BRF
52 Reflections on Faith - Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God
52 Reflections on Faith - Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
Mary, mother of Jesus: pointing to God Michelangelo’s Pietà is one of the most beautiful and famous pieces of art in the world. It stands just inside St Peter’s Basilica in Rome. In glorious white marble, sculpted in the 15th century when the artist was only 24, the statue depict…
The Act of Prayer Year C - Third Sunday of Advent - Year C
The Act of Prayer Year C - Third Sunday of Advent - Year C
by BRF - John Birch
Third Sunday of Advent Year C Opening prayer This is Advent, the season of expectation. In homes throughout the land, Christmas cards stand on mantelpiece and windowsill. Festive trees are adorned with tinsel and baubles, and children wonder what gifts will lie beneath the tree t…
The Act of Prayer Year C - Second Sunday of Advent - Year C
The Act of Prayer Year C - Second Sunday of Advent - Year C
by BRF - John Birch
Second Sunday of Advent Year C Opening prayer This is Advent, the season of preparation. The shops are full of gifts that we might give or receive. Streets are decorated, and choirs begin the rounds of community centres and retirement homes with their seasonal offerings of carols…
The Act of Prayer Year C - First Sunday of Advent - Year C
The Act of Prayer Year C - First Sunday of Advent - Year C
by BRF - John Birch
First Sunday of Advent Year C Opening prayer This is Advent, a season of promise. In our worship we prepare for the birth of a baby in a dusty stable, and remind ourselves that this child will become the Saviour of the world,…
John The People's Commentary - In the beginning
John The People's Commentary - In the beginning
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
The opening of John’s gospel is one of the most magnificent pieces of religious literature ever written. Not surprisingly, it has inspired vast amounts of analysis and interpretation. And yet, we are not even sure quite what it is: is it an introduction, a hymn or a poem? Argumen…
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The BEGINNING of the BIRTHPANGS
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The BEGINNING of the BIRTHPANGS
by BRF - Dick France
The BEGINNING of the BIRTHPANGS The theme which runs through these verses is ‘not yet’. They have asked for a ‘sign’ of the coming events, and Jesus replies by talking about things which are not as yet signs of the destruction of the temple. These are all necessary preliminaries,…
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The Disciples' Question
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The Disciples' Question
by BRF - Dick France
The Disciples’ Question It may seem out of proportion to devote a whole study to one question. But the interpretation of the chapter which follows is controversial, and the question to which the following discourse (vv. 5–37) provides the answer is an important key to understandi…
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The Temple to be Destroyed
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The Temple to be Destroyed
by BRF - Dick France
The Temple to be Destroyed The temple has been the scene of most of Jesus’ activity and teaching since he arrived in Jerusalem. Now he leaves it, never to return, and as he leaves he utters words which must have shocked his disciples profoundly. No wonder that yet again some of t…
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - TELL US PLAINLY
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - TELL US PLAINLY
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
TELL US PLAINLY The words of the good shepherd once more cause a ‘division’ among “the Jews” (10:19). Again we have the word for schism, which happened first to the people and then the leaders (7:43; 9:16). And so this division sums up so many attitudes throughout the first half …
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - I AM THE RESURRECTION & THE LIFE
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - I AM THE RESURRECTION & THE LIFE
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
I AM THE RESURRECTION & THE LIFE Martha expresses her belief in the conventional view, that her brother ‘will rise again in the resurrection on the last day’ (11:24). According to this, everything to do with eschatology—judgment, death, life—all are in the future at the End of ti…
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - LAZARUS, COME OUT!
John THE PEOPLE’S BIBLE COMMENTARY - LAZARUS, COME OUT!
by BRF - Richard A. Burridge
LAZARUS, COME OUT! When Jesus saw them weeping, his only response was to weep, as anyone who cared about Lazarus and his family might (11:33). Yet the words used to describe his emotions are much more than that. The first, en-brimo, is used in Greek of horses, ‘snorting in the no…
The Act of Prayer Year B - Third Sunday Before Advent - Year B
The Act of Prayer Year B - Third Sunday Before Advent - Year B
by BRF - John Birch
Third Sunday Before Advent Year B The Act of Prayer Praying through the lectionary Ruth 3: 1-5 PSALM 127 HEBREWS 9: 24-28; MARK 12:38–44 Opening prayer As we gather for worship, let us remember we are not an isolated community of believers in this place, but the family of God gat…
52 Reflections on Faith - Repentance: saying you’re sorry
52 Reflections on Faith - Repentance: saying you’re sorry
by BRF - Stephen W. Need
Repentance: saying you’re sorry One of the most popular songs of the 1970s was ‘Sorry seems to be the hardest word’ by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. It featured on Elton’s Blue Moves album and came out as a single in 1976…
Mark The Peoples' Bible Commentary - The Mission Begins in Galilee