60 Second Reflections » 60 Reflections
We are Lepers
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In the first reading today from Leviticus 13, we read about what will be done with lepers. He “shall keep his garments rent and his head bare, and shall muffle his beard; he shall cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ He shall dwell apart, making his abode outside the camp.” In the Gospel reading from Mark 1, […]
Not My Fault!
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 8, we read about a miracle. Jesus feeds four thousand people with seven loaves and a few fish. And after everyone had eaten their fill, they picked up the fragments left over and got seven baskets full. Now that’s love! In the first reading today from Genesis 3, God […]
The Deceiver
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Satan is really good at one thing: deception. More on that in a moment. Ancient prophesies said that the Messiah would come and make the deaf hear and the mute speak. Guess what Jesus does in today’s Gospel reading from Mark 7. For the first reading today from Genesis 3, we’re back in the Garden […]
Man, Woman, Marriage
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Did you know that there are two creation accounts in Genesis? We saw the first part of the second story of creation yesterday. Today we see the more complete version of God making a partner for the man. “The Lord God said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone.’ ” He then […]
Don’t!
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Today’s Gospel reading from Mark 7 has had a profound effect on me. Jesus tells the disciples that it’s not what one puts into the mouth that defiles (thus declaring all foods clean), but it is what comes out of us that defiles. Read the list and see if any of these things ever come […]
The Lips and The Heart
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In the first reading today from Genesis 1 and 2, we read the rest of the creation account, days five through seven, including the first account of God creating man. “God created man in his image; in the divine image he created him; male and female he created them.” In today’s Gospel reading from Mark […]
In the Beginning
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Today for our first reading, we begin at the beginning. Genesis 1. “In the beginning…” We’ll be in the book of Genesis for the next couple of weeks. Today we read about days 1-4 in the creation story. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 6, we see Jesus once again healing. […]
Time for Prayer
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Jesus was a busy guy. It seems He was always on the go – preaching, teaching, healing, feeding. Yet we see that He always took time for prayer. In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 1, Jesus spends all night healing people and casting out demons. One might guess that He got very little sleep. After […]
A Sacrifice of Praise
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Today we finish up the Letter to the Hebrews. I don’t know about you, but I think it has been a great time of learning during our time in Hebrews. Today the sacred author tells us to “continually offer God a sacrifice of praise…” More on that in a moment. In our Gospel reading from […]
Entertaining Angels
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Today’s Gospel reading from Mark 6 is the story of the beheading of John the Baptist. Sad and tragic, yes, but a great story for us about standing up for truth no matter the consequences. There’s a very interesting line in today’s first reading from Hebrews 13. “Do not neglect hospitality, for through it some […]
FROG
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Invisible realities can be tough to comprehend. We tend to only focus on the concrete – that which we can see and hear and touch. But there is so much more. We get a hint of that in today’s first reading from Hebrews 12. This passage often reminds me of Mass. If we could see […]
Discipline
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Today we’re going to talk about discipline. Not a fun topic, I know. If you clicked over to another web site right now, I wouldn’t blame you! But in today’s first reading from Hebrews 12, discipline is a main theme. So talk about it we must. In the Gospel reading from Mark 6, Jesus is […]
Faith and Healing
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In today’s first reading from Hebrews 12, the Sacred Author tells us “we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses.” A wonderful reminder that we are never alone. The angels and saints are constantly interceding for us. Take comfort in that, my friend! In the Gospel reading today from Mark 5, we see […]
A Promise Kept
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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 the first reading from Malachi 3, God says through the prophet, “And suddenly there will come to the temple the Lord whom you seek, and […]
Knowing Jesus
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We see a very interesting story in our Gospel reading today from Mark 1. Jesus drives an unclean spirit out of a man. When Jesus confronts the spirit, it cries out, “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy […]
Faith?
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Faith is a theme that runs through the readings today. In the first reading from Hebrews 11, we read the definition of faith. Are you familiar with it? Read it! The sacred author talks about Abraham and others who died in faith. In the Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus is asleep in a boat […]
Enduring Our Sufferings
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 4, Jesus tells a couple of parables, both of an agrarian nature. In the first He talks about how a seed grows, yet we know not how. Why? It is the mystery of life, and that God alone is the giver and taker of life. The second is a […]
Invitation
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I love today’s reading from Hebrews 10. The Sacred Author gives us some great advice. More on that in a moment. We get some scary words from Jesus today in our Gospel reading from Mark 4. “The measure with which you measure will be measured out to you.” Yowza! You mean that we will be […]
Accepting the Word
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Christ’s death on Calvary is called the final sacrifice. In the first reading from Hebrews 10, we read about how “this one [Christ] offered one sacrifice for sins.” The reading today ends with this: “Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer offering for sin.” As Jesus said from the cross, “It is […]
I Come to do Your Will
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“I come to do your will.” This is a line that we hear over and over again in the liturgy today. It appears twice in the first reading from Hebrews 10, and it is part of the response in today’s Responsorial Psalm from Psalm 40. This theme continues in the Gospel reading from Mark 3. […]
Stir Into Flame
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Today the Church celebrates the feast of Saints Timothy and Titus. It is a special day for my parish, as I attend St. Timothy Parish. Because it is a shared feast day, we have an option of two first readings, one from 2 Timothy and one from Titus. I’d like to concentrate today on the […]
Following Jesus
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 1, we read about the call of the first disciples. Jesus sees Simon and Andrew and says to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” The Scripture tells us, “they abandoned their nets and followed him.” Shortly after the same thing happens with James […]
Out of His Mind
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The blood of animals was very important in the old covenant. But the New Covenant is sealed with the Blood of Christ. In today’s first reading from Hebrews 9, the sacred author talks about the power in the Blood. Today’s Gospel reading from Mark 3 is just two verses. Here it is: Jesus came with […]
The Twelve
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The first reading today from Hebrews 8 talks about covenant. Jesus came to earth to usher in the New Covenant. A covenant is an exchange of persons. It requires total self-donation. As Christ died for us (total self-donation), are we willing to totally donate ourselves to Him? In the Gospel reading from Mark 3, we […]
Defending Life
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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 Priest Forever
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The author of Hebrews was big on Melchizedek, and his “relationship” to Jesus. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 3, Jesus heals a man with a withered hand on the sabbath. Once again the Pharisees, itching for a reason to come against him, well…come against him. The question has […]
Spiritual Sluggishness
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus says something very telling to the Pharisees. “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath. That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the sabbath.” In a way, Jesus was revealing to them that He is the one who makes the […]
Our Great High Priest
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Today in Hebrews 5, we see a theme that we touched on last week; that Jesus learned obedience from what he suffered. The author of Hebrews was big on this concept. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus says, “No one pours new wine into old wineskins. Rather, new wine is poured into fresh […]
Looking?
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All of today’s readings bear great contemplation. In the first reading from 1 Samuel 3, we hear Samuel saying, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” Words to live by. In the second reading from 1 Corinthians 6, St. Paul reminds us that our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. In the Gospel reading […]
Knowing God’s Word
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In our first reading from Hebrews 4, the author of Hebrews tells us about the word of God. More on that in a moment. The Gospel reading from Mark 2 is about the call of Levi, also known as Matthew. Levi was a tax collector. In those days, tax collectors were considered traitors. They were […]
Faith-filled Friends
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The first reading today from Hebrews 4 talks about entering into God’s rest. How do we enter into that rest? By being steadfast in faith, and obedient to God. In the Gospel reading today from Mark 2, we read the story of four guys who have a friend who is paralyzed. They want to try to […]
While It is Still “Today”
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Today’s Gospel story is from Mark 1, about a leper that comes to Jesus seeking to be healed. We heard Luke’s version of the same story a few days ago. Today’s first reading from Hebrews 3 is one that is very close to my heart. It contains a passage that means so much to me. […]
Been There, Done That
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Back in Hebrews 2 today, we see more about the suffering of Jesus and how that plays to our advantage. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 1, we see Jesus healing. He heals Simon’s mother-in-law, then many others who were sick or possessed by demons. He heals them all, then moves […]
Suffering for a Purpose
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The writer of the Letter to the Hebrews was big on letting his readers know that Jesus, though He is God, experienced all the human stuff that we all go through. He wanted them to know that Christ did not get out of this world scott free, but that He suffered. In the Gospel reading […]
Fishing vs. Catching
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Welcome back to Ordinary Time! In the first reading today we begin the Letter to the Hebrews. This is a letter whose author is unknown. Some scholars attribute it to St. Paul, or certainly someone in his circle, as Timothy is mentioned near the end of the letter. I know we’ll get much out of […]
The Baptism of Jesus
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Today marks the end of the Christmas season, the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. Today we read in Mark 1 about Jesus coming to John the Baptist to be baptized in the Jordan river. John the Baptist says of him, “I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy […]
Venial and Mortal Sin
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In Catholic theology, we talk of venial sin and mortal sin. Many will say, “Sin is sin! There is no such thing as mortal sin and venial sin.” Oh, really? Tell that to St. John. He would beg to differ. In the first reading today from 1 John 5, St. John speaks very clearly about […]
Pleading for Cleaning
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“Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” That question opens today’s first reading from 1 John 5. Who indeed? I hope that “one” is you! In our Gospel reading today from Luke 5, a leper comes to Jesus asking to be cleansed. […]
Pants on Fire
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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 […]
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 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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If you read the epistles of St. John, you come to find out that love was his favorite topic. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading today from Mark 6, we see Jesus feeding five thousand men. That didn’t include women and children, so we can assume that the number of people […]
Discernment
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In the Gospel reading today from Matthew 4, we read about the early part of Jesus’ public ministry. He went about preaching, teaching and healing. Great crowds came from the surrounding areas to follow Him. Our first reading today is from 1 John. St. John today talks about discernement of spirits. “Beloved, do not trust every […]
An Awakening
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Today is the Feast of Epiphany. We celebrate the time when the three Wise Men, a.k.a Three Kings or Magi, appeared to offer gifts to Jesus. Such an interesting story of these three mysterious characters! They traveled untold miles on a journey to see the newborn King. This should serve as a great reminder for […]
Child of God!
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Good Morning, Child of God! That’s a phrase that I use to start my radio show every day. Are you comfortable with that “title?” I certainly hope so, because that is what you are! So says St. John in our first reading from 1 John 2 and 3. In the Gospel reading from John 1, […]
To Remain or Not to Remain
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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 […]
My Biblical Resolution
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Happy New Year! Do you make New Year’s resolutions? Some people do, some don’t. I know lots of people who don’t because they have failed at so many in previous years. Actually, I fail at my resolution every year. But that doesn’t stop me from making another! Each year I make a Biblical resolution. I […]
The Word Became Flesh
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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, nearly 2000 years ago, St. John said the same thing. Read today’s reading. […]
Loving “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, […]
Canticle 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 […]
Perfect Family
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The Sunday after Christmas is the Feast of the Holy Family. There are numerous options for readings today, and all of the readings talk about family and relationships. Click on the link below to see the readings. We would do well to read them all. The Holy Family is the perfect example of what a family is, […]