Tagged: Bible Reading & Meditation

“Most admirable and worthy of everlasting remembrance was the mother…” —2 Maccabees 7:20 It’s likely that Mary, Our Lady of Presentation, knew the story of the Jewish mother and her seven martyred sons (2 Mc 7:1-41). Note the similarities between these two heroic mothers: Both mothers educated their sons (2 Mc 7:27) and gave them examples of extraordinary faith. Both displayed to their sons remarkable bravery based on an unshakable hope in the Lord (2 Mc 7:14). Both watched their sons die brutal deaths for their faith in God (2 Mc 7:20; Jn 19:25), yet each “bore it courageously because...

Jesus “looked up and said, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry down. I mean to stay at your house today.’ He quickly descended, and welcomed Him with delight.” —Luke 19:5-6 During Jesus’ time on earth, Jericho was considered a city of affluence and arrogance. Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector of the city, fit in well with the spirit of Jericho, for he was also affluent and arrogant. However, when Zacchaeus came down from the sycamore tree he had climbed, he began to come down off his pedestal of pride, even in the midst of a city of pride. Jesus commanded Zacchaeus to come down...

“I beheld the apostates with loathing, because they kept not to Your promise.” —Psalm 119:158 Faithful Jews at the time of the Maccabees suffered a cultural and religious takeover by the reigning Greek empire. Many lukewarm Jews renounced their faith, embracing the modern, though sinful, Greek lifestyle (1 Mc 1:15). Faithful Jews were condemned to death and forced to flee for their lives (1 Mc 1:50, 53). Put yourself in the shoes of a faithful Jew. Imagine that your family left home and livelihood to flee the death sentence. Your aunt and cousins were brutally executed (see 1 Mc 1:60-61)...

“These things you are contemplating — the day will come when not one stone will be left on another, but it will all be torn down.” —Luke 21:6 Jesus combined predicting the fall of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. with predicting the end of the world. He did this because there will be marked similarities between the two catastrophes. Also, Jesus’ accuracy regarding the fall of Jerusalem indicates the credibility of His revelations regarding the end of the world. Jesus revealed many more details regarding the end of the world than He revealed about most other aspects of His plan. He...

Jesus “told them a parable on the necessity of praying always and not losing heart.” —Luke 18:1 A necessity is something that we must have or do. Otherwise, we will suffer dire consequences, even death. For example, food is a necessity. If we don’t have it, we die. Jesus teaches that it is a necessity not only to pray but to pray always (Lk 18:1; 1 Thes 5:17). Otherwise, we will suffer dire consequences. How can we pray always and thereby not put our lives in jeopardy? The Spirit “helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how...