The Gospel of Mark begins with the preaching of John the Baptist and the Baptism of Jesus, followed by the temptations in the desert. Jesus left the desert and began his ministry in Galilee by calling the first disciples; Simon and his brother Andrew, and James and his brother John. They journey to Capernaum where […]
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This Sunday’s second reading is drawn from Saint Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians, a document filled with both uplifting teachings and advice which can be baffling to modern sensibilities. The passage we hear at mass might well fall into the latter category, since in it Paul urges his readers to think carefully as to […]
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The readings today remind us of God’s desire for us. God gives us free will and therefore does not impose his will on us. God invites us, encourages us and acts in powerful ways that will hopefully lead us to make his plan for us, our plan. God’s desire is very simple; He wants us […]
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Having celebrated the Baptism of the Lord last Sunday and the feast of the Epiphany the Sunday before, the Church now sets off into the still fresh new year with a series of what could be termed “call narratives.” Today we hear Samuel and Peter being called to their respective ministries in the service of […]
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Gospel – Mark 1:7-11 The Baptism of the Lord marks the end of the Christmas Season. In a few short weeks we have gone from the baby in the manger to the thirty-year-old Jesus preparing to begin his ministry. This Baptism of Jesus by John was not Baptism as we understand it as a Sacrament […]
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The Church marks the first Sunday of this new year by celebrating the great feast of Epiphany. While it may be overshadowed in our contemporary society by the celebration of Christmas, Epiphany is directly related to Christmas and it ranks as one of the most important days of the Church year, recalling the revelation of […]
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We begin the New Calendar Year with the celebration of the Solemnity of Mary, Holy Mother of God. All Marian Doctrines focus on Mary’s relationship with Jesus. This Solemnity acknowledges that the child born of Mary was fully human and fully Divine. Mary is honored because of the Divine Nature of Jesus as the Mother […]
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The celebration of the Holy Family is the Sunday after Christmas and is one that puts the birth of Jesus into an important context for us. When God sent his Son he did not mysteriously appear out of nowhere, nor did he drop down to earth from Heaven. Jesus is the second person of the […]
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This Christmas eve the source of hope we have all been living on has arrived with our commemoration of the birth of our Lord Jesus in the humble manger in Bethlehem. The creator of time is born in time; the one who fashioned the universe becomes part of it. As we conclude a year unlike […]
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At the end of a year no one will ever forget we come today to the final Sunday before Christmas and hear a Gospel promise about God’s fidelity to his people—something we can all appreciate in these challenging times. In fact, we hear similar promises made in the first reading from the Second Book of […]
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