At the very heart of the Christian faith is the conviction that Jesus Christ died to redeem us from sin and death, to restore us to right relationship with the Father, and to open the gates of eternal life to His faithful people.
Tag: good news
A full picture of the Good News
During Lent, I am reading one chapter of Scripture every day, starting with John’s Gospel. Reading one of the Gospels sequentially gives one a full picture of the Good News, the whole story of Jesus Christ, each with a different perspective.
Jesus: History and fact
Luke’s Gospel contextualizes Jesus’ birth in its historical moment, mentioning in Chapter 2 that Caesar Augustus initiated the census which brought Mary and Joseph to Bethlehem and that Quirinius was governor of Syria.
God holds us in His hands at all times
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| This column is the bishop’s communication with the faithful of the Diocese of Madison. Any wider circulation reaches beyond the intention of the bishop. |
Dear Friends,
The readings of this past weekend speak a much-needed word of consolation, hope, and joy to each of us, in the here and now.
I don’t know about each of you (though I’ve heard from a number of you), but in my opinion there are a good number of reasons for concern in our times, and there’s good reason to wonder where things are going — especially in terms of our national political scene.
But in such moments of uncertainty, the followers of Jesus Christ have always been able to consider the ultimate realities and to reflect back upon readings like those of this past weekend.
In the first place, we can consider the context of Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:14, 43-52) as they have begun to go out and preach the Good News far and wide.
What precisely is the Gospel?
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Some years ago, I was involved in a Catholic-Evangelical dialogue. One of our Protestant brothers challenged the Catholics in the group to articulate clearly what the Gospel is.
I knew what he was getting at: many Evangelicals pride themselves on the fact that they can succinctly sum up the Good News in a way that people find compelling and helpful, whereas many Catholics, it seems, get tongue-tied.
The joy of evangelizing
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An emergency tends to focus one’s mind and energies and to clarify one’s priorities.
If a dangerous fire breaks out in a home, the inhabitants thereof will lay aside their quarrels, postpone their other activities, and together get to the task of putting out the flames. If a nation is invaded by an aggressor, politicians will quickly forget their internal squabbling and put off their legislative programs in order to work together for the shared purpose of repulsing the enemy.
World Mission Sunday 2011: Celebrating, sharing faith joyfully in Kenya
The settings couldn’t be more different. One, Mukuru, a slum in the Kenyan capital city of Nairobi, home to some 10,000 living in wood and corrugated metal shacks, crowded together, with no running water, electricity, or sewage systems.