Aaron Simms's Blog, page 2

The Wedding at Cana

In chapter 2 of John’s Gospel, Jesus is at a wedding in Cana, along with his mother Mary as well as his disciples.  It is where Jesus will do his first miracle, turning water into wine.  

There are a few significant things about this event.  

First, Jesus chose to bless a wedding both with his presence and with the first of his miracles.  In the very beginning, in paradise, God created man and woman and instituted marriage.  This union is good for husband and wife as they become one and learn...

The Baptism of Jesus

Today we celebrate the Baptism of Jesus.  

Now in the very beginning, God created all things “very good” and perfect.  However, decay, death and evil soon intruded into God’s good creation through the sin of Adam and Eve.  This was “not good” and made His creation no longer perfect.  But, God promised a Savior who would reconcile us to Him and restore His creation to again make it “very good.”  Thus, the Bible tells us these things in order to reveal to us where we come from and where we’re g...

A Light to the Nations

Last Sunday in our readings we had Jesus’ presentation at the temple and the joy that that gave the faithful Simeon and Anna who encountered him.  We have there the Song of Simeon where Simeon held the baby Jesus in his arms and praised him as a light for revelation to the gentiles and for glory for God’s people Israel.  What Simeon says is significant.   “Gentiles” means nations, and there are really two groups of people in the world.  There is God’s nation, the Church Israel, and then there...

The Song of Simeon

Our Gospel reading for today (Luke 2:22-40) contains what is called the “Song of Simeon,” also known as the “Nunc Dimittis,” which in Latin simply means “Now Dismiss,” because of the first words of the song in Latin.  Like many things in Latin it sounds more impressive before you translate it into English. 

This Song of Simeon, of course, is also the song that we sing following the Lord’s Supper.  We receive the Lord’s body and blood with the bread and wine and then we sing that we have seen...

The Seed of the Woman

In the Old Testament, 2 Samuel 6 tells of the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant into Jerusalem.  If you recall, the Ark was the instrument by which God promised to dwell with His people.  Inside the Ark were the tablets of the Law and above the Ark was the mercy seat where the Lord had promised that His glory would dwell.

In 2 Samuel, the people are bringing the Ark into the city of Jerusalem.  Everyone is rejoicing.  But then the cart on which the Ark had been placed stumbled, and Uzzah re...

Disappointment and Confusion at Christmastime

With Christmas coming up, you may already be contemplating how you are going to politely return the gifts you receive that didn’t match your expectations.  Things like the shirt that is too large, the pants that are too tight, the knick-knack that you wouldn’t be seen in public with, much less display in your house.

We all want presents that match our expectations.  I am particularly adept at guessing my presents, which drives my wife crazy.  I’ve had to stop, because she threatened to return...

“The voice of one crying in the wilderness”

I’ve always particularly enjoyed Luke’s Gospel, because Luke is a Greek historian and I’m a bit of a history nerd myself.  So as a historian, Luke begins his introduction of John the Baptist by detailing when John began his ministry (Luke 3:1-20).  He notes who was ruling as emperor in Rome – Tiberius Caesar – who was governor of Judea – Pontius Pilate – who the tetrarchs were over the surrounding regions – Philip and Herod Antipas and Lysanias – and who was serving as high priest in Jerusale...

St. Justin Martyr and St. Irenaeus concerning the Holy Virgin Mary

I enjoy reading the early Church Fathers and find them helpful in getting a sense of the Church’s beliefs in the early New Testament period.  With the Advent season and its celebrations upon us, I thought I’d pull together a few quotes from a couple of the early Fathers concerning Mary and her role.  At some point I’d like to do a more exhaustive study on this, but for now the quotes below from St. Justin Martyr and St. Irenaeus provide an initial introduction to the topic.  Note the parallel...

The Land – Hoping for Restoration

After King Solomon’s death around 900BC the people of the tribes of Israel had separated into two kingdoms; one in the north called Israel, which had its capital at Samaria and the other in the south called Judah, which had its capital at Jerusalem.

The northern kingdom of Israel was later destroyed by the Assyrians in 722 BC, and most of the people were dispersed throughout the Assyrian empire while other people from the empire were settled in their place.  The people called the Samaritans i...

What is Truth? – Last Sunday of the Church Year

Today is the last Sunday of the Church year.  Next Sunday we will begin the new Church year with the first Sunday of the Advent season that, even as it leads up to Christmas and Christ’s first Advent, looks forward to Christ’s return and final Advent.  So, today, as a fitting end to the Church year, all the readings focus on the kingdom of Jesus Christ and his return to reign over all things directly, even as he reigns now at the right hand of the Father.  

The reading from John’s Gospel cont...