REFLECTIONS TODAY First Reading • 2 Kgs 5:14-17 Naaman went down and plunged into the Jordan seven times at the word of Elisha, the man of God. His flesh became again like the flesh of a little child, and he was clean of his leprosy. Naaman returned with his whole retinue to the man of God. On...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The Greek term makarios (plural makarioi), meaning, “blessed,” is ascribed to a person who is favored. The term “blessed” begins the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:3-11) and the Sermon on the Plain (Lk 6:20-23). Today’s Gospel also speaks of a group of blessed people...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Gospel • Luke 11:15-26 When Jesus had driven out a demon, Beelzebul, the prince of demons, he drives out demons.” Others, to test him, asked him for a sign from heaven. But he knew their thoughts and said to them, “Every kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today’s Gospel has two parts: persistence in prayer (vv 5-8) and the answer to the prayer of the one who asks (vv 9-13). Persistence and trust go together. When we pray persistently, we keep on trusting that we will eventually receive what we ask for. Furthermore, we can only...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today’s Gospel is the Lucan version of the prayer, Our Father, the longer version of which is found in Matthew (6:9-13). Luke provides a short introduction, narrating how Jesus himself is praying in a certain place after which one of his disciples makes a request that Jesus...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today the Church honors St. Francis of Assisi. The saint’s ideals with regard to love of the poor, peace, and care of the environment remain to be relevant in our time. These ideals he lived out sprang up from his greatest desire to emulate Jesus. Today’s Gospel narrates the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Luke connects his version of the greatest commandment with the parable of the Good Samaritan which is peculiar to his Gospel. Luke’s version of the greatest commandment differs from the versions of Mark and Matthew in terms of its ending (Mk 12:28-34; Mt 22:34-40). All the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY First Reading • Hb 1:2-3; 2:2-4 How long, O Lord? I cry for help but you do not listen! I cry out to you, “Violence!” but you do not intervene. Why do you let me see ruin; why must I look at misery? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and clamorous...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Our Gospel passage is composed of two parts. The first part narrates the return of the 72 followers of Jesus whom he sent in pairs (Lk 10:1-12). The second part tells of Jesus giving praise to the Father. We may compare the joy of the 72 with that of Jesus. On the one hand, the 72...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Chorazin, Bethsaida, and Capernaum are towns forming a triangle on the northeastern shore of the Sea of Galilee (Lake Tiberias). It is here that Jesus has been most active, and the miracles revealing his divine power are prominent here. Capernaum is given special mention, with...
REFLECTIONS TODAY At the start of his public ministry, Jesus called some people to follow him— fishermen like Simon and Andrew, James and John, and the tax collector Levi (Matthew). There was also Philip in the Gospel of John (1:43). Jesus would later say, “It was not you who chose me, but I...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The hostility of the Jews and the Samaritans lies deep in Israel’s history. Samaria was the capital of the northern kingdom of Israel which separated from the southern tribe after the death of Solomon. When the northern kingdom fell in 722 BC to the Assyrians, these sent most of...
