Growing in prayer is not simply acquiring a set of special spiritual skills. It is growing into Christian humanity.
Season after Pentecost | 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B)
Exodus 16:2-4, 9-15 (Psalm 78:23-29); Ephesians 4:1-16; John 6:24-35 | Semi-continuous first reading: 2 Samuel 11:26 - 12:13a (Psalm 51:1-12)
I used to read Ephesians 4 and get that vague, warm glow we Mennonites feel when we see the word peace. Now the passage stops me cold.
In the Bible, forgiveness involves repayment of what is owed. One way to pay down the debt is through charity to the poor.
"Speak the truth in love," and "see that none of you repays evil for evil," exhorts St. Paul. Which is easier said than done.
There are lots of ways to talk about the relationship between sports and religion. The opening scene of Bull Durham comes to mind. As does the cultic quality of America’s obsession with football. Sport as the center of personal and communal piety has a long history in many cultures, with the U.S. perhaps—to keep the competition motif alive here—winning the prize for the world’s most zealous devotees of the faith.
Perhaps we should not be too hard on the people who ate their fill on the mountain and chased Jesus down on the other side.