You can reflect questions for every Sunday of the year by clicking here.32nd Sunday in Ordinary TimeBackground: Having arrived in Jerusalem, Jesus once again finds himself arguing with the scribes, the teachers, and interpreters of the Torah. Like all the other Hebrew prophets who have preceded him, he calls to account those whose actions do not […]

13th Sunday in Ordinary TimeBackground: Once again words have power: over nature, as we saw last Sunday, and now over disease and death. But only if we have faith and trust in the power of God at work for us in Jesus. As the Book of Wisdom says, “death entered the world through sin,” and

The Body and Blood of Christ (Corpus Christi)Background: Out of the 26 particular churches that make up the Catholic Church (Maronites, Ruthenians, etc.), only the Roman Church abandoned in the course of the Middle Ages the sharing of the Blood of Christ by all believers during Communion. At about the same time the observance of

You can reflect questions for every Sunday of the year by clicking here.Fifth Sunday of EasterBackground: For two Sundays the gospel selections are a continuous reading from John, 15, part of what is called the Last Supper Discourse. It would seem odd that in Easter Season we are reading from a discourse given on Holy Thursday

Introduction to EastertimeIn the post-Vatican II reform of the Roman liturgy, Easter became not a day but a season. The Sundays are not named as “after” Easter but rather “of” Easter. We must not subdivide this season into chunks but celebrate its overall flow.Because the different New Testament writers approached their proclamation of the Good

Introduction to the Third to Fifth Sundays in Lent: For three Sundays the Gospel selections from John are part of the final, intense preparation of those called to the Easter sacraments of initiation. The scrutiny celebrated each Sunday is meant to help them “achiev(e) an intimate knowledge of Christ” by “progress(ing) in genuine self-knowledge through

Introduction to the Third to Fifth Sundays in Lent:The Johannine Gospels for the three middle Sundays in Lent for Year B pursue the same themes as those of Year A: how Jesus brings us in his person cleansing from sin, true light, and new life. Again, we learn each Sunday of God’s compassionate love, but