Readings Here Wednesday, Feast of Saint Mary Magdalene John 20:1–2, 11–18 In the Gospel of John, Mary Magdalene has a remarkable place. She stands at the foot of the cross, together with the mother of Jesus and the beloved disciple, at the hour of the Lord’s death. Then, early on Sunday morning, while it is still dark, she comes to the tomb. She is the first to discover that the stone has been taken away. ...
Readings Here Tuesday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time Micah 7:14–15, 18–20 For some time, we have been walking with the prophet Micah. We heard him speak on behalf of farmers whose fields were being seized by the powerful of his time. We heard his unforgettable answer to the question of true worship: justice, hesed, humility. Today, we hear the beautiful ending of his book: a profession of God’s mercy toward the remnant of His people. ...
Readings Here Monday of the Sixteenth Week in Ordinary Time Micah 6:1–4, 6–8 We all remember Jesus’ conversation with a teacher of the Law: “What is the greatest commandment?” This question preoccupied many ancient Jewish scholars. How can one navigate the many commandments found in the five books of Moses? We know Jesus’ answer. He brought together two commandments. One from the Book of Deuteronomy: “You shall love the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 6:5). ...
Readings Here Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Wisdom 12:13, 16–19; Romans 8:26–27; Matthew 13:24–43 Today’s Gospel gives us three parables about the kingdom of heaven: a man who sowed good seed in his field, a mustard seed, and yeast hidden in flour. But let us stay with the first parable. A man sows good seed. Then, while everyone is asleep, an enemy comes and sows weeds among the wheat. This is one of the oldest questions in the human heart. ...
Readings Here Saturday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time Micah 2:1–5 In recent years, we have heard many reports of powerful corporations and governments taking farmland from small local farmers. The reasons vary: for mines, for factories, for highways, dams, tourist resorts, or large development projects. The problem is that the land is often taken against the will of those who live there. Farmers protest. Indigenous peoples resist. Families plead. ...
Readings Here Friday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time Isaiah 38:1–6, 21–22, 7–8 Hezekiah was sick. Not slightly sick. Not temporarily weak. He was dying. Then Isaiah came to him with a word no one wants to hear: “Put your house in order, for you are about to die.” Hezekiah turned his face to the wall. He prayed. He remembered his life before the Lord. Then he wept bitterly. ...
Readings Here Thursday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time Isaiah 26:7–9, 12, 16–19 On September 26, 1983, the Soviet nuclear warning system announced that missiles had been launched from the United States. Colonel Stanislav Petrov was the officer on duty. He had only minutes to decide. Was it a real attack? Was it a computer error? Was the world about to burn? He judged it to be a false alarm. ...
Readings Here Wednesday, Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Isaiah 10:5–7, 13b–16 Assyria was powerful. Its armies marched. Its kings boasted. Its enemies trembled. Nation after nation fell before its sword. But Isaiah sees more deeply. Assyria is not the lord of history. Assyria is only “the rod of God’s anger.” It is an instrument. A dangerous instrument. A violent instrument. An arrogant instrument. But still only an instrument. ...
Readings Here Tuesday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time Isaiah 7:1–9 Jerusalem was afraid. The northern kingdom of Israel had joined Aram against the great empire of Assyria. Judah refused to join them. So Aram and Israel came against Judah, planning to remove King Ahaz and place another king on the throne. The house of David trembled. Isaiah says: “The heart of the king and the heart of his people shook as the trees of the forest shake before the wind.” ...
Readings Here Monday of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time Isaiah 1:10–17 Isaiah begins with a wound. He does not flatter his people. He does not soften the blow. He calls them rulers of Sodom, people of Gomorrah. These are not gentle words. They are fire. But behind the fire is the anger of God against a terrible lie: hands lifted in prayer, while hands are stained with blood. The people still bring sacrifices. They still gather for feasts. They still keep the holy days. They still enter the temple. ...