Daily Reflections
“Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” As the apostles returned from being sent out, they came together with Jesus and recounted all that they experienced. But Jesus has them pause and rest in silence, in a deserted place. There is great wisdom here, for our mission to do…
In today’s readings, we have a strong contrast of characters between David and Herod. In the first reading, we hear of the many great deeds of King David: slaying the giant, defeating armies, becoming king, and much more. He was not perfect, for he sinned. But, out of love for God, he repented and…
“He instructed them to take nothing for the journey but a walking stick – no food, no sack, no money in their belts.” Jesus sent his disciples out with nothing except faith in the authority he gave them and the support of each other. It is an important detail that he sent them two…
“A prophet is not without honor except in his native place and among his own kin and in his own house.” Jesus came into his native place, and all that he said and did was met with doubt and questioning. It is hard to see Jesus in those we have known for a long…
“My son Absalom! My son, my son, Absalom! If only I had died instead of you, Absalom, my son, my son!” This cry of mourning from King David moves the heart and speaks of a father’s love for his son. Absalom rebelled against his father, the king, but this betrayal didn’t overshadow David’s fatherly…
“Thus says the Lord GOD: Lo, I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me; and suddenly there will come to the temple the LORD whom you seek, and the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.” These words from the prophet Malachi foreshadow the coming of the Christ into the temple…
“Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters.” This opening verse of the second reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians reminds us to listen to God’s voice calling out to us and trust in His wisdom and will in our lives. What is it that God is calling us to? In today’s readings,…
Sin causes division, and it also causes pain. King David’s infidelity with Bathsheba resulted in a rejection of God and His commandments (adultery and murder). David repented, and God forgave him. But David had to live with the consequences. The sacrament of confession in the Catholic Church is an opportunity for confessing sins and…
Last Tuesday at Mass, the first reading told of King David bringing the Ark of the Lord into Jerusalem and praising God with great rejoicing and worship. Tomorrow we will hear that David kept a fast and pleaded with God to save his dying child. People often turn to God in times of joy…
“Then King David went in and sat in the Lord’s presence and said, ‘Who am I, Lord God, and what is my house, that you should have brought me so far? And yet even this is too little in your sight, Lord God!” (2nd Samuel 7:18-19). This is the act, and these are the…
King David wanted to glorify and honor God by building Him a house. God was more interested in building an eternal House. God’s promise to establish David’s house and kingdom was not based on his descendants being perfect, but rather on God’s steadfast love and faithfulness. The first reading at Mass from 2nd Samuel…
My maternal Grandfather was one of ten children. He and Grandma also had ten children. My Mom was one of 58 first cousins on her Dad’s side of the family alone. Mom, who will soon be 93 years old, knows the birth order of each of these cousins and can nearly provide all of their…
Today’s passage from the Gospel of St. Mark was the basis for Abraham Lincoln’s famous “House Divided” speech. Differences are not necessarily a bad thing; the Spirit bestows a variety of gifts to all of us. However, these gifts are for the common good and for the building up of the one body of…
When John the Baptist preached, his message was, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” This repentance of sin was not simply to wipe the slate clean. Sin is not so much a stain as it is a division. Adam and Eve were one with God in the Garden of Eden until…
“When his relatives heard of this, they set out to seize him, for they said, “He is out of his mind.” There is a text in the Gospel of John, Chapter 10, which I suggest throws some light on this action of the relatives which may seem strange to us: Jn 10: This is why…
“Jesus went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted.” “Summoned those whom he wanted” may sound like a sort of whim. But in St. Luke’s account in chapter 6, we read: “In those days he departed to the mountain to pray, and he spent the night in prayer to God. When day came,…
“Those who had diseases were pressing upon him to touch him.” On this day in our nation when Mother Church wants her children to pray for human life to be held sacred, these words from the Gospel assigned for today can serve to encourage us to press upon Jesus the need our nation has…
“The battle is the LORD’s and he shall deliver you into our hands.” This cry of young David, facing the giant, the experienced fighter, Goliath, can be for us an image of the enemies of our interior life – thoughts of all kinds that plague us. Whether these thoughts be judgmental, sexual, jealous, fearful,…
When Samuel comes to Bethlehem, the elders greet him as “Seer.” “’Is your visit peaceful, O seer?’” It is ironic that Samuel is called “seer” because he does not see as God sees! The Lord tells Samuel, “Not as man sees does God see” – a line echoed in any number of places in…
“… new wine is poured into fresh wineskins.” The newness which the Gospel of Christ Jesus brings us is a continually new invitation to allow ourselves to be changed. This is conversion, the metanoia. The Holy Spirit calls us to it. It is a call into new levels of intimacy with the one who…
“The Lord said to me: you are my servant, Israel, through whom I show my glory.” The revelation made to ancient Israel and fulfilled in Jesus, is not about destiny but glory! God’s People were taught that we are not guided by empty dreams, or the stars or other impersonal forces. But each of…
We often find ourselves asking why. Sometimes the question is innocent and leads us to discover: Why do the seasons change? At other times, the question comes from pain: Why do bad things happen to me? And sometimes the question is a statement of judgment: Why would you do something like that? The Scribes…
Before the Israelite people had kings, they were led by judges, individuals that the Lord empowered for leadership. They came from different tribes and backgrounds. For instance, Samson’s parents were childless in their old age until the Lord answered their prayers, Jephthah was rejected by his own family as illegitimate, and Samuel was consecrated…
Leprosy was not only a painful illness in the ancient world but also a communal affliction because its victims were excluded from normal society. It was so dangerous and so contagious that those who had it were forced to keep their distance from others in case they should infect someone by accident. It is…
Our lives are fragile. We have bodies that can be harmed, that grow old, and that will eventually fail. All the same, our bodies are gifts. We experience the many wonderful things God has made in this world through our bodies, and even the pains that undergo reveal to us the greater truths of…
Jesus wastes no time once he begins his public ministry. The time has come for him to reveal himself to the people in word and deed, which is made evident when he preaches with authority and drives out demons. The great scholars of the time would always refer to the teachings of their predecessors,…
Now that the Christmas season has concluded, we return to the “ordinary” life of Jesus, the public ministry he performed as an adult before his sacrifice on the cross. In the Gospel today, Jesus calls his first disciples to come and follow him. It is an invitation to know him more deeply and, eventually,…
At Jesus’ baptism, we hear the Father announcing his Sonship. Jesus is loved by the Father because the Father is love. Jesus is even the expression of this love because he has come among us and offered himself for us even though we are unworthy of him. His Incarnation reveals to us the lengths…
Throughout this Epiphany week we have observed the Christmas star casting its light upon the newborn King of Israel, the long-awaited Messiah and Lord. The gospel selections of the past six days have shown us a variety of reactions as Jesus’ identity was revealed: to three Magi from the Orient; to a threatened King…
Leprosy was a dreaded disease in the time of Christ. There was no known cure for this ailment. Besides the pain and disfigurement it caused, the individual also suffered the shame of isolation from the community. Levitical law required lepers to separate themselves from society. In the gospel account from Saint Luke, we hear…
As this week following Epiphany unfolds, we see yet another display of Jesus as the Messiah in the account of his visit to the synagogue in his home village of Nazareth. As he entered the assembly, Jesus was handed a scroll and proclaimed the prophecy of Isaiah: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon…
We all face situations in our lives that leave us feeling storm-tossed and frightened. The gospel passage heard at Mass today, following immediately after the miracle of the loaves and fishes, is a further manifestation of Jesus as the promised Messiah, the one who has power over all things. St. Mark recounts the well-known…
“When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd” (Mk 6:34). These opening words of today’s gospel, and the description of the miraculous multiplication of the loaves and fishes, continue the revelation of Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah. Saint Mark’s words…
In today’s gospel, St. Matthew calls our attention to the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah in Jesus’ ministry to the Gentiles of Capernaum: “…the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light, on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death light has arisen” (Is 9:1; Mt 4:16). In the readings…
Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you (Is 60:1). Today, we celebrate the radiant feast of the Epiphany, the manifestation of the Lord’s glory to all nations. Although God singled out the tiny nation of Israel as his chosen people, his generous heart, overflowing with mercy, lavishly pours out…
The late Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld, confounded many with his philosophical distinction between different kinds of national intelligence issues. There were, he said, known knowns – those things we understand exist – and there are also unknown unknowns – things we are neither aware of nor understand. There are also unknown knowns. This…
In the movie 500 Days of Summer, a woman asks the sad sack protagonist why he became a greeting card writer when he had trained as an architect. He sardonically replied, “I figured, why make something temporary like a building, when I can make something like a greeting card that lasts forever.” The cutting…
When I was a young monk, the abbot wanted me to take voice lessons to improve my singing. Probably because he wanted more investment on my part, so he did not order me, only suggested it. It was obvious, though, that he wanted me to do this. I joked that my parents would be…
It’s the end of the calendar year. John’s First Letter says, “Children, it is the last hour.” At the same time, the opening verses of our gospel states: “In the beginning was the Word.” Today, we end at the beginning. A recent survey of Americans discovered that there are fewer people who identify as…
The American Catholic author, Flannery O’Connor, wrote short stories with underlying theological symbolism. However, many who read them do not find anything resembling holiness and are even scandalized. Her novels are populated by very flawed characters who meet tragic endings. She described her stories as grace being offered and frequently rejected. In fairness, we…