Today’s readings As is the case for most of the apostles, we don’t know a whole lot about St. Andrew. And I think that’s appropriate, because what we need to know about them is that they were followers of Jesus, and were devoted to him. We too are called to that same great devotion. There… Continue reading Saint Andrew, Apostle
Month: November 2017
Tuesday of the Thirty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings I really don’t like that over-used phrase “at the end of the day.” You hear it all the time, and it’s one of my least favorite corporate-speak phrases. But I can’t help but think about this tired old phrase when I read the Scriptures for the Liturgy in these last days of the Church… Continue reading Tuesday of the Thirty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings Very often, when we hear this story about the widow’s mite, the story is equated with the call to stewardship. That’s a rather classic explanation of the text. And there’s nothing wrong with that explanation. But honestly, I don’t think the story about the widow’s mite is about stewardship at all. Yes, it’s… Continue reading Monday of the Thirty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
Today’s readings I think this Gospel reading is wonderful because of the rather vivid picture that it paints. When I hear it, I can’t help but picture the king separating the sheep from the goats, making known their good works, or lack thereof, and ushering them into their version of eternity. It would seem that… Continue reading Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe
Thanksgiving Day: People of Eucharist
Today’s readings Several years ago now, my sister emailed me pictures of a storybook that my niece, Molly, wrote for a second grade school project. It was a story about an unnamed boy and girl – but we might as well name them, because it was clear to me that the girl was the author… Continue reading Thanksgiving Day: People of Eucharist
The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Today’s readings Today’s Gospel can be a confusing one, perhaps even a little difficult to hear. It’s very disconcerting to see Jesus as being callous to his mother and not receiving her when she came to visit. But our gut – or rather our faith – tells us that Jesus and Mary had a relationship… Continue reading The Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings I’ve often heard stories of those who grew up in the great depression. Many years later, they still had deeply engrained in them the scrupulous care for everything they have that was etched into their very being during that horrible time in our history. They spent a lifetime wasting nothing, even hoarding things. … Continue reading The Thirty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time
Tuesday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s readings ‘We are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.’ Those words are the epitome of humility. They recognize that our life and our calling are at the service of our God, who gives us everything we have and everything we are. And so when we do something wonderful, it’s… Continue reading Tuesday of the Thirty-second Week in Ordinary Time
The Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings So here’s one of those occasions when we have what seems to be a pretty odd parable in the Gospel reading. It’s a story that challenges our notion of who Jesus is and what he was about – it almost seems in this story that he’s being “un-Jesus-like” or even unchristian in the… Continue reading The Thirty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time
Pope Saint Leo the Great
Today’s readings Pope Saint Leo the Great was known to be a wonderful administrator of the Church. But far from being caught up in purely administrative matters, he was also a very spiritual and prayerful man, many of whose great writings have become part of the lifeblood of our Church. He was elected to the… Continue reading Pope Saint Leo the Great