Matthew 8:5-17 Jesus heals the centurion’s servant and then Peter’s mother-in-law. There is something in common in both these miracles – and that is service. In the first miracle it is a servant who is ill and in the second miracle Peter’s mother-in-law, after being restored to good health, serves them. This gospel passage hints …
Saints Peter and Paul Matthew 16:13-19 Both Peter and Paul became powerful witnesses of Jesus in spite of their short comings and failings, both men bore witness to Jesus Christ and today we honor them as St. Peter and St. Paul. In both instances, Jesus saw a side of them that neither one recognized. Jesus …
St. Irenaeus Matthew 7:21-29 We have all kinds of public “signs of belief” but they do not in and of themselves constitute a living faith. The true followers of Christ are those who do the will of the Father. They forgive the wrongdoer. They love the stranger. They feed the hungry. They shelter the homeless. …
Matthew 7:15-20 Twice Jesus says, “By their fruits you will know them.”He does not indicate where you will find them. Of course this may mean that good trees and good fruit are found in surprising places. In the Gospel of Mark there is a story about a man who is casting out demons in Jesus’ …
Matthew 7:6,12-14 “Do to others whatever you would have them do to you.” The only person who can even begin to satisfy the positive form of this rule is the person who has the love of Christ within his or her heart. That person will try to forgive as they would like to be forgiven, …
Matthew 7:1-5 One way to preserve the cohesiveness of the community is to prohibit judging. Nothing tears a group apart faster or more efficiently than the judgment of one member by another. Jesus continues his Sermon on the Mount by making it clear that judging does not belong among his disciples. The best incentive to …
The Nativity of St. John the Baptist Luke 1:57-66,80 “The best-laid plans,” wrote poet Robert Burns, “go oft astray.” God called an old and childless couple out of retirement to begin a pilgrimage of promise. God chose Abraham and Sarah. Sometimes they trusted God, sometimes they didn’t. The nation born of God’s promise was more …
Matthew 6:24-34 Jesus describes God’s fatherly love for us his children by telling us not to worry. God’s love is a tender love that should ease our anxieties and fears for the present moment and the future. Someone once defined healthy adult maturity as “a state in which tenderness prevails.” Tenderness is often considered a …
Matthew 6:19-23 “Where your treasure is, there also will be your heart.”There were two sets of virtues, the résumé virtuesand the eulogy virtues.The résumé virtuesare the skills you bring to the marketplace. The eulogy virtues are the ones that are talked about at your funeral — whether you were kind, brave, honest or faithful. Were …
St. Aloysius Gonzaga Matthew 6:7-15 This is how you are to pray: ‘Our Father . . . thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” From reading or watching the news it seems that the Kingdom is non-existent. But we all know the blessed actions of many people who …
