REFLECTIONS TODAY Jesus’ statement that he has come to bring not peace but the sword is disconcerting, to say the least. After all, the angels sang of “peace on earth” (Lk 2:14) at his birth. But true peace is not the absence of conflict. Jesus becomes a sign that is contradicted because his...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Matthew 13:1-9 [or 13:1-23] Sowing the Word is an enterprise that God himself undertakes. But we have to provide the good soil for the seed to grow to maturity and bear fruit aplenty. How does this work in our life as Catholics? Besides reading the Bible, the Catholic is exposed...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Many non-Catholics object to Catholics calling the priest “Father” in line with what Jesus says in the Gospel, that no disciple is greater than his teacher. Elsewhere, Jesus declares, “Call no one on earth your father; you have but one Father in heaven (Mt 23:9). But St....
REFLECTIONS TODAY FIRST READING • Gn 46:1-7, 28-30 Israel set out with all that was his. When he arrived at Beer-sheba, he offered sacrifices to the God of his father Isaac. There God, speaking to Israel in a vision by night, called, “Jacob! Jacob!” He answered, “Here I am.” Then he said:...
REFLECTONS TODAY One powerful witness that I have seen is when I was a seminarian a priest took me along in a sick call. It was my first time to witness the rite of the Anointing of the Sick. When the priest was done, the relatives of the sick person thanked him, but not without offering him an...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In my younger days, when I read the Bible and would come across the expression “the Kingdom of heaven,” what came to my mind was a city within fortified walls, with grand buildings made of stones, along with a royal palace. A better understanding came with maturity: the...
REFLECTIONS TODAY This is the last of three sections on discipleship (Mt 8–9), dealing with the universality of the call, its radical demands (8:18-22), and newness (9:9-17). Jesus addresses his disciples about the urgency of the need for workers. In speaking of the abundant harvest (v 37), he is...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Such is the faith of the woman that she trusts that even touching the tassel of Jesus’ clothing can bring her healing. We learn from the story that God actually allows insignificant things to effect his wonders. Some people ridicule the faith of others who look to receiving...
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...
