Jesus' Condemnation of tradition
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In today’s first reading from 1 Kings 8, Solomon stands before the altar in the magnificent temple that he had built and offers up a prayer to God. This is...
Scurrying to Jesus
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In today's first reading from 1 Kings 8, Solomon and the people bring the Ark of the Covenant to the temple. In the Gospel reading from Mark 6, Jesus continues...
Please Pass the Salt
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For the Gospel reading today, we’re back in the Sermon on the Mount. In Matthew 5, Jesus says to His disciples, “You are the salt of the earth.” I’m sure...
Want to be Wise? Ask for Wisdom
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In today’s first reading from 1 Kings 3, we meet Solomon. Solomon’s father, David, had just died. The son had ascended to the throne of Israel. More in a moment....
Remembered Like David
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For today's first reading, we get a recap of David's life from Sirach 47. The Gospel reading from Mark 6 recounts the story of the killing of John the Baptist....
Time to Shake the Dust
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In today's first reading from 1 Kings, we read about the death of David. Solomon now sits on the throne. In the Gospel reading today from Mark 6, Jesus instructs...
They Took Offense
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Taking responsibility seems to be something that has gotten lost these days. I suppose that has always been true in some measure. It seems people, especially leaders, always want to...
God's Will and Our Children
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Today’s readings center around children. In the first reading from 2 Samuel 18, we see the tragic story of King David’s son Absalom. Absalom had become his father’s mortal enemy,...
Always Faithful
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Today is the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. Also known as Candlemas, this is the day when candles will be blessed. There will be three readings today. In...
Blessed are You
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In the second reading today from 1 Corinthians 1, St. Paul says, “Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.” In other words, be poor in spirit. Our Gospel reading today...
You are the Man!
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The title of today's reflection can be a bit deceptive for us. These days, when you hear or say, "You are the man!" it is a positive thing. But not...
Feet of Clay
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King David had it going on with God. He had been anointed by the prophet Samuel as a young man, eventually became king and was told by God that his...
Who Am I?
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I've often said that I am a kindred spirit with King David. Today's first reading from 2 Samuel 7 is just one of the reasons. Nathan the prophet has just...
Johnny Wordseed
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In the Gospel reading today from Mark 4, Jesus tells the parable of the sower of the seeds. After telling this parable, the disciples didn’t understand. Jesus seems a bit...
Like Nobody's Watching
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When it comes to God, the family is pretty large. What do I mean? In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus says, “For whoever does the will of God is my brother...
No Place for Cowards
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Today is the Feast of Saints Timothy and Titus. Both men were collaborators with St. Paul and received letters from him that we find in the New Testament. Timothy became...
The Man from Galilee
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We know that Jesus is the fulfillment of the messianic prophesies in the Old Testament. We see some of that in today's readings. In the first reading from Isaiah 8,...
Out of My Mind
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For the first reading today, we start in 2 Samuel. Saul and his son, Jonathan, David’s best friend, have been killed in battle. David laments the death of these two...
Admitting Fault
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David and Saul had a tumultuous relationship. Saul hated David, and hunted him down to kill him. You would think that David would share this animosity. But not so. More...
The Jealous King
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It seems that wherever Jesus went, He drew a crowd, as we see in today’s Gospel reading from Mark 3. The more people He healed, the more demons He cast...
Taking Down Goliath
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In the Gospel reading today from Mark 3, Jesus has another run-in with the Pharisees about the sabbath. Jesus asks them, “Is it lawful to do good on the sabbath...
Judging Books by Their Covers
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In today’s first reading from 1 Samuel 16, we read about the anointing of David. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus is...
Obedience is Better Than Sacrifice
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In the first reading today from 1 Samuel 15, we see a bit of the sneakiness of King Saul. Samuel has to call him out on it. More in a...
It's ACTUALLY JESUS!
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Today's Gospel reading from John 1 contains a Bible verse that every Catholic knows. "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world." These words were...
Into the Unknown
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Today's Gospel reading from Mark 2 is about the call of Levi. Not sure who Levi is? We know him better as Matthew. He was a tax collector. Jesus sees...
Everyone Else is Doing It!
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You would think that as God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel would enjoy being different, set apart. Uh…not so much. We see this in today’s first reading. More in...
Spread the Word!
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In our Gospel reading from Mark 1, Jesus heals a leper. The leper comes and says to Jesus, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Jesus replies, “I do...
Hearing vs. Listening
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Have you ever heard God speak to you? I believe God speaks to us in many different ways. I’ve talked to a number of people who tell me that God...
Deceptive Appearances
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In today's first reading, we pick up the story of Hannah in 1 Samuel 1. Hannah, the wife of Elkanah, was barren. In her grief she goes to the temple...
Come After Me
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Welcome back to Ordinary Time! I hope that we will not take the name of this liturgical season literally. What I mean by that is that I hope that we...
Jesus' Baptism and Our Baptism
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Today the Church celebrates the Baptism of the Lord. We see that moment where John the Baptist has just baptized Jesus when "a voice came from the heavens, saying, 'This...
Fading Into the Background
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Catholics believe in different “kinds” of sin. Mortal sin and venial sin. Venial sins are still sins, but not as serious as mortal sins. Mortal sins are those sins that...
Belief and Victory
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Today's Gospel reading from Luke 5 is the story a leper approaching Jesus and asking to be healed. He says, "Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean." He...
The Truth About a Lie
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Do you ever feel like Scripture is speaking directly to you? I do. In fact, St. John is speaking directly to me today! He even has the nerve to call...
Fear and Love
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Strong words from St. John today in our first reading from 1 John 4. St. John talks about fear. More on that in a moment. We see fear, too, come...
Putting Love into Action
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In the first reading today from 1 John 4, St. John writes yet again about love. “Everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God…In this is love: not...
Jesus' First Word
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In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 4, we read about the beginning of Jesus' public ministry. His first words were, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." The...
The Journey to Jesus
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Today we celebrate the feast of the Epiphany. In the Gospel reading from Matthew 2 we see the story of the magi coming to visit the baby Jesus. We often...
Yet So We Are
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Today's Gospel reading contains a passage of Scripture that every Catholic knows. We hear it at every Mass just before we go receive Holy Communion. They are words spoken by...
Remain
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Keeping your faith in Christ is pretty important. (That's a bit of understatement, in case you're wondering.) In our first reading today from 1 John 2 we see this clearly...
Another Year, Another Chance
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Happy New Year! Today is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. It is a holy day of obligation. If you're like me, you probably saw midnight come and go...
A Mind-Blowing Message
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For today’s first reading, we are back in 1 John 2. Today St. John writes about the antichrist. Very interesting stuff, especially for those hard core “end-timers.” Those are the...
The World
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In today’s first reading, we get some great advice from St. John. More on that in a moment. The Gospel reading today is from Luke 2. Today we read about...
Simeon's Prayer
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Today is the fifth day in the Octave of Christmas. In our first reading from 1 John 2, St. John talks about light and darkness. He writes, “Whoever says he...
Blood is Thicker than Water
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Today is the Feast of the Holy Family, always the Sunday after Christmas. In today's Gospel reading from Matthew 2, we read about Joseph taking his family to Egypt to...
St. John the Evangelist
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Today we celebrate the Feast of St. John the Evangelist. St. John was the beloved disciple, the author of the fourth Gospel, three letters in the New Testament and the...
The First Martyr
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Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr. In the first reading from Acts of the Apostles, we see the story of Stephen’s martyrdom. And in...
Merry Christmas!
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Advent is finally over! Now begins the real celebration. Merry Christmas! I’ll pause today from the regular Scripture reflection and just share some random thoughts. A baby in a manger....
Christmas Eve
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Blessed Christmas Eve! Today's Gospel reading from Luke 1 is the canticle of Zechariah. I can't do better than that, so let's reflect today on his words. “Blessed be the...
Preparing the Way of the Lord
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Today in the liturgy, the day before Christmas Eve, we concentrate on the birth of John the Baptist. (Remember how I talked a few days ago about the Catholic liturgy...