In the final installment of the series “Knowing Christ through Matthew,” Anthony Pagliarini explores the Passion narrative in the Gospel of Matthew and it’s connection to the Old Testament through the Passover lamb and the suffering servant. He writes: “In relating the
In the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica we read the words, written in Latin, “You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church … I give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven.” Catholics have rightly understood these
In Matthew’s Gospel, a series of dramatic signs accompany the death of Jesus. Darkness covers the whole land from a stretch of three hours, the veil of the Temple sanctuary tears from top to bottom, an earthquake fractures rocks and opens the
In the ninth article in his series on the Gospel of Matthew, Anthony Pagliarini explains what Jesus means by the return of the Son of Man. In three passages of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says something will not happen until the coming of
In the eighth part of the series “Knowing Christ through Matthew,” Anthony Pagliarini examines what it means to become “like children.” Not long after the Transfiguration, the disciples approach Jesus and ask, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” Jesus
In the seventh of a twelve-part series of In Focuses dedicated to exploring some central themes and texts in the Gospel of Matthew, Anthony Pagliarini poses three questions: What does the parable of the mustard seed reveal? How does the “unreal” contribute
In the sixth article in a 12-part series of “Knowing Christ through Matthew,” Anthony Pagliarini unpacks the passage where Jesus says that “something greater that the temple is here.” He says the same of himself with respect to Jonah and Solomon. With
In the fifth article in a 12-part series of “Knowing Christ through Matthew,” Anthony Pagliarini walks readers through the significance of the miracles of Jesus. Not only do they further show that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Scriptures, but through his
In the fourth installment of “Knowing Christ through Matthew,” Anthony Pagliarini explains how the Sermon on the Mount is precisely not something like a new revelation at Sinai. Rather, what was revealed at Sinai is fulfilled in Christ. Jesus — God in
In this third in a 12-part series dedicated to exploring some central themes and texts in the Gospel of Matthew, the process by which God draws humanity into relation with himself — what theology calls “the economy of salvation” — is justly