Whose sin caused his blindness? 1Samuel 16:1, 6-7, 10-13a Ephesians 5:8-14 John 9:1-41 Drawing from the first word, in Latin, in the entrance antiphon for this weekend’s liturgy, this Sunday is sometimes called “Laetare Sunday.” Laetare means “to rejoice.” The church rejoices that even amid the drabness and penance of Lent, the glory of Christ […]

Witness to the divinity of Jesus Genesis 12:1-4a 2 Timothy 1:8a-10 Matthew 17:1-9 The Book of Genesis is the source of this weekend’s first reading. As its name implies, Genesis reveals the divine origin of life, and it also reveals the divine plan in the forming of the Hebrew race. Genesis is a splendidly vivid […]

Consider the birds of the air Isaiah 49:14-15 1 Corinthians 4:1-5 Matthew 6:24-34 It is not difficult to imagine the frustration with which the author of the third section of Isaiah felt as he heard the despairing and critical remarks of the people around him. Times were bad. They were very bad. The people long […]

The author of the Commandments Sirach 15:15-20 1 Corinthians 2:6-10 Matthew 5:17-37 The Book of Sirach that is the source of this weekend’s first reading is part of a collection of biblical writings that in their very origin teach an important lesson. As various fortunes, political, economic, and individual, changed and reversed among God’s people […]

Simeon and Anna Malachi 3:1-4 Hebrews 2:14-18 Luke 2:22-40 Under other circumstances the liturgy for this weekend would be that of the Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time. Instead, however, the church celebrates the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord. Any interruption in the usual course of the liturgical season is a lesson in itself. […]

He belongs to us all Isaiah 60:1-6 Ephesians 3:2-3a, 5-6 Matthew 2:1-12 This weekend the church invites us to celebrate the Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord, one of the most revered feasts in the Christian calendar. Clear and distinct in the first reading from the third section of the Book of Isaiah is […]

Make our hearts a fitting dwelling place Isaiah 11:1-10 Romans 15:4-9 Matthew 3:1-12 Indicating the importance of Advent and the message of these readings, the church this weekend celebrates the Second Sunday of Advent, rather than the great Feast of the Immaculate Conception. (This feast will occur this year on Dec. 9.) This weekend’s reading […]

The embodiment of God’s endless love 2 Samuel 5:1-3 Colossians 1:12-20 Luke 23:35-43 The Second Book of Samuel furnishes the first biblical reading for this feast, marking the close of the church’s year. Once the two books of Samuel composed a single volume. In time, editors divided the volume into the two books now seen […]

Without God, we are doomed 2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14 2 Thessalonians 2:16-3:5 Luke 20:27-38 This weekend, observed by the church as the Thirty-Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, has as its first reading a section from the Second Book of Maccabees. Maccabees, First or Second, rarely appears as a reading at Mass. These books are late […]

The humble man is rewarded Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 Luke 18:9-14 The Book of Sirach provides this weekend’s first scriptural reading. The book is part of that group of biblical writings classified by scholars collectively as the Wisdom Literature. The Wisdom Literature developed through an interesting and very believable process. As conditions […]