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Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus said to his disciples: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me.” John 14:1In John’s Gospel, Chapters 14–17 present us with what is referred to as Jesus’ “Last Supper Discourses,” or His “Final Discourses.” These are a series of sermons given by our Lord to the disciples the night He was arrested. These discourses are deep and filled with symbolic imagery. He speaks of the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, the vine and the branches, the world’s hatred, and these discourses conclude with Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer....

“What will those do who are baptized for the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why then are they baptized for them?” (1 Corinthians 15:29). The fact of the Resurrection often is a powerful testimony to draw people to saving faith in Christ. The apostle Paul knew that believers who face death with joy and hope can present powerful testimonies to unbelievers. The prospect of life in Heaven and a reunion with loved ones is a strong motive for people to hear and receive the gospel. When believers die, their spirits go immediately to be with the...

26 April 2024 Friday of the 4th week of Eastertide The tomb of Rafael Arnáiz Barón in Venta de Baños, Spain Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: B(II).First readingActs 13:26-33 ©God has fulfilled his promise by raising Jesus from the deadPaul stood up in the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia, held up a hand for silence and began to speak: ‘My brothers, sons of Abraham’s race, and all you who fear God, this message of salvation is meant for you. What the people of Jerusalem and their rulers did, though they did not realise it, was in fact to...

In this 2024 year, who knows what to expect in our EXPONENTIAL deteriorating and lawless day, but in it all, we know WHO we are expecting and looking for with great joy (John 14:3, 1 Thes. 4:13-18, 1 John 3:1-4))! Beloved, daily bombardments from this demonic world seek to rattle and destroy the faith of the men and women of Almighty God (John 16:33; Eph. 6:10-12, 1 Peter 5:8). It is so easy to look inwardly and subjectively and see ourselves as poor wretched victims. It is sad to say that many blood brought children of Almighty God in Christ...

Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved; whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Mark 16:15–16Saint Mark, whom we honor today, certainly fulfilled this mission that was given to the Apostles. Though Mark was not one of the Twelve and might not have even known Jesus while He walked the earth, he certainly fulfilled the mission of proclaiming the Gospel to the whole world by writing his Gospel account. Mark’s Gospel is the shortest...

Thursday 25 April 2024 Saint Mark, Evangelist Feast St. Mark the Evangelist, Summerfield, FLReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: Red. Year: B(II).First reading1 Peter 5:5-14 ©My son, Mark, sends you greetingsAll wrap yourselves in humility to be servants of each other, because God refuses the proud and will always favour the humble. Bow down, then, before the power of God now, and he will raise you up on the appointed day; unload all your worries on to him, since he is looking after you. Be calm but vigilant, because your enemy the devil is prowling round like a roaring lion, looking...

“If we have only hoped in Christ in this life, we are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:19). Without Christ’s resurrection, our individual Christian lives would be pathetic exercises in futility. In ancient times the strongest swimmer among the sailors on a ship was called the archegos, a Greek word that means “front-runner” or “pioneer.” If as the ship approached shore, it got caught in waves so strong that a safe landing was doubtful, the archegos would fasten one end of a long rope to the ship, tie the other end around himself, jump into the...

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Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in me believes not only in me but also in the one who sent me, and whoever sees me sees the one who sent me.” John 12:44–45Note that Jesus’ words in the above quoted passage start by stating that “Jesus cried out…” This intentional addition by the Gospel writer adds emphasis to this statement. Jesus didn’t just “say” these words, He “cried out.” For that reason, we should be extra attentive to these words and allow them to speak to us all the more. This Gospel passage takes place...

“How do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead?” (1 Corinthians 15:12). Without the truth of bodily resurrection, the Christian faith would not make sense. Even though Paul and the other apostles made the resurrection of Christ and His followers from the dead a central part of the gospel message, some new Gentile converts (the Corinthians especially) had difficulty accepting the idea of bodily resurrection. That struggle resulted mainly from the effects of Greek dualism, which viewed the spiritual as inherently good and the physical as inherently bad. Under that belief, a physical resurrection was...

The writings Sulayman al-Ghazzi (or Solomon of Gaza) are one of the great hidden gems of Arab Orthodoxy, though not a word of them is yet available in a western language. I'm doing a little work on them for a different venue, but would like share something about him on this blog. I'll do another post soon about his life in more detail, but he was an Orthodox bishop in Palestine in the 11th century, during the persecution of Christians under the Fatimid Caliph al-Hakim bi-Amrillah. He is the first Arabic-language poet whose poetry was entirely dedicated to Christian religious...

24 April 2024Wednesday of the 4th week of Eastertide St. Fidelis Church, College Point, New York Readings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: B(II).First readingActs 12:24-13:5 ©'I want Barnabas and Saul set apart'The word of God continued to spread and to gain followers. Barnabas and Saul completed their task and came back from Jerusalem, bringing John Mark with them. In the church at Antioch the following were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. One day while they were offering worship to the Lord and...

Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus walked about in the temple area on the Portico of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long are you going to keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you and you do not believe.” John 10:24–25Why is it that these people did not know that Jesus was the Christ? They wanted Jesus to speak “plainly” to them, but Jesus surprises them by saying that He already answered their question but they “do not believe.” This Gospel passage continues the...

“And last of all, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also” (1 Corinthians 15:8). The resurrection power of Christ transformed Paul into a preacher of the gospel. Throughout history, reliable eyewitness testimony about a person or event has been one of the most accepted forms of courtroom evidence. The apostle Paul appeals to the eyewitness record as an important confirmation of the Resurrection’s reality. He cites the examples of Peter, the apostles (twice), 500 believers, and James (1 Cor. 15:5-7). And with today’s verse, Paul presents himself as a special eyewitness to the fact of...

23 April 2024 Tuesday of the 4th week of Eastertide Basilica of Saint Adalbert, Grand Rapids, MichiganReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: B(II).First readingActs 11:19-26 ©They started preaching to the Greeks, proclaiming the Lord JesusThose who had escaped during the persecution that happened because of Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, but they usually proclaimed the message only to Jews. Some of them, however, who came from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch where they started preaching to the Greeks, proclaiming the Good News of the Lord Jesus to them as well. The Lord helped...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“But whoever enters through the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens it for him, and the sheep hear his voice, as the shepherd calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has driven out all his own, he walks ahead of them, and the sheep follow him, because they recognize his voice.” John 10:2–4Do you recognize the voice of the Shepherd? Does He lead you each and every day, guiding you into His holy will? How attentive are you to what He speaks each day? These are some...

22 April 2024 Monday of the 4th week of Eastertide Painting of the church of San Caio in Rome by Achille Pinelli in the early 1800sNow demolishedReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: B(II).First readingActs 11:1-18 ©God can grant even the pagans the repentance that leads to lifeThe apostles and the brothers in Judaea heard that the pagans too had accepted the word of God, and when Peter came up to Jerusalem the Jews criticised him and said, ‘So you have been visiting the uncircumcised and eating with them, have you?’ Peter in reply gave them the details point by...

“Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand” (1 Corinthians 15:1). The true church has consistently testified to the power of the Resurrection. Kenneth Scott Latourette observed in his History of the Expansion of Christianity: “It was the conviction of the resurrection of Jesus which lifted his followers out of the despair into which his death had cast them and which led to the perpetuation of a movement begun by him.” This statement was true for the church at Corinth, even with its many problems....

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21 April 2024 4th Sunday of EasterSt Anselm's Catholic Church, part of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in Pembury, Kent, UKReadings at MassLiturgical Colour: White. Year: B(II).First readingActs 4:8-12 ©The name of Jesus Christ is the only name in which we can be savedFilled with the Holy Spirit, Peter said: ‘Rulers of the people, and elders! If you are questioning us today about an act of kindness to a cripple, and asking us how he was healed, then I am glad to tell you all, and would indeed be glad to tell the whole people of...