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March 21, 2024Christian faith shares with Judaism and Islam the importance of Abraham as a forerunner in faith. The first scripture for today speaks of the covenantal relationship between God and the Chosen People. The traditions recorded in Genesis go back thousands of years! So, the Jewish leaders debating with Jesus in the gospel scripture for today from the Gospel According to John, cannot accept Jesus' proclamation that he existed before Abraham! This would be tantamount to a claim to be the same as God! Precisely!
The Gospel According to Matthew begins with a genealogy that traces Jesus' human ancestry to Abraham. But the Gospel According to John speaks of Jesus as the Word "in the beginning with God." Both are true. The "Word was made flesh and dwelled among us."
The season of Lent is directed toward Holy Week and the drama of the Last Supper, Crucifixion, and Resurrection. It might be difficult to see a bigger picture in which Abraham plays a role. Jesus speaks at the Last Supper of a "new and eternal covenant." All of creation and all of history is part of this covenant. We recall it all in Lent as we move forward to Holy Week and then to Pentecost. We carry Abraham with us as a "Father in Faith."
[click here for the readings of the day]
