REFLECTIONS TODAY The Gospel is about the Last Judgment. Jesus Christ, the Son of Man, will come in glory and reward us according to what we have done to the needy. But the passage is shortened. It focuses only on giving reward to the good. The liturgists want to end the reading with a more...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Gospel • Mk 1:12-15 The Spirit drove Jesus out into the desert, and he remained in the desert for forty days, tempted by Satan. He was among wild beasts, and the angels ministered to him. After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This...
REFLECTIONS TODAY According to the scribes and the Pharisees, Jesus’ noncompliance with the Sabbath rest is proof that he is not a man from God. Jesus disputes this accusation by giving a deeper meaning to the Sabbath. Jesus claims to be “lord even of the sabbath” (Mk 2:28) and, as the Divine...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The Hebrew term shabbath means “to cease or to rest.” The Sabbath signifies the apex of God’s creation. God blessed and sanctified the seventh day and made it holy (Gn 2:2-3). For Israel—and for all mankind—it is a rest day to reflect on God’s work as Creator, to give...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Today begins the season of Lent. We are asked to intensify the practice of almsgiving, prayer, and fasting. We should practice them with sincerity and humility, not like the hypocrites who do them for a show. Jesus is against publicity when it comes to charity giving,...
REFLECTIONS TODAY The disciples did not figure out what Jesus meant by those words, “Guard against the leaven…” (v 15). They think Jesus uttered those words because they forgot to bring bread on the boat, or have no bread at all. Previously, Jesus performed the multiplication of the bread...
REFLECTIONS TODAY In Dalmanutha, the Pharisees argue with Jesus. They might have heard of his miracles as well as his teachings and lately his feeding of the 4,000 men, and yet they still demand another miracle which must be more spectacular. Jesus refuses to give in to their demand. They are not...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Gospel • Mk 1:40—45 A leper came to Jesus and kneeling down begged him and said, “If you wish, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand, touched him, and said to him, “I do will it. Be made clean.” The leprosy left him immediately, and...
REFLECTIONS TODAY Satisfied. Jesus’ proclamation of the Kingdom of God is wholistic. He desires the total liberation of the person. He is not only concerned about spiritual needs but also bodily needs. The people have been listening to his words for three days now and have run out of food....
REFLECTIONS TODAY From the district of Tyre, in Lebanon, Jesus goes back to the shores of Galilee, in particular to the district of Decapolis (Ten Cities), east of the Jordan River. Upon arrival, the people, like the Syro-Phoenician woman, beg Jesus to lay his hand on the deaf-mute to cure...
REFLECTIONS TODAY From Capernaum, Jesus goes to the district of Tyre, north of Galilee, incognito, away from the prowling Pharisees and scribes of Jerusalem, who recently gave him a headache. He wants a break. He is still stressed by them. Yet as soon as he enters a house, a Syrophoenician...
REFLECTIONS TODAY After being challenged in Gennesaret by the Pharisees and their scribes from Jerusalem, Jesus resumes teaching the crowd when he gets home in Capernaum. His topic is connected with the issue raised by his hostile visitors from Jerusalem. What defiles a person is not what he eats,...
