Mary M. McGlone

Scripture for Life: The nearer we come to God the more we will share in God's glory: passionate, self-giving. Then we will understand the invincible power of vulnerable love.

Scripture for Life: There's a trick in this story of inheritance. Like the wealthy man, we can forget that our inheritance is about genetics and biology, status and goods, things we did nothing to deserve.

Scripture for Life: Genesis 1 and 2 teach that God placed us in the midst of creation to enjoy and grow in communion with one another in the image of the Trinity. Jesus invites us to live into that truth for the rest of our lives.

Scripture for Life: Those who carry on Jesus' work are his co-laborers, no matter what disqualifications others might wish to put in their way. Disciples are recognized for how they serve others. That trumps everything else.

Scripture for Life: Today's liturgy invites us to assess our personal and communal relationships with God and one another. Are we willing to gamble that servant love is sufficient to transform evil?

Scripture for Life: Much as we resist it, the God we meet in Jesus, the Christ who is our savior, is thoroughly unlike the materialistic, political or militaristic gods the world urges us to worship.

Scripture for Life: The Gospels portray discipleship as a long apprenticeship that comes to fruition as Jesus' followers begin to comprehend their vocation in the light of his death and resurrection.

Scripture for Life: Jesus was scandalously ordinary, except in how he loved God and made God's love available to others.

Scripture for Life: Neither church nor society has probably ever been quite ready for Mary of Nazareth. Her Magnificat leads us to seek God in the times and places where the lowly are cherished and the hungry filled.

Scripture for Life: Today's Scripture stories dare us to risk an encounter with the living God who answers prayer in ever-new, life-giving, mind- and soul-transforming ways.

Scripture for Life: Jesus' sharing of himself as the bread of life illustrates the greatest potential of human life. The Son of God entered our history not to wow us with miracles, but to show us how we can live as Paul suggests: as new selves, people truly renewed in spirit.

Scripture for Life: When was the last time you considered the question, "What is my calling?" That's not a question of your job, although the hope is that any occupation we engage in becomes an expression of our deeper call. 

Scripture for Life: This week's Scriptures tell us that as followers of Christ the Good Shepherd, we must remember that the invitation to repose by restful waters is for refreshment, not permanent residence. 

Scripture for Life: Like the last chosen kid and Jesus' disciples, we too are chosen, not because of our talent or achievements, but because we are willing to be here to answer the call. That's all the qualifications required.

Scripture for Life: Instead of offering comfort and safety, our faith puts great expectations on us. Baptism calls each of us to be prophetic, priestly heirs of the creator of the universe. 

Scripture for Life: While some might approach prayer as if ordering from a menu, the purpose of prayer — be it petition, praise or penitence — is to bring us into an encounter with the God of life who desires the encounter more than we do. 

Scripture for Life: Like the disciples, we can consider God with such frugality of imagination that we are blind to anything bigger than our own plans and expectations. But God has fashioned us to be capable of more.

Scripture for Life: The parable of the seed which grows by itself offers an antidote to pull-yourself-up-by-your-bootstraps scenarios that preach that the harder you work, the more God will love and reward you.

Scripture for Life: On this day, like every Sunday, we repeat the celebration that forges our identity and strengthens us to be the very body of Christ that we receive.

Scripture for Life: Pentecost celebrates the grace-filled thriving of the human community through the indwelling of the Spirit. It reminds us that Jesus' promise to bestow his Spirit upon us can be limited only by our own unwillingness to continue his mission.