There is something wonderfully strange about beginning the church year with this reading. We turn the page to Advent expecting candles, quiet hymns, and the slow approach of hope. Instead, Jesus starts us off with a warning that feels like a jolt. No one knows the day or the hour,...

We arrive today at the end of the long green season of Pentecost. For months we have walked with Jesus as he teaches, heals, welcomes, and challenges. We have followed him across Galilee, into the homes of friends and strangers, through arguments with religious leaders, and into moments of astonishing...

Imagine standing before the Temple—the pride of Jerusalem, the symbol of God’s presence, the center of worship, the beating heart of a people’s identity. It was dazzling. The marble gleamed in the sun. The air shimmered with incense and song. Pilgrims came from every corner of the empire to see...