Friar Daily Reflection
Anointing
In today’s Gospel Mary performs a loving and prophetic action. “Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil…and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair.” Her actions provoked different responses. Judas, seemingly with genuine concern for the poor but...
Trust and Faith
Life is full of difficulties and rarely goes as we plan or as we want. This can produce in us a lot of different attitudes: despair, anger, sadness, dullness, insensibility, apathy, restlessness, or depression – even violence. Some people get struck in those negative...
I Am
In today’s Gospel Jesus proclaims his divinity by speaking like God. In the book of Exodus God reveals himself to Moses with the following words: “I am who I am…This is what you will tell the Israelites: I AM has sent me to you.” (Exodus 3:14). In today’s Gospel...
Enslaved
If you are attentive to the gospel readings so far this week it is clear that there is controversy in the air. The gospels are from John 8 and follow immediately upon the scene of the “woman caught in adultery.” It is important to note that John 7 is filled with...
Complaining or Looking Towards the Savior
On our journey together towards Holy Week and Easter, the Word of God reminds us of the attitude of the people of Israel who had just experienced the saving power of God who brought them out of Egypt. Rather than proclaiming their thanksgiving, they complain against...
The Light of the World
In today’s Gospel Jesus declares: “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” We have all had the experience of being in the dark and trying to walk around. We need light to see and to walk around in...
Come, and You Will See
In today’s Gospel we discover more and more about Jesus as we come with the first disciples to question and see Jesus: “‘Rabbi’…where are you staying?’ He said to them, “Come, and you will see.” So, they went and saw where he was staying, and they stayed with him...
Testimony About Jesus
On our journey together towards Holy Week and Easter, we accompany Jesus in his increasingly hostile encounters with the religious leaders. In today’s Gospel Jesus is responding to the religious leaders who did not understand him nor recognize him because he broke...
The heavy lifting
The first reading today from the Prophet Isaiah is a companion piece with yesterday’s first reading from Ezekiel. Both readings speak to a people in exile and both offer visions of restoration to the covenant people of God. Yesterday, Ezekiel offered a vision of...
The Lord is here
In today’s first reading we hear from the Prophet Ezekiel. It is from the end of his prophetic writings and there is a lot of “water under bridge” that has led to this amazing vision of a new temple being the source of restorative and living water, water that is so...