Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time-A A common human experience is regretting something from our past. In retrospect, we often remember times when we didn't act as we should have, even when we had the chance. When the past melts into the present, we realize the opportunity has passed for good, and regret sets in. The … Continue reading Many Are Invited, Few Are Chosen
Author: Raphael Peters
The Kingdom Will Be Given to Those Who Produce Fruit
Twentieth-seventh Sunday of Ordinary Time-A This week, Jesus offers another parable to the chief priests and scribes. The parable offers insight into how the Kingdom of God works. Like many parables, it presents conflict between parties and plays it out with a moral lesson.In our story today, an authoritative figure owns a vineyard and invests … Continue reading The Kingdom Will Be Given to Those Who Produce Fruit
Young Catholic Converts on the Rise
The Washington Post curiously published an article coinciding with Pope Leo’s visit to France. They are reporting a recent trend of people seeking to join the Catholic Church as full members. Much has been reported about the decline in membership, especially in Western secular countries in Europe and the United States. The Catholic Church continues … Continue reading Young Catholic Converts on the Rise
Doing the Father’s Will
Twenty-sixth Sunday of Ordinary Time-A Socrates once taught that a life devoid of self-reflection is no life at all. In today’s Gospel, Jesus challenges his listeners to examine their lives through the story of a father and his two sons. He asks the chief priests and elders for their opinion about two different ways a … Continue reading Doing the Father’s Will
My Friend, I Am Not Cheating You
Twenty-fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time-A The existence of God, and the idea of God, is simply the result of our tendency to create an ideal being with all the best of our own traits, or the traits we wish to have. The statement presupposes that the definition of God is nothing more than our own … Continue reading My Friend, I Am Not Cheating You
Forgive Seventy Times Seven Times
Twenty-fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time-A Peter said, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times.” The enormous number Jesus uses drives home the point that Christianity is synonymous with being forgiving. After laying the … Continue reading Forgive Seventy Times Seven Times
Love One Another as Yourself
Twenty-third Sunday of Ordinary Time-A “Owe nothing to anyone, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” In this one sentence, St. Paul summarizes that all of the laws and commandments are dependent on the mandate to love another as you do yourself. St. Paul lists commandments such … Continue reading Love One Another as Yourself
Pick Up Your Cross and Follow Me
Twenty-second Sunday of Ordinary Time-A A large portion of advertising dollars goes to relieving or mitigating the suffering of the human condition. These messages claim they can help with physical and mental maladies. Some even claim they can eliminate the pain. Pharmaceutical companies don’t spend the money for nothing; the ads actually work.Not everyone, but … Continue reading Pick Up Your Cross and Follow Me
Who Do You Say I Am?
Twenty-first Sunday of Ordinary Time-A Today’s Gospel justifies the papacy. It recalls a moment in Jesus’ ministry when he asked his disciples what they had heard people saying about him. In response, the disciples recalled they thought he was St. John the Baptist; others thought he was the prophet Elijah or Jeremiah or some other … Continue reading Who Do You Say I Am?
Even the Dogs Eat the Scraps
Twentieth Sunday of Ordinary Time-A This weekend, the task is to reflect on the conversation between Jesus and a Canaanite woman pleading for him to exorcize a demon from her daughter. The encounter occurred when Jesus retreated to the region of Tire and Sidon, presumably to rest and pray. The Canaanite woman called out to … Continue reading Even the Dogs Eat the Scraps