REFLECTIONS TODAY Matthew 11:25-30 There are two key words in this Sunday’s readings: meekness and yoke. In his exposition of the Beatitudes, Pope Benedict XVI practically classifies being poor in spirit and being meek in the same category. Poverty translates into meekness because those who have...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Jesus’ saying, “new wine into fresh wineskins” (v 17) may be interpreted as adaptability or flexibility of faith. Of late, there has been much fuss about the way the Holy Mass should be celebrated. Some Catholics have been enamored by the traditional Latin Mass so much so...
REFLECTIONS TODAY FIRST READING • Gn 23:1-4, 19; 24:1-8, 62-67 The span of Sarah’s life was one hundred and 27 years. She died in Kiriatharba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham performed the customary mourning rites for her. Then he left the side of his dead one and addressed...
REFLECTIONS TODAY By saying that the sins of the paralytic are forgiven, Jesus proclaims that spiritual healing goes with and is even more important than physical healing. He shows himself capable of both. Many Catholic shrines display signs of physical healing, the most impressive of them are the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The curious thing about today’s Gospel is the townspeople’s insistence that Jesus leave their town. If Jesus cured two demoniacs, shouldn’t they be insisting that he stay to show him their gratitude? The solution to this enigma lies in understanding the economic activity of...
REFLECTIONS TODAY We normally wish that all things would go smoothly according to plan. Imagine how convenient life would be if everything turns out as we hope they will. However, life has a way of shaking things up. The boat we are in, much like the boat of Jesus’ disciples, is rocked by...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Certain sects which reject the divinity of Jesus have a strange way of interpreting Thomas’ exclamation, “My Lord and my God!” (v 28). They claim that this is a mere interjection: words one utters when one is shocked, surprised, or at the height of emotion. The Catholic...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Matthew 10:37-42 The First Reading narrates the story of the kindness of the woman from Shunem. When she had a room built for the prophet Elisha, the prophet rewarded her with the promise of a son she and her husband had long longed for. They were rewarded by God for their...
REFLECTIONS TODAY What is admirable of the centurion is his absolute trust that Jesus can command the cure of his servant. He likens Jesus’ power to the surety that his household slaves and military subordinates will obey his order. Surely, Jesus is more powerful; a mere “word” from him will...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In biblical times, lepers were isolated out of fear of physical and ritual contagion. Though less contagious than the viral diseases like Covid-19, leprosy was as much dreaded by the community. In the Gospel, a leper breaks the imposed “social distancing” to approach Jesus and...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today we celebrate the martyrdom of the two pillars of the Church, the apostles Peter and Paul, whose blood together with other Christian martyrs has become the seed of Christianity. The Church stands on the “rock foundation” of Peter’s confession that Jesus is the Messiah,...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In the Gospel, Jesus warns the people of false prophets who may appear meek as sheep but in reality are wild as wolves. In addition, Jesus uses the analogy of grapes as good trees that bear good fruit, and thornbushes as bad trees that produce only thistles. He uses this image to...
