CORPUS CHRISTI Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a; 1 Corinthians 10:16-17; John 6:51-58 This weekend the church celebrates the Feast of the Body and Blood of Christ, or as perhaps it is better known by its Latin translation, Corpus Christi. Feasts in the church have a dual purpose. They call Catholics to celebrate with faith the person, or […]

  PENTECOST Acts 2:1-11; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13; John 20:19-23 This weekend the church celebrates the Feast of Pentecost, one of the most important feasts of the church’s liturgical year. It is richly biblical in its background, and it is profoundly educational both in its own message as well as in its place in the […]

SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER Acts 8:5-8, 14-17; 1 Peter 3:15-18; John 14:15-21 The Acts of the Apostles once again this Easter season furnishes the first reading. In the readings of the weekends earlier in this season, the identity of the Apostles clearly has been established. In a critically important revelation, the Apostles exercised the very […]

FOURTH SUNDAY OF EASTER Acts 2:14a, 36-41; 1 Peter 2:20b-25; John 10:1-10 Readings from the Acts of the Apostles frequently occur during the Easter season. They clearly show not just life in general in the first Christian community but quite expressly they reveal the special place among the early Christians of the Apostles, and that […]

SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER Acts 2:42-47; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31 With deep faith and faith-filled excitement the church continues the celebration, begun a week and a day ago at Easter, of the Lord’s resurrection and final victory over death and sin. As is the case in almost every Mass of this season, the first […]

  PALM SUNDAY Matthew 21:1-11; Isaiah 50:4-7; Philippians 2:6-11; Matthew 26:14-27:66 This weekend observes Palm Sunday, recalling with such great reverence the Lord’s traditional entry into Jerusalem, beginning the drama of Holy Week. The liturgy includes two readings from the Gospels. The first, occurring at the blessing of the palms, and as the procession of […]

FOURTH SUNDAY OF LENT 1 Samuel 16:1b, 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 long has been called “Laetare Sunday.” Laetare means “to rejoice.” The church rejoices that despite the drabness of Lent, the glory of Christ shines forth; […]

SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT 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 biblical reading. As its name implies, Genesis reveals the divine origin of life and the divine plan in the forming of the Hebrew race. First and foremost, Genesis is a splendidly vivid revelation […]

7TH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME Leviticus 12:1-2, 17-18; 1 Corinthians 3:16-23; Matthew 5:38-48 The first reading is from the Book of Leviticus, one of the five books of the Pentateuch, the Torah, the basic revelation by God to the Chosen People. This reading reports the day when God spoke to Moses: “I the Lord, your […]