Your browser does not support the audio element. Readings Here (1 Samuel 4:1–11) Jan 15, 2026 - Thursday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Many of us place a fish symbol on our car, wear a small cross or a holy medallion around our neck, or choose a T-shirt with a biblical message. For some, these signs are sincere expressions of faith—a quiet testimony to what they believe. ...

Your browser does not support the audio element. Readings Here (1 Samuel 3:1–10, 19–20) Wednesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Today’s passage opens with a striking line: “The word of the Lord was rare in those days” (1 Sam 3:1). Not absent. Rare. Which is often worse. And when God speaks again, he speaks not to those in charge, but to a child. The liturgical reading omits the content of the message Samuel receives (1 Sam 3:11–18). Yet that message is crucial. It concerns Eli’s house. His sons abuse their office. They treat sacred things as private property. Eli knows this. He does nothing. Silence becomes policy. Neglect becomes guilt. ...

Your browser does not support the audio element. Readings Here (1 Samuel 1:9–20) Jan 13, 2026 - Tuesday of the First Week in Ordinary Time The turning point of the Book of Samuel is not a battle, a speech, or a political decision. It is a prayer. Hannah goes to the sanctuary at Shiloh. She does not shout. She does not perform. The text tells us something striking: “Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice could not be heard.” (1 Sam 1:13) ...

Your browser does not support the audio element. Readings Here (1 Samuel 1:1–8) Monday of the First Week in Ordinary Time Today, as the Church enters Ordinary Time, the liturgy opens a new chapter of Scripture: the Books of Samuel. It does not begin with a king or a battle. It begins with a family. We meet Elkanah, a devout man, with two wives. Peninnah has many children. Hannah is loved—but barren, the future mother of the prophet Samuel. ...