Scripture

July 13, 2017

July 23: 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Many moons ago I was studying for my doctoral degree in Scripture at the University of Louvain in Belgium. Occasionally some of us would take the ferry to England to buy books.

July 13, 2017

July 16: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Every once in a while, as in today’s readings, the Lectionary selections combine to take us deep into the heart of the biblical message. The readings cluster around Matthew’s Gospel and the “parable discourse” of Chapter 13 where the Evangelist gathers a number of Jesus’ parables.

June 28, 2017

July 9: 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

I happened to be in Jerusalem in late May when President Trump was also visiting the city (we had not coordinated our visits). The security arrangements were extraordinary, as one can imagine

June 28, 2017

July 2: 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Oh, to have a grateful guest such as the great prophet Elisha! To thank a wealthy but childless widow who provided him with meals and a room during his travels, Elisha announces: "This time next year you will be fondling a baby son."

June 21, 2017

June 25: 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time

I hope all those who hear the readings for this Sunday will be in good spirits and enjoying the June sunshine. The readings, however, are not so sunny. Led by the lament of the prophet Jeremiah, the readings today confront the reality of evil in our world, an aspect of the Bible that co-exists along with its sense of beauty and profound hope.

June 18, 2017

June 18: Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ

As a boy growing up in Louisville, Kentucky, I found that one of the most exciting Sundays of the year was the Feast of Corpus Christi. On that day, large crowds of Catholics would descend on Churchill Downs, the famed track where only a few days before thoroughbreds raced for the roses in the Kentucky Derby.

June 11, 2017

June 11: Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity

This Sunday is Trinity Sunday, mark­ing the conclusion of the rich liturgical season stretching from Ash Wednesday through Lent and into the celebration of Easter and concluding last Sunday with the feast of Pentecost. All ends with praise for the mystery of the Triune God.

June 04, 2017

June 4: Pentecost

Some years ago Catholic Theological Union, where I served as president, honored Father Ted Hesburgh, the legendary president of the University of Notre Dame. As host, I had the privilege of sitting next to him at the banquet and in the course of our conversation I asked him the secret to his dynamic energy, still apparent in his mid-80s.

May 28, 2017

May 28: Ascension of the Lord

It is the evangelist Luke who tells us of the ascension of Jesus, the feast we celebrate this Sunday. The ascension is a dramatic turning point when the mission of Jesus that climaxed in his death and resurrection is now completed and the age of Spirit, which will propel the church to the ends of the earth, is about to begin.

May 21, 2017

May 21: Sixth Sunday of Easter

All during this season between Easter and Pentecost, the Sunday readings have included selections from the Acts of the Apostles. At the conclusion of the Gospel of Luke — the first volume of Luke’s work — and at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles, the Risen Christ instructs his disciples to proclaim the Gospel message of "forgiveness" and to be his "witnesses" to the whole world, beginning "in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."
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