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. The reading is from the opening of Romans and contains what is...
The Obedience of Faith
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Friar Reflection
The Heart: Law or Mercy
An expert in religious law asks Jesus a question: how to get into heaven? Jesus does not answer the question but has the expert answer his own question. His answer is: love God and love your...
Nagging Prayer
In today’s Gospel Jesus continues his teaching on prayer. In yesterday’s Gospel Jesus’ disciples ask him to teach them how to pray after Jesus himself had just finished praying. He taught them the...
Justice and Mercy
The book of Jonah is not history, nor is it a fish tale. The prophetic book is best viewed as a parable. It is a story of God’s justice but even more of God’s mercy. As we hear in today’s first...
Martha and Mary: Re-Centering Our Lives in a Radical Way
Jesus’ visit to Martha and Mary’s home is a well know story. But we tend to oversimplify the encounter and lose the importance of what really happened that day. This is not a story about choosing an...
Tarshish and Vegas
Today’s first reading is from the Book of Jonah, one of my favorites. It is about our calling, our mission in life, our choices, and the unintended consequences for others. The Lord called Jonah to...
We have so much…
When I was a year or two short of being a full-fledged teenager, I was invited to attend my first funeral. It was not a Catholic funeral – and as I came to know – nothing like a Catholic funeral. It...
Being Sent – Living on the Road
Jesus sends out teams of two who have the mission to prepare the towns for his visit - 36 teams. This is also our mission in life: to prepare those around us for an encounter with Jesus. The mission...
One Personal Conversion
Francis had what today we would call a primary school education. He had studied enough at the local parish school to know how to read, write, add, and subtract to be able to work in his family’s...
For God is with you
The first reading is taken from the Book of Zechariah. The historical background of the Book of Zechariah is closely tied to the post-exilic period of Israel’s history. After the Babylonian Empire...
True Greatness
In today’s Gospel Jesus’ disciples ask him this question: “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” They are probably expecting or hoping that he would name them! Instead, he names a child,...
Angels
Today is the feast of the angels Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael. Angels function as messengers and mediators between God and humans. Sometimes they function as “accuser” or prosecuting attorney as...