CHRISTIANITY / BIBLE / PSALM 34

Come children. Listen to me.
I will teach you what it means to fear the Lord.

Do you want to really live?
Would you love to live a long, happy life?

Then make sure you don’t speak evil words
or use deceptive speech.

Turn away from evil and do what is right.
Strive for peace and promote it.

The Lord pays attention to the godly
and hears their cry for help.

But the Lord opposes evildoers
and wipes out all memory of them from the earth.

The godly cry out and the Lord hears;
he saves them from all their troubles.

The Lord is near the brokenhearted;
he delivers those who are discouraged.

The godly face many dangers,
but the Lord saves them from each one of them.

He protects all his bones;
not one of them is broken.

Evil people self-destruct;
those who hate the godly are punished.

The Lord rescues his servants;
all who take shelter in him escape punishment.

(Psalm 34:11-22, New English Translation)
https://netbible.org/bible/Psalms+34

NOTE:

A huge, important way to please God, and to have his favor, is to do good. 

- Pseudo-Boethius

BOOK / EXCERPT / THE ESSENTIAL KABBALAH

Book: The Essential Kabbalah

Author: Daniel C. Matt

Page: 21

THE PURPOSE

The purpose of the marriage of a woman and a man is union.

The purpose of union is fertilization

The purpose of fertilization is giving birth.

The purpose of birth is learning.

The purpose of learning is to grasp the divine.

The purpose of apprehending the divine is to maintain the endurance of the one who apprehends with the joy of apprehending. 

- Pseudo-Boethius

CHRISTIANITY / THEOLOGY / SALVATION

"For I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters,
that our fathers were all under the cloud and all passed through the sea,  
and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea,  
and all ate the same spiritual food,  
and all drank the same spiritual drink. 

"For they were all drinking from the spiritual rock that followed them,
and the rock was Christ.  

"But God was not pleased with most of them,
for they were cut down in the wilderness.  

"These things happened as examples for us,
so that we will not crave evil things as they did.  

"So do not be idolaters, as some of them were.
As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and rose up to play.”  
And let us not be immoral, as some of them were, and 23,000 died in a single day.  
And let us not put Christ to the test, as some of them did, and were destroyed by snakes.  
And do not complain, as some of them did, and were killed by the destroying angel. 

"These things happened to them as examples
and were written for our instruction, on whom the ends of the ages have come.  
So let the one who thinks he is standing be careful that he does not fall.

"No trial has overtaken you that is not faced by others.
And God is faithful:
He will not let you be tried beyond what you are able to bear,
but with the trial will also provide a way out so that you may be able to endure it."

1 Corinthians 10: 1-13
The New English Translation
https://netbible.org/bible/1+Corinthians+10

NOTES:

The lesson here is a bit opaque, and requires one to have good knowledge of the story of the book of Exodus in the Old Testament.  But the point Paul is making is this: God does judge, and he picks who gets in, and who doesn't, when it came to getting to the Holy Land.  Not even Moses himself made it in!   

Hence, going to heaven is not, in any way, automatic for a believer in Christ.  The main idea is that your words and actions will--in fact--be judged by God, and if they do not show evidence of righteousness, then you should hold your salvation in doubt.  

Back in the early centuries of Christianity, it was taught clearly that you should NEVER, EVER assume that you are going to heaven, no matter what.  It was well understood that your salvation was God's decision, and it was going to be based on your whole life, not on just your core beliefs.  

Hence, Paul is warning us to make sure we live in accordance with the message of the Gospel, lest we ourselves should be disqualified from ultimate salvation.  

- Pseudo-Boethius

CHRISTIANITY / THEOLOGY / FAITH AND GOOD WORKS

"And although you were dead in your offenses and sins,  in which you formerly lived according to this world’s present path, according to the ruler of the domain of the air, the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience, among whom all of us also formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath even as the rest…

"But God, being rich in mercy because of his great love with which he loved us, even though we were dead in offenses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you are saved!— and he raised us up together with him and seated us together with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, to demonstrate in the coming ages the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.  For by grace you are saved through faith, and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God;  it is not from works, so that no one can boast.  For we are his creative work, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we can do them."

Ephesians 2:1-10
New English Translation
https://netbible.org/bible/Ephesians+2

NOTES:

When Paul uses the term "works" by itself, he is almost always referring to Jewish legal rituals and traditions. 

When Paul uses the phrase "good works", he means exactly what it sounds like, we are to do good deeds as a Christian.  It is very much apart of our sanctification and salvation.  

- Pseudo Boethius

BOOKS / FICTION / EXCERPT

Book: THE SPARROW

by Mary Doria Russell

Pages 58-59

EMILIO SANDOZ - Jesuit priest from Puerto Rico

JOHN CANDOTTI - Jesuit priest from Chicago, Illinois

LOCATION - Jesuit retreat house in Naples, Italy

He had just stretched his feet out toward the fire and was wondering idly if the next Pope's election would be signaled with a sign that said "White Smoke" when, as his eyes adjusted to the dark, he realized that Sandoz was standing near the wall mullioned windows, looking down at the shoreline far below, its rocks glimmering in the moonlight, waves lacing the beach. 

"I thought you'd be asleep by now," John said quietly.  "Rough trip, huh?"

Sandoz didn't reply.  He began to pace, restless despite the obvious fatigue, sat down briefly in a chair far from Candotti, and then stood again. Close, John thought.  He's very close.  

But when Sandoz spoke, it wasn't what John hoped for or expected--a cleansing breakdown, a confession that could make way for the man to forgive himself, the pouring out of a story with a plea for understanding.  Some sort of emotional release.  

"Do you experience God?" Sandoz asked him without preamble.  

Odd how uncomfortable the question made him.  The Society of Jesus rerely attracted mystics, who generally gravitated to the Carmelites or the Trappists, or wound up among the charismatics.  Jesuits tended to be men who found God in their work, whether that work was scholarly or more practical social service.  Whatever their calling, they devoted themselves to it and did so in the ame of God.  "Not directly.  Not as a friend or personality, I suppose."  John examined himself.  "Not, I think, even 'in a tiny whispering sound."  He watched the flames for a while.  "I would have to say that I find God in serving His children. 'For I was hungery and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, sick and you cared for me, imprisoned and you came to me.'"

The words lingered in the air as the fire popped and hissed softly.  Sandoz had stopped pacing and stood motionless in a far corner of the room, his face in shadows, firelight glittering on the metallic exoskeletons of this hands.  "Don't hope for more than that, John," he said. "God will break your heart." And then he left.  

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea,
in the time of King Herod,
wise men from the East came to Jerusalem  saying,
“Where is the one who is born king of the Jews?
For we saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”  

When King Herod heard this he was alarmed, and all Jerusalem with him.
After assembling all the chief priests and experts in the law,
he asked them where the Christ was to be born.  
“In Bethlehem of Judea,” they said, “for it is written this way by the prophet:

‘And you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,

are in no way least among the rulers of Judah,

for out of you will come a ruler who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod privately summoned the wise men
and determined from them when the star had appeared.  
He sent them to Bethlehem and said,
“Go and look carefully for the child.
When you find him, inform me so that I can go and worship him as well.”  

After listening to the king they left,
and once again the star they saw when it rose led them
until it stopped above the place where the child was.
When they saw the star they shouted joyfully.

As they came into the house and saw the child with Mary his mother,
they bowed down and worshiped him.

They opened their treasure boxes
and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
After being warned in a dream not to return to Herod,
they went back by another route to their own country.

After they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said,
“Get up, take the child and his mother and flee to Egypt, and stay there until I tell you,
for Herod is going to look for the child to kill him.”
Then he got up, took the child and his mother during the night, and went to Egypt.
He stayed there until Herod died.
In this way what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet was fulfilled:
“I called my Son out of Egypt.”

When Herod saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became enraged.
He sent men to kill all the children in Bethlehem
and throughout the surrounding region from the age of two and under,
according to the time he had learned from the wise men.
Then what was spoken by Jeremiah the prophet was fulfilled:

18 “A voice was heard in Ramah,

weeping and loud wailing,

Rachel weeping for her children,

and she did not want to be comforted, because they were gone.”

After Herod had died, an angel of the Lord appeared in a dream to Joseph in Egypt saying,
“Get up, take the child and his mother,
and go to the land of Israel,
for those who were seeking the child’s life are dead.”
So he got up and took the child and his mother and returned to the land of Israel.

But when he heard that Archelaus was reigning over Judea
in place of his father Herod,
he was afraid to go there. 

After being warned in a dream, he went to the regions of Galilee.
He came to a town called Nazareth and lived there.
Then what had been spoken by the prophets was fulfilled,
that Jesus would be called a Nazarene.

==============================

Commentary:

First, let's find out a little about Herod's son Archelaus, via a quick A.I. summary:

"Herod Archelaus was the son of Herod the Great and his wife Malthace, a Samaritan woman. Following his father's death in 4 BC, Archelaus was appointed ethnarch (ruler of the people) over Judea, Samaria, and Idumea, rather than king, as confirmed by Roman Emperor Augustus. 

"His reign was marked by harsh and tyrannical governance, including the brutal suppression of a Passover uprising that resulted in thousands of deaths.  Due to widespread complaints about his cruelty and mismanagement, Archelaus was deposed by Augustus in AD 6 and exiled to Vienne in Gaul, after which Judea came under direct Roman administration. 

"In the biblical narrative, Archelaus is significant because his rule caused Joseph to fear returning to Judea with the infant Jesus after their time in Egypt.

"Instead, Joseph was warned in a dream to settle in Galilee, specifically in Nazareth, fulfilling prophecy (Matthew 2:22-23)."

 Though this is A.I. it does correlate with the history of Herod that I've learned from old fashioned history books.  Hence, it seems Joseph did the right thing by avoiding the part of Judea that was under his rule.   

As for Jospeh's dreams, that had long been held as a valid means of receiving revelation in the mid-east until the current day.  So why did God use dreams instead of a messenger angel?  Unknown, the text does not tell us.  But we can assume that these instructions were short and to the point, and a dream was more than a good enough way to communicate these instructions.  

Of course those of us living in the 21st century would like these things to be more "verifiable" scientifically speaking, but God is obviously not interested in satisfying the curiosity of the scientifically minded individual.  If you don't wish to believe these narrative details, you are free to doubt them.  

However, the mention of the historically accurate names of Herod and Archelaus, along with their titles and time of rule, show conclusively that the writers of the gospels were doing their best to show that the story of Jesus is rooted in actual history, with real life villians, culture, and locations.  They were not trying to write a fairy-tale, but a real life account of the man/God that they knew, as he entered real history.   We obviously cannot independently verify every single word and event in the Gospels, but the writers of these narratives give us more than enough information for us to easily believe they were writing about an actual person in time, and not a figment of their imaginations.   

Yet the main thing about the virgin birth narrative and the dream instructions is to show that God was ultimately in charge of this project, and Joseph and Mary were his servants in this endeavor.  They were extremely important servants, but servants none-the-less.  But they were not picked to serve men, but God himself.  And it's very obvious that God was taking a very peculiar interest in the birth and welfare of this Son of Man.

The main take-away for those of us in the modern age to pay attention to is the fact that Jesus was set apart by God as an infant, and his life was God's number one priority.   After all, Jesus is the means of salvation for the whole world.     

- Pseudo Boethius

MATTHEW 1

1.1 This is the record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah the father of Perez and Zerah (by Tamar),
Perez the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,  
Salmon the father of Boaz (by Rahab),
Boaz the father of Obed (by Ruth),
Obed the father of Jesse,  
and Jesse the father of David the king.

David was the father of Solomon (by the wife of Uriah),
Solomon the father of Rehoboam,
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asa,  
Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Joram,
Joram the father of Uzziah,  
Uzziah the father of Jotham,
Jotham the father of Ahaz,
Ahaz the father of Hezekiah,  
Hezekiah the father of Manasseh,
Manasseh the father of Amon,
Amon the father of Josiah,  
and Josiah the father of Jeconiah and his brothers, at the time of the deportation to Babylon.

After the deportation to Babylon,
Jeconiah became the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,  
Zerubbabel the father of Abiud,
Abiud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,  
Azor the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Achim,
Achim the father of Eliud,
Eliud the father of Eleazar,
Eleazar the father of Matthan,
Matthan the father of Jacob,  
and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, by whom Jesus was born, who is called Christ.

So all the generations from Abraham to David are fourteen generations,
and from David to the deportation to Babylon, fourteen generations,
and from the deportation to Babylon to Christ, fourteen generations.

Now the birth of Jesus Christ happened this way.
While his mother Mary was engaged to Joseph,
but before they came together,
she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.

Because Joseph, her husband to be, was a righteous man,
and because he did not want to disgrace her,
he intended to divorce her privately.

When he had contemplated this,
an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife
because the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit.
She will give birth to a son and you will name him Jesus
because he will save his people from their sins.” 

This all happened so that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled:  

“Look! The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will name him Emmanuel,”
which means “God with us.” 

When Joseph awoke from sleep he did what the angel of the Lord told him.
He took his wife, but did not have marital relations with her
until she gave birth to a son, whom he named Jesus.

- New English Translation
https://netbible.org/bible/Matthew+1

Commentary:

[Verse numbers intentionally removed for greater readability.]

Even though Jesus was born through the Holy Spirit, and not via his father Joseph, we are given what appears to be Joseph's human genealogy.  It's a very simple, direct way to show Jesus' connection to various OT characters, and especially King David himself.  

Much like ourselves, Jesus was both a product of "the earth" in that he was a human being born of a woman, like all of us, but unlike us, the cause of his birth was the Holy Spirit.  Hence, he was born of a virgin who had never had sex with a man up to that point.   

For no one is declared righteous before him by the works of the law,
for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.

But now apart from the law the righteousness of God
(although it is attested by the law and the prophets)
has been disclosed—
namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ for all who believe. 

For there is no distinction,  
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
But they are justified freely by his grace
through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

God publicly displayed him at his death as the mercy seat accessible through faith.
This was to demonstrate his righteousness
because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed.
This was also to demonstrate his righteousness in the present time,
so that he would be just and the justifier of the one who lives because of Jesus’ faithfulness.

Just two: 

"Take care of your relationships, they are the mirrors of your soul."

"The husband is the boss -- if the wife allows." 

- Psuedo Boethius

The latest homily from Bishop Barron:

- Pseudo Boethius