Share this page!

James Martin, SJ Profile picture
Twitter logo
6 Nov, 4 tweets, 1 min read
Gospel: "You cannot serve God and mammon," says Jesus today (Lk 16). The word "mammon" derives from the Hebrew word for money or wealth. But why can't you "serve two masters"? For one thing, your focus will be on the wrong thing. If you make decisions thinking, "How will this... Image
...serve God?" then you will lead a life of love, mercy and compassion. If you make decisions thinking, "How will this make me more money?" then you will lead a different kind of life. Obviously, everyone needs some money to live and to flourish. But when money becomes...
...the thing around which your life is ordered, then it has become a god. Often people smile when they read the First Commandment: "You shall have no other gods before me." They think, "Well, of course, I don't worship little idols or false gods." But if your life revolves...
...around money, then you have made money your god.

Image: "The Worship of Mammon," by Evelyn de Morgan.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with James Martin, SJ

James Martin, SJ Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @JamesMartinSJ

James Martin, SJ Profile picture
7 Nov
Gospel: The story of the "widow's mite," where a poor widow gave "all she had" to the Temple, is usually held up as Jesus's praise of her generosity (Mk 12). But is it? Some NT scholars say Jesus is actually critiquing religious authorities who are exploiting the poor.... Image
This entry from "Sacra Pagina" (Donahue and Harrington) on this passage is eye-opening:

"The widow is surely generous. But is she generous to a fault? Does Jesus really approve her action? Thus far in Mark 11-12 the Jerusalem Temple and its officials have been treated...
...from a critical perspective (see especially 11:15-19) and in 13:2 Jesus will prophesy the destruction of the Jerusalem Temple--an event that was to occur in 70 CE under the Romans. Thus the context of Mk 12:41-44 raises the question whether the generosity...
Read 6 tweets
James Martin, SJ Profile picture
2 Nov
Gospel: On #AllSoulsDay we remember all the "faithful departed" who enjoy new life with God.

Often it's hard for people to believe in the afterlife. But Jesus tells his disciples many times, as in today's Gospel (Jn 6); he shows them with the raising of the dead (Lazarus... Image
...The Widow of Nain's Son, Jairus's Daughter); and then he reveals it definitively at his own Resurrection.

But you can also think of it this way: God loved us into being and loves us for our whole life. God enters into a loving relationship with us at our conception...
… Why would God end that relationship? It makes no sense. God would never end the loving relationship God has with you. Even death cannot end it. Trust in Jesus's promises about what God has in store for believers: eternal life.
Read 4 tweets
James Martin, SJ Profile picture
25 Oct
Another #LGBTQ person fired, this time from two positions, as a teacher and a parish music minister, and also pressured to sign a "gag order" in order to collect his severance. Here, he explains to his students and those in his parish what happened...
The targeting of LGBTQ people in the Catholic Church must stop. It destroys lives, as well as communities. No other group in the church is targeted in this way....
Usually LGBTQ employees are fired because their lives do not "fully convey or support church teaching" (as one archdiocese requires). But by this measure, Catholic institutions would have to fire all Protestants, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists and agnostics...
Read 4 tweets
James Martin, SJ Profile picture
24 Oct
Gospel: Today Jesus heals a blind beggar in Jericho named Bartimaeus (Mk 10). Two things leap out of the story: 1) Jesus does not impose himself on the blind man, who cries out "Son of David, have pity on me." No, first Jesus asks him, "What do you want me to do for you?"...
Jesus does not decide to "get it over with" and heal him. Instead he treats Bartimaeus with infinite dignity, and and listens to his desires. God wants to know our deepest desires.

2) In a large city towards the end of his ministry, when he would have been surrounded by...
....huge crowds, Jesus stops to meet an individual. He is never too busy to help someone in need, even if he himself is surrounded by people or on his way elsewhere. (Something similar happens in the healing of the "woman with the hemorrhage," while he is on his way...
Read 4 tweets
James Martin, SJ Profile picture
17 Oct
An extraordinary message from @Pontifex on social justice yesterday, a "mini encyclical" as @robinrome said. Including comparing the Parable of the Good Samaritan to the protests over the death of #GeorgeFloyd. Social justice teachings are part of...
vatican.va/content/france…
...are part of the "traditional teachings of the church," said the Pope...
"Do you know what comes to mind now when, together with popular movements, I think of the Good Samaritan? Do you know what comes to mind? The protests over the death of George Floyd. It is clear that this type of reaction against social, racial or macho injustice...
Read 5 tweets
James Martin, SJ Profile picture
14 Oct
Dear friends: I'm sharing this letter received today, the kind of message I receive almost daily, not because it disturbs me, but to illustrate the kind of homophobia that is rampant in our church today, encouraged, consciously and unconsciously, by bishops, priests...
...and other Catholics.

Often in the course of ministering to #LGBTQ Catholics, I meet well-meaning Catholics who express skepticism when I tell them about the hatred that LGBTQ people face in various dioceses, parishes, schools or Catholic settings. The challenge is to...
...help well-meaning people see that simply because they do not see homophobia present in their own dioceses or parishes, doesn't mean it's not present elsewhere. It's there, both in the US and, often far worse, in many places overseas.

Until the church addresses this hatred...
Read 5 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

Like this author's thread?

Get emails when @JamesMartinSJ has new unrolls!

Check out other threads from @JamesMartinSJ!

Read all threads by @JamesMartinSJ

:(