Friar Daily Reflection
The Dangers of Despair and Disdain
Abram reached his old age as a man of wealth, but he was a nomad and childless. He had many material goods but no land to call his own and no children. He felt that his life was a failure in regard to those two most important aspects. He received a promise from God...
False Prophets
Jesus gives us an important warning in today’s Gospel: “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing.” It seems the proliferation of podcasts, tweets, and other social media has also brought a proliferation of conspiracy theories and false prophets. ...
The New Beginning – In the Dessert
Today is a major feast in many parts of the world. In Peru it is the day of the hard-working farm laborer and the patron saint feast throughout the Amazon region. For many years it was a national holiday in Peru. It is a day of joy, dancing, processions, special...
Stop Judging
Today’s Gospel continues Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. Today’s sermon is addressed to his disciples, that is to all us Christians. His teaching is simple: Stop it! “Stop judging, that you may not be judged.” Notice that Jesus does not say, “do not judge,” but “Stop...
Treasures in Heaven
Today’s Gospel continues Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-7:28). In this Sermon Jesus gives us his authoritative teaching. “When he saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying…”...
The Heart of Prayer
Prayer is a natural part of human life. It is often an expression of our natural religiosity. Prayers that arise out of our natural religiosity tend to be petitions or an attempt on our part to force God to do what we wish or what we think would be best. Many times,...
Hypocrites
In today’s Gospel Jesus warns against performing “righteous deeds” for human approval. We should not perform our “righteous deeds” or acts of piety with pomp or outward show to call attention to ourselves. Jesus teaches us disciples: “Take care not to perform...
The Heart of the Good News
Once again, we come to that part of the year where we listen to the Sermon on the Mount in the weekday readings from the Gospel. Initially God communicated with the people of Israel through the prophets and the written Law in the Old Testament. That communication was...
An Eye for an Eye
In today’s Gospel Jesus gives his authoritative interpretation of the Scripture, the Old Testament. In the Sermon of the Mount Jesus introduces a text of the Old Testament with the words, “You have heard that it was said to your ancestors…” and then gives his...
St. Anthony of Padua
St. Anthony was born into a wealthy family in Lisbon, Portugal in 1195 and died 36 years later in Padua, Italy as a Franciscan friar. After being ordained for the Canons of the Holy Cross he came to know a group of Franciscans who were visiting and preaching in his...