Son of Encouragement
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Today we celebrate the feast of St. Barnabas. There are two optional Gospel readings for today. The reading for the feast day is from Matthew 10 where Jesus sends out...
Testing God
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More from the Sermon on the Mount in the Gospel reading today. Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have...
God Provides
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In the first reading today from 1 Kings 17, we see more of the story of Elijah. More in a moment. We continue in the Sermon on the Mount for...
A Beatitude Meditation
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In today’s Gospel reading, we begin Jesus’ great Sermon on the Mount, from Matthew 5. He begins with the beatitudes. I’d like to go through a quick exercise today where...
Christ's True Presence in the Eucharist
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, or Corpus Christi. All of the readings today point to the Eucharist, the source and...
Like a Libation
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Today's Gospel reading is one of my favorite stories in Scripture. Jesus points out a widow putting two small coins into the temple treasury. Read His comments about her generosity....
Scripture
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Jesus got thrown trick questions and conundrums often by the Pharisees, the scribes, the Sadducees and others. In the Gospel reading today from Mark 12, Jesus throws out a tricky...
Denying Jesus
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 12, Jesus is asked, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” His answer may have surprised some. He gives not a singular answer,...
On Fire for Jesus
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Today's first reading is from 2 Timothy 1. St. Paul tells Timothy, “I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands....
The Error of the Unprincipled
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Today’s Gospel reading contains one of the most famous sayings of Jesus. In fact, even people who are mostly unfamiliar with the Scriptures could probably finish this quote: “Repay to...
Sharing in the Divine Nature
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In our Gospel reading today from Mark 12, Jesus tells a parable about a landowner who plants a vineyard and has tenants care for it. The man sends servants to...
Trinity Sunday
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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity; three Persons, one God. We see this idea fleshed out at the end of the second reading from 2 Corinthians...
Have Mercy
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Today's first reading is from the Letter of Saint Jude. This is one of the shortest books in the Bible, just 25 verses. Saint Jude has an important message for...
My Life Verse
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Do you have a Life Verse? Do you even know what that is? A Life Verse is a passage of Scripture that you adopt for your own. A passage that...
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...