Neli ML

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- septiembre 06, 2024

Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost 2024 Mark 7:24-37 Rev. Neli Miranda Last Sunday, in Mark’s Gospel we witnessed a tense encounter between Jesus and the Pharisees and Scribes when they engaged in a discussion about the strict purity code that ruled the people of Israel. During this exchange, the Pharisees and Scribes accused Jesus and his disciples of neglecting the traditional practice of washing hands before meals, as prescribed by the “tradition of the elders”. Essentially, they called Jesus and his disciples impure, and in response, Jesus replied, “ There is nothing outside a person that by going in can defile… It is what comes out of a person that defiles” (7,15). The Jewish purity code also influenced any relationship with Gentiles. Since Gentiles did not adhere to these regulations, they were considered impure, resulting in a clear practice of segregation between Jews and non-Jews. Throughout the book of Mark, Jesus repeatedly crosses the boundaries of purity an

- agosto 31, 2024

Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost Mark 7:1-8, 14-15, 21-23 Rev. Neli Miranda After six weeks of reading and reflecting on chapter 6 of the Gospel of John, we now return to the Gospel of Mark. In Mark, we witness that Jesus spends most of his public ministry in Galilee, the northern province of Palestine. Galilee was distinct from Judea, the southern province where Jerusalem, the capital, was located. Although Galileans and Judeans shared the same ethnic origin, they were different due to their distinct history, geography, and culture. The Judeans despised their northern neighbors, believing themselves to be an ethnically and religiously pure people. While Judeans prided themselves for their “ethnic purity”, Galileans lived among a mixed population and in close proximity to Gentiles. Judeans were also in closer proximity and adherence to the Jerusalem temple and religious authorities while Galileans, living farther from Jerusalem, were seen as more lax in their

- agosto 17, 2024

Thirteenth Sunday after Pentecost 2024 John 6, 51-58 Rev. Neli Miranda Today, as we continue reading John Chapter 6, we find Jesus revealing himself as the living bread that descended from heaven. Following the feeding of the five thousand with bread and fish, Jesus spoke about the food that endures for eternal life and urged his followers, “Do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that endures for eternal life, which the Son of Man [Jesus] will give you” (6,27). In the Gospel of John, the concept of eternal life transcends a mere perpetuation of life after death; it signifies a full life, an intimate communion with God that begins in the present. Jesus, the provider of this gift, invites his listeners to believe in him and partake of the bread he offers to experience this profound relationship with God. Here, Jesus transitions the discourse from the physical bread he distributed among the multitude of five thousand to the bread from heaven he embodies fo

- agosto 03, 2024

Tenth Sunday after Pentecost – Sunday, August 4, 2024 John 6:24-35 Rev. Neli Miranda Today, we continue reading John’s account of the events following the feeding of the five thousand. Most of these people returned home satisfied. They had been filled with the Word of God and with the bread and fish distributed by Jesus and his disciples. Some among them also experienced healing at the hands of Jesus, returning home full in body and spirit. However, as John recounts, some of them continued looking for Jesus and followed him to Capernaum, seemingly drawn by the prospect of continued physical sustenance rather than by understanding the liberating message of the Kingdom of God. The Roman government had a practice that kept the large crowds pacified by offering them free food and “entertainment” at the Colosseum a practice known as “bread and circus”. While bread is sacred and a fundamental human right, here it was used as a tool of control, providing temporary relief while per

- julio 27, 2024

Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost John 6:1-21 Rev. Neli Miranda In Spanish, there is a saying, “En donde comen dos, comen tres...” which in English translates to “Where two can eat, so can three”. I have heard this saying several times in my life, and it usually comes from people willing to share their food with others. Today’s Gospel revisits the well-known passage about the feeding of a large crowd of five thousand people. Just as in last Sunday’s Gospel, we witness great crowds following Jesus. These people belonged to the most marginalized socioeconomic groups in first-century Jewish society. They lived desperate looking for their daily food and were constantly anguished because of the sick people among them. They followed Jesus because he embodied a compassionate shepherd, attentive to their needs and much suffering. Today, John tells us that Jesus is with his disciples on a mountain where a great multitude reaches them. Multitudes were familiar to Jesus; however, he

- julio 20, 2024

Tenth Sunday after Pentecost 2024 Jeremiah 23,1-6; Mark 6:30-34, 53-56 Rev. Neli Miranda “T he Lord is my shepherd; I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside still waters…” (Psalm 23,1-2). In the Old Testament, the endearing image of a shepherd is frequently used to depict God’s relationship with the people of Israel. The psalmists and the prophets abundantly speak of God as a shepherd, highlighting how God guides, cares for, and protects the people of Israel. The leadership including kings, prophets, priests, judges, and other leaders among the people are also portrayed as shepherds of the people, modeled after God, the Good Shepherd. Today’s first lesson, taken from the prophet Jeremiah, begins with a woe oracle addressed to the leadership, the shepherds of the people of Judah: “ Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! says the Lord !” (23,1). Jeremiah prophesied in the sixth century B.C,