Remembering Marianne Ockerbloom, CBS Class of 2006

The Hartford Catholic Biblical School community mourns the death of our sister in Christ, Marianne Ockerbloom, on February 21, 2011. She joins her husband Dean in the presence of our Lord less than a month after his death in January.

A resident of Avon for nearly forty years, Marianne was born in Arlington, Mass and was a graduate of Emmanuel and Radcliffe colleges, both in the greater Boston area. A faithful member of St. Ann parish in Avon, she was also a dedicated math teacher and the author of a mathematics textbook.

We will miss Marianne dearly and offer our sympathies to all her friends, her three children and their families.

Contributions in Marianne's honor may be made to the McLean Foundation, 75 Great Pond Rd., Simsbury, CT 06070. For condolences please visit www.carmonfuneralhome.com.

Words Made Flesh: Jesus and the Mosaic Law

ZENIT: The World Seen from Rome is an official Vatican news site, providing online information about Roman Catholicism on a world-wide basis. Weekly reflections on Scripture come from Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB, Chief Executive Officer of Canada's Salt and Light Television. What follows is an excerpt from Fr. Rosica's Biblical Reflection for this coming Sunday, the 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time A.

"Matthew's Gospel reflects the situation of the early Church after the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus affirms the permanent validity of the Law, but with a new interpretation, given with full authority (Matthew 5:18-19, 21-48)."

"As we continue our reflection on Matthew's great Sermon [on the Mount], we hear a long Gospel passage that may seem to be complex and filled with prohibitions (5:17-37). It is far too easy to "tune out" such a Gospel text, rather than trying to understand its rich meaning. The passage (5:17) begins with a word of reassurance: "Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill."

"The law remains and will always remain because it comes from our unchanging God. Jesus intends to state the ideals of the new kingdom on earth that is ushered in by his appearance. ... Jesus teaches that minimal obedience is far beneath the dignity of those who love God and neighbor. To strive for less than perfect love is to strive for too little." (Emphasis added.)

To read more about "Following Jesus, Imitating Him, and Walking in His Light," click here.

St. Thomas Seminary Certificate Students

Please note that students who have enrolled in the "for-credit" courses at St. Thomas Seminary (CBS 100, 200 and 300) have been formally enrolled as students of the seminary. Decisions affecting your enrollment (withdrawal, grade processing, etc.) must be processed through St. Thomas Seminary administrative channels. Faculty members are not responsible for reporting changes in your enrollment status.

If you're not sure whether you are enrolled as a St. Thomas Seminary student, contact Shirley Morris in the Office of Religious Education.

Words Made Flesh: How to Be Salt and Light in the World Today

ZENIT: The World Seen from Rome is an official Vatican news site, providing online information about Roman Catholicism on a world-wide basis.

Beginning this week, the Hartford Catholic Biblical School Blog will regularly begin posting a link to Zenit's lectionary-based biblical reflections, "Words Made Flesh." These weekly reflections come from Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB, Chief Executive Officer of Salt and Light Television, Canada’s first national Catholic Television Network. Fr. Rosica holds advanced degrees in Theology and Sacred Scripture from Regis College in the Toronto School of Theology, the Pontifical Biblical Institute in Rome, and the École Biblique et Archéologique Française de Jérusalem.

This Sunday's gospel teaches us that we, as disciples of Christ, are called to be "salt" and "light" for the world. And here in this New England winter, you and I are likely to think about how salt clears ice from our roadways. But, of course, Jesus had something else in mind altogether.

Here's one piece of what Fr. Rosica teaches us this week about "salt" in Jesus' time and culture:

In the ancient Aramaic and Hebrew languages spoken by Jesus, one word meant both 'clay-oven' and 'earth.' Instead of using wood to fuel fires, the young people of the village would gather dung, mix it with salt, form it into patties and let it dry in the hot Middle Eastern sun. A slab of salt was placed at the base of the oven and the salted dung patty was laid upon it. The salt from the slab worked as a catalytic, causing the dung to burn. But, after a certain time, the salt slab loses its catalytic ability and becomes useless. This is what Jesus was referring to in Matthew's gospel when he says: 'It (salt) is no longer good for anything, but is thrown out and trampled under foot' (5:13).

To read more about "How to Be Salt and Light in the World Today," click here.