The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. All of us look forward to the weekend or a day off. The yearly vacation is also something we cherish. We all need a break. The same is true for our spiritual lives. We can get so caught up in our daily activities that […]

He (Jesus) taught them as one having authority and not as the scribes (Mark 1:22). Jesus had just begun his public ministry, and already people could sense that there was something different about his teaching. For one thing, it differed from that of the Scribes. They contented themselves with repeating the teaching of others who […]

Memorial of Saint John Neumann, Bishop Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love (1 John 4:8). The love of God runs through both readings today. The reading from John stresses the love that we should have for one another and for God. The gospel reading shows us love in action, […]

Feast of Saint Stephen They could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he [Stephen] spoke. When you read Stephen’s entire speech as recorded by Luke, one can understand why the Jews were moved to stone him. I think I would have been eager to do so myself. Stephen could have used a […]

Today’s readings face us with two annunciation stories: the first to Samson’s mother and the second to John the Baptist’s father. Each proclaims the birth of a son to people who were otherwise unable to have children. Both children would be Nazirites, committed to serving the Lord. During this Advent season, they also presage the […]

Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe There are two choices for both the first reading as well as the gospel today. Obviously, none can refer directly to Our Lady of Guadalupe, but they do allude to the total commitment Mary had to God’s will in her life. The same is true now of her love […]

The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest. What’s the good of having an abundant harvest unless people are willing to work in the fields to collect the bounty? Jesus makes it clear that his gathering a group around him […]

Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life. This passage, of course, comes from today’s apocalyptic discourse. There we are warned that the final days will come upon us unexpectedly. People must be attentive and always prepared. Perhaps in our day, because the wait has […]

It is written, “My house shall be a house of prayer…” Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple may well have helped bring about his suffering and death. Jesus justifies his doing so by saying that the Temple was to be a house of prayer. The prophecy of Malachi is also fulfilled with Jesus’ entrance at this […]

Memorial of Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini I am not writing [you] a new commandment, but the one we have had from the beginning: let us love one another. The gospel readings these days, which focus on the last judgment and the end times, are often difficult to find an inspiring message. I extracted the above […]