REFLECTIONS TODAY There are times when, out of excitement, we could be wrong in what we say and do. It would be worse when, after realizing the wrongness of the word we are about to say or the action we are about to do, we would still say or do it. Today’s Gospel tells of the beheading of...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The Gospel of Matthew is composed of five discourses. The third of these five is the Matthean parabolic discourse. Matthew 13 contains seven parables that describe the Kingdom of heaven. Today’s Gospel tells of the parable of the dragnet (sagēnē). Jesus narrates that the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The way of life of the disciples is the way of life of Jesus himself. The life and death of Jesus are subsumed under the concept of service. Jesus did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for the many. This is what “drinking the chalice” means....
REFLECTIONS TODAY In the first-century Palestine, there were various practices of planting. One is described in the Gospel—that of plowing after sowing. In the process, some seed is lost because it has no good soil or is choked by thorns. But in the end, the harvest far compensates for the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Doing the will of God is central to the Jewish and Christian faith. God does not want sacrifices (Hos 6:6) but an open and obedient attitude, which makes a person say, “Behold, I come to do your will, O God” (Heb 10:5-7; see Ps 40:9). Jesus himself has taught us to say,...
REFLECTIONS TODAY John dramatizes the encounter between the risen Jesus and Mary Magdalene. Even though Jesus stands plainly in sight, Mary does not recognize him. He asks her, “Whom are you looking for?” (v 15)—a question that probes discipleship (Jn 1:38-41, where the early disciples stay...
REFLECTIONS TODAY First Reading • Jer 23:1-6 Woe to the shepherds who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord. Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, against the shepherds who shepherd my people: You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. You have not cared...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In the world that seeks much publicity, including the use of misinformation and disinformation, Matthew has a lesson for us. He points out that Jesus seeks to avoid publicity in his care of the sick, unlike most miracle workers. Matthew also applies the Servant figure to Jesus by...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In their zeal to safeguard the Sabbath rest, the Jewish rabbis have forbidden the performance of 39 tasks, among which is reaping, here equated with picking of the heads of grain. Jesus defends the disciples by reminding the rabbis that David and his men, out of hunger, had...
REFLECTIONS TODAY A yoke (Greek zugos) is a piece of wood placed across the necks of draft animals such as oxen or donkeys to enable a pair to pull a plow, cart, or heavy load together. As a yoke enables two to pull as one, the term also denotes a team, as in “yoke of oxen” (1 Kgs 19:19). In...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The “mighty deeds” (Greek dunameis, biblical term for “miracles”) worked out by Jesus are deeds manifesting divine power. They demonstrate that Jesus has messianic authority. More so, they are outstanding signs of the coming of the Kingdom. Thus, the proper response to the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Jesus is not asking his disciples to junk the fourth commandment: that of honoring one’s father and mother (Dt 5:16). In fact, Jesus expressly commands his disciples to honor and support their parents and condemns those who use the law to escape from this responsibility, as in...
