60 Second Reflections » 60 Reflections
Legion
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In today’s first reading from 2 Samuel 15, a man comes alongside David and begins cursing and throwing stones at him and his soldiers. One of David’s soldiers asks permission to lop off the man’s head. But David refuses. His response is interesting, and one that should give us pause when people speak ill of […]
What Love Is – And Isn’t
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Our second reading today is 1 Corinthians 13. This is often referred to as “The Love Chapter.” If you’ve ever been to a wedding, chances are you have heard this read there. St. Paul tells us what love is, and what it isn’t. “Love is patient, love is kind. It is not jealous, it is […]
A Look in the Mirror
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David had sinned greatly. This did not escape the LORD’s notice. More in a moment. In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus and His disciples are in a boat when a storm suddenly comes up. The disciples wake Jesus up and ask, “Do you not care that we are perishing?” Be sure to read […]
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 kingdom would endure forever through God’s Son. Pretty heady stuff, huh? But there was another side to David. We see it today in 2 Samuel […]
A Generational Blessing
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God promised David that his house would stand forever. Not the physical structure, of course, but that the Messiah would descend from him. More in a moment. In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus has some interesting words for His disciples about lamps and lampstands and measuring sticks. Read it. In today’s first reading, […]
Sow and Pray
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In today’s first reading from 2 Samuel, Nathan the prophet gives David a message from the Lord. God promises that from David’s line would come the Messiah. “Your house and your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm forever.” In the Gospel reading today from Mark 4, Jesus tells the parable […]
No Cowards Needed
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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 first bishop of Ephesus and Titus the bishop of Crete. St. Paul gives Timothy some great exhortations in his second letter to him. Today […]
Conversion
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Today is the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. We see the story of Saul’s (Paul’s birth name) conversion in two places in Acts of the Apostles. In chapter 9, the account is told in third person. Luke, the author of Acts, recounts the story. However, in chapter 22 of Acts, St. Paul tells […]
Rejoicing in the Word
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In today’s first reading from Nehemiah 8, we see the story of Ezra the priest reading the book of the law to all the people. He spent hours proclaiming God’s word. (And we think the Palm Sunday Gospel is long!) The people were so moved they wept. Ezra tells them not to weep. He says, […]
Out of Your 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 great sons of Israel. The Gospel reading today from Mark 3 is very short; just two verses. Jesus came with his disciples into the house. […]
Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children
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Today in the United States is the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. It falls on the anniversary of the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in America – a sad day, indeed. It is also the annual March for Life in Washington, DC. Some people wonder why […]
A Jealous Heart
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Goliath was dead. You would think that King Saul would be overjoyed that David, one of his own, had slain the Philistine. And he was…for a short time. More in a moment. In our Gospel reading from Mark 3, Jesus has more run-ins with unclean spirits. Each time He cast them out, he warns them […]
Defeating 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 ont he sabbath rather than to do evil, to save life rather than to destroy it?” He then cures a man with a withered hand. Another reminder that […]
What God Sees
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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 questioned by the Pharisees about why his disciples are picking grain on the sabbath, something which was prohibited by the law. Jesus tells them, “The […]
Obedience is Better
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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 moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus talks about pouring new wine into old wineskins. It just doesn’t work. What He means is […]
The Lesson of Cana
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Jesus’ first public miracle, as told in John’s Gospel, is changing water into wine. It happens at a wedding feast at Cana. This story is the Gospel reading in today’s Mass from John 3. The wedding party runs out of wine. Jesus’ mother, Mary, is concerned. In the few words that we hear Mary utter […]
Time to See the Doctor
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The people of Israel insisted that God give them a king. Despite warnings to the contrary, they persisted. In today’s first reading from 1 Samuel 9, we meet the new king, Saul. In our Gospel reading today from Mark 2, we read about the call of Levi, or Matthew. Levi has Jesus over for dinner. […]
Careful What You Wish For
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If you have children (especially teenagers), you’ll relate to today’s reflection. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, we read the story of a paralytic lowered into the house in which Jesus was teaching through the roof by his friends. Jesus forgives his sins and heals him. In today’s first reading […]
Lessons from Adversity
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When we choose to follow God, life ain’t always a bed of roses. I’m sure you’ve experienced this. Challenges still come our way. People we love get sick and die. Certainly there are times where we experience illness, pain, broken relationships, terrible defeats. It’s nothing new. In our first reading today from 1 Samuel 4, […]
Listening for God
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In the first reading today, we’re in 1 Samuel 3, reading about the call of Samuel. It is a story that we can take lessons from. In the Gospel reading from Mark 1, Jesus heals Simon’s mother-in-law, then heals all in town that needed healing. After some prayer alone, Jesus tells his disciples that He […]
Cutting a Deal with God
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 1, Jesus casts an unclean spirit out of a man while in the synagogue in Capernaum. The people recognized the authority that Jesus had, not only over unclean spirits, but to teach as well. They said, “What is this? A new teaching with authority. He commands even the unclean […]
Catchers of Men?
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Welcome back to Ordinary Time! In the first reading today we begin the first Book of Samuel. Today we read about a broken-hearted woman, Hannah. She was barren and wanted desperately to have a child. If you’re married, you’ll probably laugh when you read what her husband said to her. (Hint: he’s a typical male.) In […]
Jesus’ Baptism
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Today the Church celebrates the Baptism of the Lord. We see that moment in Luke’s Gospel where John the Baptist has just baptized Jesus when “the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice comes from heaven and says, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well […]
Increase/Decrease
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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 separate us from God. Serious sins where we willfully and intentionally turn our backs on God. We find this notion in today’s first reading from […]
Be Made Clean
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Today’s first reading from 1 John 5 begins with a question: “Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” Who indeed? Well, let’s see…you believe that Jesus is the Son of God, right? Then YOU must be the victor over the world! Pretty […]
Big Fat Liar
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1 John is an amazing book. I always get so much out of it when I read it. Today is no exception. In fact, today, like every day, St. John is speaking directly to me! He even has the nerve to call me a liar! More on that in a sec. Today’s Gospel reading from […]
False Evidence Appearing Real
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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 into play in our Gospel reading. In Mark 6, we see Jesus walking on the sea. When the disciples see him, they were overcome with […]
God Is Love
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Many people are familiar with the famous phrase of St. John the Evangelist: God is love. We see this in today’s first reading from 1 John 4. In the Gospel reading from Mark 6, we see love in action, as Jesus feeds the multitude. The Scripture tells us, “His heart was moved with pity for […]
Testing the Spirits
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Today we celebrate the feast of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton. Mother Seton was a convert, and acknowledged as the founder of the Catholic school system in America. You would do well to find out more about this amazing woman. Our first reading today is from 1 John. We’ll talk about it in a moment. In […]
The Journey of the Wise
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Today’s Gospel reading tells the story of the Three Kings, or the Three Wise Men. They heard that the King of the Jews had been born and followed a star to find him. King Herod tries to trick them into giving up the location of the child. But they were warned in a dream not […]
Faithful Stick-to-it-iveness
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More great advice from St. John in today’s first reading from 1 John 2. More on that in a moment. Our Gospel reading for today is from the Gospel of St. John. We see the people asking John the Baptist to identify himself, “Who are you?” He admits that he is not the Christ, only […]
A Scriptural Resolution
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Happy New Year! Remember that today is the Feast of Mary, the Mother of God. It is a holy day of obligation. We get to go to Mass! New Year’s Day is always an introspective time for me. I always take a look back at the previous year and reflect on successes and failures of […]
The Message of Christmas
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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 people who keep telling us that we are in the end times. Well, 1900 years ago, St. John said the same thing. Read today’s reading. St. […]
Love and “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 the prophetess Anna. She was a very old woman and “never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.” Like Simeon, […]
The Prayer of Simeon
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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 is in the light, yet hates his brother, is still in the darkness.” We need to examine our hearts and accept the light of Christ […]
Holy Innocents
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Innocents. Who are the Holy Innocents? They are the children killed by order of Herod in Bethlehem right after the birth of Christ. We read about this today in the Gospel reading from Matthew 2. Matthew tells us that this fulfilled what had been said through […]
A Divine Institution
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The Sunday after Christmas is the Feast of the Holy Family. There are numerous options for readings today, all of which talk about family and relationships. Click on the link below to the readings. We would do well to read them all. The Holy Family is the perfect example of what a family is, and […]
Enduring to the End
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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 the Gospel from Matthew 10, Jesus tells the disciples, “You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end […]
Christmas is Here!
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Christmas is here! Christmas is here! I can remember waking up VERY early on Christmas mornings when I was a kid and yelling that out to my brothers and sisters. We would go wake up Mom and Dad, probably much earlier than they would have liked, and attack the presents under the tree with reckless […]
Always Christmas Eve
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Today is Christmas Eve. Many people (myself and my family included) will go to Mass this afternoon or this evening for Christmas. Many will attend the beautiful Midnight Mass. Whenever you attend, I pray that you will be filled with blessings! I was just reading an interest study that said that only 47% of Americans […]
He is Coming
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The golden thread in today’s readings is Elijah. In the first reading from Malachi 3, the LORD says, “Lo, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, before the day of the LORD comes.” The Gospel reading from Luke 1 is the story of the birth of John the Baptist. Years later, Jesus assured His disciples […]
Dedicated
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The Gospel reading today is from Luke 1. It is Mary’s great Magnificat. “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior, for he has looked upon his lowly servant.” Beautiful! A bit of personal trivia…my wife and I are part of Teams of Our Lady. We pray the […]
Honoring Mary
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There are two options for a first reading today – from Song of Songs and Zephaniah. Both are beautiful and deserving of your meditation. In the Gospel reading from Luke 1, we see the scene of Elizabeth welcoming Mary into her home. First, Elizabeth was “filled with the Holy Spirit” when she uttered words that […]
Blessed Are You Among Women
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Today is the Fourth Sunday of Advent. Christmas is right around the corner. In the first reading today, the Lord speaks through the prophet Micah, saying that the Messiah would come from Bethlehem. And the Gospel reading from Luke 1 is the story of the Visitation, when Mary went to visit her cousin, Elizabeth, who […]
Made For a Purpose
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In the first reading today from Judges 13, we see the story of an angel coming to announce the birth of a child. The woman was barren, and the angel told her that this child was “to be consecrated to God from the womb.” He would serve a very special purpose for the Kingdom of […]
Dream, Dream, Dream
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Today in the first reading from Jeremiah 23, the Lord says, “Behold, the days are coming when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David; as king he shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is right and just in the land.” I’m sure that, looking at this prophecy, the people were […]
Lionhearted
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Today is one week before Christmas Eve. In the liturgy, we begin to see the unfolding of the Christmas story. The Gospel reading for today is the beginning of Matthew’s Gospel. It is the genealogy of Jesus. If you’ve ever had a difficult time pronouncing some of the names in this list, click here for […]
Sharing the Faith
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In the first reading today from Isaiah 45, you get the sense that God has a message for the people. Five times God says, “I am the Lord, there is no other!” (Or something very similar.) Only God is God…get the message? In the Gospel reading from Luke 7, John sends two of his disciples […]
Time for a Change
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A genuine encounter with Jesus changes a person. In today’s readings we read about people who have encountered God and changed. In the first reading from Zephaniah 3, we see that most of the people have rejected God. But the LORD says, “For then I will change and purify the lips of the peoples, that […]
Whose Authority?
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In the first reading today from Numbers 24, we read of a prophesy of Balaam. He prophesies about how a king would come from Jacob’s line. “His king shall rise higher, and his royalty shall be exalted.” He then goes on to speak this prophesy, “A star shall advance from Jacob, and a staff shall […]