-
Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Today’s readings Just as the saraph serpent was lifted up on a pole in the desert for the people to see, and thus live, so the Son of Man, Jesus Christ, was lifted up on the cross for the salvation of the world. In these late Lenten days, as we look upon the cross, either…
-
Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent
Today’s readings Susanna’s story is one of the most eloquent in the Old Testament Scriptures: in it we see the wisdom of the prophet Daniel, as well as the mercy and justice of God. Her story is certainly echoed in our Gospel reading about the acquittal of the woman caught in adultery, although Susanna was…
-
Monday of the Fourth Week of Lent
Today’s readings At the heart of our practice of prayer has to be trust in God. We don’t – or shouldn’t – need signs to convince us of God’s love and care for us. But don’t we do that all the time? Aren’t we just like those Galileans looking for a sign? We might be…
-
Anointing of the Sick During Mass
Today’s readings: Isaiah 61:1-3a, Psalm 147; Romans 8:18-27, Matthew 8:5-17 I had the opportunity yesterday, as I often do, to visit with two parishioners who are ill and hospitalized. In their illness they, along with their families, did as we should always do: they called on the priests of the Church to come and give them…
-
The Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord
Today’s readings Fear keeps us from doing all sorts of things the Lord wants for us. If we would truly let go of our fear and cling to our God, just imagine what he could do in us and through us. Ahaz was King of Israel, a mighty commander, but yet was so afraid of…
-
Thursday of the Second Week of Lent
Today’s readings The great sin of the rich man may not have been the sin of neglecting poor Lazarus, although that was certainly bad. His greatest sin, I think, was that he trusted in himself instead of in God. He had everything he needed in life, because he was able to trust in himself to…
-
Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent
Today’s readings Many people who have been away from the Sacrament of Penance for a long time have said that they were afraid to come back to the Church because they felt like their sins defined them. That they walked around with some kind of scarlet letter on their persons. I think this is the…
-
Saint Patrick, Bishop
I used to be upset that Saint Patrick’s Day always happened during Lent. I’d have to postpone the celebration of my favorite saint until Sunday, especially if it fell on a Friday, because we just didn’t have corned beef on Friday, you know. But as I’ve grown older, I appreciate that Saint Patrick’s Day is…
-
Saturday of the First Week of Lent
Today’s readings So, there’s our mission statement for Lent: “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Our righteousness needs to exceed that of everyone else, or we will be missing out on the kingdom of God. So how far do we go with that? Love our enemies? Pray for those who persecute us? I…
-
Thursday of the First Week of Lent
Today’s readings The readings for these early days of Lent have been teaching us how to accomplish the various disciplines of Lent – which really are the various disciplines of the spiritual life. Today’s discipline then, I think, would be persistence in prayer. In the first reading, we have Queen Esther, who is really between…
You must be logged in to post a comment.