Category: Daily Reflections

“The Lord answered me, ‘Say not, “I am too young.” To whomever I send you, you shall go; whatever I command you, you shall speak.’ ” –Jeremiah 1:7 Mass Readings: August 29 First: Jeremiah 1:17-19; Resp: Psalm 71:1-6,15,17; Gospel: Mark 6:17-29 Listen to the Mass Readings Today we badly need people like St. John the Baptizer (see Mk 6:17ff). We need courageous men and women who will speak the truth in love (Eph 4:15) and stand up for purity. We need mature Christians, not “infants in Christ” (1 Cor 3:1) “tossed here and there, carried about by every wind of...

“You are proving your faith, and laboring in love, and showing constancy of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.” –1 Thessalonians 1:3 Mass Readings: August 28 First: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5,8-10;Resp: Psalm 149:1-6,9;Gospel: Matthew 23:13-22 Listen to the Mass Readings Life in Christ is like a marathon race or a championship fight (2 Tm 4:7). The Christian life is both a joyous celebration (see Phil 4:4) and “a great contest of suffering” (Heb 10:32). To win the victory, we must have faith, hope, and love. By faith, we can move mountains (Mt 17:20). By hope, we can persevere in even the...

“Blest are you, Simon son of Jonah! No mere man has revealed this to you, but My heavenly Father.” –Matthew 16:17 God the Father revealed to Simon that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of the living God (Mt 16:16). As with all divine revelations, this was a catalyst leading to Simon’s name being changed to Peter (Mt 16:18), Jesus building His Church on Peter (Mt 16:18), Peter being given the authority symbolized by the keys to the kingdom of heaven (Mt 16:19), and Jesus insisting on the cross as the essence of discipleship (Mt 16:24). Peter naturally did not...

“The field she entered to glean after the harvesters happened to be the section belonging to Boaz.” –Ruth 2:3 Mass Readings: August 26 First: Ruth 2:1-3,8-11; 4:13-17; Resp: Psalm 128:1-5; Gospel: Matthew 23:1-12 Listen to the Mass Readings Boaz was a redeemer. He redeemed Ruth from a present with only poverty and a future with only destitution and loneliness. “Boaz took Ruth” (Ru 4:13), entered into a contract to personally pay the price of her “redemption” (Ru 4:7), and brought her into “a future full of hope” as his wife (Jer 29:11). Finally, Boaz didn’t simply redeem Ruth and then...

“For wherever you go I will go, wherever you lodge I will lodge, your people shall be my people, and your God my God.” –Ruth 1:16 Mass Readings: August 25 First: Ruth 1:1,3-6,14-16,22; Resp: Psalm 146:5-10; Gospel: Matthew 22:34-40 Listen to the Mass Readings “There was a famine in the land” (Ru 1:1). Therefore, Naomi’s family moved to Moab in order to survive (Ru 1:1). Then, Naomi’s husband died (Ru 1:3). Next, her two sons died (Ru 1:5). Naomi was in such despair that she thought she should change her name to “Mara,” meaning “bitter” (Ru 1:20). When one rotten...