharedChaos’?
• What are The12Agencies-of-Death in our socio-religious milieu? 

  4. N20:19-31

• Some reflections on this undervalued narrative!
• How do I as an adult, Understand&Experience ‘The Presence-of-Jesus!?
• Is His’Sending&Breathing’ a once-off? Or each time he comes?
• Is his ‘Sending&Breathing’ only for some, or for all disciples?
• ‘SeeingTheLord!’ How am I being trained & encouraged in this?
• Is ‘seeing’ believing? Or is ‘non-seeing’ believing? & What’s belief?

5. The presence&action of the BlessedOne, is it like this?

Yes, Thomas! Also called TheImpusive’ more so, let me add, than Kephas or the others could ever aspire to! Compared with Thomas’ passionate ardour, they were mere waterlogged boats! Only Magdalene perhaps, was as sudden as me! She like a serpent, I like an eagle! so we rarely sought the other’s company .. People say, ‘Impulsive Thomas, so strange! Imagine being absent when TheMaster returned. & Blurting out that bravado about TheSacredWounds! How conceited, how overweening!!’They envy me my free spirit, as they envy Magdalene’s too.Yes I can admit that! They also fear lest I did put my hand into His Side! so awesome&intimate! & maybe thereupon endowed with unimaginable power! Knowledge or healing or even the secret of gold! They never ask the eagle,they have the horror on them of finding the truth! or being refused the truth! They prefer to speculate in mutterings, with impunity as they think! not realising what happened! more than the story, less than the story! only for whispering to those who seek my regard! &Who are these among the anxious brood? except perhaps Magdalene herself. . .

6. RIDDLE My local church! Confident Frightened Passe Confused or Struggling?

Refections and comments can be emailed to adbi@chokmah.ie

SUN17APR2022 (2001): EASTER SUNDAY: MASS OF THE DAY

1.  AA10:34, 37-43

• Read 10:1-48! TheLeaderOfTheTwelve takes an exemplary initiative!
• Peter’s KerygmaHomilyApologia!

            What would most impress a potential ‘convert’

            What would be questionable, or based on little or no ‘evidence’?

            That ‘eating&drinking’. Where do I also experience such ‘intimacy’?

            Isn’t Peter very restrained about ‘blaming’ anyone for what happened?

2.  THE PSALM  117:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 (A pitiable shred! &For Easter too!)

• Read 117(118):1-29! TheShout-with-Others of one-rescued-by-Yahweh!
• What 20Favours should my local church be grateful to ‘Yahweh’ for?
• In what ways is ‘Yahweh’sLove-Love-for-Us’ different from that of TheOtherGods?

3.  Col3:1-4

• Read 2:8-3:17! What niche is there in me, for this ‘esoteric worldview’, along with AddictionObsessionTVMoneyKeepingFitParanoiaEroticismStressNarcissismPassiveEntertainmentHobbiesAvoidanceDebtsGuiltAmbitionRegret(wow!)?

4.  1COR 6-8

• Read 5:1-13! Why is Paul so insistently ‘puritanical’ in this regard?
• To what extent have the IrishChristianChurches refused to address the rampant exploitation of the sexual susceptibilities especially of adolescents?

5.  JN20:1-9

• Read 20:1-18! Who ‘saw’ what? &With what ‘affect’?
• If my local church is ‘TheBodyOfTheLord’, what are the incontrovertible signs?
• How is the ‘StruggleOfTwoDisciples’ mirrored in my local church?
• How do I explain to enquirers, Jesus’ ‘RisingFromTheDead’?

6.  The presence&action of the BlessedOne, is it like this?

‘Something I’ve always been curious about..’ ThePractisingSkeptic invariably began tentatively!’How Peter & the other disciple didn’t see the angels that Mary saw only minutes earlier! TheOfficialBeliever nodded sagely with pursed lips & a glance at fingernails, ‘You’re actually asserting this, that the sacred writer only divulges a fragment of what obtained then&there! &only those aspects of immediate concern to catechesis&faith! Other latent truths are only gradually brought into the light by ‘The Magisterium, &those competent periti who offer TheAuthenticTeachers the fruits of their labour…’ ‘all that sounds too neat! &Avoids the issue…’  ‘No issue is avoided by Christ’sChurchOnEarth!’ ‘For instance! Were there two alleged tombs? Were two different legends woven together? Was it necessary to rehabilitate…’ ‘ When will you realise how shallow&fatuous all that is! Not to mention the soupcon of blasphemy! The inspired narrative offers a rich exposé of the simple faith of those early disciples! adequate&inerrant&truthful! Sour-grapes criticism will never subvert God’sWord proclaiming TheResurrection! That’s the long & the short of it!’ ‘But how can you sit there, &trot out…’  ‘ It’s your freethinkers who’ve trotted out of TheTrueChurch! Simple as that! But I’ve not ceased to storm Heaven for you! Like the other disciple, lookAgain! &Peter will finally confirm your faith!!’

7. RIDDLE   ‘TheEasterRising! Yes, but which one? 1916? TheSap-in-Nature?

                               Irish Moral Standards? Tempers in CertainDisputes?

Refections and comments can be emailed to adbi@chokmah.ie

SUN10APR2022 (2001): PASSION(also called PALM) SUNDAY

(CELEBRATION OF THE PASSOVER OF THE JEWS)

1. ISS50:4-7

• Read TheSongsOfYahweh’s Slave! 42:1-9; 49:1-7; 50:4-9; 52:13-53:12!
• What especially characterises TheSpeaking&Listening of a ‘YahwehDisciple’?
• What aspect of the disciple’s praxis attracts this contemptuous treatment?
• Where (&by-whom) in my world are Yahweh’sDisciples so scurrilously used?
• &And are not women-disciples pf ‘Yahweh’ similarly demeaned?
• ‘Cos I’m invited to think of many others than Jesus, as ‘TheSufferingServant’!
• What encouragement or training am I offered, so as to endure persecution?
• What if ‘domestic violence’ is a form of ‘persecution’ largely dissimulated?

2. THE PSALM. 21;8-9, 17-20, 23-24 (Another eviscerated psalm!)

• Read 21(22) 1-31! One of the greatest ‘Trust-in-Yahweh” psalms! But will Yahweh actually respond in a concrete&effectual manner? Or tarry on HisThrone?
• Are Yahweh’s enemies more clear-eyed&realistic about His actual ‘Weakness’?
• Again, is there any place for women-sufferers in this male diatribe?
• Indeed, is there an implicit assertion, Salvation is man’s-business!’?
• ‘My God, My God!’ Jesus’ protest at being abandoned by TheBlessedOne?
• Or the beginning of AfternoonPrayer? Or the riddle of TheBeloved’s sordid end?

3. PHIL2:6-11

• Read 2:1-18! But can Paul guarantee ‘The Mind of Jesus’ in his converts?
• But does the hymn quoted in this excerpt actually represent ‘The Mind of Jesus’?
• Will the semi-mystical tone serve to make me somewhat wary&ironic?
• Why is Paul so ‘enthusiastic’ about Jesus’ ‘death-by-Crucifixion’?
• ‘The Name!’: The salient name? Yahweh/TheLord! TheOneWhoBringsOutOfEgypt!

4. LK2214 -23,56 Abbreviated PassionNarrative)

• Read 19:29 – 24-35 The narrative tapestry of HisExodus-in-Jerusalem!
• What about LK’s reputation? A Gospel that highlights ‘women’! &TheTwoCups!
• TheTwoSwords! TheAngel-of-the-Agony! TheGoodThief! TheFinalShout!
• How does LK especially portray

                        The ‘disciples’ of Jesus, both men&women?

                        Those hostile to Jesus, in particular the religious leaders?

5. The Presence&Action of the BlessedOne, is it like this?

‘Well, there’s a Palm Sunda’ round’ again! Didja carry y’r palm F’r….. “It’s changed t’ Passion Sunda’ now, he tol’ us! In honour of…’ ‘Passion? How come Passion’? D’ya mean,  

‘Looka, even if y’are a socialist an’ all!! It’s Our Lord’s Sacred Passion, he said!’  ‘I didn’t mean no bull, but they’re always choppin’ an’ changin”! Not like in th’ oul’ Canon’s day! Things were more regimental then!’ ‘Begod y’re right! Regimental! D’ya remember…’ ‘But y’ knew where y’ stood! Not like now!’ ‘ .’…he’d shout, “Houl’ up them palms comrades! An’ join ‘Im  in ‘Is march t’ free th’ Oppressed!” …’No master plan at all, that’s what I surmise! No strategy, just choppin’ an’ …’ ‘ Every day a’ Holy Week, he’d stan’ there…’ ‘No wonder I took me walkin’ papers! Like a crowd a’ headless…’ ‘ Well let them! When I go, it’s f’r him! So I gave it a good hike up in the air! An’ shouted his words inside a’ me! There was a tear in me eye, but it was f’r him, an’ the man above!  ‘Ah, boys a’ boys! Let’s drink t’ that ! Him an’ the man above!!’

RIDDLE: What is Jesus witnessing? TruthJusticeLovdeCouragePatienceLife?

Refections and comments can be emailed to adbi@chokmah.ie