Division and Unity
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In the first reading today from 2 Samuel 5, we get a brief synopsis of the timeline of the kingship of David. In the Gospel reading from Mark 3, Jesus is accused of casting demons by the power of Beelzebul, the prince of demons. Jesus’ response talks about how a house divided cannot stand. “If […]
Gone Fishin’
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Part of the first reading today from Isaiah is one that we see during Christmas. And in the second reading from 1 Corinthians 1, St. Paul makes a plea for unity among the believers. In the Gospel reading today fromMatthew 4, we read about the call of the first disciples. Simon and Andrew were brothers, […]
Constant Conversion
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Today is the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. We see the story of Saul’s (Paul’s birth name) conversion in two places in Acts of the Apostles. In chapter 9, the account is told in third person. Luke, the author of Acts, recounts the story. However, in chapter 22 of Acts, St. Paul tells […]
You’re Right, I’m Wrong
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David and Saul had a tumultuous relationship. Saul hated David, and hunted him down to kill him. You would think that David would share this animosity. But not so. More in a sec. Our Gospel reading today is from Mark 3; the listing of the Twelve Apostles. Saul was hunting David down. He steps into […]
The Scourge of Jealousy
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Goliath was dead. You would think that King Saul would be overjoyed that David, one of his own, had slain the Philistine. And he was…for a short time. More in a moment. In our Gospel reading from Mark 3, Jesus has more run-ins with unclean spirits. Each time He cast them out, he warns them […]
Standing Up for Life
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Today is the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in America. A sad day, indeed. At Catholic churches across the United States, today is observed as a day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the […]
God Sees the Heart
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In today’s first reading from 1 Samuel 16, we read about the anointing of David. More on that in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus is questioned by the Pharisees about why his disciples are picking grain on the sabbath, something which was prohibited by the law. Jesus tells them, “The […]
The Importance of Obedience
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In the first reading today from 1 Samuel 15, we see a bit of the sneakiness of King Saul. Samuel has to call him out on it. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, Jesus talks about pouring new wine into old wineskins. It just doesn’t work. What He means is […]
Call to Holiness
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In the second reading today, we read the introduction of St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. He writes “to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Called to be holy. As […]
Call to Holiness
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In the second reading today, we read the introduction of St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. He writes “to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Called to be holy. As […]
Is There a Doctor in the House?
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The people of Israel insisted that God give them a king. Despite warnings to the contrary, they persisted. In today’s first reading from 1 Samuel 9, we meet the new king, Saul. In our Gospel reading today from Mark 2, we read about the call of Levi, or Matthew. Levi has Jesus over for dinner. […]
Everyone Else is Doing It!
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You would think that as God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel would enjoy being different, set apart. Uh…not so much. We see this in today’s first reading. More in a moment. In the Gospel reading from Mark 2, we read the story of four men who bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus. The house […]
God and Defeat
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When we choose to follow God, life ain’t always a bed of roses. I’m sure you’ve experienced this. Challenges still come our way. People we love get sick and die. Certainly there are times where we experience illness, pain, broken relationships, terrible defeats. It’s nothing new. In our first reading today from 1 Samuel 4, […]
Hearing and Listening
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Have you ever heard God speak to you? I believe God speaks to us in many different ways. I’ve talked to a number of people who tell me that God spoke to them audibly. They didn’t just “feel” the voice of God, they literally heard it. I believe that has happened to me once or […]
Fervent Prayer
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God wants to know our deepest desires. So we should pray for those. More on that in a moment. In our Gospel reading today from Mark 1, Jesus expels an unclean spirit from a man. The people around him were amazed, and recognized that Jesus taught and acted “with authority.” In our first reading today […]
Come After Me
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Welcome back to Ordinary Time! I hope that we will not take the name of this liturgical season literally. What I mean by that is that I hope that we consider every day that we have EXTRAORDINARY!! God loves you so much, and wants to fill your life with blessings. What’s ordinary about that?! In […]
God’s Will and Baptism
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Today the Church celebrates the Baptism of the Lord. We see that moment where John the Baptist has just baptized Jesus when “the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form like a dove, and a voice comes from heaven and says, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” As Catholics, […]
On Increasing and Decreasing
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Catholics believe in different “kinds” of sin. Mortal sin and venial sin. Venial sins are still sins, but not as serious as mortal sins. Mortal sins are those sins that separate us from God. Serious sins where we willfully and intentionally turn our backs on God. We find this notion in today’s first reading from […]
Cleansing and Forgiveness
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“Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?” That question opens today’s first reading from 1 John 5. Who indeed? I hope that “one” is you! In our Gospel reading today from Luke 5, a leper comes to Jesus asking to be cleansed. […]
Loving and Lying
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1 John is an amazing book. I always get so much out of it when I read it. Today is no exception. In fact, today, like every day, St. John is speaking directly to me! He even has the nerve to call me a liar! More on that in a sec. Today’s Gospel reading from […]
Of Fear and Love
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Strong words from St. John today in our first reading from 1 John 4. St. John talks about fear. More on that in a moment. We see fear, too, come into play in our Gospel reading. In Mark 6, we see Jesus walking on the sea. When the disciples see him, they were overcome with […]
Love into Action
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In the first reading today from 1 John 4, St. John writes yet again about love. “Everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God…In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.” In our Gospel passage from Mark […]
An Unpopular Message
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Who is in you? An odd question, perhaps, but the answer should be Christ. There is a constant spiritual battle going on, and you are in the midst of it. That’s why you must always remember part of today’s first reading from 1 John. “The one who is in you is greater than the one […]
Wise Men Still Seek Him
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Today is the Feast of Epiphany. Our Gospel reading tells the story of the Three Kings, or the Three Wise Men. They heard that the King of the Jews had been born and followed a star to find him. King Herod tries to trick them into giving up the location of the child. But they […]
Looking for Something?
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Today’s first reading from 1 John 3 can be a difficult one to grasp. St. John writes, “Whoever sins belongs to the Devil, because the Devil has sinned from the beginning.” We know that we all sin. So do we all belong to the Devil? In a sense we do when we sin. Sin is […]
Child of God
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Good Morning, Child of God! Are you comfortable with that “title?” I certainly hope so, because that is what you are! So says St. John in our first reading from 1 John 2 and 3. In the Gospel reading from John 1, we hear John the Baptist say words that every priest repeats at every […]
Remain in Him
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More great advice from St. John in today’s first reading from 1 John 2. More on that in a moment. Our Gospel reading for today is from the Gospel of St. John. We see the people asking John the Baptist to identify himself, “Who are you?” He admits that he is not the Christ, only […]
Another Year, Another Resolution
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Here we are at the start of another new year. Happy New Year! I have to say that 2013 was an amazing year for me and my family and our ministry. God is good! We celebrated the birth of our first grandchild, Beckett, in August. I was blessed to continue to host Seize the Day […]
A Mind-Blowing Message
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For today’s first reading, we are back in 1 John 2. Today St. John writes about the antichrist. Very interesting stuff, especially for those hard core “end-timers.” Those are the people who keep telling us that we are in the end times. Well, 1900 years ago, St. John said the same thing. Read today’s reading. St. […]
Loving the World
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In today’s first reading, we get some great advice from St. John. More on that in a moment. The Gospel reading today is from Luke 2. Today we read about the prophetess Anna. She was a very old woman and “never left the temple, but worshiped night and day with fasting and prayer.” Like Simeon, […]
A Holy Family
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Today is the Feast of the Holy Family, always the Sunday after Christmas. All of the readings today talk about family. In the Gospel reading from Matthew 2, we read about how Joseph took his wife and Son to Egypt to escape from Herod’s persecution. Upon returning to Israel, they settled in Nazareth. Chances are […]
The Blood of Children
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Today the Church celebrates the Feast of the Holy Innocents. Who are the Holy Innocents? They are the children killed by order of Herod in Bethlehem right after the birth of Christ. We read about this today in the Gospel reading from Matthew 2. Matthew tells us that this fulfilled what had been said through […]
The Beloved Disciple
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Today we celebrate the Feast of St. John the Evangelist. St. John was the beloved disciple, the author of the fourth Gospel, three letters in the New Testament and the Book of Revelation. Our first reading today is from the beginning of St. John’s first letter. “We proclaim now…our fellowship is with the Father and […]
The First Martyr
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Today the Church celebrates the feast of St. Stephen, the first martyr. In the first reading from Acts of the Apostles, we see the story of Stephen’s martyrdom. And in the Gospel from Matthew 10, Jesus tells the disciples, “You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end […]
It’s About the Birth of a Child
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Merry Christmas to you and your family! The big day has finally arrived. All the shopping is done. Now is the day to go to church, to thank God for the gift of his Son, for our redemption and our salvation. A day to open presents, spoil our kids and just be with family. We […]
It’s About the Birth of a Child
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Merry Christmas to you and your family! The big day has finally arrived. All the shopping is done. Now is the day to go to church, to thank God for the gift of his Son, for our redemption and our salvation. A day to open presents, spoil our kids and just be with family. We […]
So Close…
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Today is Christmas Eve. Many people (myself and my family included) will go to Mass this afternoon or this evening for Christmas. Many will attend the beautiful Midnight Mass. Whenever you attend, I pray that you will be filled with blessings! I recently read an interesting study that said that only 47% of Americans will […]
So Close…
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Today is Christmas Eve. Many people (myself and my family included) will go to Mass this afternoon or this evening for Christmas. Many will attend the beautiful Midnight Mass. Whenever you attend, I pray that you will be filled with blessings! I recently read an interesting study that said that only 47% of Americans will […]
Of Messengers and Messages
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Today’s first reading is from Malachi 3. Malachi prophesies about the Lord’s messenger, “the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.” This prophesy is fulfilled in the person of Jesus. But Malachi also prophesies, “Lo, I will send you Elijah, the prophet, before the day of the Lord comes.” Jesus told the people that John […]
Love is With Us
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In today’s first reading from Isaiah 7, we see the prophecy that is at the heart of Christianity. “Therefore, the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” The virgin birth. And the Gospel reading from Matthew tells us that these things would […]
God’s Song for You
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You know something cool about the Catholic liturgy? We celebrate parts of the Christmas story throughout the year. Many of the Gospel readings that we are hearing at this time are also used at other times. For instance, today’s Gospel reading from Luke 1 is the same reading for the Feast of the Visitation on […]
May it be Done to Me
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Today’s first reading includes the great prophecy from Isaiah 7: “The virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” Today’s Gospel reading is the same one we saw just a few weeks ago on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. As the Christmas story continues to unfold this week in the […]
You Don’t Say
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Interesting readings we see on this Thursday before Christmas. Today the Church gives us two stories of men whose births were announced by an angel, Samson and John the Baptist. There are many similarities between the two, as the readings show us. In the first reading from Judges 13, the angel of the Lord appears […]
I Have a Dream!
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Today in the first reading from Jeremiah 23, the Lord says, “Behold, the days are coming when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David; as king he shall reign and govern wisely, he shall do what is right and just in the land.” I’m sure that, looking at this prophecy, the people were […]
Jesus’ Family Line
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Well, it is one week before Christmas Eve! Are you feeling it yet? Beginning today, the liturgy begins to unfold the story of Christmas. In the first reading today from Genesis 49, we hear Jacob telling his sons, “The scepter shall never depart from Judah, or the mace from between his legs, while tribute is […]
Submitting to Authority
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In today’s first reading from Numbers 24, we meet an interesting character named Balaam. Balaam utters a prophecy. “A star shall advance from Jacob, and staff shall rise from Israel.” Though this is not mentioned in the New Testament anywhere, the Church Fathers believed this to be a Messianic prophecy. The star and that staff […]
The Example of the Prophets
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Happy Gaudete Sunday! The Third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday. Gaudete means “rejoice.” It is the first word of the Introit, or entrance antiphon, in the Mass. Today we light the pink candle on the Advent wreath. Rejoice! The Lord is near! Today’s Gospel reading from Matthew 11 once again focuses on […]
God of the Unexpected
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Today’s first reading is from the Book of Sirach. The author talks of Elijah, “whose words were a flaming furnace.” Then in the Gospel reading from Matthew 17, the disciples ask Jesus, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” Jesus answers and tells them that “Elijah has already come.” But the scribes […]
Of Wisdom and Works
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In the first reading today from Isaiah 48, God says, “I, the LORD, your God, teach you what is for your good, and lead you on the way you should go.” Going the way God wants us to go is rarely the easy way. But it is always the way of wisdom. In our Gospel […]
A Merciful Mother
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Today the Church celebrates the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe. When the Blessed Virgin Mary appeared to Juan Diego on a hill in Tepeyac, Mexico, in December of 1531, she declared, “I am your most merciful Mother; I want to show my loving clemency and compassion to those who call upon me in their […]