Neli ML

Entradas

- marzo 16, 2025

Second Sunday in Lent 2025 Luke 13:31-35 Rev. Neli Miranda https://www.chickensforbackyards.com/what-you-should-know-about-mother-hens/ Following his baptism in Judea, Jesus returned to Galilee, where he has carried out most of his ministry. He now journeys towards Jerusalem as Luke has indicated in earlier passages: “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem” (9:51). Luke describes Jesus traveling through towns and villages, proclaiming the Kingdom of God as he makes his way to Jerusalem. Today we read that, while Jesus teaches, some Pharisees warn him of Herod’s murderous intent: “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you” (13,31). This is Herod Antipas, tetrarch of Galilee and Perea, a Roman puppet king who feels threat...

- marzo 09, 2025

First Sunday in Lent March 9, 2025 Luke 4:1-13 Rev. Neli ML The first Sunday in Lent directs us to the wilderness, where Jesus confronts evil forces before beginning his proclamation of the Kingdom of God. According to Luke, as Jesus commits to God in his baptism, he faces evil forces opposing to his ministry: A fter his baptism, Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil (4,1). Jesus responds to the devil’s temptations with quotes from Deuteronomy Chapters 6-8, which recount the Israelites’ experiences in the wilderness. Just as the Israelites faced temptations in the Sinai desert when they committed themselves to be the people of God, Jesus also faces similar temptations. Unlike the Israelites, Jesus triumphs over these temptations, resisting the forces of evil and teaching us how to remain faithful to God in our time. The Devil ( Diabolou in Greek), is...

- febrero 23, 2025

Seventh Sunday after the Epiphany February 23, 2025 Lucas 6:27-38 Rev. Neli Miranda Today’s Gospel continues Jesus’ teachings addressed to a large crowd of disciples gathered on a plain, as we heard last Sunday. He speaks to a multitude of impoverished, needy people whom he calls “blessed”—a term traditionally reserved for those who possessed material wealth and high social status. However, Jesus subverts this conventional understanding by declaring his disciples blessed, stating, “. . .yours is the Kingdom of God”. This radical statement affirms the dignity of his followers and establishes the foundation for a new community, the community of the Kingdom of God. Jesus and his first followers faced enemies, those in positions of power who dominated and oppressed the people, persecuting and murdering all those who cried out for justice, beginning with Jesus himself. Amidst this reality, marked by violence and hostility, Jesus urges the new community to live in a transfo...

- febrero 16, 2025

Sixth Sunday after Epiphany. February 16, 2025 Luke 6:17-26 Rev. Neli Miranda During the past weeks we have witnessed the arrival of the Epiphany in the different villages in Galilee and so have we in our own lives. Today, on the sixth Sunday after the Epiphany, the Epiphany comes down from a mountain to a level place where a needy multitude awaits Jesus. In the preceding verses Luke tells us that Jesus appointed twelve of his disciples as apostles on a mountain. Now, as he descends with them and stands on a level place, he finds a large crowd gathered, comprised not only of his disciples but also of a multitude of people seeking good news, comfort, healing, and liberation. The call on the mountain was not a privatized experience for the twelve; rather, it was a preparation to bring the Epiphany down to those in need, to the level ground where the marginalized awaited the good news. Who are these people eagerly awaiting Jesus? They are the destitute, the despised no...

- febrero 01, 2025

The presentation of Jesus in the temple Luke 2:22 - 40 Rev. Neli Miranda During the past Sundays we witnessed Jesus’ epiphanies, particularly in Galilee where he began his ministry in the synagogue of Nazareth. Today, as we we celebrate the fourth Sunday after the Epiphany, we pause in the narrative to celebrate a special feast, the presentation of Jesus in the temple. Today’s gospel brings us an endearing image of Jesus and his parents in the temple, forty days after Jesus’ birth. As was customary and being a devout family, Mary and Joseph bring Jes...

- enero 26, 2025

Third Sunday after the Epiphany 2025 St. Luke 4:14-21 Rev. Neli Miranda On the third Sunday after the Epiphany, we travel to Nazareth in Galilee, Jesus’ hometown. According to Luke, after the temptations ended, Jesus, filled with the power of the Spirit, returned to Galilee. His fame had spread among the Galileans and he began teaching in their synagogues. In Nazareth, as was his custom, Jesus attended the synagogue on the Sabbath Day and participated in the liturgy by reading a passage from the book of the prophet Isaiah. There he found a powerful message: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4,18-19). This powerful message had been proclaimed by the prophet Isaiah in the sixth century B.C., amidst the earliest returnees from the Ba...