Today’s readings When we think about prophets and prophecy, I think our minds always take us to ancient days. All the prophets we can think of lived many centuries ago: Moses, Elijah, Jeremiah, Amos and all the rest, right up to John the Baptist who was the last of the prophets of old and the… Continue reading The Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Month: September 2015
Thursday of the Twenty-fifth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings You know, I think Herod was asking the right question. Sure, he was asking it for all the wrong reasons, but still, it is the right question. And that question is, “Who is Jesus?” What Herod was hearing about Jesus is pretty much what the disciples told Jesus when Jesus asked, “Who do… Continue reading Thursday of the Twenty-fifth Week of Ordinary Time
The Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings There’s a principle in the spiritual life known in Greek as kenosis. Nobody likes to talk about it. It’s nicer to talk about the consolations of prayer and the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and things like that. But nobody likes to talk about kenosis because, in English, we would translate that something… Continue reading The Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Thursday of the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings It’s been a while now since I was thought of as “too young.” I remember on my ordination as a deacon, on my way to priesthood, the first reading was from the prophet Jeremiah in which he protests to the Lord that he is too young to prophesy. Bishop Kaffer, of happy memory,… Continue reading Thursday of the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
The Exaltation of the Holy Cross
Today’s readings In a lot of ways, this is a strange feast we are celebrating today. Think about it. This is the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, which in Jesus’ day would have been as big an oxymoron as one could possibly imagine. It’s like us saying that we are going to celebrate the exaltation… Continue reading The Exaltation of the Holy Cross
9-11: Taking the Wooden Beams Out of Our Eyes
Today’s readings When I hear today’s Gospel reading, I think about my dad. When he was alive, he was a guy who seemed to know everyone. Anywhere we went, he’d find someone he knew, even on vacation! But he wouldn’t just know their names, he’d also know something about them. He would know their talents,… Continue reading 9-11: Taking the Wooden Beams Out of Our Eyes
Labor Day
Today’s readings The scribes and the Pharisees had it all wrong, of course. Their idea of labor and the Sabbath was all corrupted with their own greed and desire for self-righteousness. And so, even though these readings are the ones the Church gives us for Monday of the Twenty-third week in Ordinary Time, they work… Continue reading Labor Day
The Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time: Ephphatha!
Today’s readings Jesus’ ministry on earth was all about healing. In today’s gospel, he heals a man who has been deaf and mute with the word of command: “Ephphatha!” – “Be opened!” So you’ve heard me talk about this kind of thing before. The healing is not here just for us to say “how nice… Continue reading The Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time: Ephphatha!
Pope Saint Gregory the Great, Doctor of the Church
Today’s readings “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” These are words Saint Gregory took to heart. He was one of the foremost theologians and thinkers in Church history, and did much to spread the Gospel in an orthodox way throughout the world. St. Gregory showed a great deal of… Continue reading Pope Saint Gregory the Great, Doctor of the Church