God's Word for Today (Scripture Reflections)

  Sunday - 29 September 2024 –XXVI Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) Mass Readings: Num 11: 25-29    Ps 19    Jas 5: 1-6    Mk 9: 38-48 Key Verse to Meditate: If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than to have two hands and to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire (Mk 9:43). My dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord, The Liturgy of the Word on this Twenty-Sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time invites us to reflect deeply on several key themes: avoiding scandal to others in the faith, being vigilant about the spiritual dangers that can come from the misuse of our hands, feet, and eyes, and practicing tolerance toward fellow disciples in our journey of faith. We are called to remove anything that leads us to sin, no matter how precious it may seem. This Sunday’s liturgy also emphasizes the importance of practicing patience and acceptance of others as they walk their own paths in the life of faith. The pericope teaches us that sin, as well as

  Sunday - 22 September 2024 – XXV Sunday in ordinary Time (B) Mass Readings: Wis 2:12.17-20    Ps 54    Jas 3:16-4:3    Mk 9:30-37 Key Verse to Meditate: "Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all" (Mk 9:35). A Story to Ponder: Once, in a monastery, the friars were devout, faithfully attending to their daily routines of manual labor, prayer, and communal life. Yet, over time, the monastery began to suffer from internal conflicts, discontentment, and harsh words exchanged in the community. This deeply troubled the rector, who struggled to maintain the harmony of the monastic life. In search of wisdom, the rector decided to visit a wise man who lived in a small hut by the riverbank. After listening to the rector pour out his concerns, the wise man offered him a simple yet profound message: "Tell your community this secret—one among you is Christ." The rector returned to the monastery and gathered the friars. He shared the wise man

  Homily - Sunday 15 September 2024 – XXIV Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Mass Readings: Is 50:5-9a    Ps 116    Jas 2:14-18    Mk 8:27-35 Key verse to Meditate: He asked them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter answered him, "You are the Christ" (Mk 8:29). My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, On this 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time, we are confronted with one of the most profound and personal questions Jesus ever asked: "But who do you say that I am?" This is not just a question for Peter, but for each of us. Do we truly know Christ as the Messiah? And if we do, what have we done with that knowledge? For to know Christ is more than intellectual understanding—it is a call to action, a call to transformation. Without knowing Christ, we risk losing our very lives because only in knowing Him can we embrace the cross. Only as believers can we follow the suffering servant. Today’s liturgy invites us into the heart of this mystery, particularly

  Sunday 8 September 2024 –XXIII Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) Mass Readings: Is 35:4-7    Ps 146    Jas 2:1-5    Mk 7:31-37 Key Verse to Meditate: Then looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, "Ephphatha," that is, "Be opened" (Mk 7:34) My dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord, The Word of God on this Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, the second Sunday of September 2024, brings us the healing of the deaf man with a speech impediment from the Gospel of Mark (7:31-37). After some weeks of meditation on the Bread of Life discourse from the sixth chapter of John, last Sunday’s reading allows us to once again embark on the Gospel of Mark for our reflection. In the first reading, taken from the Prophet Isaiah, we hear the announcement of salvation in which the prophet foresees God’s final and dramatic transformation of His people and their world. In his vision of the future transformation of Zion, Isaiah speaks of the opening of the eyes of the