The Power of Zeal
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All week long we've been reading about heroes of the faith in Maccabees. Today we read about Mattathias. In our Gospel reading from Luke 19, Jesus weeps over Jerusalem and...
Another Hero of the Faith
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In our first reading today from 2 Maccabees 7, we meet yet another hero of faith. She is a mother who exhibits amazing faith and bravery. Some may think otherwise,...
Heroes of the Faith
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In today’s readings, we meet two great characters of the Bible! The first is one who is probably very little known, the other very well known, especially with kids. He...
The Danger of Keeping the Faith
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 18, Jesus is on his way to Jericho when a blind man on the side of the road shouts out, “Son of David,...
The End is Near!
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 21, Jesus is talking about the end times and what signs there will be that the end is near. “Nation will rise against nation,...
Learning from a Dishonest Judge
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, Jesus tells a parable about a dishonest judge. A widow comes to him seeking a judgment, but he refuses. The widow, however, kept...
The Danger of Distraction
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I often wonder how anyone can be an atheist. Today's first reading from Wisdom 13 speaks to that conundrum. "For from the greatness and the beauty of created things, their...
Chasing the Shiny Thing
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 17, the Pharisees ask Jesus when the Kingdom of God would come. What they didn’t realize was that they were standing in it. Jesus...
Where are the Other Nine?
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God doesn't care if you're great or small in the eyes of the world. Today's first reading from Wisdom 6 tells us, "For the Lord of all shows no partiality,...
What Comes Next
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When we do good, we are doing as we ought. We should expect no fanfare, no parades, no accolades. Jesus talks about this is today’s Gospel reading from Luke 17....
A Circular Relationship
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For the first reading today, we begin a quick trip through the Book of Wisdom. In the Gospel reading from Luke 17, Jesus talks about sin, causing others to sin,...
Zeal for God's House
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of he Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. This Basilica, constructed by the Emperor Constantine, is called the mother church of Christendom. The readings today...
Being Trustworthy
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 16, Jesus talks about being trustworthy in matters great and small. Jesus said, “The person who is trustworthy in very small matters is also trustworthy...
Prudent Servants
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If anyone had a right to boast, it was St. Paul. A prolific writer, eloquent speaker, man of great charisma…the guy had it all. But he would never boast of...
Of Sheep and Coins
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 15, Jesus tells two parables. In the first, he proposes a story of a guy with a hundred sheep. One of them goes astray....
Love and Hate
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Love and hate are two things we hear about in today’s readings. In the first reading from Romans 13, St. Paul says, “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one...
Blueprint for the Christian Life
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Today's first reading from Romans 12 is really a blueprint for living the Christian life. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus tells a parable...
Eternal Repayment
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In the first reading today from Romans 11, St. Paul says, “For God delivered all to disobedience, that he might have mercy upon all.” That may sound a bit odd....
All Souls' Day and Purgatory
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Today we celebrate the Feast of All Souls. It is the day we remember all the souls in Purgatory. Purgatory can be a controversial topic, and hard to explain. So,...
All Saints Day
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Today we celebrate the Feast of All Saints. For the past 25 years, whenever this day falls on a weekday, I have a tradition of calling everyone with whom I speak...
Heartbreak for the Family
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 14, Jesus (again) cures someone on the sabbath. This is similar to a reading we saw earlier this week. He questions why it is...
If God is For Us...
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 13, Jesus laments over Jerusalem. He says, "Behold, your house will be abandoned." If you've ever been to a funeral, you may have heard...
ALL Things Work for Good
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It is not easy to find or fit through the narrow gate. People generally choose the path of least resistance. That would be the wide gate. Jesus Christ is the...
Saints Simon and Jude
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles. The readings are typical for the feast of Apostles - the first reading from Ephesians 2 and the...
A Spirit of Adoption
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In today's first reading from Romans 8, St. Paul talks about our relationship with God the Father. We cry, "Abba, Father!" This "Abba" might be consistent with "Daddy!" that a...
On Pride
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 18, Jesus tells a parable about two people praying in the temple. A Pharisee thanks God that he is not like all the low-lifes...
How to Perish
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 13, some people tell Jesus about some Jews who had been killed by Pilate. Jesus’ response is telling. “Do you think that because these...
Evil is at Hand
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Could Jesus have been talking about Purgatory in today’s Gospel reading? He talks about being thrown into prison and how “you will not be released until you have paid the...
The Wages of Sin
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We call Jesus the Prince of Peace. In today's Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus says, "Do you think that I have come to establish peace on the earth? No,...
Great Expectations
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Perhaps St. Paul’s words in today’s first reading from Romans 6 are ones we should read every day, or even commit to memory. “For sin is not to have any...
God's Overflowing Grace
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In today’s first reading from Romans 5, St. Paul talks about sin and grace. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus tells his...
Empowered by Faith
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus says, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.” He...
Do Not Grow Weary
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 18, "Jesus told his disciples a parable about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary." He then goes on to tell...
Feast of St. Luke
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Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. Luke. St. Luke is the author of two books of the New Testament, the Gospel of Luke and Acts of the Apostles....
How God Feels About You
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In today’s first reading from Romans 4, St. Paul talks about the importance of faith. He points to Abraham as the example of faith. “Abraham believed God, and it was...
Works vs. Works of the Law
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 11, Jesus continues to pronounce woes on the scholars of the law. These are some pretty scathing remarks. “Woe to you, scholars of...
Holding Ourselves Accountable
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Both of the readings for today are a bit harsh. In the first reading from Romans 2, St. Paul says, “The standard by which you judge another you condemn yourself,...
The Danger of Impurity
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 11, Jesus has some harsh words for the Pharisees about putting on airs. We should heed these words. In the first reading from Romans...
An Evil Generation
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For today's first reading, we begin a trip through St. Paul's Letter to the Romans. It's going to be an interesting few weeks as we go through Romans, so stay...
One Gave Thanks
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 17, Jesus heals ten lepers. Of the ten healed, only one bothered to come back and give thanks to Jesus. To add insult to...
How To Be Blessed
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God will take care of His people. That is His promise, His covenant. It is one that will last forever. In today’s first reading from Joel 4, we hear this...
Stick Together
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As we read today’s first reading from Joel, we may begin to feel as though it is Ash Wednesday. Fear not…it isn’t! But in this reading, the prophet reminds us...
A Loving Father
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Today's Gospel reading from Luke 11 contains a famous saying of Jesus that most folks know: "And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find;...
Mountains Out of Molehills
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Most folks can pray the Our Father from memory. Today we hear Jesus teaching His disciples to pray from Luke's Gospel. The wording is a bit different from Matthew's Gospel,...
God Repented
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In today's first reading from Jonah 3, we see a passage that may be confusing. We'll reflect on that in a moment. In our Gospel reading from Luke 10, we...
The Risks of the Good Samaritan
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In today's first reading, we begin the story of Jonah. Perhaps often thought of as a great kids' Bible story, it has so much to teach all of us. Our...
Increase Our Faith
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 17, the Apostles say to Jesus, “Increase our faith.” Interesting, isn’t it? I mean, here is a group of guys who have given...
Make Me an Instrument of Your Peace
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Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi. So, rather than comment on the Scriptures, I’m going to go a bit out of format for today. If you’re...
The Signs and the Message
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Acknowledging our sinfulness is never easy. In the first reading today from Baruch 1, the exiles do just that. They come clean and admit that “we did not heed the...
The Holy Guardian Angels
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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Guardian Angels. In the optional first reading for the feast day from Exodus, we see God telling the people that he is...