~~~SisterSea~~~

Shared Homily Starter 1 st Reading:     Sirach ( Ecclesiasticus ) 15:15-20 2 nd Reading:    1 Corinthians 2:6-10 Gospel:            Matthew 5:17-37 Some of you may be unfamiliar with the source of the First Reading.   It is from Sirach, is also called the Wisdom of Sirach and also known as the Book of Ecclesiasticus.   This is one of the biblical books in the Orthodox, Anglican and Roman Catholic Bibles that is not found in Protestant Bibles. In today’s first reading, we hear that keeping the commandments and acting faithfully are choices we make.   When Jesus says in today’s Gospel that he has not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it, Jesus is talking about teaching us the right attitude and disposition in how we keep the commandments and act faithfully.   Jesus is not calling us to a new law but to a new way of life by teaching that the commandments must be percei...

Shared Homily Starter First Reading:             Malachi 3:1-4 Second Reading:        Hebrews 2:10-18 Gospel:                        Luke 2:22-40 One could look at today’s Gospel as suggesting that only a favoured few can perceive Jesus’ true nature and mission.   You might be tempted to think that only people who are able to perceive Jesus as a light for God’s revelation to the world are those who are righteous and devout like Simeon and those who fast and pray night and day like Anna.   Looking at the Gospel that way is limiting in several respects.   It limits Jesus experience as a human being; it limits his mission as God’s messenger; and it limits our ability to see the depths of God’s love for us.   As a human being, we can infer from the Gospel t...