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Daily Reflections

Daily Scripture, September 17, 2025

Scripture:

1 Timothy 3:14-16
Luke 7:31-35

Reflection:

Our readings today might aptly be described as a “lesson on manners,” a brief but very insightful tutorial on how Christians ought and ought not to behave. In the passage from 1 Timothy, we are reminded that through baptism we were incorporated into “the household of God.” Even though all of us belong to multiple “households” (family, friendships, local communities, groups and organizations), none should ever become more important than the household of God, which is “the Church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth.” The household of God is our true place of belonging, the foundation and center of our lives; no other “household” should ever supplant it.

Lest we think the household of God is a haphazard collection of individuals, each doing as he or she pleases, the writer insists that every member should “know how to behave in the household of God.” That’s because as we grow as members of that household, we are initiated into the ways of God that have been revealed to us in Christ. By learning the “manners” of Christ, we can fulfill our baptismal vocation of witnessing Christ in our lives until, as 1 Timothy promises, he is “believed in throughout the world.”

By contrast, today’s strange nugget of a gospel shows us how not to behave; it is a pithy, if initially perplexing, lesson in “bad manners.” Jesus zeroes in on people who are always finding fault, always criticizing, and using that as an excuse to reject the message as well as the messenger. John the Baptist comes along, and rather than taking his message to heart, they declare, “He is possessed by a demon.” Then Jesus stands right in front of them, and rather than opening their hearts to receive him, they mock him as “a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.” As a result, they stay exactly as they were, untouched, unchanged, unredeemed. That’s not only bad manners; it’s also an inconsolable tragedy.

Paul J. Wadell is Professor Emeritus of Theology & Religious Studies at St. Norbert College in De Pere, Wisconsin, and a member of the Passionist Family of Holy Cross Province.

Daily Scripture, May 31, 2012

Scripture: Zephaniah 3:14-18a or Romans 12:9-16 Luke 1:39-56 Reflection: "…And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me…." So many events in » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 24, 2012

Scripture: Acts 22:30; 23:6-11 John 17:20-26 Reflection: Audacity of Courage The world of faith is a scary one.  It calls for a great deal of courage!  In today’s Scripture we » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 23, 2012

Scripture: Acts 20:28-38 John 17:11b-19 Reflection: In our Scripture readings for today, we have passages from two "farewell" events. In our first reading from Acts, Paul is saying good bye » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 22, 2012

Scripture: Acts 20:17-27 John 17:1-11a Reflection: "But now, compelled by the Spirit I am going to Jerusalem." Acts 20: 22 My version of this verse is "But now, compelled by » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 21, 2012

Scripture:  Acts 19.1-8 John 16.29-33 Reflection: Years ago when I studied in Rome, it was always an adventure to make one’s way from our monastery of SS. John and Paul » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 20, 2012

  Scripture: Acts 1: 1-11 Ephesians 1: 17-23 Mark 16: 15–20     Reflection: While today is the Seventh Sunday of Easter, in many dioceses in the United States, the » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 17, 2012

Scripture: Acts 1:1-11 Ephesians 1:17-23 or 4:1-13 or 4:1-7, 11-13 Mark 16:15-20 Reflection: We experience many transitions throughout our lives. These transitions occur often and sometimes unexpected. We seldom know what » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 16, 2012

Scripture: Acts 17:15, 22-18:1 John 16:12-15 Reflection: Meeting God’s People Where They Are Last week I attended the Presbyteral Convocation for the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, and one of the things » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 15, 2012

Scripture: Acts 16:22-34 John 16:5-11 Reflection: When we read the Acts of the Apostles and see the sufferings that the early missionaries like Paul and his companion Silas had to » Continue Reading.

Daily Scripture, May 14, 2012

Feast of St. Matthias Scripture: Acts 1:15-17, 20-26 John 15:9-17 Reflection: For this feast of St. Matthias there is an element in the sacred scriptures that we will surely find » Continue Reading.

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