The BreadCast

(Sir.48:1-4,9-11; Ps.80:2-4,15-16,18-19; Mt.17:10-13) "Like a fire there appeared the prophet Elijah whose words were as a flaming furnace." Elijah has come, to "restore everything." The word has fallen like fire from heaven to prepare a path for the Lord to tread. The Baptist has cried out as a voice in the wilderness for us to make our hearts ready for the coming of the Lord. But, sadly, "they d...

O Patroness of the Americas and Protectress of the Unborn, look upon our troubled state, where lust and greed abound, where thousands are killed in the womb every day, where the poor and the rich are separated by steel walls and thirsting souls die in the desert – help us, dear Mother, to discover life, to find your guidance in this land of opportunity and broken dreams, in these hearts that have...

(Zec. 2:14-17; Lk.1:46-55; Lk.1:29-47) "Silence, all mankind, in the presence of the LORD! for He stirs forth from His holy dwelling." And His own stirring forth causes John the Baptist to stir forth, to "leap for joy" – thus is opened the mouth of the one who will proclaim His way. On this the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe we celebrate the Lord's stirring forth in astounding fashion in the Ameri...

O bishop of Rome who guided the bark of Peter through difficult waters, who kept her on the course set for her by the Lord even as she grew in this world from a Church of the blood of martyrs to one entering the light of day, of acceptance by the city of man… you who sought so diligently to preserve the memory of the martyrs lest it should pass away, and the Cross of Christ with it – pray that tod...

(Is.41:13-20; Ps.145:1,8-13; Mt.11:11-15) "I will make you a threshing sledge, sharp, new, and double-edged." A "worm" and a "maggot" are we. We are "the afflicted and the needy [who] seek water in vain, [our] tongues… parched with thirst." But holding our right hand, the Lord speaks to us: "Fear not, I will help you." "I will open up rivers on the bare heights… I will turn the desert into a marsh...

(Is.40:25-31; Ps.103:1-4,8,10; Mt.11:28-30) "My yoke is easy and my burden light." How we do become "weary and find life burdensome." How we can "faint and grow weary," "stagger and fall" from the burden of sin and our inherent weakness. But oh how "He gives strength to the fainting; for the weak He makes vigor abound." For indeed He is the creator of the universe – "by His great might and the str...

O humble child of the Lord whom our Lady blessed with her presence, to whom she gave roses in winter – pray for us who are not humble as you, whose obedience is cold and grown so weak, that she might come to us, too, that she might speak a word to our hearts and we might as children listen and do as she directs, she who directs us only to Jesus, only to His love. Pray this continent be once again...

(Is.40:1-11; Ps.96:1-3,10-13,Is.40:10; Mt.18:12-14) "Like a shepherd He feeds His flock; in His arms He gathers His lambs." His is the voice which "speak[s] tenderly to Jerusalem." It is He who "give[s] comfort to [His] people." For "it is no part of [the] heavenly Father's plan that a single one of these little ones shall ever come to grief." Like a shepherd He leads us. With great concern He wat...

O pure Mother, you are she who is full of grace; it is you who have found the Lord's favor. Preserved from all sin from the womb, overflowing with all His blessings, you are the hope of our race, the one created soul most like to God – pray for us this day, dear Mother, that we might be kept from the snares of the world, from the enticements of the devil. O help us be pure as you, obedient to the...

(Gn.3:9-15,20; Ps.98:1-4; Eph.1:3-6,11-12; Lk.1:26-38) "He chose us in Him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before Him." And she is the sign of such preservation from evil. "Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you." And so the Virgin Mother is greeted by the power of the Most High. So she is called – "full of grace" is her title. She whom all generations will c...

O good bishop and wise doctor of the Church – pray for us, that the water that is Christ might pour upon our souls, especially His chosen apostles, your fellow bishops, and fill all with wisdom from on high, leading us away from all lies to the truth that is Jesus. Pray our hearts shall be filled to overflowing with this Word, that the Gospel might be preached by lips anointed with the Body and Bl...

(Is.40:1-5,9-11; Ps.85:9-14; 2Pt.3:8-14; Mk.1:1-8) "Behold, I am sending my messenger ahead of you; he will prepare your way." And so, "John the Baptist appeared in the desert proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." And so comes "the voice of one crying out in the desert," in the desert that is our fallen lives: "Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His paths." Turn...

O bishop of Myra, shepherd of the Lord's sheep who has with a generous heart cared so well for His little ones… all became as your children, for you loved your flock with the love of Christ Himself; their needs were your own – pray our hearts will be like yours, that just so generously we will give to those in need, provide for those in our care. I pray you will see us now as your children here an...

(Is.30:19-21,23-26; Ps.147:1-6,Is.30:18; Mt.9:35-10:1,6-8) "On the day the Lord binds up the wounds of His people, He will heal the bruises left by His blows." "Cure the sick, raise the dead, heal the leprous, expel demons." With these words Jesus sends His disciples forth proclaiming, "The reign of God is at hand!" The prophecy of Isaiah has been fulfilled. The Savior has come. The Teacher is at...

(Is.29:17-24; Ps.27:1,4,13-14; Mt.9:27-31) "The eyes of the blind shall see." O "that I may gaze on the loveliness of the Lord and contemplate His temple." That out of "gloom and darkness" I might be taken, and come "to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life." That I could feel His hands touch my eyes, that I might have the faith to believe they shall be open to His glory… Brothers...

O blessed teacher of the faith – may the nourishing waters of our Mother, of the true teaching of our Church, flow upon all souls, calling them to the Lord from whom they emanate; like the waters trickling from the temple in Ezekiel's vision, may they grow and increase as they travel to the ends of the earth, making all whole, pure in the light of God. Pray that the Mother of Heaven, through whom...

(Is.26:1-6; Ps.118:1,8-9,19-21,25-27; Mt.7:21,24-27) "Trust in the Lord forever! For the Lord is an eternal rock." Sand or rock? Upon which do we build our house? If we "take refuge in the Lord" and enter "the gates of justice," we shall find salvation in the Lord's kingdom; if we "trust in man" and "princes," we shall be leveled with the dust – our house shall collapse and we be "completely ruine...

O holy apostle of the Lord, model of faith in God and love of the Church, has there been a soul to match your zeal for the salvation of the world? Convict us of our laziness, of our sloth, of our distraction by the things not of the kingdom of God; of what worth are our lives if not spent in service of the Lord and of neighbor? O missionary of missionaries, by your prayer let the Church on earth,...

(Is.25:6-10; Ps.23:1-6; Mt.15:29-37) "The hand of the Lord will rest on this mountain." And He will heal us. And He will lead us. And He will feed us. Jesus went up onto a mountainside along the Sea of Galilee and sat down to teach and to heal. The sick were laid at His feet. Isaiah says, "On this mountain the Lord of hosts will provide for all peoples." This mountain is the Lord. It is Jesus who...

(Is.11:1-10; Ps.72:1,7-8,12-13,17; Lk.10:21-24) "The earth shall be filled with knowledge of the Lord, as water covers the sea." And so, "there shall be no harm or ruin on all my holy mountain," says the Lord. The vision is sure: "The wolf shall be the guest of the lamb… the lion shall eat hay like the ox… the child shall lay his hand on the adder's lair," for all shall live as one in the Spirit o...

(Is.2:1-5 or Is.4:2-6; Ps.122:1-9; Mt.8:5-11 I shall treat of both first readings) "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem!" For it shall come. "The mountain of the Lord's house shall be established as the highest mountain…. All nations shall stream toward it," and there the Lord will give judgment. And His judgment will cause the banishment of war, for all shall be one in Him, and to all He shall grant...

O brother of the Rock of our Church, you who brought him to our Lord, you who were crucified on the Cross of our Savior, who shed your blood freely for His cause… you who thirsted for His coming and welcomed Him so readily into your life – bring us also to the Messiah's side and pray we shall receive Him as well as your brother has done; pray we, too, will abandon our boats, our moorings in this w...

(Is.2:1-5; Ps.122:1-9; Rm.13:11-14; Mt.24:37-44) "Come, let us climb the Lord's mountain, to the house of the God of Jacob, that He may instruct us in His ways, and we may walk in His paths." "Beat [your] swords into plowshares." "Throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light." "It is the hour now for you to awake from sleep," and to "stay awake! For you do not know on which day yo...

(Dn.7:15-27; Dn.3:59,82-87; Lk.21:34-36) "The day I speak of will come upon all who dwell on the face of the earth." And so we must "pray constantly for the strength to escape whatever is in prospect, and to stand before the Son of Man." The vision is explained to Daniel, and really it is quite simple: evil shall come, but good shall triumph in the end. Kingdoms of the Beast, of the evil one, "sha...

(Dn.7:2-14; Dn.3:59,75-81; Lk.21:29-33) "The beast was slain and its body thrown into the fire to be burnt up." Daniel prophesies the coming of pagan empires in his vision of the four beasts. The vision is, in short, an overview of the coming salvation. Notice that even as Daniel watches the beasts emerge with their horns and tusks and great iron teeth, even as he watches these terrible creatures...