Wednesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time [I]
Exodus 3:1-6, 9-12  +  Matthew 11:25-27
July 19, 2017

“‘Come no nearer!  Remove the sandals from your feet….’”

Both the First Reading and the Gospel Reading today proclaim the power of divine revelation.  Jesus in today’s Gospel Reading makes an exclamation to His Father, something rare in the four Gospel accounts.  During this exclamation, Jesus says, “no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.” Continue reading →

The Blessed Carmelite Martyrs of Compiègne *
July 17, 2017

During the French Revolution’s Reign of Terror, over 40,000 persons were executed for their fidelity to the Catholic Faith. The sixteen Carmelite martyrs of Compiègne, beatified by Pope St. Pius X in 1906, were among this vast number of Christ’s faithful, yet their testimony is particularly striking.

When their lodgings were invaded in June 1794, revolutionaries shattered their devotional objects.  The revolutionary who trampled their tabernacle underfoot told them that their convent should be turned into a dog kennel.  In the prison where they were taken, they composed a chant for their impending martyrdom.  The original copy of the chant still exists.  The last verse pays special homage to Our Lady, singing:

“Holy Virgin, our model, August queen of martyrs, deign to strengthen our zeal / And purify our desires, protect France even yet, help us mount to Heaven, /  Make us feel even in these places, the effects of your power.  Sustain your children, / Submissive, obedient, dying, dying with Jesus and in our King believing.” Continue reading →

Tuesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time [I]
Exodus 2:1-15  +  Matthew 11:20-24
July 18, 2017

“…she said, ‘I drew him out of the water.’”

Today’s First Reading gives us the “origin story” of Moses.  The Bible does not tell us the names of Moses’ parents, but the first sentence of today’s passage reveals that both of them were of the house of Levi.  The Levites were the priestly tribe of Israel.  Right off the bat, this foreshadows something important about the role that Moses will play in salvation history. Continue reading →

Monday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time [I]
Exodus 1:8-14,22  +  Matthew 10:34—11:1
July 17, 2017

“The Egyptians, then, dreaded the children of Israel and reduced them to cruel slavery….”

Today we begin at weekday Mass to hear from the Book of Exodus.  We’ll continue to hear from this book for about three weeks.  Today’s passage from Exodus is from its first chapter.  Moses does not appear.  What we hear today forms the backdrop for his entrance. Continue reading →

The Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time [A]
Isaiah 55:10-11  +  Romans 8:18-23  +  Matthew 13:1-23
July 16, 2017

“‘And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up.’”

Humility is the foundation of the spiritual life.  Because of this foundation, the Lord God can dwell more fully within us.  In today’s Gospel parable, “A sower went out to sow.”  Now either this sower is foolish, or he knows something that we don’t know.  If you were driving down a paved road, and came up behind a farmer driving his tractor and drill, dropping seed for miles onto the asphalt, you’d be concerned for him.  Doesn’t he know he’s wasting his time, energy, and money, in addition to probably ruining his drill?

But the sower in Jesus’ parable acts in a similar way:  “…as he sowed, some seed fell on the path, and birds came and ate it up.”  Later on in the same chapter of Matthew, Jesus explains “the parable of the sower.  The seed sown on the path[,] is the one who hears the word of the kingdom without understanding it, and the evil one comes and steals away what was sown in his heart.”

This is the first of four illustrations that Jesus paints in today’s parable.  The first three illustrations are pictures of the sower laboring in vain, because of the path, rocky ground, and thorns.  Only the fourth illustration describes seed falling on rich soil, producing fruit, a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold. Continue reading →

St. Bonaventure, Bishop & Doctor of the Church
Genesis 49:29-32; 50:15-26  +  Matthew 10:24-33
July 15, 2017

“‘…not one [sparrow] falls to the ground without your Father’s knowledge.’”

Jesus preaches today about Our Father’s providential knowledge and will.  God knows all things.  We know this abstractly, but perhaps we fail to consider all that this truth of our Faith means. Continue reading →

St. Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin
Genesis 46:1-7,28-30  +  Matthew 10:16-23
July 14, 2017

“‘Behold, I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves….’”

Jesus was always realistic during His earthly life.  So it’s no surprise that He says to His Apostles, “I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves”.   His words were true in the first century, and are so also today. Continue reading →

Thursday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time [I]
Genesis 44:18-21,23b-29;45:1-5  +  Matthew 10:7-15
July 13, 2017

“‘Whoever will not receive you or listen to your words—go outside that house or town and shake the dust from your feet.’”

One of the items on my “bucket list” is to spend a considerable amount of time writing about The City of God by St. Augustine of Hippo.  He lived in a cultural setting similar to ours.  The book is a contrast between the City of God and the city of man.  His comparison of the two leads to many reflections on the nature of divine Providence.  Many of these reflections consider how God chooses to bring moral good out of moral evil. Continue reading →

Wednesday of the Fourteenth Week in Ordinary Time [I]
Genesis 41:55-57;42:5-7,17-24 +  Matthew 10:1-7
July 12, 2017

“Jesus summoned his Twelve disciples and gave them authority….”

Today’s Gospel passage speaks about reaching out to those who are hurt and sick.  We hear Jesus sending his twelve apostles to go out and heal “every disease and every illness.”  More than just a prophet, Jesus has authority not only to call back the repentant to Himself, but also to heal them. Continue reading →