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Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus said to his disciples: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place.” Matthew 5:17–18Sometimes it can be challenging to reconcile the Old Testament with the New Testament. In addition to the Ten Commandments, the Old Testament is filled with countless other commandments. The Pharisees, in their attempt...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“You are the light of the world. A city set on a mountain cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and then put it under a bushel basket; it is set on a lampstand, where it gives light to all in the house. Just so, your light must shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.” Matthew 5:14–16Light and darkness are not opposing forces; rather, darkness is simply the absence of light. When light enters, darkness is dispelled. In a similar way, good and evil are not...

Daily Readings from the USCCBWhen Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven…” Matthew 5:1–3Like Moses, Jesus “went up the mountain” to deliver divine teaching. Rather than issuing commandments, He proclaimed invitations to partake in God’s very life. The Beatitudes do not merely set forth a moral code; they unveil the interior dispositions of those who live in communion with God’s grace, revealing a blessedness that transcends worldly notions...

Daily Readings from the USCCBThe Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of ChristJesus said to the Jewish crowds: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world.” The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” John 6:51–52 It must have been shocking to Jesus’ listeners the first time He boldly proclaimed that He would give His flesh as spiritual food. Their reaction makes this clear: “How...

By Dr. John BergsmaThis weekend is another great liturgical feast, the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, otherwise known as Corpus Christi. Corpus Christi is one of a handful of feasts that celebrates the very gift of the Eucharist itself. It is one of my favorite feasts, because the doctrine of the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist was instrumental in my becoming Catholic. Back in the Fall of 1999 I was reading through the Apostolic Fathers and came to this passage in Ignatius of Antioch’s Letter to the Smyrneans (c. AD 106): “But consider...

Daily Readings from the USCCB“Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood.” Mark 12:43–44How generous are you? This is a challenging question, yet one worth considering. Does your generosity reflect God’s boundless generosity? Do you struggle with selfishness and greed, failing to live out the Gospel call to poverty, detachment, and charity? Most people likely fall short of this ideal. Acknowledging this, though difficult, is an act...

Daily Readings from the USCCBMemorial of Saint Boniface, Bishop and MartyrAs Jesus was teaching in the temple area he said, “How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David? David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said: The Lord said to my lord, ‘Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies under your feet.’ David himself calls him ‘lord’; so how is he his son?” The great crowd heard this with delight. Mark 12:35–37Today’s Gospel presents us with one of Jesus’ many teachings in the Temple area just days before His Passion. Just prior...

Suspected Fulani gunmen attacked a Christian farming community in central Nigeria’s Plateau state on Sunday evening, killing eight Christians and injuring at least 15 others, according to residents and government officials. The attack occurred in Gwomjang, a predominantly Christian village in Kadunu Ward of Mangu Local Government Area, near the town of Gindiri. The community lies within Nigeria’s Middle Belt. This region has experienced years of violence involving armed attacks on rural communities, disputes over land use, and growing insecurity affecting farmers and civilians. Residents said the attackers entered the village at about 7:30 p.m. on May 31, shortly after...

Daily Readings from the USCCBOne of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, “Which is the first of all the commandments?” Mark 12:28We continue to read about Jesus’ various interactions, teachings, and prophetic actions in the Temple area during Passover, just days before He would be arrested and killed. During the week, Jesus cleansed the Temple of moneychangers and merchants and was confronted with hostility by various religious and political factions. First, a group of chief priests, scribes, and elders challenged His authority to cleanse the Temple and then unsuccessfully conspired with some Pharisees and Herodians to trap Him...

Jerusalem (AsiaNews) – The situation is "difficult”, the Christian community is “under pressure”, and the most disturbing aspect involves the current Israeli leadership, because for “the first time" it includes people "who hate Christians, who are notorious Christian haters”, this according to Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel, a German-born Benedictine monk who heads the Basilica of the Dormition on Mount Zion in Jerusalem. Abbot Nikodemus Schnabel spoke[I] to AsiaNews, at a time of growing attacks by Jews against the Christian minority, including Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon attacking Orthodox Christians and Israeli settlers attacking Christians, especially in Jerusalem. In the past, the...

Daily Readings from the USCCBMemorial of Saint Charles Lwanga and Companions, MartyrsSome Sadducees, who say there is no resurrection, came to Jesus and put this question to him, saying, “Teacher, Moses wrote for us, ‘If someone’s brother dies, leaving a wife but no child, his brother must take the wife and raise up descendants for his brother.’ Now there were seven brothers…” Mark 12:18–20The Sadducees were a Jewish sect composed mainly of the Temple leaders, including many priests. They held theological and political views that differed significantly from those of the Pharisees. The Sadducees accepted only the Torah (the first...

I was born in Iran, and as a young student I joined the masses of protesters in the streets of Tehran in 1979 shouting "Death to America." After the Islamic revolution, I decided to search for God... Living in America, I was free to read both the Quran and the Bible; I was free to go to a mosque or a church. So, by carefully comparing the Quran and Bible I came to realize that there is a God who loves me. By putting my faith in Christ, my life was transformed. My troubled marriage was healed; my wife and...

Daily Readings from the USCCBSome Pharisees and Herodians were sent to Jesus to ensnare him in his speech. They came and said to him, “Teacher, we know that you are a truthful man and that you are not concerned with anyone’s opinion. You do not regard a person’s status but teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not? Should we pay or should we not pay?” Mark 12:13–14Just prior to today’s Gospel, the chief priests, scribes, and elders confronted Jesus in the Temple area while He...

Daily Readings from the USCCBMemorial of Saint Justin, MartyrJesus began to speak to the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders in parables. “A man planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine press, and built a tower. Then he leased it to tenant farmers and left on a journey. At the proper time he sent a servant to the tenants to obtain from them some of the produce of the vineyard.” Mark 12:10–12Today’s Gospel takes place during the Passover at the Temple in Jerusalem, just days before Jesus’ Passion and Death. The chief priests, scribes, and...

In recent months, at least 20 Yemeni Christians have been arrested for the crime of following Christ... Far more than a crackdown on religious minorities, they demonstrate a growing Christian presence in Yemen significant enough to provoke a response from various ruling entities, including the Houthis... Even secular human rights sources have noted the arrests of Yemeni Christians in recent months in Houthi-controlled areas. Human Rights Watch and ministries in contact with Christians in Yemen confirm that arrests have been made, with some believers confirmed to be in Yemeni prisons while others have simply disappeared. This acknowledgment itself is significant....

Six million dead. Ten million enslaved. Twenty-five million displaced. The raging genocide hiding in plain sight — and why you’ve never heard of it. They say the winners write the history books. What if the Nazis had won? The Holocaust would be a vague conspiracy theory — denied, spun, suppressed, purged from the media. Anyone who raised it would be marginalized, branded a fringe lunatic. Israel wouldn’t exist. The Middle East would be under total Islamic domination. And eventually, America would be fighting Nazis on the homefront. We don’t have to guess what that world looks like. There’s a real...

Daily Readings from the USCCBThe Solemnity of the Most Holy TrinityGod so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. John 3:16–18Saint John the Apostle is identified in his Gospel...

Dr. John BergsmaThe Easter Season usually ends with a sort of “trifecta” of major feasts: Pentecost, Trinity, and Corpus Christi, as the Church celebrates the central mysteries of the faith before entering into Ordinary Time once more. This weekend is Trinity Sunday, a meditation and celebration of the central mystery of the Christian faith, the dogma that distinguishes Christianity from all other religions. Christians alone believe in one God, who nonetheless exists in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.Strangely, our Readings for this Sunday tend not to be classic “proof texts” for the idea that there is more than...

Daily Readings from the USCCBJesus and his disciples returned once more to Jerusalem. As he was walking in the temple area, the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders approached him and said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things? Or who gave you this authority to do them?” Mark 11:27–28Jesus and His disciples were in Jerusalem for Passover, which would culminate in His death. In the preceding months, Jesus prepared His disciples for this final journey, telling them three times that He would be handed over in Jerusalem, suffer, die, and rise again. Each time, the...

Box office numbers for “Supergirl” look bleak after lead star Milly Alcock sparked backlash for mocking Christian dads. According to Box Office Theory, the DC superhero movie — which comes out June 26 — is expected to make between $47 million and $65 million in its opening weekend and between $107 million and $181 million in its full domestic run. The budget for the James Gunn-directed film was reportedly around $170 million, while the marketing spend is estimated to exceed $75 million, bringing the total to around $245 million. To break even, “Supergirl” needs to make around $425 million worldwide