Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church Scripture: 1 John 2:22-28John 1:19-28 Reflection: St. Basil and St. Gregory were each bestowed the title “Doctor of the Church” by Pope Pius V in…
Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God Scripture: Numbers 6:22-27Galatians 4:4-7Luke 2:16-21 Reflection: Today’s liturgy celebrates the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. While the early church revered Mary as Jesus’s mother, not until the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD…
Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Scripture: Sirach 3:2-6, 12-14Colossians 3:12-21Luke 2:22-40 Reflection: Merry Christmas! Remember Christmas? That was 7 whole days ago! Since then, many of my neighbors have taken down the festive lights in…
Scripture: 1 John 2:3-11Luke 2:22-35 Reflection: . . . for the darkness is passing away, and the true light is already shining.-1 John 2:8 Today is the fifth day of the octave of Christmas. The readings remind us of the…
Feast of the Holy Innocents Scripture: 1 John 1:5-2:2Matthew 2:13-18 Reflection: A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation…. -Matthew 2:18 We celebrate the Feast of the Holy Innocents, martyrs, today. We are all aware of the brutal…
Scripture: 1 John 1:1-4John 20:1a, 2-8 Reflection: This is such an incredibly difficult gospel to read. Anyone who has parented a child can relate to the painful reality of the violence committed upon these children. According to the Catholic News Agency,…
Feast of St. Stephen, The First Martyr Scripture: Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59Matthew 10:17-22 Reflection: The beauty of this Christmas season is all around us. Festive lights, family gatherings, wrapped presents, and sumptuous foods work together to tell us that there is…
The Nativity of the Lord Scripture: Isaiah 52:7-10Hebrews 1:1-6John 1:1-18 Reflection: Let Us Dream I have a hunch that the Wise Men would have liked Pope Francis. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that the Three were kings. No,…
Fourth Sunday of AdventChristmas Eve Scripture: 2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16Romans 16:25-27Luke 1:26-38 Reflection: Wernher von Braun played a prominent role in all aspects of rocketry and space exploration. He was a key scientist in getting us to the moon. He was…
Scripture: Malachi 3:1-4, 23-24Luke 1:57-66 Reflection: In our Gospel reading, as we near the holy day of Christmas, we hear about the birth of John the Baptist. Just as it is with the birth of Jesus, the birth of John…