Wisdom
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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, forgiveness and faith. Lots to cover in just six verses! As is often the case, there is a “golden thread” that runs through today’s readings. […]
You Never Know…
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In the Gospel reading today from Matthew 25, we hear Jesus giving the disciples a message. The message echoes the old Boy Scout motto: Be Prepared! Jesus tells a story of ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. He was delayed. Five of the virgins brought extra oil for […]
Placing Our Trust
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St. Paul wraps up his letter to the Romans in today’s first reading. “To the only wise God, through Jesus Christ be glory forever and ever. Amen.” And amen! In the Gospel reading today from Luke 16, Jesus speaks again about our relationship with things. “You cannot serve God and mammon.” Mammon is the Greek […]
It’s a Win-Win
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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 himself. In today’s first reading from Romans 15, he says, “For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through […]
Lost and Found
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In the first reading today from Romans 14, St. Paul writes, “None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.” The rub on […]
Feast of All Souls
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Today we celebrate All Souls Day. On this feast (and throughout the month of November) we pray for the souls of the faithful departed. To many non-Catholic Christians, this seems extraneous. After all, if someone is in heaven, they have no need of our prayers. And if someone is in hell, then our prayers would […]
Happy All Saints Day!
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Today we celebrate the Feast of All Saints. For the past 18 years, whenever this day falls on a weekday, I have a tradition of calling everyone with whom I speak on that day as St. (Your Name). It’s really a lot of fun! Why not try it today? Everyone you talk with today, call […]
Repaid by God
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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. Does God purposefully want us to disobey Him, just so that He can show us His mercy? No! This verse speaks to our free will. […]
Call No One Father
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In today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 23, we find a verse that many use to try to discredit the Catholic faith. Jesus said, “Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven.” Some people will point to this verse and say, “See, you Catholics call your priests ‘Father!’ Jesus said […]
Exalted/Humbled
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In the first reading from Romans 11 today, we see more of St. Paul’s thoughts about the chosen people, his people, Israel. He reminds them again that the Messiah has come from their midst. In the Gospel reading today from Luke 14, Jesus is eating at the home of a leading Pharisee. He tells a […]
Saint of Hopeless Causes
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Today is the Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles. Typically I do your :60 on the daily Scripture readings. But I want to veer from the format today. The readings are the same as the feast days of other Apostles; Ephesians 2:19-22, which I recently wrote about, and Luke 6:12-16, which is the listing […]
Conquering
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St. Paul’s letter to the Romans is such great reading. Today we hear St. Paul asking the question, “What can separate us from the love of Christ?” He then gives a list of things that we are afraid of. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Luke 13, some Pharisees come […]
All Things Work for Good
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 13, Jesus says, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate.” It’s another reminder that the Christian way is not the easy way. 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. […]
The Glorious Freedom
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We hear a couple of short parables in the Gospel reading today from Luke 13. Jesus likens the Kingdom of God to a mustard seed and yeast. Do you remember when Jesus talked about how the least would be the greatest? That is the mystery of the mustard seed. And the yeast? Yeast changes the […]
Daddy!!
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What an awesome reading today from Romans 8. St. Paul talks about us being sons and daughters of God. More on that in a sec. In the Gospel reading from Luke 13, Jesus has the audacity to cure a woman on the sabbath, in the synagogue, no less! The leader of the synagogue takes Jesus […]
Loving God and Neighbor
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In the Gospel reading from Matthew 22, Jesus is asked, “Teacher, which commandment in the law is the greatest?” His answer may have surprised some. When Jesus is asked about the greatest commandment (singular), he gives a plural answer. “You shall love the Lord, your God, with all your heart, with all your soul, and […]
Giving Another Chance
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We’re in Romans 8 for the first reading today. St. Paul writes about living according to the flesh vs. living according to the spirit. “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh.” Remember today to live in the Spirit! In the Gospel reading today from Luke 13, […]
Doing the Good
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We can sometimes mistakenly think that the writers of the Sacred Scriptures were these super-holy people. But that would be a mistake. They were most certainly inspired by the Holy Spirit, but they endured the same human struggles as you and me. St. Paul talks about his struggles. More in a sec. In the Gospel […]
Hearts Afire
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In the first reading today from Romans 6, St. Paul talks about sanctification. “But now that you have been freed from sin and have become slaves of God, the benefit that you have leads to sanctification, and its end is eternal life.” To sanctify means to make holy. So, you are being made holy today! […]
What God Requires
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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 power over you, since you are not under the law but under grace.” We are under grace!! In the Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus […]
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. In fact, Acts may be considered a “sequel” to Luke’s Gospel, as that story picks up right where Luke ends. St. Luke is the only […]
The Danger of Greed
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In today’s first reading from Romans 4, we read St. Paul’s thoughts on the importance of faith. He talks about Abraham, and how his faith was “credited to him as righteousness.” This is important stuff, and part of the basis of the Protestant doctrine of sola fide, or that we are justified by faith alone. We certainly […]
Caesar’s or God’s?
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In the Gospel reading from Matthew 22, Jesus is asked by some Pharisees and Herodians about paying taxes. They try to trip Him up by asking, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not? ” Jesus’ reply is quite well known to most people. “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar […]
Letting the Spirit Speak
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We’re back in Romans 4 for the first reading today. Paul continues to talk about faith and again uses the model of faith as an example, Abraham. In the Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus speaks of the importance of standing up for him. “I tell you, everyone who acknowledges me before others the Son […]
Your Worth
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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 credited to him as righteousness.” Yes, faith is of the utmost importance. Without it, we have nothing. In the Gospel reading today from Luke 12, […]
Giving Credit
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The Pharisees and scribes were none too fond of Jesus. And probably for good reason; Jesus had very little good to say about them. In our Gospel reading today from Luke 11, Jesus finishes pronouncing “woes” on them. They then began plotting against him. Trust me, the world will do the same to you when […]
Doing the Same Thing
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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, sin you, the judge, do the very same things.” And in the Gospel reading from Luke 11, we see Jesus pronouncing more “woes.” “Woe also […]
Are You Ashamed?
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One of the things that I admire most about St. Paul (there are many) is his boldness. And the first line of today’s first reading really sums things up. “I am not ashamed of the Gospel.” More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Luke 11, Jesus derides the Pharisees for being […]
Our Apostleship
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People are always seeking a sign. In the Gospel reading today from Luke 11, Jesus addresses this. While the people were insisting on a sign, Jesus told them that they would receive no sign, except the sign of Jonah. Jonah came preaching repentance, and the people listened. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the case when Jesus, something […]
A Change of Clothes
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In the Gospel reading from Matthew 22, Jesus tells a parable about a king who gives a wedding feast for his son. When the servants went out to summon the invited guests, they refused to come. Some even beat and killed the servants. So the king has servants go out and invite people off the […]
Being 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 from the Lord. “But Judah shall abide forever, and Jerusalem for all generations.” No matter how bad things had gotten for His children, in the […]
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 that “near is the day of the Lord…for the day of the Lord is coming.” Never hurts to get a friendly reminder now, does it? […]
Asking For the Spirit
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Sometimes it seems that the wicked prosper. This has been going on for time immemorial. It comes up in today’s first reading from Malachi 3. Though it may seem that way now, in the end it will not be so. Read about what God has to say. In the Gospel reading from Luke 11, Jesus […]
Angry at God
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John the Baptist taught his disciples how to pray. The disciples of Jesus came and asked him to teach them how to pray. He taught them the prayer that we know as the Our Father. You’ll find it in today’s Gospel reading from Luke 11. In the first reading from Jonah 4, we read, “Jonah […]
Feast of St. Francis
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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. Hope you don’t mind! If you’re not familiar with the Prayer of St. Francis, then today would be a good day to familiarize yourself with it. And […]
Lessons From the Good Samaritan
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In today’s first reading, we begin a quick trip through the book of Jonah. Most people are familiare with the story. We heard it when we were little kids. It’s about a guy who gets swallowed up by a whale and gets spat out after three days. But do you know the before and after […]
What You Think
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Henry Ford once said, “You are not what you think you are; but what you think, you are.” What he meant was that the things that we put into our mind, the things that we think about, the things that we dwell on, will shape what we are becoming. He’s so right. St. Paul obviously […]
Being Childlike
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 10, Jesus says that the Father has “revealed (these things) to the childlike.” What does it mean to be childlike? Well, let me say this…there is a huge difference between being child-LIKE and being child-ISH. Unfortunately, I find myself being childish more often than I do being childlike. Being […]
Coming Clean
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 10, Jesus pronounces “woes” on the towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida. He also has not nice things to tell Capernaum, his adopted home town. Why? Because they had seen many mighty deeds done in their midst, yet refused to repent. In the first reading today from Baruch 1, […]
The Power of the Archangels
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of Saints Michael, Gabriel and Raphael, the Archangels. Saint Michael is God’s great warrior angel, the Prince of the heavenly hosts. We see Michael doing battle with the dragon in today’s first reading from Revelation 12. Manly stuff, that! Gabriel is God’s messenger. In Luke 1, we see Gabriel […]
No Going Back
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My mouth often precedes my brain. In other words, I often speak without thinking. Worse yet, I more often speak without praying. This can be dangerous, as I have found over and over again in my life. In the first reading today from Nehemiah, we see a man who exhibited great wisdom. Nehemiah wanted to […]
Fire from Heaven
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In today’s first reading from Zechariah 8, the Lord speaks of a time when other peoples would come to the Jews, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.” A reminder for us that our Lord Jesus came from and to Israel. In the Gospel today from Luke […]
When Less is More
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Jesus said, “With God, all things are possible.” This is the message that the Lord conveys through the prophet Zechariah in today’s first reading. He will renew Jerusalem. The children of Israel have been scattered. They are but a shell of their former glory. Only a remnant remains. And perhaps hope had been lost. But […]
Unfair!
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I just love the first reading today from Ezekiel 18. The Lord God says, “You say, ‘The Lord’s way is not fair!’ Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?” “It’s not fair!” Sound familiar? If you have children, you’ve probably heard it a […]
Dwelling Among Us
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Our first reading today is from the Prophet Zechariah. Zechariah has an encounter with an angel. More in a moment. Our Gospel reading today from Luke 9 is short. Jesus tells the disciples that “The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.” But they did not understand, and were afraid to ask […]
Who is Jesus?
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In the first reading from Haggai 2 today, the Lord tells the people to get to work! He wants his house rebuilt. It, like the people, has been in a shambles. It used to be a glorious house. But its former glory will pale in comparison to the glory to come. “And in this place […]
Consider Your Ways!
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Our first reading today is from the Prophet Haggai. The Lord had opened the doors for the rebuilding of his temple in Jerusalem. The exiles had returned. God opened the heart of King Darius. You would think that the people would jump at this chance. Uh…not so much. More in a sec. In the Gospel […]
Feast of St. Matthew
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Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Matthew. His Jewish name was Levi. He is the author of the first Gospel. In his own Gospel account, he refers to himself as Matthew. In the first reading today from Ephesians 4, St. Paul talks about the different “jobs” that some are called to in the Church. […]
Family Ties
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In the first reading today from Ezra 6, we see an interesting relationship between “government” and “religion.” The kings of that time, Darius, Cyrus and Artaxerxes all allowed and encouraged the exiled Israelites to rebuild the temple in Jerusalem. Darius even ordered that they be compensated for their trouble! Can you imagine? In the Gospel […]
No Secrets
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There are some who question why some churches are big and ornate. It is because we believe that a church is the House of the Lord. In today’s first reading from Ezra 1, King Cyrus of Persia orders all who are part of God’s people to go up to Jerusalem and begin building the house […]