THE ABRAHAM J. HESCHEL CENTER FOR CATHOLIC-JEWISH RELATIONS THE JOHN PAUL II CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF LUBLIN

The commented text is part of a larger whole consisting of verses 22 through 59 of the sixth chapter of the fourth Gospel. In Christian tradition, we refer to this text as the Eucharistic speech. Although arranged in a dialogue, it has the character of a revelatory speech that… Read more… »

Tisha B’Av simply means “the Ninth day of the month of Av.” Which doesn’t sound particularly meaningful in itself. But this date has always been an inauspicious one in Jewish history, a day of national tragedy on the Jewish calendar.According to Jewish tradition, it is the date on which… Read more… »

The Jews murmured about Jesus because he said,"I am the bread that came down from heaven, "and they said,"Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph?Do we not know his father and mother?Then how can he say,'I have come down from heaven'?"Jesus answered and said to them,"Stop murmuring among… Read more… »

In the Gospel of John, Jesus makes the prophetic sign of blessing five loaves and two fish at Lake Kinneret, or the Sea of Galilee, and feeds them to five thousand hungry people. He then allows himself to be found on the opposite shore, in Capernaum, where he tries… Read more… »

The reading for the Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time is John 6.1-15, John’s version of what we call the “feeding of the five thousand.” The story is the only miracle that is presented in all four Gospels. With it, we have themes concerning gender, the military, the Jewish tradition,… Read more… »

It's vacation time. Many of us have traveled far from the year-round daily routine. We turned off business phone numbers and the email inbox ordered to inform that by this and that day the addressee is "not available".Today's Gospel tells us that Jesus too, along with his disciples, is… Read more… »

The reading of the Gospel of Mark 6:10 reminds us of Matthew 10:12-13. Jesus instructs the disciples: "As you enter a house, wish it peace. If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it. If not, let your peace return to you." Greeting people with peace, welcoming… Read more… »

On the backdrop of the Gospel about Jesus' visit to the synagogue in his hometown of Nazareth, let's make three reflections.First, Jesus was probably reminded of his childhood years and episodes related to this synagogue. At the time of Christ, boys received their schooling. It was essentially a school… Read more… »

In Mark 5 we read about a woman who had suffered from hemorrhage for many years. She was instantly healed when she touched the hem of Jesus' garment. The hem of the garment is not a coincidental description. At the time of Jesus, it was customary in Jerusalem and… Read more… »

The Hebrew language script in which the Old Testament Bible was written had only consonants. Similarly, the Greek text of the New Testament was a continuous script without punctuation marks. For a proper reading of the written content, the reader had to be in relationship with someone who knew… Read more… »

The word “parable” comes from two Greek words. Para—as in parallel—means to put two things side by side; balo means to cast or throw. Thus, parables throw together two images. In exploring possible connections between the parable and our lives, we discover new things both about the Kingdom of… Read more… »

Without exaggeration, Shavuot is the moment we’ve all been waiting for. Since Passover we’ve been counting, literally, to this moment. Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 16 tell us when Shavuot is to take place. From the time of Passover, God says, “you shall count off seven weeks….You shall count until… Read more… »

The scene narrated in today’s Gospel takes place in Capernaum, where Jesus visits the home of Simon and Andrew. At the sight of crowds gathering, the concerned family tries to stop him, fearing that he has gone out of his mind (Mark 3:21). Perhaps they fear that Jesus is… Read more… »

For the feast of Corpus Christi or the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, the gospel reading of course is the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper.I guess my question is a really basic one: why specifically bread and wine? There’s a lot… Read more… »

"The expression Trinity does not appear literally in the Old Testament, but that does not mean there is no mention of God in the Trinity?," writes Fr. Pawel Rytel-Andrianik, biblical scholar and publicist, head of the Polish section of Vatican Radio and the Vatican News, in a commentary for the Heschel… Read more… »

The reading for Pentecost Sunday from Acts of the Apostles (2,2) In the Hebrew version reads: "On the day the seven weeks were completed, they were all together".Pentecost in Hebrew is Shavuot which literally means – "the Weeks" - the name of the holiday in which according to the… Read more… »

The beginning of the Book of Acts depicts Jesus ascension to heaven and the promise – by two angelic figures – that he will eventually return. This posits him as a redeemer of the type of the enigmatic son-of-man from Daniel chapter 7, who he is portrayed there as… Read more… »

In the pericope Jn 15:9-17, Jesus refers to two patterns of love. The first is the love of the Father for the Son, Jesus. The term for the relationship that occurs between the Father and the Son is most often referred to by the verb agapao or the corresponding… Read more… »

In this reading from the Gospel of John, Jesus presents the last of his seven “I am” statements. In this statement, the gospel writer mobilizes the image of the vine to help readers understand more about who Jesus is.Now the image of the vineyard doesn’t come out of nowhere.… Read more… »

I’m confident that everyone here is familiar – even VERY familiar – with the story of the Exodus from Egypt, with God’s deliverance of the Jewish people out of slavery and oppression and into freedom. So we don’t need to go over that.And I’m also sure you’re familiar with… Read more… »

Bedouins are nomadic Arab tribes still living in ancient Palestine's desert and mountainous areas. They are mainly engaged in sheep herding. Surprisingly, even a group of dozens of Bedouins can speak only a language they understand and cherish customs peculiar to them. Living far away from cities and larger… Read more… »

My initial plan for our commentary was to talk about how one of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus in Luke 24, both historically and grammatically, may have been a woman. But the first reading, Acts 3.13-15, 17-19, demands commentary. If left without commentary, the reading threatens… Read more… »

Run to the tombThe Gospel of John we read on the Resurrection Sunday tells of a special run to the tomb. It is started by Mary Magdalene, who sets out as the first one, at dawn. Darkness, which still reigns, symbolizes the disbelief and despair, in which the disciples… Read more… »

Palm Sunday is a prelude to the Holy Week of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ. For Christians, it is the most important time of the liturgical year. This year we read the Gospel of Mark which narrates Jesus' entry into Jerusalem.According to scholars, this is the first… Read more… »