Reflections on the Sunday Readings

Our readings this weekend give us hints of the coming feast of Pentecost.  We see apostle Philip going down to Samaria and through his work and the miracles that he performs the people begin to believe in this Christ that he has come to preach about. They want to be more in union with Christ and so, they ask for the sacrament of baptism.   Their desire for this is contagious and spreads to all the areas around Samaria.  When the church in Jerusalem hears of their enthusiasm and acceptance of Christ, they send Peter and John to them to lay hands upon them so that the Holy Spirit of God, the gift of the Father through the prophecy of Christ, could come down upon them.  Once they received this Spirit, they were empowered then to live out their lives as followers of Christ.  Reflecting on this reading we might ponder, is this the same enthusiasm we experience in sharing our faith with others?                ...

Most of us know the name Helen Keller. What is sometimes forgotten is the moment when her world first opened.                                                                                                                                                    ...

  This Sunday begins the holiest week of our year. During it, we experience through quiet, thoughtful prayer, and attendance at Holy week Services how much and how deep our God is in love with us.          On Palm Sunday, we have two gospels. The first gospel as the mass begins, reflects on Jesus ‘entry into the city of Jerusalem for the celebration of Passover later in that week.  Note that when Jesus enters the city of Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, there are numerous gates by which he can enter it. He enters the city not riding triumphantly on a horse, like a king, but, rather on a donkey, a sign of humility and lowliness.  He chooses to enter the city through what is known as the Sheep gate. This particular gate was where all the lambs and sheep would also be brought through and who were going to be sacrificed later in the week during the Passover festivities.  So, the Lamb of God enters along with the other lambs.  So, we might pause at ...

                  God may not be on time always, but God is never late. The first reading of the gospel this weekend speaks so beautifully of God’s concern for us and for our future with him.     From the words of the prophet Ezekiel in the first reading this weekend we read “Oh my people, I will open your graves, and have you rise from them.” (Ezekiel 37:13).   At times w e can feel that God has forgotten us because our problems are so great and God seems so distant from us, whether these problems be health, financial, familial,   work or other.   Perhaps, we have asked God for help, and He does not seem to be listening.    And yet in that first reading this weekend, He promises to restore his people to life and to their homeland. This promise is made to them while they are still in bondage in Babylon and are far from their homeland.   That reading speaks of redemption.   But more than that, it ...