Religious Education - Children
Catechist BlogConstancy For the Long Walk
The event in today’s Gospel happens right after Jesus’ comments in yesterday’s Gospel about the narrow gate. A group of Pharisees comes up to Jesus right after his teaching session and tells him he has to leave because he is under a threat of death from the king....
The Narrow Gate
“Lord, will only a few people be saved?” The question proposed in today’s Gospel a very basic question about our relationship with God. It is a question that still rolls through our minds and souls today. As usual Jesus does not directly answer the question. Instead,...
The Foundation
The gospel for today’s Feast of St. Simon and Jude is the simple list of the Apostles as given in the Gospel of Luke. Early Christian writers and later stories link Simon and Jude as missionary partners, evangelizing together in Persia (modern Iran) or Mesopotamia...
Adoption into Glory
For more than a week we have been reading from The Letter to the Romans. We transitioned from hearing about Abraham as an example of faith working its way through human imperfection to the source of that imperfection: sin. “Through one man sin entered the world, and...
Amazing Grace
Today’s first reading from Romans forms the basis of the well-known hymn “Amazing Grace.” The hymn begins with the words, “Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound) That sav'd a wretch like me! I once was lost, but now am found, Was blind, but now I see.” These words are...
True Freedom
What is true freedom? A common understanding of freedom is the right to do what I want, whenever I want with no burdens and no responsibilities. As we hear in today’s first reading this is not what Christian freedom is. Paul tells us true freedom means being a...
Steward = Faithful, Prudent, Responsible, and Blessed
The disciples were full of questions, especially when Jesus spoke in parables. Jesus’ answers to their questions help us to understand the Word of God more fully. Jesus starts off today with the image of always being prepared, just as a homeowner must be prepared for...
Through One Man: Sin and Death
In today’s first reading our selection from The Letter to the Romans moves on from its prior focus on Abraham as a model of trust/belief/faith even when he has moments of doubts. Moving ahead to Chapter 5, St. Paul now takes on the matter of sin and death. Paul’s...
Trusting and Human Imperfection
Today’s first reading is from St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans, one of the most challenging and complex of all the New Testament books - and addresses an equally complex character in the person of Abraham. Known for his unwavering faith in God he is a person who is not...
Fishers
There are four people in today’s Gospel with Jesus. Simon and Andrew who were fishermen. Plus, the sons of Zebedee, James and John who were also fishermen. They had spent their whole lives studying and practicing the fishing business. They knew about fishing: when to...