Tag: God

Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions, Martyrs

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

Jesus said to [the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders], “I shall ask you one question. Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things. Was John’s baptism of heavenly or of human origin? Answer me.” They discussed this among themselves and said, “If we say, ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say, ‘Then why did you not believe him?’ But shall we say, ‘Of human origin’?”– they feared the crowd, for they all thought John really was a prophet. So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.” Then Jesus said to them, “Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

In today’s Gospel, the leaders of the temple come to Jesus and ask him by what authority he is doing the things he is doing. Jesus replies by asking them a question: was John’s baptism from heaven or from men? They are afraid to answer. If they say it was from heaven, they will be admitting that Jesus is the Messiah; if they say it was from men, they will be admitting that they have rejected God’s prophet and messenger.

God, help me recognize that the challenge to your Son’s authority continues to this day. In my own life, how well do I accept your authority in making important decisions each day? How often do I reject your will for the sake of self-determinism? I want to recognize and do your will through faith in your authority. Help me, Lord, be humble and repentant before you; help me be grateful in receiving your forgiveness in the sacrament of reconciliation when I knowingly fail to accept your authority.

Lord, teach me to know your will. From the responsorial psalm: “The law of the LORD is perfect, refreshing the soul. The decree of the LORD is trustworthy, giving wisdom to the simple.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

**Announcement: Please join me in praying a novena to Saint Anthony from June 5 to June 13. I’ll return to daily Gospel reflections on June 14.**

Friday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

Jesus said to the disciples, “Have faith in God. Amen, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be lifted up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart but believes that what he says will happen, it shall be done for him. Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours.”

Jesus and his disciples are on their way to Jerusalem for Passover. As they approach the city, Jesus sees a fig tree in leaf. He goes to the tree, hoping to find some figs, but there are none. Jesus curses the tree. Later, in the temple area, he drives out those selling and buying there. The next day, the tree he cursed is found to be withered. Jesus’ curse of the fig tree in a way shows that God wants us to be people of faith in his Kingdom—not money changers, not living a life of buying and selling material things—but to bear good fruit in our lives through our words and actions. In my heart, how do I put away doubt, and trust that God has infinite power to accomplish whatever I ask for in prayer?

God, help me understand today’s Gospel. In the pursuit of having enough in this life—and some stored away just in case—it’s easy to make material gain the primary aim. I don’t want that for myself, and I don’t want to be bound by fruitless pursuits. Lord, help me take to heart the words of your Son and trust that what he says doesn’t merely reflect reality but instead shapes it: “Therefore I tell you, all that you ask for in prayer, believe that you will receive it and it shall be yours.” Lord, provide for me where faith is lacking; give me the grace to be bold in what I ask for and believe that it will happen.

Lord, I know that you love me. Help me remain childlike in my trust. From the responsorial psalm: “For the LORD loves his people, and he adorns the lowly with victory. The Lord takes delight in his people.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

**Announcement: Please join me in praying a novena to Saint Anthony from June 5 to June 13. I’ll return to daily Gospel reflections on June 14.**

Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

But [Bartimaeus] kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you.” He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.

As Jesus and his disciples are leaving Jericho, they come across a blind man named Bartimaeus, who hears that Jesus is passing by and begins to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Although people rebuked him, he kept calling out for Jesus all the more. When Jesus calls for him, Bartimaeus asks for sight. With Jesus’ words, “Go your way; your faith has saved you,” Bartimaeus receives sight immediately. Jesus as the Son of God restores his sight because of Bartimaeus’s single-minded persistence, calling out for the Lord until he answered him. With a word, Jesus brings healing present to Bartimaeus. What is one thing I can ask of the Lord today to bring before him my faith?

Lord, help me recognize, as Bartimaeus did, that you can hear me and that I can call out all the more for your mercy to receive the gift of sight. Bartimaeus, though blind, could see you through the eyes of faith; in the same way, although you are not visible to me, grant me the faith and persistence that Bartimaeus had. Help me see that you are present before me always every day. You are present, Lord, in the poor, the sick, and the suffering, who cry out to you. And you are present always in the Eucharist, in your word, in the Church, in the sacraments, and in the prayers of your people through the prompting of the Holy Spirit.

Lord, help me gain sight of you through the light of faith. As the Gospel acclamation says, “I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

**Announcement: Please join me in praying a novena to Saint Anthony from June 5 to June 13. I’ll return to daily Gospel reflections on June 14.**

Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke

And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked with favor on his lowly servant. From this day all generations will call me blessed: the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.”

In today’s Gospel, Mary visits Elizabeth, traveling in haste to Judah. Taking place immediately after the annunciation, the exchange between Mary and her cousin upon greeting each other reflects the action and presence of the Holy Spirit within them. Prompted by the Holy Spirit to cry out loudly, Elizabeth declares Mary’s blessedness. “And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” Mary’s response, her Magnificat, rejoices in God and gives glory to his holiness: “the Almighty has done great things for me, and holy is his Name.” Mary continues praising God for fulfilling his promises of justice and mercy and goodness: “He has come to the help of his servant Israel for he has remembered his promise of mercy, the promise he made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children for ever.”

God, help me comprehend what the Visitation means, in my life and in the life of the Church, for bringing all of your promises to fulfillment. Help me understand that through Jesus your Son, mercy itself dwelt among us. Through his birth, death, and resurrection, he continuously brings to all who believe in him the hope of the resurrection. Mary, the first disciple of Christ, held that hope within her from the moment Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. “Blessed are you who believed,” Elizabeth said to Mary, “that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”

Lord, help me recall throughout the day that the same Holy Spirit whose work Mary and Elizabeth rejoiced in continues to work this very day in my life and in the lives of those I encounter. Give me the grace to see your will for me as I call to mind the great things you have done for me.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

**Announcement: Please join me in praying a novena to Saint Anthony from June 5 to June 13. I’ll return to daily Gospel reflections on June 14.**

Tuesday of the Eighth Week in Ordinary Time

A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark

Peter began to say to Jesus, “We have given up everything and followed you.” Jesus said, “Amen, I say to you, there is no one who has given up house or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or lands for my sake and for the sake of the Gospel who will not receive a hundred times more now in this present age: houses and brothers and sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and eternal life in the age to come. But many that are first will be last, and the last will be first.”

Peter’s statement about giving up everything for the sake of following Jesus seems stark and absolute. By comparison, Jesus’ response overflows with the blessings that come from following him. The first reading from Sirach says that the Lord repays sevenfold, and Jesus multiplies this many times over by saying that those who give up things for his sake will receive a hundred times more now in this present age. Although persecution may come to those who follow him, Jesus says that they will be rewarded with eternal life.

God, help me understand that in the words “many that are first will be last, and the last will be first,” your Son invites me to a life of service. As high and deep as the list of sacrifices may be in following you, and as fearful as giving up everything for your sake can be, you assure me through the work of your Son that I will receive a hundredfold in return. Lord, I strive to understand the mystery of suffering for the sake of Christ and what it means for my life today and for the days to come. Give me the grace of abandonment to your divine will for the sake of the Gospel. Help me understand what a child knows very well: that you are the source of the beauty that draws me into your mystery.

From the Gospel acclamation: “Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth; you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the Kingdom.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.

In today’s Memorial of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Church, the Gospel according to John recounts that Mary is present before the cross. When Jesus says to her, “Woman, behold your son” and to John, “Behold, your mother,” Jesus gives to Mary a new mission that extends not only to the disciples but to all humanity. Mary becomes mother to all of us; in taking her into our home, we bring with her God’s gift of divine grace. As Saint John Paul II said of this moment: “The reality brought about by Jesus’ words, that is, Mary’s new motherhood in relation to the disciple, is a further sign of the great love that led Jesus to offer his life for all people. On Calvary this love is shown in the gift of a mother, his mother, who thus becomes our mother too.”

God, help me understand how you break into human history with these words of Jesus from the cross. What your Son speaks is not a mere reflection of reality but forms reality as he speaks. The mother of Jesus is my mother; taking Mary into my home, I profess my discipleship with Christ your Son and the work of his redemption. Give me the grace, God, to be a son to Mary and to welcome her into my home. When the soldiers thrust a lance into the side of Jesus, Blood and water flowed out. Help me remember always to give thanks that through Baptism I died and rose with Christ and that in the Eucharist I receive his Body and Blood.

Thank you, Lord, for the gift of mercy from the cross. Thank you for the invitation to take Mary into our home, to allow us to become her children, and for her constant intercession. Mary, Mother of God, Mother of the Church, our Mother, pray for us!

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Pentecost Sunday

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

After his resurrection and before his ascension, Jesus appears to the disciples behind locked doors, where they are hiding in fear. His first word to them is “Peace.” Showing them his hands and his side, the hands that had been nailed to the cross and the side that had been pierced with a lance, the disciples rejoiced in this because they realized that this was not a ghost and that Jesus is who he said he was: the Son of God. Jesus sends out the disciples just as the Father had sent him, and he delivers on his promise: the Advocate comes upon them with the the breath of God. “Receive the Holy Spirit,” Jesus says, “Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” Jesus’ prayer for his disciples and for all who believe in him is answered.

God, help me understand the vital role of the Holy Spirit in my relationship with you. When I think of Jesus’ departure and the coming of the Advocate, I want to set straight in my heart what this means. My first thought is that of sadness, that Jesus is leaving the face of the earth and that his physical absence is a loss. But a greater reality unfolds at this moment. When the Holy Spirit comes, when Jesus breathes on the disciples, he dwells among his people in a new way for all time. It is as the responsorial psalm describes: “If you take away their breath, they perish and return to their dust. When you send forth your spirit, they are created, and you renew the face of the earth.”

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Saturday of the Seventh Week of Easter

A reading from the holy Gospel according to John

Peter turned and saw the disciple following whom Jesus loved, the one who had also reclined upon his chest during the supper and had said, “Master, who is the one who will betray you?” When Peter saw him, he said to Jesus, “Lord, what about him?” Jesus said to him, “What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? You follow me.” So the word spread among the brothers that that disciple would not die.

Peter questions Jesus about John and what is in store for himself in the near future. He questions Jesus’ will for them. Jesus’ response is simply “You follow me.” Because God loves each person as a separate, unrepeatable human being, he asks us to follow him in a unique way—apart from the path even of those closest to us. By saying this to Peter, Jesus corrects his path, guiding him away from the distractions of speculating about the future and on Jesus’ relationship with the other disciples. Am I on task with God’s will, or am I looking distractedly at others and at other things?

God, help me understand and be confident about the particular path you have given me to follow. As Saint Thomas Aquinas says, the substitutes for you that the world offers are honor, power, pleasure, and wealth. These are in themselves a sufficient obstacle to you in everyday life. Add to that busying myself with the relative merits of others and the graces they receive, and I am sure to miss hearing the words you say to Peter that you also say to me: “What concern is it of yours? You follow me.”

From the Gospel acclamation: “I will send to you the Spirit of truth, says the Lord; he will guide you to all truth.”

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.