It Rains on Us All
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Today’s first reading is an interesting conclusion to the story of Ahab and Jezebel. God sends Elijah to tell them of how He was going to punish them because of...
Evil is a Thing
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Today's first reading from 1 Kings 21 is the story of an evil woman; perhaps the most evil woman in Scripture - Jezebel. In the Gospel reading from Matthew 5,...
Three Persons, One God
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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity; three Persons, one God. We see this idea fleshed out in our Gospel reading from John 16, where Jesus refers to...
The Encourager
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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...
The Problem with Lust
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Today's first reading from 1 Kings 19 tells of how God speaks to us. We’re back in that pesky old Sermon on the Mount for today’s Gospel reading from Matthew...
Mending Fences
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It seemed that the drought in Israel would never end. But Elijah prayed, and the rains came, as we read in our first reading today from 1 Kings 18. In...
Answer Me!
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It is so important that we teach others the ways of the Lord. Jesus makes this very clear in today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 5. He says, “Whoever obeys and...
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...
Feast of 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...
Veni, Sancte Spiritus
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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...
You Follow Me
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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...
Questions from the Lord
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In the first reading today from Acts 25, Paul is in Caesarea awaiting trial. He is asked if he wants to go to Jerusalem to have his case heard. Paul...
The Lord's Prayer
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In our first reading today from Acts, Paul puts himself squarely in the middle of a dispute between the Pharisees and the Sadducees. Paul, a Pharisee by birth and training,...
Truth Perverters
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St. Paul finishes up his farewell speech to the presbyters of the Church of Ephesus in today’s first reading from Acts 20. After he is done, there were many tears,...
It's All in How You Ask
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Today we celebrate the Feast of the Visitation, when Mary went to visit her cousin Elizabeth, who was pregnant with John the Baptist. Elizabeth didn't live nearby; Mary's journey was a...
A Memorial Day Reflection
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I’m going to deviate a bit from our normal format today. I’ve still got the link for today’s readings at the bottom of this post. And, of course, I encourage...
Alpha and Omega
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Throughout the Easter season we have been reading from the Book of Revelation for our second readings. John hears a voice that says, "I am the Alpha and the Omega,...
Learning the Faith
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In today's first reading from Acts 18, we are introduced to Apollos, "an eloquent speaker...he was an authority on the Scriptures." Apollos was a great preacher, but he didn't know...
Childbirth and Faith
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In today's first reading from Acts 18, Jesus comes to Paul in a vision and tells him, "Go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you."...
The Joy of the Ascension
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Today is Ascension Thursday. In some places the feast is celebrated today, and is a Holy Day of Obligation. In most dioceses in the US, the Ascension will be celebrated...
God is Not Far
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Today in our first reading from Acts 17, we see Paul giving one of his great speeches, this time to the Greeks in the Areopagus. More on his message in...
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...
Opposite Day
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We live in a rapidly changing world, don’t we? Ever feel like things are completely topsy-turvy, upside down? When I was a kid, we used to have a saying for that...
The Peace of Jesus
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I’m sure you’ve found that, even when you’re walking closely with Christ, you undergo hardships. It is part of the human condition, and just because we profess faith in Christ...
Haters Gonna Hate
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More action and adventure today in the first reading from Acts 16. Paul has a vision in which a Macedonian says to him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”...
My Friend Jesus
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You may remember or have sung or still sing the old hymn, "What a Friend We Have in Jesus." While that's not a direct quote from Scripture, today's Gospel reading...
The Council of Jerusalem
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In our Gospel reading from John 15, Jesus speaks about joy. "I have told you this so that my joy might be in you and your joy might be complete."...
Good Morning, Child of God!
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Last week we introduced the new Good Morning Child of God coffee mug. Seems it's a big hit! This 14 oz. mug with its matte white exterior and sky blue...
The Pain of Pruning
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The early Church had lots of controversy. One of the hot topics of the day was circumcision. Did believers need to be circumcised like the Jews? In the first reading...
From Stoner to Stoned
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Are you familiar with concept of karma? It's most often summed up in the phrase "What goes around comes around." It means we get payback for things that we do...
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...
What We Get and What We Give
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In the Gospel reading today from John 13, Judas has just left the upper room. Jesus says to the Eleven, “I give you a new commandment: love one another. As...
Laying Down Your Life
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of St. Matthias. Matthias was the man who took the office of Judas after his death. In our first reading from Acts 1, we...
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...
Speaking Positive Words
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Paul is in the synagogue in Antioch in today’s first reading. The synagogue officials ask if he has a word of exhortation for the people. In the Gospel from John...
Sent by the Spirit
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In our first reading today from Acts, we see Barnabas and Saul being “set apart” by the Holy Spirit and sent out to proclaim the Word of God. In the...
Christians
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In Acts 11 today, we see the story of a growing Church. People in great numbers are turning to the Lord. Barnabas brings Saul with him to Antioch, and they...
Life More Abundantly
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Another awesome day in the Scriptures! In the first reading from Acts 11, Peter has a vision. He is then visited by some men who were sent to him by...
Good Shepherd Sunday
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Today is often referred to as Good Shepherd Sunday. In today’s Gospel reading from John 10, Jesus says, “My sheep hear my voice; I know them, and they follow me.”...
The Words of Eternal Life
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In the first reading today from Acts 9, we see a blossoming Church. It is growing rapidly, even with the great persecution she was suffering. Peter raises a woman from...
The Verse Every Catholic Should 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...
Flesh for the Life of the World
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A very interesting story in our first reading today from Acts 8. The Holy Spirit sends Philip, one of the first deacons, to interpret the Scriptures for an Ethiopian eunuch....
Our Resurrection
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In the first reading from Acts 8 today, we read about Saul persecuting the Church. Because of the persecution happening in Jerusalem, all but the Apostles left there. We read...
Show Us the Father
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Today is the Feast of Saints Philip and James. Philip and James were two of the Apostles. The first reading today is from 1 Corinthians 15, where St. Paul mentions...
What Can I Do?
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Today's first reading from Acts 6 is the first part of the story of the martyrdom of St. Stephen, considered to be the first martyr for the name of Jesus....
The Big Question
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Our Gospel reading is from John 21, one of the most moving stories in all of Scripture. Jesus had just finished having breakfast with the disciples on the beach, after...
The First Deacons
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In today’s first reading from Acts 6, we read about the ordination of our first deacons. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from John 6, Jesus...
Success and Failure
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In our Gospel reading today, we begin a journey through John 6. Later in the chapter we will be reading and reflecting on the Bread of Life discourse, Jesus’ principle...
Obeying God Rather than Men
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There is a theme today in the readings: obedience. We hear Peter and the Apostles talk about it in the first reading from Acts 5. And in the Gospel reading...
The Prison Problem
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In today's first reading from Acts 5, we see one of numerous stories of jailbreaks in the Book of Acts. The Gospel reading today begins with perhaps the most recognized...