Second Sunday in Lent: Genesis 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Romans 8:31b-34, Mark 9:2-10. Today’s readings demand that we stretch ourselves beyond our comfort zone. Parts of our faith are easy to accept — the Beatitudes, for example — they mirror moral truths we find in other religions and civic systems. …
Monday in the 2nd Week of Advent: Isaiah 35:1-10, Luke 5:17-26. Yesterday, we reflected that part of Advent’s preparing the way for the Lord is to keep a burning vision of the heavenly Kingdom at the forefront of our minds and desires. I noted that there is a bit of …
Friday in the 1st Week of Advent: Isaiah 29:17-24, Matthew 9:27-31. Today’s readings juxtapose more of Isaiah’s brilliant prophecy of Christ’s entrance into human history with St. Matthew’s deceptively concise illustration of how we can meet this great mystery in our lives: the healing of two blind men. In many …
Memorial of Saint Francis Xavier, Priest (Thursday in the 1st Week of Advent): Isaiah 26:1-6, Matthew 7:21, 24-27. Today’s readings ask us to consider how we use the word “strong” when it comes to our faith life. It seems reasonable that we encourage one another to keep our faith strong, …
Easter Sunday: Acts of the Apostles 10:34a, 37-43, Colossians 3:1-4, John 20:1-9. Today’s readings uncover the truly baffling nature of the empty tomb. We rejoice, 2,000 years later because the full revelation of the Resurrection is known. We sing Alleluia! with abandon, but today’s readings remind us that His rising …
Saturday in the Fourth Week of Lent: Jeremiah 11:18-20, John 7:40-53. Today’s readings display the evil plots of those who willingly disbelieve. In the Old Testament and New, we see those with hardened hearts speak ill of and plan the destruction of the righteous. We must beware of this tendency …
Saturday in the Third Week of Lent: Hosea 6:1-6, Luke 18: 9-14. Today’s readings give us a stunning prophecy of the Christ event some 780 years earlier and urge us to remain steadfast to the Lord in our faith and humility. The short Book of Hosea continues to surprise me. …
Solemnity of Saint Joseph, husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary: 2 Samuel 7:4-5a, 12-14a, 16, Romans 4:13, 16-18, 22, Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a. Today we honor the faithful foster-father of Jesus. In his homily this morning, Bishop Robert Barron calls St. Joseph “the most powerful heavenly friend we have” after …
Third Sunday in Lent: Exodus 17:3-7, Romans 5:1-2, 5-8, John 4:5-42. Today’s readings map the importance of water not just as a lifeforce for our physical bodies, but as a symbol of the spiritual nourishment provided by God. We are given two seminal scriptural stories: Moses striking the rock at …
Second Sunday in Lent, The Transfiguration of Christ: Genesis 12:1-4a, 2 Timothy 1:8b-10, Matthew 17:1-9. Today we hear of the Lord’s glorious Transfiguration, set up wonderfully by yesterday’s readings on covenants (see The Difficult New Covenant of Love). There are many signs that point to the New Covenant, including the …
