General

When I read the first reading the first thing that came to my mind was the number of people from the U.S. who came to Haiti and asked why we didn’t have a soup kitchen or a brown-bag lunch give-away…

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…

Prophecy in Scripture means telling the truth, not telling the future. And the kind of truth-telling none of us like comes from people we think are not as good as we are. Amos says matter-of-factly that he’s a shepherd, sent…

Today’s focus is on faith and courage. We need both. There are two miracles in Mark’s Gospel for today, two of four that explore the power of Jesus during this visit to the Sea of Galilee. Last week we heard…

Our Gospel today fits right in with the harmony and décor of the zoom meeting we had on Friday. It also reminds us once again of the essential and dynamic components of “Contemplation and Action 101. “ Jesus had a…

Pity the poor snake. The other scriptural account of creation says God saw it, and it was good. It seems that Scripture writers had their own opinions and prejudices, not to mention how they threw Eve under the bus. Be…

Isaiah 25     1 Corinthians       Matthew 25 Seeking Home—Corpus Christi—Mystical Body You probably noticed: This morning’s readings are not those from the lectionary; I chose them instead to help us focus on three distinct themes of…

A gypsy man stopped at a well in a town square for a drink. After he drank he continued gazing into the well as if he was looking down at someone at the bottom of the well. A little boy…

(Editor’s note: This is a joint reflection by Agnes Ann and Mary Nelson CoL.) Do you think there was really a noise like a strong wind at this first outpouring of the Holy Spirit?  And do you think there really…

When I read the first reading, my thoughts turned to upcoming elections, both ours and those taking place here in the U.S. in November. It is interesting to look at the process outlined in the reading. The apostles used some…

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…

At the Catholic Worker at Mass we took turns preparing a homily. One day the homilist forgot, and so she said, “The Gospel speaks for itself.” Well, yes, and this entire set of readings in particular speaks for itself. First,…