Catholic Daily Reflections

Read Online When Jesus had come into the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?” Matthew 21:25–27 The chief priests and the elders of the people were supposed to shepherd the people into eternal salvation. They were supposed to be instruments of God’s div...

Read Online “Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed is the one who takes no offense at me.” Matthew 11:4–6 Suppose a priest came to your church to put on a parish mission, and during that mission he miraculously healed the blind, cri...

Read Online As they were coming down from the mountain, the disciples asked Jesus, “Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?” Matthew 17:9a & 10 The final book of the Old Testament, written by the prophet Malachi around the fifth century BC, contains a prophecy that Elijah would return to prepare the way for the coming of the Messiah (see Malachi 3:23–24). The scribes used this prop...

Read Online Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him Jesus.” Luke 1:30–31 Of all the saints throughout the ages, none has proved to be as powerful an evangelist as the Mother of God. While on Earth, she lived a mostly hidden life, demonstrating the perfection of virtue to th...

Read Online “Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.” Matthew 11:11–12 The two sentences in the passage above can be challenging to comprehend, but the insight...

Read Online “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Matthew 11:28–30 Each of us needs to hear these gentle and inviting words more than we realize. On the surface, many people project an image of happiness,...

Read Online “If a man has a hundred sheep and one of them goes astray, will he not leave the ninety-nine in the hills and go in search of the stray? And if he finds it, amen, I say to you, he rejoices more over it than over the ninety-nine that did not stray.”  Matthew 18:12–13 Jesus teaches us a powerful lesson using a familiar image: the shepherd who discovers one of his sheep is missing, goes o...

Read Online The angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Luke 1:26–29 The Blessed Virgin Mary was “ful...

Read Online “I am baptizing you with water, for repentance, but the one who is coming after me is mightier than I. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in his hand. He will clear his threshing floor and gather his wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.” Matthew 3:11–12 This passage comes just...

Read Online “Jesus went around to all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom, and curing every disease and illness.” Matthew 9:35 This one line speaks volumes about Jesus’ public ministry. He didn’t just preach a few sermons or heal a few who were sick. He “went around to all the towns and villages…teaching…proclaiming the Gospel…” and cured “ev...

Read Online As Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying out, “Son of David, have pity on us!” Matthew 9:27 Picture these two men for a moment. Just before this passage, Jesus had cured a leper, healed a Roman centurion’s servant, restored Peter’s mother-in-law to health, made a paralytic walk, and stopped a woman’s years-long hemorrhages. He had cast out demons, freeing people from thei...

Read Online “Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand.” Matthew 7:24 &amp...

Read Online At that time: Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there. Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others. They placed them at his feet, and he cured them. Matthew 15:29–30 Why did Jesus perform so many miracles when He walked the earth? The Church Fathers and saints offer various insights. His...

Read Online Jesus rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, “I give you praise, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.” Luke 10:23–24  We rejoice over many things in life. We might rejoice if we win a game, do well on a test, complete some task at home or work, or attend a celebration or party....

Read Online When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those following him, “Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven.” Matthew 8:10–11 Jesus looks into the heart, not just at one’s exterior. Today’s Gospel presents us with t...

Read Online “Therefore, stay awake! For you do not know on which day your Lord will come. Be sure of this: if the master of the house had known the hour of night when the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and not let his house be broken into. So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come.” Matthew 24:42–44 How does one “stay awake” as our...

Read Online Jesus said to his disciples: “Beware that your hearts do not become drowsy from carousing and drunkenness and the anxieties of daily life, and that day catch you by surprise like a trap. For that day will assault everyone who lives on the face of the earth.” Luke 21:34–35 This is the final day of the liturgical year. Tomorrow begins Advent and the beginning of a new Church year. On thi...

Read Online “Amen, I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.” Luke 21:32–33 As we approach the final days of this liturgical year, we continue to read about the end of the world. Today we read that both Heaven and earth, as they currently are, will pass away. This is worth pondering. W...

Read Online “And then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. But when these signs begin to happen, stand erect and raise your heads because your redemption is at hand.”  Luke 21:28 This passage above concludes a series of teachings by Jesus on the suffering and persecution that will come in this world. But His teachings conclude with this line above, which offer...

Read Online “Ten were cleansed, were they not? Where are the other nine? Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?” Then he said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has saved you.” Luke 17:17–19 He was saved by faith through the expression of gratitude! What a wonderful story to ponder today as we celebrate the national holiday of Thanksgiving! Though Thanksgiving Day is not spe...

Read Online “Remember, you are not to prepare your defense beforehand, for I myself shall give you a wisdom in speaking that all your adversaries will be powerless to resist or refute.” Luke 21:14–15 This line is embedded in today’s Gospel in which Jesus makes it clear that His followers will be persecuted. Many of them will be seized, sent to prison, hated and even be put to death. For some, this...

Read Online While some people were speaking about how the temple was adorned with costly stones and votive offerings, Jesus said, “All that you see here—the days will come when there will not be left a stone upon another stone that will not be thrown down.” Luke 21:5–6 In a literal way, this prophecy of our Lord came true. In 70 A.D., the Temple upon which they were commenting was destroyed. After...

Read Online “I tell you truly, this poor widow put in more than all the rest; for those others have all made offerings from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has offered her whole livelihood.”  Luke 21:3–4 We must all see ourselves as this poor widow by offering our “whole livelihood” to Christ. Everything we have is a gift from God, and it must be offered back to God, sacrificially...

Read Online “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Luke 22:42–43 What powerful words these were. As Jesus hung dying on the Cross for the salvation of the world, He hung between two thieves. These thieves represent all of us. One of them wanted Jesus to save His earthly life by coming down from the Cross...

Read Online “That the dead will rise even Moses made known in the passage about the bush, when he called  ‘Lord’ the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” Luke 20:37–38 Jesus gives this response to some of the Sadducees who question Him about the resurrection of the dead. The Sadducees did not believe in...