The Christian kerygma, which we proclaim during this Easter and beyond, is powerful! It is when we proclaim that Jesus Christ is risen from the dead and is alive! The apostles proclaimed it; so, we continue to announce today that Jesus Christ is alive!
In today's gospel, the disciples' experience a transition from multiple disappointments to joy and hope. They were disappointed about Jesus' death, but they were also confounded about the discovery that he had risen from the dead.
One lesson the resurrection teaches is about worrying less and praying more. We notice this in how Jesus acknowledged before the frightened disciples that “everything written about me in the law of Moses and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Today’s gospel establishes Mary Magdalene’s pivotal role in our appreciation of the resurrection of Jesus. John contrasts Mary's life experiences and how the light of Christ comes to shine and strengthens her; it is typical of our own experiences.
The Gospel for this festive Monday carries the announcement about the gospel of life. The joy and hope of the women following the assurance received from the angel that Jesus was alive reached its completion as Jesus appeared to them.
In today's Gospel passage, the apostles experience chilling waves at Jesus' comment that one of them would betray him. So, distressing to them was the announcement that it prompted each one to ask Jesus: "Surely it is not I, Lord?"
It is a great thing to see how the respectful event in today’s gospel set the stage for the Paschal Mystery and foreshowed the holy event of the Triduum when Jesus would dine with the disciples, die, and resurrect to give all believers "the right to become children of God."
Today's readings make me realize how lonely it can feel to be a good Christian in our world. When we decide to remain faithful to the Lord and be obedient to him, persecution and rejection await us; often, friends and people we know are those who make us feel lonely because we choose not to side with them or abide where they abide.
As today is the feast of the annunciation of the Lord, my prayer is that we all respond to our baptismal character and calling in Christ to continue to grow in grace just like Mary.
Jesus knew everything that the scriptures said concerning him, and he accepted it and followed it to guide his life. Three things stand out in the gospel passage for the day .
Being a sinner isn't the problem. The actual predicament is the failure to repent and confess our sins. When circumstances brought the woman, who was taken in adultery to stand before Jesus, she realized how easier to face God with our sins than we often imagine
Today's gospel details are incidental and inconsequential to our faith as Catholics; they are commentaries of people figuring out Jesus' identity, though they were witnessing the exceptional words and acts of love he brought to humankind.
The readings for today's Mass offer additional significance: they trace and link Joseph aback to David and forwardly to Jesus, making him the ultimate fulfillment of the patriarchs and the prophets' line.
Whether weak or strong in our faith, no one should take constant prayer to ask God to keep him or her in obedience to his commands for granted. And understand that no one is beyond the help of prayer, even as without it, life’s pride, anxiety, and preoccupations never become easier to control, it essential that we embrace it.
My mother is eighty-plus now, so I have noticed that I must call on my birthday to remind her like I did yesterday. Physical and emotional challenges of aging and concerns about ten children and several grandchildren are enough to cause her to forget.
Blessings, graces, and divine love equally flow to us from God's throne. They come as gifts to touch our lives and fulfil them. And we cannot possess enough of such gifts to say to ourselves, “I have enough! I don’t need them anymore” or “I can do everything by myself.” Can our lives truly be sustained without the aid of the gifts he offers?
The Lord said to us in the gospel: unless you people see signs and wonders, you will not believe. Jesus’ comment is an invitation to examine the basic assumption of our personal beliefs as Christians. John mentions Jesus’ awareness of the failure of his native folks to honor and receive him. The reason, as we learn elsewhere, is that they knew his family. Then there were people from Galilee and Cana who believed him because they had seen Jesus perform miracles.
Loving God is something we must strive for as Christians daily. God tells us in the Bible to love him above everything and not decline his love or render the love and praise due him to idols.
The prophet Jeremiah indicates two foundational principles on which rests God's endless desire to remain in a relationship with his people. Listen to God's voice and become his people, and he will be your God. Follow constantly his commands, and it shall be well with you.