Jesus made brilliant use of imagery to describe what is important in life. He compared His ministry to new wine; then He said that this new wine required new wineskins. In other words, the traditional way of doing things would no longer be enough. Yet, Jesus also had great respect for His tradition, for His own Jewish tradition, and the Scriptures of His people, all of which nourished and inspired Him.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declared that He came not to abolish the Law and the prophets but to complete them. He did not pretend to be starting from scratch. There was much in Jewish tradition that He valued, but He wanted to bring that tradition to a greater richness and fullness; He came to renew Israel’s tradition, not to toss it aside. His attitude suggests that we don’t simply discard our religious tradition, but neither should we idolize it into a set of static rules and practices.
The Church is always in need of reform and renewal; the new wine of the Holy Spirit will always require new wineskins. The work of renewal will always involve honoring what is best in our tradition by allowing its rich potential to be fully realized. +
Homily for Monday of the 10th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for the 10th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Homily for the Immaculate Heart of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Homily for the Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
Homily for Thursday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for the Memorial of Saint Boniface, Bishop and Martyr
Homily for Tuesday of the 9th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for the Memorial of Saint Charles Lwanga and companions, Martyrs
Homily for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi)
Homily for the Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr
Homily for the Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Homily for Thursday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Wednesday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Tuesday of the 8th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Memorial Day
Homily for the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity
Homily for Saturday of the 7th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Friday of the 7th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Thursday of the 7th Week in Ordinary Time
Homily for Wednesday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time
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