Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time Isaiah 25:6–10a; Philippians 4:12–14, 19–20; Matthew 22:1–14 The prophet Isaiah speaks of a feast prepared by God. It is not a small feast. It is not for one tribe, one nation, or one group of righteous people. It is a feast for all peoples. On the mountain of the Lord, God will destroy death, wipe away tears, and remove the shame of His people. This is the hope behind today’s Gospel. ...
Saturday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Galatians 3:22–29 Saint Paul continues to speak to the Galatians. They are tempted to place themselves under the law of Moses. But Paul wants them to understand something deeper. The law can tell us what is right. The law can tell us what is wrong. The law can warn us. The law can punish us. But the law cannot change the heart. ...
Friday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Galatians 3:7–14 Today Saint Paul brings Abraham into the discussion. Some missionaries were telling the Galatians: If you want to belong to God’s people, you must be circumcised. After all, circumcision was the sign of the covenant between God and Abraham. But Paul goes back to an earlier moment in Abraham’s story. Before circumcision. Before the law of Moses. Before all the rules. ...
Thursday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Galatians 3:1–5 Saint Paul asks the Galatians a sharp question: Who has bewitched you? It is a strong word. To be bewitched means to be captivated, controlled, led away from what is true. Paul is not speaking about magic only. He is speaking about a deeper danger. Someone has captured the hearts of the Galatians. Someone has turned them away from the Gospel. ...
Wednesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary Galatians 2:1–2, 7–14 In today’s reading, Saint Paul speaks about two difficult questions in the early Church. Circumcision. And food. At first, these questions may seem far away from us. But they touched something very important: Who belongs to the people of God? Do the Gentiles have to become Jews before they can belong to Christ? ...
Tuesday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Galatians 1:13–24 Imagine being remembered for the worst thing you have ever done. Imagine your darkest moment becoming your name. That was Saint Paul. Before he preached Christ, he persecuted the Church. Before he became an apostle, he tried to destroy the faith. Paul does not hide this. He tells the Galatians the truth about his past. He had been zealous for the traditions of his ancestors. ...
Monday of the Twenty-seventh Week in Ordinary Time Galatians 1:6–12 Today we begin reading Saint Paul’s Letter to the Galatians. Galatia was a region in Asia Minor, in what is today Turkey. Paul had preached the Gospel there because of an illness. The Galatians welcomed him. They cared for him. They listened to him. They received the Gospel with joy. But after Paul left, other missionaries came. They told the Galatians that faith in Christ was not enough. ...
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time Isaiah 5:1–7; Philippians 4:6–9; Matthew 21:33–46 Every time I watch the news, I ask the same question: What is wrong with us? There is so much violence, so much hatred, so much useless destruction. Even if the news shows only one side of reality, it still tells us something about the mystery of sin. In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells the parable of the tenants. They are given a vineyard. ...
Saturday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time Job 42:1–3, 5–6, 12–17 Today we finish our journey with the Book of Job. The accuser has lost. Job suffered deeply. He lost almost everything. He questioned. He cried out. He did not understand. But he did not curse God. He did not stop turning toward Him. At the end, Job says something very important: I had heard of You by word of mouth, ...
Friday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels Job 38:1, 12–21; 40:3–5 Throughout the Book of Job, Job longs to meet God. He wants to present his case. He wants to ask why. Why this suffering? Why this loss? Why this silence? Finally, God speaks. But not in the way Job expected. The Lord speaks from the storm. He does not begin with an explanation. ...