From the desk of the pastor for October 11, 2026

The Lord be with you! This week we start looking at the life of Abraham and how God made him into the Father of Israel. Both how his story unfolds in Genesis and his exploits reveal a pattern that we will see repeat often in the Old Testament.

We first learn about Abraham when his name was still Abram, the son of Terah. God calls Terah and his family from Ur to go to Canaan. They travel 600 miles from Ur and arrive at Haran, a city in Syria. Instead of continuing on to Canaan, Terah settles in Syria and there he dies. Just like the Browns getting to the first yard line and stalling, Terah almost completed God’s command. Almost doing what God wants or doing it incompletely will be something the Hebrew people often do.

Genesis then emphasizes that Abram came from Ur, which is one of the most ancient cities of the world. As descendants of Shem, Abram’s families are Semites, which means “those of the name” or “those of fame.” His family had obviously gained great wealth from its time in Haran since Genesis 12:5 mentions all the property and slaves Abram brought with them into Canaan. Accordingly, Abram is a wealthy man of great renown from one of the most famous cities going to the Promised Land. Perhaps more importantly, when Abram is called, he is a stranger in a strange land since he is living in a city as a resident alien and not a citizen.

God calls, Abram goes, and does not stop till he gets to the middle of Canaan where he builds an altar to God and worships. He and Sarai next go to Egypt during a famine, which prefigures what will happen to his descendant Joseph. Just as the Israelites will end up despoiling the Egyptians after a plague, Abram and Sarai end up gaining a lot of treasure from the Egyptians after the pharaoh is punished.

Abram will also prefigure the future conquest of Canaan when he defeats the Canaanite kings in Genesis 14. Rescuing his kinsman Lot from their clutches, Abram returns the stolen property and captives to the king of Sodom, where Lot had been living. When Abram is returning from his victory, he runs into the king of Salem (likely the city of Jerusalem) and offers a tithe of his property to Melchesidek, who is a priest of God. Abram keeps none of his war booty just as the Israelites will not be allowed to keep any property from their conquests.

In our next article we will go over the one thing Abram could not acquire: a true-born son. Abram will have to grow in his faith before he can become a patriarch and the father of many nations. May our faith in God’s promise always grow stronger.

In His Sacred Heart,

Fr. John