Monday 13th August, 2012
Ss Pontian and Hippolytus. Ezekiel 1:2–5, 24–28. Heaven and earth are filled with your glory—Ps 148:1–2, 11–14. Matthew 17:22–27.

  
Meditation: mp3 | podcast
Readings: Text | mp3 | podcast

A great sadness came over them.

Jesus understood the disciples and the depth of their sadness. He had drawn them into his life. They had spent every day with him and while they didn’t always understand his teaching they knew they wanted him to be always with them. Although they were saddened to hear ‘they will put him to death’, they weren’t ready to understand the resurrection.

Similarly, Jesus understood how much the Jews hated having to pay taxes to the Romans, but he also knew they couldn’t escape it. Jesus was never afraid to speak out against injustice. So he sent Peter off to pay the tax ‘so that we shall not be the downfall of others’—as he sends me off to write those letters of protest or support, and not put it off for another day!