  Breath of the Spirit     It takes lots of practice and
knowledge to insert yourself into the world of the sacred
authors. Most Scripture readers mistakenly presume the writers
composed their works for us. We need only pick up the Bible,
read it and we'll instantly surface God's message. I often
remind my students of the... more  Though Easter is an
infinitely more significant feast than Christmas, celebrating
Jesus' birth does offer some important insights into our faith.
Among other things, it forces us to zero in on Jesus being one
of us. If we buy into John's theology, this Galilean carpenter
existed as God from all... more  Paul sets the theme for today's
readings. The Apostle ends his letter to the Romans by thanking
God for letting him and "all the nations" in on a "secret." By
imitating Jesus' dying and rising one not only finds true
fulfillment in life, but will also inherit eternal life. This is
"the mystery... more  Presuming Jesus is God, it's difficult for
us to conceive of him having models for