When I was a young acolyte, I would don an ill-fitting cassock and gather with the clergy and servers before Mass in a small sacristy. We stood in a circle and recited Psalm 43, which begins, “Give judgment for me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people....
The story of the children of Israel wandering in the wilderness sounds like the most dysfunctional family trip ever. The people forget so quickly that God saved them from slavery. God gets mad and punishes them. They complain about the quality of the food—they want...
There is a lovely version of this psalm that has always stirred my heart, set to music adapted from the composer Palestrina that we sing every year to begin Lessons and Carols. The psalmist cries, “Stir up your strength and come to help us.” As soon as Christmas...
In the Boy Scouts, I learned how to tie knots, sail and backpack, cook, and give first aid. But the most important thing I learned was the Boy Scout Motto: Be Prepared. In many ways, this is what Jesus is saying when he sends the disciples on their...
God consecrates the tribe of Levi to serve at the tabernacle and later at the temple, set apart forever for holy service. The job of the Levites is to offer sacrifices to the Lord. And the first sacrifice they offer is themselves, their own lives, consecrated to God....
So often, Peter seems be bumbling around, not really understanding what Jesus is saying, sticking his foot in his mouth. Today, as Jesus tells the disciples about the suffering he is about to endure, Peter rebukes him. Jesus is not happy about this and calls Peter a...
From the Archives: September 1, 1939Some of you who read this psalm today can echo the words from the depths of your hearts, for you too hunger and thirst for the living God. You have a spiritual kinship with the psalmist’s Godward desire ….(View this reading...
The Rev. Ben Nobles was ordained to the Sacred Order of Deacons on June 10, 2020. The service was filmed in the Harris Memorial Chapel of Christ Church Cathedral, New Orleans. Download the bulletin
Years ago, I anxiously made my first confession. I didn’t want to—I was only doing it because it was part of a retreat I was attending. But the experience was so powerful that I have made confession a regular and important part of my spiritual discipline....
Compassion shouldn’t surprise us. It should be more of a bare minimum rather than an extraordinary act that finally brings relief to our weary hearts. And yet a simple act of feeding hungry people is exactly the sort of thing that Jesus constantly uses to bring deep...
