There is a lot going on in today’s Gospel reading, especially in the background. At the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus goes to the synagogue at Capernaum which was a city located at a...
Astonishing New Authority
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Friar Reflection
God Speaks
God wants to speak to us, are we listening? Today’s first reading from Hebrews proclaims how God has spoken to us in the Old Testament and now speaks to us in a unique way in Jesus Christ. “In...
A Love Letter
Since Tuesday of this week (today is Friday), the first reading has been from the First Letter of John starting with the fourth chapter. John’s letters are sometimes a challenge to read and often...
Amazing Fulfillment
All this week between the Epiphany and the Baptism of the Lord, the readings concentrate on who Jesus is. Who is this Prince of Peace, this Christmas Christ Child born rejected, persecuted, and poor...
Passing By
Today’s gospel (Mark 6:45-52) has some verses that have always, for me, lingered between odd and troubling: “When it was evening, the boat was far out on the sea and [Jesus] was alone on shore. Then...
Jesus’ Compassion and Living in That Compassion
Jesus is the manifestation of God’s love and compassion for all of us. God showed himself to Israel and to us constantly through indirect means: through the council and word of the prophets, judges,...
Faith and Love
Both the Gospel of John and the Epistles of John focus us clearly on the essential elements of our religious life, namely faith and love. In the Gospel we have the core of the Gospel or the Gospel...
Joy and Witness
Our culture has reduced the Christmas season to one day, the 25th, and even more so that one day has been reduced to one or two hours for opening presents and eating a meal. Then for most families...
Witness
One of the key themes in the Gospel of John is the theme of witness or testimony. So, in today’s Gospel we hear: “This is the testimony of John.” This theme was already announced in the Prologue...
In the Fullness of Time
What would you say if someone asks, can you prove that God exists? Can you provide an empirical, scientific or mathematical proof of the existence of God? St Thomas Aquinas understood that strict...
Part Time Believers
Today’s gospel is the Prologue from the Gospel of John. In part, it reads: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” … “What came to be through him was life,...
Anna and Simeon
In today’s Gospel Luke continues the description of Jesus’ Presentation in the Jerusalem Temple. In the Infancy Narrative Luke pairs two holy and devout Jews who are full of the holy Spirit. So,...