The Spiritual War
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Today's Gospel reading from Mark 10 is one that is very close to my heart. A blind man (Bartimaeus) keeps crying to Jesus, "Son of David, have pity on me."...
Loving Intensely
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The story we see in today’s Gospel reading from Mark 10 is very interesting. James and John come and say to Jesus, “Grant that in your glory we may sit...
Be Holy
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In the first reading today, St. Peter talks about how the prophets were testifying to Christ. He says that they “were serving not themselves but you.” In the Gospel reading...
Mary, Mother of the Church
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Today, the day after Pentecost, the Church celebrates the feast of The Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church. This is a relatively new memorial, instituted by Pope Francis in...
Come, Holy Spirit, Come!
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Today is Pentecost Sunday. We celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the birthday of the Church. We see this event in the first reading from Acts 2. At...
What About Him?
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In Acts 28 today, we see Paul continuing in his ministry, even while in custody. Oh, that we could all have the evangelistic spirit of St. Paul! In the Gospel...
Undoing Our Denials
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Today's Gospel reading from John 21 is, I think, one of the the most moving scenes in the New Testament. After the resurrection, Jesus and Simon Peter are on the beach....
God's Love in Us
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Paul was seen by many as a rabble-rouser. In today’s first reading from Acts, he creates a stir between the Pharisees and the Sadducees over the resurrection of the body....
A Prayerful Goodbye
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In the first reading today from Acts 20, we hear the conclusion of Paul’s farewell address to the presbyters of the Church of Ephesus. What a stirring and moving speech....
Finishing Our Course
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What’s the greatest thing that we can achieve in life? To amass a fortune? Certainly not. To raise good kids? Be a good husband/wife/father/mother? To do lots of good works?...
The Inevitability of Trouble
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In today's Gospel reading from John 16, Jesus gives the disciples a warning that He gave them many times. "In the world you will have trouble..." But let's look at...
Being In the World
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Today will be a different liturgy for folks in different parts of the US. For most it will be the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. For others, it...
God Answers Prayers
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More great action in the first reading from Acts 18. Today we meet a Scripture expert named Apollos. After studying the Scriptures, “he established from the Scriptures that the Christ...
Grief Becomes Joy
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In today's first reading from Acts 18, the Lord comes to Paul in a vision and tells him, "Go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you."...
Ascension Thursday
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Ascension. In most dioceses around the USA, today is not a Holy Day of obligation. For most, this feast will be celebrated...
Groping for God
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St. Paul must have been one of the greatest public speakers of all time. Today in our first reading from Acts 17, we see Paul giving one of his great...
Saved Twice
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I'm going to talk about a very touchy subject in today's reflection: suicide. The reason is that we see a man about to commit suicide in our first reading from...
Fallen Away
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In today's first reading from Acts 16, we read the story of Lydia, a woman who opened her heart and her home to Jesus through the words of St. Paul....
Not an Orphan
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In today's Gospel reading from John 14, the disciples are with Jesus in the upper room. Jesus knows what is about to happen. He says to the disciples, "I will...
Hate and Love
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Jesus spoke often about love. It’s kind of what He was all about. But today we hear Him speak of hate. And not just generically, but very specifically. He tells...
The Council of Jerusalem
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In today’s first reading from Acts 15, we read about the Council of Jerusalem. We see that the early Church was hierarchical. There was a dispute about whether the Gentiles...
J.O.Y.
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In today’s first reading from Acts 15, we see that the early Church was hierarchical. There was a dispute about whether the Gentiles needed to be circumcised and follow the...
The Holy Pruning
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Today in Acts, we see more discussion about whether new believers needed to be circumcised and obey the Mosaic law. We also see Paul and Barnabas reporting in Jerusalem what...
Hardships and Peace
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We see in Acts today the further adventures of Paul and Barnabas. These guys never had a dull moment! They went around to the different cities saying, “It is necessary...
False Gods and Idols
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Paul and Barnabas run into a very interesting situation in today's first reading from Acts 14. After facilitating a healing for a man, the crowds began to worship them as...
Your Heavenly Mansion
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In the Gospel reading from John 14, at the Last Supper, Jesus speaks about where He is going. "In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If there were...
Show Them the Father
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The Gospel reading today is from John 14, where Philip says to Jesus, “Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us.” Jesus (a bit perturbed, I...
Knowing the Way
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In the first reading today from Acts 13, we hear more of Paul's speech in the synagogue in Antioch. He continues to tell the Jews there about the plan of...
Receiving Jesus
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We read the writings of St. Paul often. Can you imagine what it must have been like to hear him speak? I conjure up images of Paul as a passionate...
Choose Light
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Everyone has a job to do in the Kingdom of God. In today's first reading from Acts 12 and 13, the Holy Spirit says, "Set apart for me Barnabas and...
Once Saved, Always Saved?
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Today in Acts, we see more and more people coming to believe through the preaching and teaching of Barnabas and Saul. We also see the first use of the word...
Can You Hinder God?
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In the Gospel reading today from John 10, Jesus says, “I am the good shepherd. A good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.” Just as a shepherd watches...
Join Us in the Holy Land!
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Good Morning, Child of God! In just a few days, we were scheduled to begin a pilgrimage the the Holy Land. But with war in the region, we had to...
Hearing the Shepherd's Voice
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Today is often referred to as Good Shepherd Sunday. In today’s Gospel reading from John 10, Jesus says of the shepherd, “The sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice.”...
Resist the Devil
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Today is the Feast of St. Mark. Mark was a cousin of Barnabas, accompanied St. Paul on his first missionary journey and later went with him to Rome. He was...
A Verse You Must Know
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Sometimes we can be so thick-headed that God needs to use a (metaphoric) 2x4 over the head to get our attention. Such was the case with Saul of Tarsus, aka...
Scripture and Authority
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Back in Acts 8 for our first reading today. We see a very interesting story about an Ethiopian eunuch who has an encounter with Philip. More on that in a...
Raised on the Last Day
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In the first reading from Acts 8 today, we read about Saul persecuting the Church. Because of the persecution happening in Jerusalem, all but the Apostles left there. We read...
The New Manna
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Stephen was the first martyr; he was the first person in recorded history to shed his blood and die for the sake of his faith in Jesus. In the first...
The Food That Endures
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In today's first reading, we read about the persecution of Stephen, one of the first deacons. This leads to his stoning, about which we will read tomorrow. In the Gospel...
Recognizing Jesus
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Today's Gospel reading is one we saw just a few days ago from Luke 24. It's the story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus. As the story goes,...
Called to Serve
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In today’s first reading from Acts 6, we read about the ordination of our first deacons. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from John 6, Jesus...
If It Is of God...
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For the next week, our Gospel readings will be from John 6. It starts off today with Jesus feeding 5000 with just five loaves and two fish. In the first...
The Gift of the Spirit
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In today’s first reading from Acts 5, Peter and the Apostles were called on the carpet by the Sanhedrin for teaching in the name of Jesus. Their response? “We must...
The Gospel in a Nutshell
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In today’s first reading from Acts 5, we see the first of numerous jail breaks in the Acts of the Apostles. Seems that the authorities wanted to keep the Apostles...
The Church of Socialism?
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I'll start today's reflection with a warning. Some folks may find this reflection "political." I'm going to reflect on socialism, because some use today's first reading to imply that the...
Being Born Again
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Another awesome first reading today from Acts 4. After Peter and John were released, the disciples all got together and prayed, “And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and...
The Ministry of Mercy
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Today, the Second Sunday of Easter, is Divine Mercy Sunday. Our Gospel reading from John 20 gives some insight into Divine Mercy and the sacrament of Confession. Jesus appeared to...
Proclaim the Gospel
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Today in Acts 4, the Sanhedrin comes to the conclusion that something astonishing happened through Peter and John. But just to be safe, they tell them not to ever again...
A Fishy Number
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In today’s reading from Acts 4, Peter and John spend the night in the clink and the next day they proclaim Jesus to the powers that be. The Scripture tells...