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Saints Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael, Archangels
Today’s readings This is the beginning of a rather angelic few days for us Catholics. Today we celebrate the feast of the archangels, and on Friday we will have the joy of honoring our guardian angels. We celebrate the way the angels protect and guide us and keep us on the path to Christ. Many people think…
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The Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings Whenever I start to hear this Gospel reading, I usually think, “Oh yeah, I know this one, about the Prodigal Son…” and then the story unfolds and that’s not it at all. But reflecting on the story, there are certainly similarities. The prodigal son certainly wasn’t wanting to do his father’s will. He ran off on…
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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…
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Saint Matthew, Apostle and Evangelist
Today’s readings Saint Matthew’s call to be an Apostle, and a Saint, was highly improbable. And that’s good news for us, because our own calls are improbable too. Our God does amazing things with the improbable! Matthew was a tax collector, working for the Roman occupation government. His task was to exact the tax from…
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The Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings I wonder if you find this Gospel parable a little aggravating. I have heard it many times now, and I certainly have bristled with aggravation on occasion when I’ve heard it. And, as I often say, it’s good when the Gospel gets us a little riled up, because that means God is doing something in…
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Saturday of the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings We’ve all heard this gospel parable about the sower and the seeds dozens of times. We know, then, that the seeds are the Word of God: not just some words, but Word with a capital “W,” which is Jesus himself, God’s eternal Word, spoken to bring life to a world dead in sin. We…
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Thursday of the Twenty-fourth Week of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings Simon the Pharisee had committed a grave error in hospitality, and a serious error in judgment. In those days, when a guest came to your home, you made sure to provide water for him or her to wash their feet, because the journey on foot was often long and hot and dirty, and…
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The Twenty-fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time
Today’s readings “Wrath and anger are hateful things, yet the sinner hugs them tight.” So says the wisdom-writer Sirach in today’s first reading. His words set up well the Gospel today, and the overall emphasis of forgiveness as a powerful tool for the disciple. The disciple would do well to abandon wrath and anger, and hold fast to…
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Friday of the Twenty-third Week of Ordinary Time: Anniversary of 9-11
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 if we were away on vacation! But Dad wouldn’t just know their names, he’d also know something about them. He would know their…
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The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
Today’s readings Matthew’s account of the genealogy of the Lord is unusual for many reasons, but most notable among those reasons, and the reason it was chosen for Mass today is because it contained the name of five women. This might not seem all that amazing to us today, but back in Matthew’s day, genealogies…
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