Luke 2:22–40 Gospel Summary Today’s gospel reading about the presentation of the child Jesus in the temple is most suitable for the feast of the Holy Family because it deals very gently with the difficult question of the relationship of young and old in families and in society generally. The parents of Jesus are very […]
Continue ReadingSirach 3: 2 – 6, 12 – 14; Collosians 3: 12 – 21; Gospel Luke 2: 22 – 40 This celebration of the Holy Family is one that puts the birth of Jesus into an important context for us. When God sent his Son he did drop down to earth from Heaven or mysteriously appear […]
Continue ReadingLuke 2: 1–14 Gospel Summary In the gospel passage for Mass at Midnight we hear the Christmas story from the Gospel of Luke. It is a story so simple that even a child can grasp it; yet, even after 2000 years it is a mystery so profound that the richness of its meaning remains inexhaustible. […]
Continue ReadingLectionary 16 “O God, who wonderfully created the dignity of human nature and still more wonderfully restored it; grant, we pray, that we may share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” With these profound words the Church opens its celebration of the Nativity of the Lord on Christmas […]
Continue ReadingLuke 1: 26–38 Gospel Summary On the carefully programmed Advent journey to Christmas, the Fourth Sunday belongs to Mary. This is so because Christmas, which celebrates the birth of Jesus, necessarily involves the motherhood of Mary. However, the story of that birth is reserved for Midnight Mass, while today’s gospel tells us how Mary prepared […]
Continue ReadingLectionary 13 This year the last Sunday of Advent falls on Christmas Eve; to accommodate this coincidence I chose to reflect on the scripture readings for the Vigil Mass of Christmas, which takes place late in the afternoon or early in the evening of Christmas Eve. We first hear a proclamation from the prophecy of […]
Continue ReadingJohn 1: 6–8, 19–28 Gospel Summary The gospel passage tells us about a man named John who was sent by God to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. This is the way the testimony happened. Religious leaders from Jerusalem came to find out who he was. John tells them that […]
Continue ReadingIsaiah 61: 1 – 2A, 10 – 11, I Thes 5:16-24, Jn 1: 6-8, 19-28 The Third Sunday of Advent is known as Gaudate Sunday. Gaudate is the Latin word for rejoice and is the message of the readings and the prayers for the Mass of today. In Isaiah we hear the prophet say; “I […]
Continue ReadingMark 1: 1–8 Gospel Summary At the very outset, Mark declares his gospel to be the “good news.” He dares to say this in a world that is broken and weary because this gospel announces the consistent divine initiative to bring about a new creation where peace and harmony will prevail over pride and violence. […]
Continue ReadingIsaiah 40; 1-5, 9-11, 2 Peter 3:8-14, Mark 1: 1 – 8 On this second Sunday of Advent John the Baptist makes an appearance and shouts out to us; “prepare the way of the Lord!” This is the fulfillment of a prophecy from Isaiah seven hundred years earlier when Isaiah is told the people of […]
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