Angela For Today

Second Sunday in LentGen 22:1-2, 9-13, 15-18Rom 8:31-34Mk 9:2-10 Choices The first reading from Genesis is a difficult one because we find Abraham believing that God wants him to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac. Child sacrifice was a reality at the time of Abraham and one practiced by his neighbors the Canaanites. Abraham is a…

First Sunday in Lent First Reading: Genesis 9:8-15 Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9 Second Reading: First Peter 3:18-22 Gospel: Mark 1:12-15 Lent Ash Wednesday was 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…

Compassion Lev 13:1-2, 45-461Cor 10:31-11:1Mark 1:40-451 Of all the readings from Scripture, the three from this coming Sunday most relate to the situation we have been and still are facing, Covid-19. How often are we warned about the importance of social distancing, not touching others, washing hands often, wearing a mask? This is similar to…

Quiet Time In our readings for Sunday, we find the contrast of busyness vs inactivity. In the reading from Job 7:4, 6-7, we see Job complaining that he has had it with life because, in a sense, he is bored. He says, “I am filled with restlessness until the dawn.” This is understandable when we…

Motivation In the first reading from Deuteronomy 18:15-20, God calls Moses to be a prophet who speaks to his own people for God. The words of Moses to the Israelites are to be the words of God. Moses is motivated to be the voice of God and not believe that his own words were what the people should…

The readings from the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time are filled with challenges for us in the first month of 2021. In the first reading, God comes to the prophet Jonah and tells him to go to Nineveh (an enemy nation) to preach conversion from their wickedness. Unexpectedly, Jonah refuses and sails toward another area….

The first reading for Sunday is from 1 Samuel 3:3-10, 19. It is the story of Samuel being called to be a prophet. Eli the priest and the young man Samuel are asleep in the temple. Three times Samuel thinks Eli is calling him. Each time he goes to Eli he is told to go…

The opening lines of the Gospel of Mark for Sunday announce the mission of John the Baptist. “John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sin.” What John is teaching is that one must let go of attitudes and actions that are contrary to the message of…

My blogs for 2021 will be based on the readings for the Sunday liturgy. I encourage you to read and reflect on them today or tomorrow before the mass. On this first Sunday of the New Year we celebrate the revelation of God incarnate as Jesus the Christ. It’s on this Feast of the Epiphany that we…

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him may not die but have eternal life.  (John 3:16) These words from the Gospel of John provide the real meaning and purpose of Christmas. God’s love is so great that it had to be shared in the person of…

On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and…

The Book of Queen Esther is the stuff of modern day novels. It contains elements of court intrigue, sex, romance, treachery, loyalty, manipulation, courage, and ultimate victory. Esther is the heroine of this story, and she is so central to the story, that her name is mentioned fifty-five times in ten chapters of the Hebrew…