Category: Prayers

“You are the salt of the earth. But what if salt goes flat? How can you restore its flavor? Then it is good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.” –Matthew 5:13 Mass Readings: June 13 First: Wisdom 7:7-14; Resp: Psalm 40:3-4,10-11,17; Gospel: Mark 16:15-20 Listen to the Mass Readings We who are Christians are the salt of the earth. That means we give flavor to life. The everyday activities of life are often laborious. We make our living by the sweat of our brow (Gn 3:19). “Vanity of vanities! All things are vanity! What profit has...

“He comforts us in all our afflictions and thus enables us to comfort those who are in trouble.” –2 Corinthians 1:4 Mass Readings: June 12 First: 2 Corinthians 1:1-7; Resp: Psalm 34:2-9; Gospel: Matthew 5:1-12 Listen to the Mass Readings Jesus came to earth, suffered for us, and consoled us. It was “our sufferings that He endured” (Is 53:4). Because Jesus suffered, He is able to help others who suffer (Heb 2:18). Jesus had an extraordinary public ministry of healing, teaching, and deliverance. However, it was not by His victories but rather by His wounds and His sufferings that we...

“Moses at once bowed down to the ground in worship.” –Exodus 34:8 A bishop was examining the candidates for Confirmation at a certain parish. He asked the young people to tell him what the Holy Trinity was. A boy answered: “It’s one-in-three, and three-in-one.” The bishop, gently probing to determine if the boy truly prepared for the sacrament, said: “That’s good, but I don’t understand.” The youth immediately responded: “You’re not supposed to!” We can’t ever grasp the how of the Holy Trinity, but we can know the Who. This is because God continually reveals Himself to us. “Yes, God...

“Do not be slack in praising Him.” –Tobit 12:6 Mass Readings: June 10 First: Tobit 12:1,5-15,20; Resp: Tobit 13:2,6-8; Gospel: Mark 12:38-44 Listen to the Mass Readings Tobit and Tobiah had a visitor from heaven, the angel Raphael. The angel had spent his existence praising God in the glory of heaven. No wonder Raphael’s vocabulary is composed primarily of praise; that’s what he always has done in heaven. Raphael spoke from the abundance of his heart (Lk 6:45), and that abundance was the everlasting praise of God. Raphael couldn’t help but praise God, saying: “Thank God! Give Him the praise...

“Raphael said to Tobiah before he reached his father: ‘I am certain that his eyes will be opened. Smear the fish gall on them.’ ” –Tobit 11:7-8 Mass Readings: June 9 First: Tobit 11:5-17;Resp: Psalm 146:1-2,6-10;Gospel: Mark 12:35-37 Listen to the Mass Readings The Lord healed Tobit of blindness through: the archangel Raphael, the medicine of fish gall, his son, Tobiah, and his son’s homecoming. Family members and the home are often the main people and places the Lord chooses to heal. We use the expression: “When you get home from the hospital, you’ll feel better.” Thus, we intimate that...