Is. 22:19-23; Rom. 11:33-36; Mt. 16:13-20. The 1st reading from Isaiah talks about the majordomo Shebna in the palace of King Hezekiah, who was a megalomaniac: “He has hewn for himself a sepulcher on a height and carved a tomb in the rock.” King Hezekiah had been threatened by Sennacherib of Assyria, but with the…
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Is 56:1, 6-7; Rom. 11:13-15, 29-32; Mt 15: 21-28 It was the belief in Israel that salvation was only for Israel, the descendants of Abraham. Even after the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, already in the Acts of the Apostles, Peter was questioned by the other Apostles why he entered the house of…
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Is. 55:1-3; Rom. 8:35, 37-39; Mt. 14:13-21 The 1st reading from Isaiah opens with an invitation to eat and drink water, wine and milk, and all of it for free. This passage from the prophet Isaiah signals for us events in the New Testament that Jesus would do not only to feed our body but…
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1 Kgs 3:5, 7-12; Rom 8:28-30; Mt 13:44-52 Two Sundays ago we heard the parable of the sower and we saw that God sows his Word for all persons to receive; he does not choose only the good soil, but makes his Word available to all kinds of hearts to receive. He does not discriminate…
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Wis. 12:13, 16-19; Rom. 8:26-27; Mt.13:24-43 This Sunday we are presented with three parables of the Kingdom. Let us reflect on them one by one. The mustard seed is a physical image of the Church founded by Christ. It was a very small seed in Jerusalem, then it was given by Philip to the Eunuch…
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Is 55:10-11; Rom. 8:18-23; Mt. 13:1-23. Our Gospel today is usually called “The Parable of the Sower.” And yet the sower is mentioned only at the beginning: ‘A sower went out to sow’ and not spoken of again. What is the concern of the parable? It is not the sower but the kinds of soil…
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Zech. 9:9-10; Rom. 8:9, 11-13; Mt. 11: 25-30 In our Gospel passage today Jesus speaks to God the Father in second person as a Son speaks to his Father. He praises God that he has revealed the mystery of salvation not to those who considered themselves learned about God’s Law i.e., to the Scribes and…
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2 Kgs. 4:8-11, 14-16aRom. 6:3-4, 8-11Mt. 10:37-42. The first part of our Gospel actually gives the demands for martyrdom, because to follow Jesus means being ready to give up everything for him, including parents, family and property. Jesus himself gave up his divine status and all he had at the Father’s side to become one…
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Jer. 20:10-13; Rom. 5:12-15; Mt. 10:26-33 In the first reading we see the enemies of Jeremiah plotting against him so they could take vengeance on him. He complained to the Lord, “The word of the Lord has brought me derision and reproach all day. I say to myself, I will not mention him, I will…
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Dt. 8:2-3; 14b-16a; 1 Cor. 10;16-17; Jn. 6:51-58. This year A, Mother Church presents to us very fundamental teachings on the Holy Eucharist. The 1st reading from Deuteronomy shows us the prefiguration of the Eucharist in the manna, which the Israelites in the desert called “bread from heaven.” The 2nd reading from 1 Cor. 10…
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