Jos 5:9a, 10-122 Cor 5:17-21Lk 15:1-3, 11-32 Reconciliation The theme for the readings this Sunday is reconciliation. In the first reading the Israelites have reconciled with God and are now ready to enter the Promised Land. In the second reading Paul clearly calls us to reconciliation when he states, ”Brothers and sisters: whoever is in Christ…

Ex 3:1-8a1 Cor 10:1-6Lk 13:1-9 Good Fruit The gospel begins with some people talking about tragedies that occurred. A common belief at that time was that people suffered because of sins committed. Jesus responds to their comments with, “By no means! But I tell you, if you do not repent, you will all perish as they…

Gn 15:5-12, 17-18Phil 3:17—4:1Lk 9:28b-36 Open Our Hearts Think about your closest friend. That relationship did not happen overnight. There may have been instant attraction but it takes a long time to really know another person. The same is true of the apostles who were called to follow Jesus. Gradually they came to know more…

Dt 26:4-10Rom 10:8-13Lk 4:1-13 Lent This past Wednesday was Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent. Every liturgical year the church sets aside forty days of preparation for the most important feast of the year – Easter. Reading the scripture, the Word of God for this Sunday, tells us that Jesus, following his baptism goes into…

Sir 27:4-71 Cor 15:54-58Lk 6:39-45 Know Yourself To be a committed disciple of Christ we must really know ourselves. We must be aware of our gifts and our faults or weaknesses. This is important because as disciples we are to produce good deeds for others. In order to accomplish these good deeds, we have to…

1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9,12-13,22-231 Corinthians 15:45-49Luke 6:27-38 Love in Action In the gospel for Sunday Jesus’ words challenge us to love as God loves. We are challenged to love with a depth beyond imagining. God loves us beyond anything we can possibly imagine. In response to God’s love, we are to love with every thought,…

Jer 17:5-81 Cor 15:12, 16-20Lk 6:17, 20-26 Trust in God Both the first and second readings remind us that it is foolish to place our trust in anyone or anything but God. “Thus says the LORD: Cursed is the one who trusts in human beings, who seeks his strength in flesh, whose heart turns away…

Isaiah 6:1-2A, 3-81 Corinthians 15:1-11Luke 5:1-11 Responding to the Call The words of scripture remind us of our own personal call for a change of heart (metanoia) and our response to follow our call to discipleship. Paul states clearly in the second reading that, “I am reminding you, brothers and sisters, of the gospel I preached…

Mal 3:1-4Heb 2:14-18Lk 2:22-40 or 2:22-32 A Listening Heart This Sunday the Church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord that occurs forty days after the birth of Jesus. The gospel tells of Mary and Joseph bringing the infant Jesus to the temple to be presented to God according to Mosaic Law. It then introduces us…

Neh 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-101 Cor 12:12-30Lk 1:1-4, 4:14-21 Inclusivity Paul begins the second reading for this Sunday with words that are important for the society we live in today. “Brothers and sisters: As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so…

Isaiah 62:1-51 Corinthians 12:4-11John 21-11 Giftedness In John’s gospel miracles are called signs. In the gospel for Sunday Jesus performs his first sign of his new ministry. There was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine…

Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7Acts 10:34-38Luke 3:15-16, 21-22 Baptism This Sunday we celebrate the baptism of Jesus. The people were filled with expectation, and all were asking in their hearts whether John might be the Christ. John answered them all, saying, “I am baptizing you with water, but one mightier than I is coming. I am not…

Isaiah 60:1-6.Ephesians 3:1-12.Matthew 2:1-12. Shared Gifts On this first Sunday, we celebrate the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus the Christ. It is on this feast of the epiphany that we hear the story of the three magi bringing gifts to the new born child. Because the magi (representing the non-Jewish people of the world)…

Sir 3:2-6, 12-14COL 3:12-17LK 2:22-40 The readings for the Feast of the Holy Family focus on the importance of family. The first reading tells us about honoring our fathers. The second reading tells us how to live together as families. In the gospel Joseph and Mary take the infant Jesus to Jerusalem for the ritual…

Micah 5:1-4Hebrews 10:5-10Luke 1:39-45 The Visitation This is the final week of Advent and in a few days we will celebrate Christmas, the birth of Jesus into our world. For the last two weeks we heard stories about John the Baptist preparing the way for the coming of Jesus. Today we switch gears and hear…