of the human person from conception until natural death
This weekend’s Gospel opens with the parable asking if someone who is blind can lead others who are blind? It refers to the obvious fact that someone who is ignorant or misguided themselves cannot effectively guide others, as both of them will end up in trouble. No student is better…
The word Genesis (geneseōs) comes from the Septuagint or the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. According to Genesis 2:4, literally, it is “the book of the generation (Gk. γενέσεως) of the heavens and earth.” Its title in the Jewish Scriptures is the opening Hebrew word, bereshit, “in the beginning,”
In all of Scripture, arguably the most mysterious figure of all is Melchizedek. He is first mentioned in the Book of Genesis. Then, almost a millennium later, his name is mentioned in the Book of Psalms (Ps 110:4) and, finally, the sacred author of the Letter to the Hebrews…
Two biblical words, the Hebrew Shōshbēn and the Greek Paranymph mean roughly the same thing: friend or relative of the bridegroom who accompanies the groom to bring home the bride. An entry in Ellicott’s Bible Commentary for English Readers yields the following explanation of the term: “The ‘friend of the bridegroom’—
In the earliest days of the Church, Epiphany incorporated many of the elements of the life of Jesus that were subsequently divided into various liturgical feasts. With that in mind, the baptism of Jesus and the wedding feast at Cana were originally incorporated into Epiphany. This historical insight is better…
In the Hebrew Bible, there is one Book of Kings (Heb. Sefer Melakim) and, as one scroll, it was initially only consonants; only after 600 AD were vowel points added.…
The Pentateuch, or the first five books of the Bible, declares a large number of laws given by God, through Moses, to the Israelites during the forty years they wandered…
Known in the Greek Septuagint as the Books of the Kingdoms (Gk. Βíβλοι Βασιλειῶν), that title incorporates four books of the Hebrew Bible: 1 and 2 Kingdoms (the equivalent of…
Nature and dignity 