“When Jesus heard about John, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. When the crowds learned this, they followed him on foot from the cities. When Jesus arrived and saw a large crowd, he had compassion for them and healed those who were sick.”   Matthew 14:13-14 At this beautiful and poignant...

Luke 3:1-6 This week in the Gospel the fiery, vaguely eccentric figure of John the Baptist makes his first appearance, and he will return next week as well. He is the messenger, the announcer, the one who says, “Open your eyes, look, the one we have waited for is here, among us. Right now, at...

Luke 21:25-28, 34-36 I sometimes think back on all the years I have been on this earth, not in a depressed or nostalgic way, but simply wondering what have I learned about life, myself, God during all those years? No matter how many years we have lived on this planet, be it ten or a...

Christ the King John 18:33-37 Endings…and beginnings. When I was growing up getting into the Kingdom of God (or Heaven) was difficult enough, but the pathway was clear. The idea seemed to be that if you said your prayers and didn’t sin, then when you died you got into the Kingdom of Heaven. Our life...

Mark 13:24-32 “Don’t lose hope. ‘Summer is near!’” The first Christians lived in troubled times. From Rome, from the Jewish authorities they were hunted down, interrogated and possibly tortured and killed. Life and death, if you were a follower of Jesus, was that stark. We all know the story of St. Stephen, the first martyr,...

“The poor widow has put in more than all.” Mark 12:38-44 What was it about the Scribes, the Pharisees, the teachers of the Law, that annoyed Jesus so much? Of all the groups mentioned in the Gospels Jesus reserves his harshest criticisms for these religious leaders of his time. And he did not mince his...

Feast of All Saints Matthew 5:1-12 How often have you said, or heard a parent say about their child, “He/she can be a perfect angel one minute and a total devil the next.” and we are all, I’m sure, familiar with the saying, “house angel, street devil.” Substitute ‘saint’ for ‘angel’ and, I think, the...

As Jesus walked those dusty roads from village to village, constantly surrounded by people asking for healing, how did he decide who to heal? It is a question I have often pondered, not necessarily to find answers, but simply to try to come to know the Jesus of the Gospels a bit more clearly. The...

“Son of Man himself did not come to be served but to serve.” Mark 10:35-45 It was when Jesus was in the towns and villages of Galilee that he healed the sick, fed the hungry and proclaimed the Good News of the Kingdom. His friends and disciples watched and listened and slowly came to believe...

After five years at the helm of our Sunday Gospel Reflections Brother Michael is taking a sabbatical, a time for him to rest and renew his own energy and passion for the Gospel. Over the years his weekly reflection has enriched, challenged and comforted so many people around the world. Br. Michael has a style...