Jesus and his disciples are en route from Galilee in the north to Jerusalem in the south for Passover. Their journey began after the transfiguration of Jesus. The journey was sandwiched between a preview of the resurrection, (the transfiguration), and the resurrection itself.

Matthew is a catechetical genius. Even though Mark’s gospel is older by a decade or two, Matthew deserves to be first in the New Testament. He arranges his material in such a way that the structure of his gospel becomes clear and the material lends itself to easy memorization.

I love mail, whether it’s snail mail or email. Old-fashioned letters are usually a great way to stay in touch with friends and relatives without creating another electronic “footprint” that must be managed, updated and eventually purged.