A Lasting Legacy
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In today's first reading from Isaiah 11, we hear a name that pops up every year during Advent and approaching Christmas: Jesse. We see it at the beginning and end...
Subject to Authority
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Today's Gospel reading from Matthew 8 contains a line that every Catholic should be familiar with. They are the words of a centurion who asked Jesus to heal a servant...
Blameless and Holy
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Happy New Year! What’s that, you say? It’s not January 1? No, but it is the beginning of a new Liturgical Year. The First Sunday of Advent marks the beginning...
The Danger of the Daily Grind
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Today is the last day of the Church year. Tomorrow begins a brand new liturgical year with the season of Advent. In the first reading from the end of the...
Oh Brother
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Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Andrew. Andrew was an Apostle, the brother of Simon Peter. The word “apostle” means “one who is sent.” In the first reading today...
Stand Erect
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Many Catholics think they don’t know much Scripture. I say that’s not true. If you’re a regular, Mass-going Catholic, then you probably know an awful lot more Scripture than you...
Hated by All
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More of John’s vision of heaven today from Revelation 15 in our first reading. Today we see “those who had won victory over the beast…” Jesus continues to address the...
God's Fury
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In today’s readings, we get lots more end times stuff. In the Gospel reading from Luke 21, Jesus talks about things to look for near the end. Many of these...
144,000
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Today's Gospel reading from Luke 21 is a reading we heard from Mark's Gospel a couple of Sundays ago. It is the story of a widow and her offering in...
Christ Our King
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Today is the feast of Christ the King. It is the end of the liturgical year. Next Sunday we celebrate the First Sunday of Advent, the beginning of a new...
Dead or Alive?
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 20, some Sadducees ask Jesus a trick question regarding the resurrection of the dead. (The Sadducees did not believe in the resurrection of...
God's Word: Sweet and Sour
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 19, we see Jesus cleansing the temple area of those who are selling things. He says, “It is written, My house shall be...
Catholicism = Thanksgiving
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Today is Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. Happy Thanksgiving! I have a link to today’s readings at the bottom of today’s post. These are optional readings for Thanksgiving Day. But...
High Stakes
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In today's gospel reading from Luke 19, Jesus tells a story about a man who went out to secure the kingship and gives some of his servants money to invest...
A Wee Little Man with a Big Conversion
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If you’re lukewarm in your faith, there is a word – a warning, really – for you in today’s first reading from Revelation 3. Read what will happen to those...
Lost Love
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In the first reading today, we begin reading from the Book of Revelation. This can be one of the most misunderstood and misinterpreted books in the Bible. Nothing a bit...
Jesus' Words
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In today’s Gospel reading from Mark 13, Jesus says, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” And so it has been. Seasons come and go....
Any Faith Out There?
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In the Gospel reading from Luke 18, Jesus tells a story about a widow and a judge. The judge is dishonest. He fears neither God nor man. The widow asks...
Left Behind?
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Our first reading today is from 2 John. This is the shortest book in the Bible, just 13 verses. But what a power-packed 13 verses! St. John writes, “For this...
The Kingdom is Here
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Today’s first reading is taken from St. Paul’s letter to Philemon. Here Paul urges his old friend to welcome back his slave, Onesimus. Onesimus had been travelling with and assisting...
The Other Good Samaritan
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Faith in Christ requires change. For many of us, that means a lot of change. St. Paul alludes to this in the first reading from Titus 3. “For we ourselves...
Grace Trains Us
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In today's Gospel reading from Luke 17, Jesus says, "When you have done all you have been commanded, say, 'We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged...
Of Millstones
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In today’s first reading from Titus 1, St. Paul talks about the attributes of a bishop. “Blameless, not arrogant, not irritable, not a drunkard, not aggressive, not greedy for sordid...
Be Sure to Stretch!
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A couple of widows make an appearance in today’s readings. In the first reading, Elijah has an encounter with a widow. Because of her faithfulness in believing the prophet, God...
God or Mammon
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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 transliteration of a Hebrew...
Zeal is Good!
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of he Dedication of the Lateran Basilica. This Basilica, constructed by the Emperor Constantine, is called the mother church of Christendom. The readings today...
Repentance and Joy
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St. Paul had some serious bona fides. He mentions this in today's first reading from Philippians 3. In the end, his resume meant nothing. Only Christ. In the Gospel reading...
The Cost
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In the first reading today from Philippians 2, St. Paul writes, “Do everything without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in...
Excuse Me
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“At the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.” That’s...
No Quid Pro Quo
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There's a thread that runs through today's readings: humility. In the first reading from Philippians 2, St. Paul says, "Humbly regard others as more important than yourselves." In today’s Gospel...
Not Far from the Kingdom
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In today's Gospel passage from Mark 12, Jesus is asked which is the first of all the commandments. He answers with two: You shall love the Lord, your God and...
The Christian Tension
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As Christians, heaven is our goal. We want to spend eternity with God. And we know that heaven is going to be perfection - as in, way better than this...
All Souls' Day
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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...
Saint Gus?
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Today we celebrate the Feast of All Saints. For the past 20 years, whenever this day falls on a weekday, I have a tradition of calling everyone with whom I speak...
A Message for Dads
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In today’s first reading, St. Paul addresses dads. Any time I tackle this topic it is fraught with peril, mainly because so many households now are single parent households where...
Understanding Husbands and Wives
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 13, Jesus tells two short parables about the Kingdom of God. The first compares the Kingdom to a mustard seed, the other to yeast....
Then and Now
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In today’s first reading from Ephesians 4, St. Paul has a couple of challenges for us. Here are his two challenges: “Be imitators of God,” and “Live as children of...
An Approachable God
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Our Gospel reading today from Mark 10 is about Bartimaeus, a blind beggar that wanted Jesus to restore his sight. He tells Jesus what he wants, and Jesus gives him...
Another Chance
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In the Gospel reading today from Luke 13, Jesus tells an interesting parable. A landowner has a fig tree that has borne no fruit after three years. He orders it...
Living the Call
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Today’s first reading is from Ephesians 4:1-6. You may notice that these six verses are all one sentence. St. Paul is famous for his run-on sentences. It can sometimes be...
Fired Up!
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In today’s Gospel reading from Luke 12, Jesus says, “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing!” Of course, Jesus isn’t...
Your Responsibility
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In today’s first reading from Ephesians 3, St. Paul talks about the gifts that God has given him, and his responsibility to use them properly. This is a theme that...
No Longer Strangers
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We’re back in Ephesians 2 for our first reading today. St. Paul addresses the people as “you who once were far off,” and “you who were far off.” Notice that...
Rich in What Matters
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In our Gospel reading today, Jesus has an encounter with a man which prompts Him to warn the gathered crowd, “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one...
Living By Serving
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Our Gospel reading today from Mark 10 features an interesting story. The sons of Zebedee, James and John, come and ask Jesus that “in your glory we may sit one...
Denial
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In the first reading today from Ephesians 1:15-23, St. Paul prays that “the eyes of your hearts be enlightened, that you may know what is the hope that belongs to...
Why You're Here
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Do you know why you're here? Yes, it's one of those existential questions. But I believe we find the answer in today's first reading from Ephesians 1. "In Christ we...
Saint 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....
The Fruit of the Spirit
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Jesus was never one to mince words. We see this again today in the Gospel reading from Luke 11, where He is pronouncing woes on the Pharisees. When a scholar...
External vs. Internal
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God doesn’t care about anyone’s background. You don’t have to have any kind of “pedigree” to give your life to Christ. St. Paul puts it like this in today’s first...