Peter’s Fall (and Subsequent Rise)
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The story of Jesus is called “The Greatest Story Ever Told.” I think that Holy Week is maybe the neatest part of the story. And today’s Gospel reading is one of the reasons. In our first reading today we’re back in Isaiah, today chapter 49, hearing more about the The Servant of the Lord. “I […]
Healing Our Wounds
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Monday of Holy Week. For the next few days, our first readings will be from Isaiah, the prophesies of the Servant of the Lord. We’ll talk about today’s reading in a moment. The Gospel reading today is from John 12. Jesus goes to the home of Mary, Martha and Lazarus. Mary anoints his feet with […]
Palm Sunday
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Today is one of the most well-attended Mass days of the year. Passion Sunday or Palm Sunday. Outside of Christmas and Easter, more people come to Palm Sunday Mass than any other. Why? Because the Church is giving something away! Free palms for all! I hope that if we see people at Mass today that […]
Dying for Others
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As we approach Palm Sunday, the story of the final week of Jesus’ life unfolds. In the first reading from Ezekiel 37, the prophet speaks of the return of the Davidic Kingdom. Of course, Jesus came to fulfill the Davidic Kingdom in a perfect way. In the Gospel reading from John 11, Caiaphas, the high […]
Doing the Father’s Work
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In today’s first reading from Jeremiah 20, we hear the people plotting against Jeremiah. But they will not be victorious; they will not have their way. Jeremiah says, “But the Lord is with me, like a mighty champion: my persecutors will stumble, they will not triumph…Praise the Lord, for he has rescued the life of […]
Covenant
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In today’s first reading from Genesis 17, we see a watershed moment in salvation history. Abram has his name changed to Abraham, and God makes a covenant with him. And in the Gospel reading, Jesus says, “Before Abraham came to be, I AM.” In saying this, He intimated to the people that He was the […]
Free Indeed
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In today’s first reading from Daniel 3, we see the story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego getting thrown into the fiery furnace. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego had faith. Faith enough to know that when they got thrown into the furnace, God would set them free. In today’s Gospel from John 8, Jesus talks about being […]
Look Up and Live
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Today’s first reading from Numbers 21 tells us the story of God sending saraph serpents among the people of Israel, who had become terrible whiners. God then commands Moses to make a bronze serpent and mount it on a pole. Whenever someone looked up at the serpent, they would be healed and live. In the […]
The First Christian
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Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord. Traditionally this is celebrated on March 25, 9 months before Christmas. But because March 25 fell on a Sunday, the Solemnity has been moved to today. The readings today all point toward Mary’s fiat, which we see in Luke 1, “Behold, I am the […]
Dying to Produce Fruit
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In our Gospel reading today from John 12, Jesus teaches us about wheat. “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” So, what does a grain of wheat falling to the […]
A Different Message
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Another ominous reading for our first reading today, this time from Jeremiah 11. As we draw closer to Holy Week and Good Friday, we begin to see the readings get darker. In the Gospel reading from John 7, the people continue to conjecture from where the Christ would come. “The Christ will not come from […]
Close to the Brokenhearted
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An eerie first reading today from Wisdom 2. It describes the things that Jesus went through to a tee. Be sure to read it and see if you don’t shake your head in amazement knowing that this was written hundreds of years before the birth of Christ. The Gospel reading today is from John 7, […]
God’s Approval
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In today’s first reading from Exodus 32, Moses has a little heart-to-heart with God, asking Him to relent from destroying His people. And God relented. A wonderful statement on the power of prayer. And in the Gospel reading from John 5, Jesus talks about accepting praise. He says, “I do not accept human praise.” And […]
The Father and The Son
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“Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness for the child of her womb?” Seems like a rhetorical question, doesn’t it? This is the question that the Lord asks through the prophet Isaiah in today’s first reading. God lets us know that it is not purely rhetorical. He says, “Even should she forget, I […]
Being Well or Staying Sick
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Water is a theme that runs through our two readings today. In the first reading from Ezekiel 47, the Angel of the Lord shows Ezekiel a trickle of water flowing out from the temple. The farther they get from the temple, the greater the flow, until the water becomes a large river, teeming with abundant […]
The Perfect Father
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Joseph. In our first reading from 2 Samuel, God says that his Son would spring from the line of David. “I will make his royal throne firm forever.” Joseph, though not Jesus’ biological father, was from the line of David. There are two options for a Gospel […]
John 3:16
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The Gospel reading for Year B (remember, your church may use the readings for Year A if you have RCIA) is from John 3. It contains perhaps the most well known verse in all of Scripture. John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who […]
Pride
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We’re back in Hosea for our first reading today. We see a verse from Hosea that is quoted a few times in the New Testament. “For it is love that I desire, not sacrifice, and knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” It would do us well to learn the meaning of those words. In […]
Loving God, Loving People
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Today’s first reading from Hosea 14 contains some of the most beautiful imagery in Scripture. It shows us God’s loving heart for his people. Even though they had turned away, He will welcome them back, if they just ask for His forgiveness. “I will heal their defection, says the Lord, I will love them freely.” […]
A Public Apology
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On Wednesday, March 14, a man who called himself Tommy called in to Seize the Day. Tommy was belligerent from the outset, and claimed that he had decided to leave the Catholic Church, and that his leaving was my fault. This all came about after I had read the text of an ad that was […]
Are You With Jesus?
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The words of the prophet Jeremiah from today’s first reading should sound an alarm for us today. “This is the nation that does not listen to the voice of the Lord, its God, or take correction. Faithfulness has disappeared; the word itself is banished from their speech.” Jeremiah wrote this about the nation of Israel […]
Obey and Teach
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So many people look at Christianity, and especially Catholicism, as a religion of rules and regulations. You know, Thou Shalt Not this and that. Like it or not, God has rules. Unfortunately, too many people want to interpret God’s rules to fit their own beliefs. Sorry…doesn’t work that way. Both of our readings today talk […]
“Feeling” Forgiveness
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Our first reading today is one of the most beautiful prayers in all of Scripture. It is the prayer of Azariah in the fiery furnace from Daniel 3. He says to the Lord, “…as we follow you unreservedly…And now we follow you with our whole heart, we fear you and we pray to you.” In the Gospel reading from […]
The Hometown Prophet
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What a fascinating story we see in our first reading from 2 Kings 5. Naaman the Syrian, a respected military man, was a leper. He asks the king of Israel to heal him, but he can’t. So the prophet Elisha volunteers to heal him. Naaman doesn’t like what Elisha tells him, but does it anyway, […]
Ready for a Break Down?
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At my parish, we use the readings for Year A at today’s Mass. Our RCIA candidates and catechumens will be undergoing their scrutinies. It’s always very moving. The Gospel reading is from John 4, the story of the woman at the well. Jesus meets up with a Samaritan woman at a well. Two unusual things […]
The Story of the Prodigal Son
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Some beautiful imagery in today’s first reading from Micah 7. We see that God “delights in clemency…will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins.” Then Psalm 103 reminds us that “The Lord is kind and merciful.” And speaking of kindness and mercy, our Gospel reading is from Luke 15, the story of […]
Producing Fruit for the Kingdom
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In the first reading today from Genesis 37, we see part of the story of Joseph. Joseph was the favorite son of Israel, the child of his old age. The brothers were jealous of him. They plotted to kill him, but wound up “only” selling him into slavery. Joseph’s is a fascinating story. You should […]
Can’t Take It With You
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 16, Jesus tells the Pharisees a story about a beggar named Lazarus and a rich man. Both of them die and wind up in opposite places. More on that in a moment. In our first reading from Jeremiah 17, the Lord curses the man who trusts in human beings, […]
Cardinal Dolan’s Liberty Letter
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My brother bishops, Twice in recent weeks, I have written you to express my gratitude for our unity in faith and action as we move forward to protect our religious freedom from unprecedented intrusion from a government bureau, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). I remain deeply grateful to you for your determined […]
Servant of All
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Jeremiah was one of those prophets who had a really tough go of things. As we see in today’s first reading from Jeremiah 18, the people were plotting against him. They were “carefully noting his every word.” Even though Jeremiah went before the Lord to stick up for them. Now this. No good deed goes […]
Practicing What You Preach
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God is always ready to make things right. We are the ones who mess up, who walk away from God. Yet God is always waiting to welcome us back with open arms. Here is what the Lord says in the first reading today from Isaiah 1: “Come now, let us set things right, says the […]
God’s Generosity
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Isnt’ God good? When you think about it, God is so much more merciful than we deserve. We get a great sense of this in today’s first reading from Daniel 9. Listen to the first few words of each sentence in today’s passage: “You who keep your merciful covenant…We have sinned…We have not obeyed…We are […]
Lent: A Time of Transfiguration
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Today’s Gospel reading is Mark’s version of the Transfiguration. This is when Jesus takes Peter, James and John up to the top of the mountain (the very same mountain that we read about in the first reading) and reveals His heavenly glory. Moses and Elijah appear with him. And a voice comes from a cloud […]
Feeling Love
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In today’s first reading from Deuteronomy 26, agreements are made. The people make an agreement with God, to walk in his ways, obey his commandments and hearken to his voice. And God makes an agreement with the people, that they will be “peculiarly his own.” In the Gospel reading from Matthew 5, Jesus says, “But […]
Breaking Our Addiction to Sin
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Our first reading today is from Ezekiel 18. In it, God makes it known that He takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. Why? More in a moment. In the Gospel reading today from Matthew 5, Jesus tells us that we must mend our relationships with our brothers (and sisters) before we go […]
God: Last Resort or First?
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Our first reading today is from the Book of Esther. Esther had the weight, and fate, of a nation on her shoulders. She knew that she was the last hope of her people. If she could not come up with the right words, her people would be destroyed. So what did she do? She prayed! […]
The Sign of Jonah
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Most people know the story of Jonah. At least, they know part of it; they know the part where he gets swallowed by a big fish. But what about the other part of Jonah’s story? Are you familiar with it? Jesus mentions it in today’s Gospel reading from Luke 11. Jonah was sent to the […]
The Purpose of God’s Word
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What a beautiful reading today from Isaiah 55. We’ll talk about it in a moment. Our Gospel reading today from Matthew 6 is where Jesus teaches his disciples to pray. He teaches them the “Our Father.” But that’s not the end of the story. Immediately after the prayer, Jesus tells them, “If you forgive men […]
The Invisible Least
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In the first reading today from Leviticus 19, the Lord tells Moses to tell the people how to conduct themselves. Though not the Ten Commandments, this reading sounds similar. It ends with the great commandment, the one that Jesus spoke of when asked which is the greatest of the commandments…”You shall love your neighbor as […]
Satan’s Temptations
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Today is the First Sunday of Lent. Our Gospel reading is fromMark 1. St. Mark recounts the forty days that Jesus spent fasting and praying in the desert before He began His public ministry. While He was in the desert, Satan came to tempt and test him. St. Mark’s version is very short, but we […]
Paging Dr. Jesus
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We hear more today about things that are pleasing to God in our first reading from Isaiah 58. The Lord also talks about how we should conduct ourselves on the sabbath. “If you honor it by not following your ways, seeking your own interests, or speaking with malice – Then you shall delight in the […]
An Acceptable Fast
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In our first reading today from Isaiah 58, we hear what is truly an acceptable form of fasting. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading, the Pharisees ask Jesus why His disciples don’t fast. Jesus replies, “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them? The days will […]
Building Our Cross-Carrying Muscles
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Choose Life. Some folks may think that that is a marketing phrase made up by the pro-life community. Actually, it originated MUCH earlier than Roe v. Wade. Many millenia earlier. We find that phrase in our first reading today from Deuteronomy 30. It was Moses who first said it. Check it out for yourself. In […]
Lent Begins
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Happy Lent! Doesn’t that sound a bit oxymoronic? I mean, we’re not supposed to be happy during Lent, right? Wrong! Lots of people think that Lent is a time when we walk around in sackcloth and ashes. Let’s make sure we all put on a dour face and let everyone know how difficult our fasting […]
What We Ask For
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“If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all.” Those words of Jesus come to us from today’s Gospel reading from Mark 9. For our first reading, we’re in James 4, where we get more amazing wisdom from St. James. We pray about a lot of […]
Help My Unbelief
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Wisdome comes in two forms: heavenly wisdom and earthly wisdom. St. James speaks of the two in today’s first reading from James 3. Which type of wisdom are we working on most? In our Gospel reading today from Mark 9, Jesus’ disciples try to remove an unclean spirit from a man’s son. They cannot. So […]
With Friends Like That…
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Today’s Gospel reading from Mark 2 has one of the best stories of faith ever. Only it is the faith of a man’s friends that saves him. Jesus is in a crowded house. Four men climb up on the roof with their paralyzed friend on his mat. They lower him through the roof to get […]
Taming the Tongue
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In our first reading today, St. James talks about the power of the tongue. Amazing how this one little muscle in our body can cause us so much trouble! Our Gospel today is the scene of the Transfiguration from Mark 9. St. James talks about how every creature on earth, beasts and birds and everything […]
Faith or Works?
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Today’s first reading from St. James is a treatise on faith and works. St. James says “faith without works is dead.” More on that in a moment. In today’s Gospel reading from Mark, Jesus tells us that we must deny ourselves, take up our crosses and follow him. He says those words that should haunt […]
Show No Partiality
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Today’s Gospel reading is Mark’s version of Peter’s great confession of faith, “You are the Christ.” In the first reading today from James 2, James exhorts the reader to “show no partiality as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.” He then goes on to talk about a rich person and […]