(1Jn.3:11-21; Ps.100:1-5; Jn.1:43-51) “We should love one another.” In our gospel, “first [Jesus] came upon Philip” – whose name means “love” – and invited him to follow Him. Love brought with him one in whom “there is no guile,” and he (Nathanael) declared openly to the Lord: “You are the Son of God; you are the king of Israel.” And so we must all be of love, and be without deceit. We must all “know that the Lord is God; He made us, His we are; His people, the flock He tends.” The Lord must fin...
Jan 04, 2024•5 min
(1Jn.2:3-11; Ps.96:1-3,5-6,11; Lk.2:22-35) “The way we can be sure we are in union with Him is if one who claims to abide in Him conducts himself just as He did.” “The darkness is over and the real light begins to shine,” and we must live in that light. “My eyes have witnessed your saving deed displayed for all peoples to see,” declares Simeon in his prophecy over the Christ child. “In accord with the dictate in the law of the Lord,” though He Himself is God, Mary and Joseph dutifully bring Jesu...
Dec 28, 2023•5 min
(1Sm.1:24-28; 1Sm.2:1,4-8; Lk.1:46-56) “His mercy is from age to age on those who fear Him.” The Magnificat of Mary mirrors but, if I may say, far surpasses the Canticle of Hannah in beauty, in wonder, in grace… even as the perfection of the Son she bears far exceeds the blessing of the prophet Samuel. As Jesus brings to fulfillment the greatness of all who came before Him, so Mary’s song expresses that perfection in the light of the same divine mercy. Mercy indeed is infused in each line she ut...
Dec 21, 2023•5 min
(Is.41:13-20; Ps.145:1,8-13; Mt.11:11-15) “I will make you a threshing sledge, sharp, new, and double-edged.” A “worm” and a “maggot” are we. We are “the afflicted and the needy [who] seek water in vain, [our] tongues… parched with thirst.” But holding our right hand, the Lord speaks to us: “Fear not, I will help you.” “I will open up rivers on the bare heights… I will turn the desert into a marshland, and the dry ground into springs of water.” And has not John the Baptizer come, into the desert...
Dec 13, 2023•5 min
(Is.35:1-10; Ps.85:9-14,Is.35:4; Lk.5:17-26) “A highway will be there, called the holy way.” Jesus is the highway; holy is He! He is the stream that “will burst forth in the desert.” It is He who “strengthen[s] the hands that are feeble [and] make[s] firm the knees that are weak,” that they might walk along His way. It is He who forgives sins. For “no one unclean may pass over” the safe path He makes in the wilderness of this world, and He wishes to “give His benefits” to all of faith. “Near ind...
Dec 10, 2023•5 min
(Dn.5:1-6,13-14,16-17,23-28; Dn.3:59,62-67; Lk.21:12-19) “You will be brought to give witness.” “Daniel was brought into the presence of the king.” And what did this wisest of men have to say to this pagan king who ruled the earth? “You have rebelled against the Lord of heaven.” He did not hesitate to tell him of the emptiness of his “gods of silver and gold, bronze and iron, wood and stone, that neither see nor hear nor have intelligence.” And, remarkably, not a hair of his head is harmed; even...
Nov 28, 2023•4 min
(Dn.2:31-45; Dn.3:57-61; Lk.21:5-11) “The iron, tile, bronze, silver, and gold all crumbled at once, fine as the chaff on the threshing floor in summer, and the wind blew them away without leaving a trace.” So shall the kingdom of this world be destroyed by “a stone which was hewn from a mountain without a hand being put to it”; so shall Jesus come – the Son of God, the King of kings – and make all things subject to Himself. And when shall this be? It has happened, and is happening, and will hap...
Nov 27, 2023•5 min
(Dn.1:1-6,8-20; Dn.3:52-56; Lk.21:1-4) “To these four young men God gave knowledge and proficiency in all literature and science, and to Daniel the understanding of all visions and dreams.” God is the giver of all good gifts; all is a gift from God. Whatever we give to Him can only seem paltry to Him “who look[s] into the depths from [His] throne upon the cherubim.” But He makes any gift we give, anything we do, great by His heavenly grace. All our offerings are as the widow’s – but a couple of ...
Nov 26, 2023•5 min
(1Mac.6:1-13; Ps.9:2-4,6,16,19; Lk.20:27-40) “The needy shall not always be forgotten, nor shall the hope of the afflicted forever perish.” Death comes, yes. Death is upon us and surrounds us in this world. But the suffering we face in this life has its reward. Jesus has brought redemption: He has been resurrected, and we with Him. And this new life is eternal. It seemed the Israelites were doomed. Antiochus had ruthlessly destroyed Jerusalem and the inhabitants of Judah. All hope seemed lost. B...
Nov 24, 2023•5 min
(1Mac.4:36-37,52-59; 1Chr.29:10-13; Lk.19:45-48) “Let us go up to purify the sanctuary and rededicate it.” In both our reading and gospel today, we hear of the cleansing of the temple, and we see its purpose and fulfillment. “My house is meant for a house of prayer,” declares Jesus. A house of prayer, and a house for teaching: “He was teaching in the temple area from day to day.” It is a house of music, for by the Israelites after the Maccabean revolution it “was reconsecrated with songs, harps,...
Nov 23, 2023•5 min
(1Mac.2:15-29; Ps.50:1-2,5-6,14-15,23; Lk.19:41-44) “We will not obey the words of the king nor depart from our religion in the slightest degree.” The king of heaven shall soon come into the city of peace, humble and riding on an ass, but today He weeps as He sees Jerusalem and knows of its imminent destruction for its sins. Yet He shall ride into Jerusalem, yet He shall be dragged within its walls… and the death He proclaims upon all its children, He Himself shall know, He Himself shall undergo...
Nov 22, 2023•5 min
(2Mac.7:1,20-31; Ps.17:1,5-6,8,15; Lk.19:11-28) “He, in His mercy, will give you back both breath and life, because you now disregard yourselves for the sake of His Law.” When the Lord returns “crowned as king” He will call all before Himself and judge each according to the profit he has made with his life. If we are like the seven brothers who suffered and died for the faith, if we have been like the good servants who invested wisely the gifts left with them by the Lord, we shall come into His ...
Nov 21, 2023•5 min
(2Mac.6:18-31; Ps.3:2-8; Lk.19:1-10) “I fear not the myriads of people arrayed against me on every side.” Zacchaeus’ running up ahead and climbing a tree in order to be able to see Jesus as He passed along the way may not be a witness on the order of Eleazar, who “declared that above all he would be loyal to the holy laws given by God” and went willingly to torture and death, “leaving in his death a model of courage and an unforgettable example of virtue not only for the young but for the whole ...
Nov 20, 2023•4 min
(1Mac.1:10-15,41-43,54-57,62-63; Ps.119:53,61,88,134,150,155,158; Lk.18:35-43) “Terrible affliction was upon Israel.” Oh how the nation had become so blind. Oh how they had turned from their God. Some “preferred to die rather than be defiled with unclean food or to profane the covenant,” but most ate freely of the poisonous fruit of the tree of abomination, and so became as the blind man begging by the side of the road – so spiritually bereft were they. Our reading from Maccabees tells of a terr...
Nov 19, 2023•5 min
(Ws.18:14-16,19:6-9; Ps.105:2-3,5,36-37,42-43; Lk.18:1-8) “He led forth His people with joy; with shouts of joy, His chosen ones.” “They beheld stupendous wonders.” Before their eyes, “out of what had been water, dry land was seen emerging.” And so, sheltered by the mighty hand of the Lord, they crossed over, from the land of bondage to freedom. And in their joy “they ranged about like horses, and bounded about like lambs…” praising the Lord, “their deliverer.” This is the story of our own salva...
Nov 17, 2023•5 min
(Ws.13:1-9; Ps.19:2-5; Lk.17:26-37) “Wherever the carcass is, there will the vultures gather.” It is so that “the heavens proclaim the glory of God and the firmament proclaims His handiwork.” It is true that “from the greatness and the beauty of created things their original author, by analogy, is seen.” Yes, “the things seen are fair,” and speak even of the glory of our God… but they shall indeed all come to naught when He alone stands before us on the last day. In the created world we exist. T...
Nov 16, 2023•5 min
(Ws.7:22-8:1; Ps.119:89-91,130,135,175; Lk.17:20-25) “Let your countenance shine upon your servant, and teach me your statutes.” Wisdom, who “is fairer than the sun and surpasses every constellation of the stars… reaches from end to end mightily and governs all things well.” Wisdom “penetrates and pervades all things by reason of her purity,” for she is “the refulgence of eternal light.” How like the Lord she is, He whose coming “day will be like the lightning that flashes from one end of the sk...
Nov 15, 2023•5 min
(Ws.6:1-11; Ps.82:3-4,6-8; Lk.17:11-19) “Stand up and go your way; your faith has been your salvation.” “This man was a Samaritan.” Jesus chose the lowest of the low, not only a leper, the most ostracized of all individuals, but a Samaritan, a foreigner most despised by the Israelite nation, to reveal His mercy, to reveal the universal nature of His forgiveness, and so the universal call to salvation. He demonstrates that all may have faith in Him, and that it is for us to call all to Him. Many ...
Nov 14, 2023•5 min
(Ws.2:23-3:9; Ps.34:2-3,16-19; Lk.17:7-10) “The souls of the just are in the hands of God, and no torment shall touch them.” What does the Lord mean when He instructs us in our gospel to say, “We are useless servants,” than that which David says in our psalm, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted; and those who are crushed in spirit He saves,” and that which the Book of Wisdom states in our first reading: “Chastised a little, they shall be greatly blessed, because God tried them and found them...
Nov 13, 2023•5 min
(Wis.1:1-7; Ps.139:1-10,24; Lk.17:1-6) “Where can I hide from your spirit? From your presence, where can I flee?” Yes, “wisdom is a kindly spirit, yet she acquits not the blasphemous of his guilty lips.” For the spirit of the Lord is everywhere and hears everything, listening closely to a man’s inmost thoughts. “For the spirit of the Lord fills the world, is all-embracing, and knows what man says.” And so it is that David sings, “If I ascend to the heavens, you are there; if I lie down in Sheol,...
Nov 12, 2023•5 min
(Rm.16:3-9,16,22-27; Ps.145:1-5,10-11; Lk.16:9-15) “Let all your works give you thanks, O Lord, and let your faithful ones bless you.” We are in the world, and amongst the wealth of this world. We have nothing to do with money and the world – “You cannot serve God and money,” the Lord has told us, and so we cannot serve money… yet what have we to use but the riches of this world? And so “through use of this world’s goods,” by showing ourselves trustworthy with this “elusive wealth,” we find and ...
Nov 10, 2023•4 min
(Rm.15:14-21; Ps.98:1-4; Lk.16:1-8) “The worldly take more initiative than the otherworldly when it comes to dealing with their own kind.” What is the Lord teaching His disciples? What does He wish to tell them of their call? We need only look at the Apostle Paul, for here is a man, a child of God, who has taken the initiative the Lord would see wrought in us all. Our first reading indeed speaks clearly of Paul’s mission to the Gentiles. Not only has he covered a vast measure of the globe (parti...
Nov 09, 2023•4 min
(Rm.14:7-12; Ps.27:1,4,13-14; Lk.15:1-10) “This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.” Since “every one of us will have to give an account of himself before God,” who are we to “sit in judgment” or “look down on” a brother? Why are our eyes set upon others’ sins instead of the Lord’s glory? Why do we fall into this pit of condemnation? Yes, Jesus welcomes sinners. For this has He come. How blessed are we that He makes such “a diligent search” to retrieve our souls from the grave of sin; how b...
Nov 08, 2023•4 min
(Rm.13:8-10; Ps.112:1-2,4-5,9; Lk.14:25-33) “Love is the fulfillment of the law.” Jesus tells us, “None of you can be my disciple if he does not renounce all his possessions,” turning our backs even on father and mother, even on our very selves. Our psalm states of the happy man, “Lavishly he gives to the poor; his generosity shall endure forever.” And Paul makes clear that we “owe no debt to anyone except the debt that binds us to love one another. He who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the la...
Nov 07, 2023•5 min
(Rm.12:5-16; Ps.131:1-3; Lk.14:15-24) “Come along, everything is ready now.” Dinner is being served now in the kingdom of God. But are we prepared to sit down at table? Or do we turn our hearts to other things? Jesus sets our place now in the kingdom of heaven. He has come. He has died. He has risen and sends now the Holy Spirit to invite us into His presence. And His presence is ever with us; He is ever knocking at the door of our hearts – His Spirit is always with us. But, again, do we hear Hi...
Nov 06, 2023•5 min
(Rm.11:29-36; Ps.69:14,30-31,33-34,36-37; Lk.14:12-14) “God has imprisoned all in disobedience that He might have mercy on all.” I begin to see “how deep are the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God.” For though I am far from knowing “the mind of the Lord,” yet He does offer me a certain insight this early morning about Him whom Paul says, “From Him and through Him and for Him all things are.” It is in the complementarity of the readings the insight comes, particularly viewing the gosp...
Nov 05, 2023•5 min
(Rm.11:1-2,11-12,25-29; Ps.94:12-15,17-18; Lk.14:1,7-11) “The Lord will not cast off His people, nor abandon His inheritance.” Today the gifts and call of the Israelites, which are “irrevocable,” are spoken of beautifully in our readings. Indeed, the majority of Jews rejected and even persecuted Jesus and His followers. But as Paul tells us, the Lord has always and will always leave a remnant among them to maintain His covenant with them. As Paul reminds us, “I myself am an Israelite.” And of co...
Nov 03, 2023•5 min
(Rm.9:1-5; Ps.147:12-15,19-20; Lk.14:1-6) “They could not answer.” The Pharisees are dumb. The leaders of the Jewish nation cannot speak as to whether a man should be healed on the sabbath. How far they have fallen from the presence of God. We know the Israelites were God’s chosen people. This is proclaimed clearly by both Paul and our psalmist today: “Theirs were the adoption, the glory, the covenants, the lawgiving, the worship, and the promises; theirs were the patriarchs, and from them came ...
Nov 02, 2023•5 min
(Rm.8:18-25; Ps.126:1-6; Lk.13:18-21) “Hoping for what we cannot see means awaiting it with patient endurance.” We cannot see the coming of the kingdom of heaven. It comes so gradually; it rises imperceptibly, “like yeast which a woman took to knead into three measures of flour.” It grows like the tiny mustard seed, which “became a large shrub and the birds of the air nested in its branches.” A most fruitful reign is the reign of God, and well worth the wait. As Paul says, “I consider the suffer...
Oct 30, 2023•5 min
(Rm.8:12-17; Ps.68:2,4,6-7,20-21; Lk.13:10-17) “All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” It is the Spirit of God that led the poor stooped woman in our gospel today to the synagogue to see and hear the teaching of Jesus the Lord, and to find a healing for her infirmity. “This daughter of Abraham… in the bondage of Satan for eighteen years” was by the Lord “released from her shackles” and became a daughter also of the Most High God. She is a sign of us all. For all, whether sons of ...
Oct 29, 2023•5 min
