The Gospel, which means “Good News,” took a profound turn when religious leaders presented a tragic story about the murdered Galileans to Jesus. They work with an image of God as an angry judge with a heavy and unrelenting arm, thrashing many. Jesus’ answer is stark: stop imagining existence as a courtroom. There is no…
He went up a mountain with them to pray. The mountain is the earth that becomes vertical, the closest to heaven, where God’s feet rest, testifies Amos. Mountains are index fingers pointing to the mystery and depth of the cosmos; to the infinite, they are the earth penetrating heaven. Jesus goes up there to pray.…
Today, may be one of the hardest days to be Catholic. Here we are, 5 days into Lent and goingthrough withdrawals from the things we’ve given up, and, to make matters worse, we all hadto wake up an hour earlier, due to the time change. Maybe this explains why the 11:30 massis so popular today!…
Jesus uses unexpected comparisons to illuminate personal, dark habits and highlight our need for light. Why do you look at the speck in your brother’s eye? Notice the precision of the verb: why do you “look” and not simply “see”; why do you observe, fix your gaze on straws and trifles, scrutinize the shadow instead…
Jesus has just launched the “blessed are you” revolution into the lives of every human. Now, he unravels the first “how-to” instruction through an imperative: Love your enemies. You will do so at once, without waiting, not in response but in anticipation, not because that is how things are, but because you are the difference.…
In today’s gospel Jesus shares The Beatitudes, a teaching that forms the foundation of Christian living. Our Catechism contains a section called, “Our Vocation to Beatitude,” and helps us navigate to the desire for happiness. It says, “This desire is of divine origin: God has placed it in the human heart in order to draw…
Every time I approach the Gospel of the Beatitudes, I fear spoiling it with my words. I know I have not yet fully understood it; it surprises and escapes me. “The Sermon of the Mount” subtly challenges you and, by its power, unsettles you. I contemplate it like a painting, rekindling my longing for a…
This is how Jesus’ story with his disciples started: Fatigued fishermen, empty nets, and boats with no catch were pulled ashore; indeed, frustrating moments don’t feel conducive for Godly revelations. We expect to meet God over the pinnacle of the temple but not from the pulpit of a boat in Capernaum. He was not in…
Before the newness of the New Year wears off, I want to focus on new ways to renew ourspiritual lives. I’ll be unpacking today’s readings and look at how we as individuals and as acommunity can grow closer to God and get his help to liberate us from sin. Last year I asked my son…
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,” proclaimed Jesus; then, like in suspense movies: “all eyes were fixed on him.” The voice of Isaiah resounded vividly: words so ancient and so beloved, so prayed for and so longed for, so near and so far. The voice of Jesus gave it flesh, and scripture came…