Category: Verse for the day

“Apart from Me you can do nothing.” –John 15:5 Mass Readings: May 2 First: Acts 15:1-6; Resp: Psalm 122:1-5; Gospel: John 15:1-8 Listen to the Mass Readings Business leaders understand well the concept of cutting activities out of the business process that are not profitable. Sports coaches and athletic trainers also understand cutting out practice drills and plays which are not productive. Farmers don’t waste their limited time on activities which do not increase the yield of crops, flock, or herd. So, Jesus’ teaching on pruning the branches which don’t bear fruit is well understood by many. What is not...

“Isn’t this the carpenter’s Son?” –Matthew 13:55 Mass Readings: May 1 First: Genesis 1:26–2:3; Resp: Psalm 90:2-4,12-14,16; Gospel: Matthew 13:54-58 Listen to the Mass Readings Pope Pius XII instituted today’s feast of St. Joseph the Worker to compete with the May Day celebrations in Communist countries. We have the obscure carpenter of Nazareth (see Mt 13:55) pitted against the Goliath of multi-national, atheistic Communism. For years, on this day, the Communists paraded their armies, missiles, tanks, and guns, while Joseph called us to do the manual tasks of everyday life with our whole being and “in the name of the...

“The Holy Spirit Whom the Father will send in My name, will instruct you in everything, and remind you of all that I told you.” –John 14:26 The Holy Spirit instructed Paul and Barnabas to: endure persecution (Acts 14:5ff), flee persecution (Acts 14:6), and continue “to proclaim the good news” (Acts 14:7). The Holy Spirit instructed Paul that: a man crippled from birth had the faith to be saved (Acts 14:9), and he should heal the crippled man by crying out in a loud voice: “Stand up! On your feet!” (Acts 14:10) The Holy Spirit instructs us about: being witnesses...

“When [Saul] arrived back in Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples there; but it turned out that they were all afraid of him. They even refused to believe that he was a disciple.” –Acts 9:26 Disciples of Jesus bear fruit for the Lord, fruit that is evident to other disciples. Disciples also imitate the Lord Jesus in His character, that is, His holiness, and in His ministry, that is in bringing others to the Lord. It’s very understandable that the Jerusalem Christians did not believe that Saul of Tarsus, that is, the Apostle Paul, was a disciple. The only...

“We now turn to the Gentiles.” –Acts 13:46 “Jesus sent these men on mission as the Twelve, after giving them the following instructions: ‘Do not visit pagan territory and do not enter a Samaritan town. Go instead after the lost sheep of the house of Israel’ ” (Mt 10:5-6). Although Jesus delivered a Canaanite woman’s daughter from the devil, He did not proclaim God’s kingdom to her (Mt 15:26-28). Therefore, the early Christians believed that life in Christ was for Jews only. The Old Testament prophecies about saving the nations were thought to refer only to the Jews scattered throughout...