Art/ Heritage

SACRED ART IN 100 WORDS

The Man of Sorrows –Sandro Botticelli, Circa 1500, Private Collection

In Botticelli’s Man of Sorrows, we see Christ wearing a pleated crimson robe. His arms are bound and His hands cross over His chest. This gesture symbolizes humility and piety. Notice that his left hand guides us to the deep wound at his side. Christ wears a crown of thorns, thick as a snake – symbolizing both sin and suffering. Tiny balletic angels armed with the instruments of Christ’s Passion form a halo around His head. Together, they lament His bitter pain. Christ suffers silently. His gaze is vulnerable, yet steady. He is sorrowful, yet serene. The painting presents to us Christ, both human and divine.

– Archdiocesan Heritage Museum

Spread the love ♥
       
Continue Reading
Faith

Three steps that could change your life – Monday, 5th Week in ordinary time – Mark 6:53-56

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/mass-appeal-not-some-fringe-teaching/

The disciples have seen the Lord calm the sea not once but twice and this time he walked on the water to them. They have now landed in Gennesaret. Gennesaret was a district on the Northwest corner of the Sea of Galilee that covered about four square miles. It was home to the cities of Capernaum, Bethsaida, and Chorazin, places where Jesus frequently ministered. Gennesaret translates loosely as the ‘garden of the prince.’

The text of today tells us that the disciples have now moored their boat and scripture tells us that ‘at once’ people recognized him and ‘rushed about the whole region’ bringing to him the sick on mats to where ever they heard he was. The mats on which the sick were brought were called krabattois. These were the mattresses commonly used by the poor and right away we understand the desperation that poverty brings to our lives and the love of a saviour who desires to heal us.

Where ever Jesus went, the crowds followed and brought to him those who were sick. They placed them in front of him; be it at a farm or in their villages or cities and even in the marketplace (6:36). They begged that they might touch him or touch the fringe of his cloak. This fringe is probably the fringe or tassels worn by Jewish men in compliance with Torah to remind them of God’s commandments (Numbers 15:38-39; Deuteronomy 22:12) thereby marking Jesus as an observant Jew, concerned with obedience to Torah law.
Scripture tells us that all who touched him were healed. The RSV Bible translates the Greek word ‘sozo’ as ‘healed’ in our text. Yet, sozo also translates as saved. As anyone who has survived a serious illness knows, to be healed is to be saved, not only from death but from suffering and incapacitation, which can be even worse than death.

But how does all this tie in with our lives today? We are all in need of healing. While some of us may be blessed with physical health, our soul or heart or head may not. We need to ‘recognize’ the Lord like the people in the text of today did. Recognizing him means that we acknowledge who Jesus is and what he alone can do for us. The Pharisees and the religious establishment knew where Jesus came from and who his family was but they did not ‘recognize’ him as the saviour.

Spread the love ♥
       
Continue Reading
Faith

Sin is a slippery slope – Friday, 4th Week in ordinary time – Mark 6: 14-29

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/a-dish-not-on-the-menu-friday-4th-week-in-ordinary-time-mark-614-29/

Naming a child is a matter of great sensitivity. There are names we avoid because of the association they have to everything that is considered wrong. You don’t hear of a Nero or a Judas or a Hitler and certainly not a Herod, especially if you are a devout Christian.

Just about every Herod ‘earned’ his name into infamy! It was Herod the Great who tried to kill the baby Jesus (Matthew 1-20). Herod Archelaus threatened Joseph and his little family (Matthew 2:22) and now Herod Antipas murders John the Baptist.

So, who was Herod Antipas who is mentioned in today’s Gospel? Herod Antipas is not really king, but tetrarch. That term originally meant “one of four rulers,” but came to mean a governor with limited authority. Herod Antipas ruled over Galilee and Perea (Matthew 14:1; Luke 9:7). His brother, Archelaus, ruled over Judea and Samaria and a half-brother, Philip, ruled over Gentile territories on the far side of the Jordan River and northeast of Galilee. The tetrarchs were no more than puppets who ruled at Rome’s pleasure, and were subject to Rome’s guidance.

The Herod family tree is both complex and disturbing. Herod the Great married several women who bore him seven sons. Herodias is the daughter of one of these seven sons and marries two of the other seven sons—which means that both of her husbands are also her uncles. Herod the Great was quite paranoid. He murdered his wife and mother-in-law then went on to murdered three of his seven sons for fear that they might try to depose him. Of the remaining four sons, three marry either Herodias or Herodias’ daughter

Today’s text tells us that everyone in Herod’s court has an opinion on who Jesus was. Some thought he was a prophet, others Elijah and some including Herod Antipas believe that Jesus was John the Baptist who has now been raised. Herod now has a case of a bad conscience and is perhaps very fearful. While the Gospel does not explicitly elaborate on Herod’s state of mind, it brings back to his mind a memory that he would rather forget, for embedded in it are the character flaws of an immoral man with a weak and wavering conscience; a man who knew what was right but chose to succumb to what was wrong.

Spread the love ♥
       
Continue Reading
Faith

Who do you think you are ? Wednesday, 4th Week in ordinary time – Mark 6:1-6

Read also https://www.pottypadre.com/name-or-nature/

Jesus has just worked two mighty miracles in Capernaum. He has raised Jairus daughter to life and healed a woman who was haemorrhaging for twelve years. As usual, Jesus strictly ordered the parents of the girl, not to tell anyone about the miracle but that would be most unlikely considering that she was dead when Jesus arrived and now she was sitting down to a meal. Remember, Jesus told the little girl’s parents to “give her something to eat.” (5:43)

While Jesus had made Capernaum his home, he now journeys to Nazareth, his hometown. Scholars tell us that Nazareth was a village of 500 people. It was a town small enough that everyone would know everyone else and everyone else’s business and herein lies the problem; familiarity will breed contempt.

Jesus is accompanied by his disciples. On the sabbath, Jesus “decided” to teach. Obviously, the words and deeds of Jesus have preceded him, this was the home town boy who had made waves in Galilee. The Gospel of Mark tells us that so far he has worked six miracles within a few miles of Nazareth (1:40-45; 2:1-12; 3:1-6; 5:1-20, 21-43). The people of Nazareth must have gone to the synagogue service with a sense of expectation, wondering what they would hear from this young man who had grown up in their midst.

Ironically, while his teachings have been met with amazement elsewhere, here, in his home town they are “astounded” and clearly not in a positive way. The people are astounded both by Jesus’ wisdom and his mighty works. There is a sense of disbelief. What caused this strange reaction we will never really know though we can make some calculated guess from the reaction that Mark records.

Their description of him as “the carpenter,” “the son of Mary,” ignored any mention of a father figure. It is possible that Joseph is dead by this time, although we would expect people to identify Jesus by his father’s name even after the father’s death. In first century culture this could only mean that they were hinting that he was conceived illegitimately This type of history, with a fatherless lineage, would be “scandalous” to them (skandalidzo is translated as “took offense” at 6:3).

Spread the love ♥
       
Continue Reading
Faith

Desperation has no dignity – Tuesday, 4th week in ordinary time – Mark 5:21-43

You can also read another reflection based on the same Gospel text by clicking the link below
https://www.pottypadre.com/breaking-barriers-building-bridges/

Jesus could be called a jet-setter of sorts except that his mode of transport was a humble fishing boat. He seemed to be a man on a mission, zipping across from Capernaum to Gerasene and then to the West shore of the Sea of Galilee. His travel by boat finds mention several times in chapters four and five of the Gospel of Mark. (4:1,4:36&37, 5:2 and 5:21). But we know that these boats also became his pulpit as great crowds gathered around him (4:1, 5:21)

We are now told of two miracle stories rolled into one incident and I have dealt with the interesting details of the same in my previous article https://www.pottypadre.com/fear-and-faith/ . For today, I want to focus on what can we take home as a point of reflection from this Gospel.

We are told that Jairus was the ruler of the synagogue. The ruler of the synagogue was the man chosen to care for the physical arrangements of the synagogue, namely the building, its contents, and its arrangements for worship. While the details in the Gospel of Mark and Luke run parallel with a few minor differences the Gospel of Matthew, takes a different turn. In Matthew, the synagogue ruler is unnamed, the girl’s age is not mentioned, she has already ‘just died’ and the father’s request is that Jesus lay his hand upon her ‘and she will live [again]’ In other words, in Matthew he requests Jesus to reverse her death rather than prevent it, as in Mark and Luke.

Whatever be the case, here is a desperate man who falls at Jesus feet (5:22) and begs him repeatedly (5:23). It is not that Jesus needs to begged repeatedly that is being stressed but the desperation of a father for his daughter that drives him to repeat the same plea again and again without stopping. This was a tragic scene played out in full view of ‘a great crowd gathered’ (5:21). Desperation has no dignity; it only has determination.

While the Gospel tells us of a very desperate and vocal father it also tells us of a silent yet desperate woman. In this great drama of Jairus’ predicament, was an unnamed and insignificant woman. St Mark tell us of her desperation and he does this in great detail. Hers was a story of physical suffering one that she bore for twelve years. Her hemorrhage’s had caused her to ‘endure’ much. She had seen several physicians and she was no better but grew worse with every passing physician. Luke 8:43 adds one more detail of her suffering; she had spent all her money on physicians. She was not just broken; she was also flat out broke!

Spread the love ♥
       
Continue Reading