My good friend John forwarded me an article at http://www.nationalcatholicreporter.org/peace/gumb081405.htm promising I'd grind my teeth. I knew what I was in for when I saw the parts of the URL: nationalcatholicreporter, peace, and "gumb". "Gumb" is "Gumbleton", as in Bishop Thomas Gumbleton. The article is a missive from his "Peace Pulpit" (hence "peace"). If you are unfamiliar with Bishop Gumbleton, an auxiliary bishop of Detroit, you're in for a treat. Probably the most liberal bishop in the country, he espouses women's ordination, gay rights, a democratic church, and all the usual topics. I decided to do a play-by-play commentary with my reaction as I read the article. Quotation under fair use doctrine.
The scriptures today, especially the Gospel lesson, compel us to reflect in a very profound way on what is one of the most important mysteries of our faith -- the mystery of Jesus who is son of God, son of Mary. Jesus is fully divine but also fully human.
Wow! Orthodoxy from his mouth! Praise God! I'd better savor it now.
I think very often our inclination when we hear a passage like today's Gospel is to reflect most of all on Jesus as son of God. "Look, he worked that miracle. The woman's daughter was healed right away! God is active in our midst! Jesus is God!"
Uh-oh. I sense we have a big but here, if you pardon the expression.
I'm convinced that, for our own spiritual growth, it's much more important today to reflect on the humanness of Jesus, that he is truly fully human. One like us in every way.
AND HERE it is. No surprises here; the liberal heterodox always harp on the humanity of Jesus. I wonder what he's going to argue now (I'll soon find out).
