Daily Reflections

  Today we explore the parable of the vineyard and the workers. How could this work, that everyone who goes into the vineyard gets the same wage? Where is the justice in that? Jesus knew how to reach the hearts of his listeners. This does not mean that Jesus would treat His own workers badly.…

  “Prayer is the best weapon we have; it is the key to God’s heart. You must speak to Jesus not only with your lips but with your heart. In fact, on certain occasions, you should only speak to Him with your heart.” These are words from our saint today, St. Padre Pio! He is…

  “Pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience, and gentleness. Compete well for the faith. Lay hold of eternal life.” St. Paul says this to Timothy in our first reading. He also says that we should avoid getting rich because the love of money is the root of all evils. This means if you love money…

  “Follow me.” These two simple words provoked Matthew the tax collector, a sinner, to follow “I AM,” another two words that mean God! St. Matthew recognized the voice of the Father through Jesus, and, in a way, healed Matthew of his infirmity of being a tax collector and a sinner. As Jesus says in…

  This passage from our gospel reminds me of our Holy Martyrs today, “For John the Baptist came neither eating food nor drinking wine, and you said, ‘He is possessed by a demon.’ The Son of Man came eating and drinking and you said, ‘Look, he is a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of…

  Today Jesus has raised someone from the dead! The people exclaimed, “A great prophet has arisen in our midst, and God has visited his people!” The Lord’s actions remind me of our first reading about how bishops and deacons have the same power as Christ because, in a way, they are Christ! In the…

  I love intercessory prayer, praying for another person, whether that be a short prayer to Jesus, Mary, or one of the saints, saying a rosary for someone, or simply lighting a candle in front of our Blessed Mother statue or the icons of Sts. Joseph and Benedict. In these readings today, especially the responsorial…

  These passages today remind me of a line from the movie, “The Song of Bernadette.” The doctor inspects the holy saint and asks her several questions. Dr. Dozous asks Bernadette this question, “Do you know what a sinner is?” and Bernadette replies “Certainly Monsieur, a sinner is one who loves evil!” In our first…

  There are several places in the Gospels where someone asks Jesus what is needed to follow him or what is necessary to be saved. Jesus’ replies are clear – obey the commandment, love God, and love your neighbor; sell what you have and follow me and more. He has told us that our goal…

  Every time we celebrate a feast of the Blessed Mother, we venerate Mary and recall her part in God’s plan for our salvation. Her special place in the Church, of course, flows from her special place in God’s plan. Yesterday we celebrated the Triumph of the Cross. Today we see another side of that…

  Today we celebrate the great reconciliation won for us by Jesus Christ—God’s plan for our redemption. We celebrate the Triumph of the Cross. Yes, there is clearly a paradox here—declaring the triumph, the exaltation of an instrument of death. Yet that is precisely the point. From death comes life. Passing through death leads to…

  We are presented with some of the basics of our Catholic Christian faith these days. Yesterday, the letter to the Colossians spelled out for us just who Jesus is—the one in whom the fullness of deity resides. He saved us from sin “by canceling the bond which stood against us, snatching it up and…

  Having just begun St Luke’s gospel for our weekday readings, we are taken back to the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry. The news of him spread quickly. And it seems just as quickly suspicions arose. On the one hand, some were spellbound—“here is one who speaks with authority”—while others felt threatened. Jesus was not…

  Everyone in this country recalls the horror of the attacks of 9-11-2001 on the World Trade Center, Pentagon, and fields of Pennsylvania. Many watched on TV as the tragedy unfolded before our very eyes. Many people died that day. Others died later because of the attacks. And things changed that day and thereafter. Sunday’s…

  There is something in the Gospel that is important for us to get and not overlook. It has to do with how Jesus is present to us. Jesus says, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” When we speak of the Eucharist (the…

  Where did you come from? Paul is reminding the Colossians of who they were before they became new again through Christ. Why did Paul feel he had to remind them of this? The past is the past, right? Maybe it’s to show them that they have grown in their faith. Maybe it’s that he…

  What a Motley Crew! Today we celebrate the Feast Day celebration of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Gospel for this great Feast is the Genealogy of Jesus. Today you’ll learn how well your parish priest pronounces biblical names. This Gospel passage is one of my favorites because it shows a royal…

  Jesus orders Simon to cast his net to sea to catch some fish. Simon tells Jesus that they’ve been out fishing all night and have caught nothing! Even though he’s doubtful, Simon still casts the net. The net caught so much fish that it started tearing. Because of this particular gospel passage today, I’m…

  In our gospel today, Simon’s mother-in-law is healed from her severe fever after it was scared away by Jesus’ rebuke. Our gospel doesn’t tell us that she was happy after this happened. Our gospel doesn’t tell us that she had tears of joy. Our gospel doesn’t tell us that she was so overjoyed from…

  In the gospel today, there is a man with a demon inside of him. This demon is gutsy! I say this because the demon was not afraid to encounter Jesus, the Son of God. We all know who won that match. But it proves the lengths a demon will go to fight good. And…

  He comes to save the living and the dead! In our first reading, Paul is speaking to the Thessalonians about their deceased family members and friends. If this is something that Paul is addressing, then it was very likely a great concern of the people. They had worries about what would happen to the…

  Jesus is a true friend to us. He is a friend that loves us enough to tell us the truth. Last week and now this week in our gospel, we see the character Peter. Last week, Jesus gave him The Keys and told him that he is the rock. Quite a big honor Jesus…

  Aspire to live a tranquil life, to mind your own affairs, and to work with your own hands, as we instructed you. 1 Thessalonians 4:11 St. Paul encourages the church at Thessalonica to “aspire to live a tranquil life.” Calm. Serene. Peaceful. Sounds nice. But I wonder how many Christians today wish they could…

  This is the will of God, your holiness! 1 Thessalonians 4:3a “What does God want me to do in this situation?” “What does God want from me?” “What is or was God’s will for my life?” God wants us to be holy. Period. Whenever you wonder what God wants you to do, say to…

  We have been reassured about you, brothers and sisters, in our every distress and affliction, through your faith. 1 Thessalonians 3:7 Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy had to get out of town because they were being threatened and persecuted by Jews and Greeks alike. After a few months passed, naturally these Christian missionaries became worried…

  Working night and day in order not to burden any of you, we proclaimed to you the Gospel of God. 1 Thessalonians 2:9b So far this week in the First Readings of the Mass, we have been hearing from a letter that was written by the legendary missionaries Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy. They were…

  Oh, St. Augustine! Look upon us with compassion, as once Jesus did when he saw the great crowds as though sheep without a shepherd (Matthew 9:36). We confess that we have strayed from the straight and narrow path which Christ cut out for us by his heavy cross and holy feet. Intercede for us,…

  I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot, to be a place of honor for his family. Isaiah 22:23 Today, Conception Abbey and Seminary College hosts our third annual Seminary Open House for our friends and benefactors. We’re all under a big, white tent like you’d see at a wedding reception.…

  In the first reading for the Masses for yesterday and today, we are given basically a summary of the entire Book of Ruth. In Friday’s passage, a famine strikes the land of Judah so Naomi travels with her husband and two sons to Moab. The family stays here for 10 years, and the two…

  In today’s Gospel passage, we are given the Great Commandment and the one that is like it. The Great Commandment is we are to love the Lord our God with all of our heart, mind, soul, and strength. The command that is like this one is to love our neighbor as ourselves. So first…

  Today we celebrate the feast of the Apostle, St. Bartholomew. In our first reading for this feast, from the book of Revelation, the holy city Jerusalem is described. Of particular note for us for this feast is the description of the twelve foundation stones of the holy city, on which are inscribed the names…

  Today we have the parable of the workers in the field. The owner of the field goes out and hires more workers to collect his harvest hour after hour throughout the day. Until finally the last group of workers only works for an hour in the field. Finally, at the end of the day,…

  In today’s Gospel, Jesus makes the astonishing assertion that it is easier for a camel to slip through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God. The reason that it is so hard for a rich person to make it into the Kingdom of God is…

  In today’s gospel, a young man approaches Jesus and asks what he must do to attain eternal life. Jesus first encourages him to keep the commandments. When the young man tells Jesus that he has kept these from his youth, Jesus challenges him further: “If you wish to be perfect, go and sell what…

  We have all come to know Jesus as kind and loving, gentle, merciful, and forgiving. We expect to see these qualities when we read or hear about him in the Gospels. However, there are occasions in the Gospels when Jesus acts in unexpected and surprising ways, ways that seem out of character for him.…

When Joshua gathers the people of Israel together, he tells them what is required of them if they wish to serve the LORD by saying, “Fear the LORD and serve him completely and sincerely.” If we decided to follow the Lord we must love and serve him with our entire being, for Jesus says, “Love…

  In today’s first reading, we see Joshua gathering all of Israel together to deliver the message of the LORD. The LORD reminds the people of the many graces he has done for them out of love for his people Israel. When Balaam came to curse them, God didn’t listen to Balaam but rather he…

  “Peter approached Jesus and asked him, ‘Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?’ Jesus answered, ‘I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.’” This answer of Jesus reveals to us that we are called to forgive as Jesus forgives, to love…

  In today’s Gospel, we see the passion and persistence with which Jesus calls to bring our brothers and sisters into right relationship with us as individuals, with the community, and thus with God. Jesus first tells us, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone.”…

  In today’s Solemnity, Our Mother, the Blessed Virgin Mary, gives us an example of how to live in the graces we receive. After receiving the message of the angel and conceiving our Lord and God by the power of the Holy Spirit, she doesn’t exalt herself but rather travels to visit her cousin and…