Deut. 6:2-6, Mark 12:28b-34 John McKenzie, a scripture scholar from the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, says that Jesus’ answer to the question – “Which is the greatest commandment?” – is not unusual, and rabbis of the day would have considered…
John 6:51-58 The words from John that we have just heard speak strongly to those of us who stand within the Christian tradition. The words resonate with anyone who walks with followers of Jesus. Jesus says, “I am the living…
Mark 6:30-34 Earlier in this chapter of Mark’s Gospel Jesus sends out the twelve, two-by-two as we heard from Mary Ann McGivern last Sunday, giving them authority over unclean spirits. They were to wear the clothes they had on and…
Acts 1:1-11, Eph. 1:17-23, Mark 16:15-20 Editor’s note: The Solemnity of the Ascension will be observed Sunday, May 12, in the Louisville Archdiocese. The feast was transferred to that date from Thursday, May 9, which in 2024 will be celebrated…
Acts 4:32-35, 1 John 5:1-6, John 20:19-31 Several years ago, during the Easter Vigil Elaine Prevallet quoted a phrase from a poem of Wendell Berry’s. He used the expression, “Practice resurrection.” Some years later in her Easter Vigil homily, Susan Classen…
Deuteronomy 18:15-20, Mark 1:21-28 Jesus is in Capernaum. It is early in his public life. Things go well. In Mark’s Gospel before the section we just heard, Jesus had met Simon and Andrew, then James and John. He had asked…
Numbers 6:22-27, Galatians 4:4-7, Luke 2:16-21 We just heard in the first reading about God telling Moses to instruct Aaron and his children just how to bless the people. A wonderful blessing God speaks to Moses: May God bless you, and keep you;May…
Ezekiel 34:11-12, 15-17; I Corinthians 15:20-26, 28; Matthew 25:31-46 Here we are, on the last Sunday of the liturgical year, celebrating Christ as king. For some of us, “king” may carry negative connotations — kings and their subjects, power and…
Exodus 22:20-26, Matthew 22:34-40 It is as though the reading from Exodus was written for our times. “Don’t oppress. Don’t extort. Be compassionate.” Oppression, greed and lack of consideration of another were prevalent enough in the early times, too, as…
Jeremiah 20:10-13, Matthew 10:26-33 “Fear no one,” we just heard read at the beginning of today’s Gospel. Jesus said to the Twelve, “Fear no one.” To back up this command, to give the Twelve a reason to behave this way,…
John 6:51-58 The words from John that we have just heard speak strongly to those of us who stand within the Christian tradition. The words resonate with anyone who walks with followers of Jesus. Jesus says, “I am the living…
These Easter days are so full of energy and life. The disciples are off and running to tell the various communities about Jesus and about “The Way.” The reading from Acts shows the Twelve getting organized so that the Greek-speaking…