Taste & See

For the 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Zac reflects on Matthew 21:33-43, the parable of the wicked tenants who kill the landowner's servants and finally his son, showing how Jesus told this hard parable to the chief priests and elders not to condemn them but to bring them to contrition, just as Fr. Frank once led a hardened penitent to tears by describing her sins as thorns pressed into Christ&...

For the 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Zac reflects on the parable of the two sons (Matthew 21: 28-32), unpacking why Jesus told the chief priests and elders that tax collectors and prostitutes would enter the Kingdom before them — because contrition and a changed heart matter more than outward piety. He grounds this in his years as a missionary in Kenya, recalling a single mother who prostituted h...

For the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Zac reflects on the parable of the workers in the vineyard, using a childhood memory of sibling rivalry over a Capri Sun to illustrate the difference between demanding what's "fair" and receiving what's freely given in love. He contrasts the grumbling laborer's focus on the dignity of work with the landowner's focus on the dignity of...

For the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time, marking the podcast's 100th episode, Zac unpacks the parable of the unforgiving servant, using the true story of St. Maria Goretti's deathbed forgiveness of her killer to show how even our deepest wounds are a "smaller debt" compared to the infinite debt of sin God has already forgiven us. He explains why genuine contrition is what moves God&...

For the 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Zac reflects on Matthew 18:15-20 and the practice of fraternal correction, arguing that Jesus' opening words — "if your brother" — mean correction only makes sense once we first recognize the other person as family. Drawing on his own relationship with his adopted sister, who has distanced herself from the faith and hurt him deeply, Zac reframes...

Reflecting on Matthew 16:21-27, Zac recounts getting sick right before his friend Vince's funeral, forcing him to skip singing in the choir he'd hoped to honor Vince with, and how his frustration at being sidelined mirrored Peter's rebuke of Jesus for embracing suffering. Recognizing himself in Peter's "Get behind me, Satan" moment, Zac realized he had been treating his i...

Reflecting on Matthew 16:13-20, Zac shares the story of his late friend Vince — a man who bore juvenile arthritis and many surgeries with faith— and Vince's sudden death just a week after a road trip together, prompting Zac to imagine Christ asking Vince at his particular judgment the same question He asked Peter: "Who do you say that I am?" Zac unpacks how Peter's confession of...

This episode pairs Francisco Bayeu's The Assumption of the Virgin with the Gospel story of the Canaanite woman (Matthew 15:21-28), drawing out humility as the thread connecting both. Just as Mary appears at the bottom of Bayeu's painting despite being assumed into heaven's heights, the Canaanite woman humbles herself to accept being called a "dog" and asks only for crumbs, an...

In Matthew 14:22–33, Peter steps out of the boat and walks toward Jesus in the midst of a storm, revealing a heart that desires intimacy with Christ more than safety or certainty. Through Carlo Maratti's painting, this reflection explores how vulnerability, trust, and courage allow us to leave the comfort of the boat and draw near to Jesus even when the waves of fear, suffering, and confusion...

In Matthew 14:13–21, Jesus takes five loaves and two fish, blesses them, breaks them, and feeds over five thousand people, leaving twelve baskets of leftovers. The episode explores how Caravaggio's Supper at Emmaus reveals that these same Eucharistic actions point to Christ's desire to satisfy not only physical hunger but also the deepest hunger of the human heart. Through the Eucharist an...

Reflecting on Jesus' parables of the hidden treasure and the pearl of great price (Matthew 13:44-52), this episode explores Eduard Veith's Madonna and Child Surrounded by Angels, revealing how the Holy Family's poverty conceals the riches of heaven. Through the winter landscape, the care of the angels, and the imagined gaze of St. Joseph upon Mary and Jesus, we discover that the Kingdo...

In this episode, we pray with the Gospel of the wheat and weeds, where Jesus teaches, "Let both grow together until the harvest" (Matthew 13:30), and reflect on the icon of Constantine and St. Helen holding the Cross. Through the story of Constantine's conversion and the centrality of the Cross in the icon, we discover that true authority is found not in earthly power but in surrende...

Drawing from Christ's Parable of the Sower in Matthew 13:1-9, this episode reflects on The Angelus by Jean-François Millet and the profound generosity of God who continually sows His gifts into our lives. Through the image of two poor laborers pausing their work to pray, we explore how the Incarnation elevates both the dignity of human work and the dignity of the poor, revealing Christ's p...

Drawing from Jesus' invitation in Matthew 11:25–30, this episode explores how God reveals His deepest truths not to the powerful and self-sufficient, but to those who become like spiritual infants and allow themselves to be loved. Through Interment of Saint Cecilia in the Roman Catacombs by Luis de Madrazo, we discover how St. Cecilia's martyrdom reveals the paradox of the Gospel: that tru...

In this reflection on Matthew 10:37-42, viewed through Gerrit van Honthorst's The Denial of St. Peter , we encounter Peter stepping away from the candlelight and into darkness as he denies the One he loves most. The episode explores Christ's difficult teaching that we must love Him above all else and reveals that true worthiness is not achieved through our own strength but by begging for a...

Through William Bouguereau's Madonna with Child and John the Baptist , we explore Christ's repeated command in Matthew 10 to "do not be afraid" and reveals that true courage flows from knowing we are deeply loved. The childlike affection between Jesus and John, sheltered beneath Mary's maternal gaze, becomes an icon of the trust, vulnerability, and confidence that every Chris...

Reflecting on Matthew 9:36–10:8 through Nicolás Francés's painting of the Twelve Apostles, this episode explores how God calls unique individuals into a unified mission for the salvation of souls. The apostles reveal that holiness is not uniformity but a beautiful diversity of gifts, personalities, and vocations united in Christ and His Church. Most powerfully, the episode highlights that the...

On the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, this episode reflects on Jesus’ teaching in John 6: 51-58 and a 15th-century German painting of the Last Supper to explore the mystery of the Eucharist as Christ’s true Body and Blood. Through the artwork’s symbolism, listeners are invited to see Christ as the divine Giver who blesses, breaks, and gives Himself for the life of the world, while recognizing themse...

This episode reflects on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity through John 3:16–18 and The Hospitality of Abraham by Andrei Rublev, revealing the Trinity not as an abstract doctrine but as a divine communion of love that invites us into relationship. Through the symbolism of the icon—especially the open place at the table—the listener is encouraged to see themselves personally welcomed into the...

This Pentecost reflection on John 20: 19-23 explores how the Holy Spirit enters into locked and fearful hearts, bringing peace, renewal, and mission, just as Jesus breathed the Spirit upon the disciples in the upper room. Through Félix-Henri Giacomotti’s La Pentecôte , the episode highlights Mary’s central role in moments of divine outpouring and emphasizes that the gifts of the Holy Spirit are me...

Using Rembrandt’s The Ascension of the Lord alongside Matthew 28:16–20, this reflection explores how Christ’s Ascension invites us to lift our hearts toward heaven while remaining rooted in His presence through the Church and the Eucharist. By returning to Galilee—the place of first love for the disciples—Jesus teaches us to revisit the moments of conversion where we first encountered His mercy so...

In this episode on John 14: 15-21, Jesus promises that we are not abandoned but deeply loved children of God, given the Holy Spirit and His own presence so we are never left as orphans. Through His sacrifice and the gift of the Eucharist, He restores our identity as sons and daughters, healing the wounds of sin and separation. The call is clear: receive His love, keep His commandments, and live fr...

In this episode on John 14:1-12, Jesus reveals that He is not just a guide but the Way itself—the only path to the Father, who is the true destination of our deepest longing. Through the image of pilgrimage, the reflection shows that without a clear destination, life becomes aimless, but with Christ, every step has purpose, even in suffering. By receiving His life, especially in the Eucharist, and...

In the gospel for next Sunday, John 10: 1-10, Jesus reveals Himself as the Good Shepherd who lovingly calls His sheep by name, invites them to recognize His voice, and leads them into abundant life. The episode emphasizes that God speaks not just through words, but through the “language of the heart”—a quiet, intimate experience of His presence that requires trust, vulnerability, and consistency i...

This episode on Gospel of Luke 24:13–35 reveals that the story of Cleopas and the road to Emmaus is not just a past event, but the very pattern of every Mass today. Just as the disciples encountered Jesus in their pain and recognized Him in the breaking of the bread, we too are invited to move from routine to real encounter with Christ in the Eucharist. The episode challenges listeners to approach...