Scripture Archives - Page 4 of 4

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part V)

10/11/2013

REV. DR. EUGEN J. PENTIUC Scripture’s polyphony is a pastorally more efficient way to cope with the tough questions of the suffering of the just and the silence of God than any flat statement such as creatio ex nihilo. When Tradition fails to give an adequate explanation, untamable Scripture through its ambiguous, enigmatic language and imagery offers us alternative routes of inquiry and further meditation that may at least provide an authorized word on the

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part IV)

10/10/2013

REV. DR. EUGEN J. PENTIUC Still, there are biblical writers who are not satisfied with such a quick fix to man’s cry of inquiry regarding suffering and evil. For instance, the author of Job 40-41 suggests that God Himself created these monstrous creatures that are to be blamed for all sufferings because He wanted to be challenged so that His power might be eventually made manifest. This is God’s puzzling answer to the lengthy complaints

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part III)

10/09/2013

REV. DR. EUGEN J. PENTIUC Just prior to the first powerful fiat (Genesis 1:3, “Let there be … “), we are informed rather abruptly of some enigmatic realities whose origins are unexplained. “Now the earth was a formless void, there was darkness over the deep, with God’s Spirit hovering over the waters” (Genesis 1:2). According to the Priestly author, “darkness;’ “deep” and “water” were neither created by God nor had any existence of themselves. In

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part II)

10/08/2013

REV. DR. EUGEN J. PENTIUC Scripture, most especially the Old Testament, is an untamable textbook. Holy Tradition in all its avatars—conciliar statements, writings of Church Fathers, liturgy, iconography, ascetic teaching, etc.—functions as its guiding handouts. Following this analogy, one may note a certain complementarity. Handouts summarize and explain the salient points of a textbook. Similarly, Tradition, based on Scripture, complements the latter by condensing and illuminating its content. Nevertheless, the handouts, however complete they may

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part I)

10/07/2013

The Bible is a scented garden, delightful and beautiful … Let us seek in the fountain of this garden “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” We shall taste a joy that will never dry up, because the grace of the Bible garden is inexhaustible. ~ST. JOHN OF DAMASCUS, AN EXACT EXPOSITION OF THE ORTHODOX FAITH, 4. 17 REV. DR. EUGEN J. PENTIUC The fourth-century exegete and theologian St. Gregory of Nyssa passionately

CHRISTIAN ROOTS OF THE PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION

11/06/2012

For Christians Jesus himself is the prime example of the practice of contemplation. According to early Christian contemplatives, this example is not the healing of the demoniac, the rebuking of the winds, or the Transfiguration, but Jesus’ own temptation in the desert (Mt 4:1-11). The ordeal in prayer is fundamentally a battle with thoughts, and the early contemplatives noticed something vitally important in how Jesus dealt with the thoughts by which Satan tried to ensnare

Saint Benedict the Righteous of Nursia

03/14/2012

This Saint, whose name means “blessed,” was born in 480 in Nursia, a small town about seventy miles northeast of Rome. He struggled in asceticism from his youth in deserted regions, where his example drew many who desired to emulate him.

Archive

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part V)

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part IV)

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part III)

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part II)

The Untamable Textbook and Its Handouts: Ruminations on Scripture—Tradition Relationship (Part I)

CHRISTIAN ROOTS OF THE PRACTICE OF CONTEMPLATION

Saint Benedict the Righteous of Nursia

Categories

Archives

View Our Live Stream Services

Keep In Touch

Stewardship Application

Daily Meditations

Worship Schedule

Light a Virtual Candle

Text-to-Give in 2 easy steps!

1) Text 202-899-7801 to include your donation amount

2) Follow the link to complete the one-time registration