Category: Uncategorized

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Gospel: Matthew 20: 20-28

The mother of the sons of Zebedee approached Jesus with her sons
and did him homage, wishing to ask him for something.
He said to her,
“What do you wish?”
She answered him,
“Command that these two sons of mine sit,
one at your right and the other at your left, in your Kingdom.”
Jesus said in reply,
“You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the chalice that I am going to drink?”
They said to him, “We can.”
He replied,
“My chalice you will indeed drink,
but to sit at my right and at my left, this is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”
When the ten heard this,
they became indignant at the two brothers.
But Jesus summoned them and said,
“You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them,
and the great ones make their authority over them felt.
But it shall not be so among you.
Rather, whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant;
whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave.
Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served
but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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“Can you drink the cup that I will drink?” Jesus questions his Apostles in today’s Gospel.

“Of course!” they say without understanding.

The Apostles imagine themselves sharing a gilded chalice with Jesus at a royal banquet in Jerusalem as he’s being crowned their king – and they his trusted advisors.

That’s the “cup” they want to drink – one of power and glory.

What they will learn is that this divine “cup” is not one of consolation or celebration; rather, it’s a mysterious reference to participating in Christ’s suffering and death.

We hear a final reference to this “cup” in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus prays, “Father, let this cup pass from me. But not as I will, but your will be done.”

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The first Apostle to drink from the “cup” of the Lord is the Apostle James, whose feast day we celebrate today.

James was beheaded by the Roman Emperor Agrippa in the year 44 AD, about 10 years after the resurrection of Jesus.

Soon enough, the other Apostles followed. Matthew preached the Gospel as far as Ethiopia, where he was martyred. Some believe Thomas made it as far as India. Peter and Paul died in Rome.

The only Apostle, aside from Judas, who did not die a physical martyrdom was the Apostle John, who spent his final years in exile on the Greek island of Patmos. 

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So, what might the story of the Apostles say to us today?

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Often, we imagine our futures, much like they did. And quite often, we’re wrong – as they were.

Once we learn to surrender and drink the “cup” of the Lord, our life no longer becomes our own; it’s placed in the hands of Jesus.

God directs our path in ways – and to places – that we would never have imagined for ourselves. And our reward will be the same as theirs: a coveted seat in the kingdom of God, where, “neither moth nor decay can destroy.” 

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Image credits: (1) Hope Lutheran Chapel (2) Watchman on the Wall Ministries (3) Heart Treasure, WordPress

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 10-17

The disciples approached Jesus and said,
“Why do you speak to the crowd in parables?”
He said to them in reply,
“Because knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven
has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.
To anyone who has, more will be given and he will grow rich;
from anyone who has not, even what he has will be taken away.
This is why I speak to them in parables, because
they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Isaiah’s prophecy is fulfilled in them, which says:

You shall indeed hear but not understand,
you shall indeed look but never see.
Gross is the heart of this people,
they will hardly hear with their ears,
they have closed their eyes,
lest they see with their eyes
and hear with their ears
and understand with their hearts and be converted
and I heal them.

“But blessed are your eyes, because they see,
and your ears, because they hear.
Amen, I say to you, many prophets and righteous people
longed to see what you see but did not see it,
and to hear what you hear but did not hear it.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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Pope Benedict once likened the Catholic Church to a large stained-glass window.

From the outside, stained-glass windows look dark, dusty, and gloomy. It is only from within  that they become radiant, often revealing a story from the bible or explaining a mystery of our faith.

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Similarly, those who gaze upon the Catholic Church from the outside – or without faith – may see an institution that’s backward; outdated; or gloomy. 

The Church’s teachings, like the divinity of Christ, his Promised Presence in the Eucharist, God as a Trinity, the grace of the Sacraments, or certain moral teachings don’t seem to make sense or have a strong connection to a person’s daily life.

But if you enter into the Church with faith, these mysteries are illumined. 

Suddenly, the Mass no longer looks like a group of people eating pieces of bread and drinking cups of wine; they are, in fact, receiving their Savior. Baptism is not another version of baby bath time; it’s the moment a child receives eternal life.

Moral boundaries are not impositions on our freedom; rather, the path to freedom.

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As Jesus says in today’s Gospel, “Knowledge of the mysteries of the Kingdom of heaven has been granted to you, but to them it has not been granted.”

This does not mean that we understand everything the Church teaches all at once; often it’s a gradual process. But those who make an honest search for Truth will find it.

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If each of the Church’s teachings were like a stained-glass window, then what are examples of ones I already see from within? Conversely, are there any I still struggle to understand?

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May Christ bless our eyes, ears, mind, and heart so that we may see and understand all he teaches us. 

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Image credits: (1) (2) Strasbourg Cathedral, Wikipedia Commons (3) StockCake

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Gospel: Matthew 13: 1-9

On that day, Jesus went out of the house and sat down by the sea.
Such large crowds gathered around him
that he got into a boat and sat down,
and the whole crowd stood along the shore.
And he spoke to them at length in parables, saying:
“A sower went out to sow.
And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path,
and birds came and ate it up.

Some fell on rocky ground, where it had little soil.
It sprang up at once because the soil was not deep,
and when the sun rose it was scorched,
and it withered for lack of roots.
Some seed fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked it.
But some seed fell on rich soil, and produced fruit,
a hundred or sixty or thirtyfold.
Whoever has ears ought to hear.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I’m sure we all want our hearts filled with that fertile soil which Jesus blesses in today’s Gospel. It bears thirty, sixty, or a hundred-fold.

But fertile soil is only fertile because first it has been broken. 

In order to make soil fertile, you must crush it, break it open, and repeatedly separate it. After this period of chaos, the ground is ready to receive life.

When placed inside that broken soil, seeds begin to grow. Any plant that bears good fruit was once a tiny seed placed inside soft, fertile soil.

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The same is true for us. When we experience heartache or sorrow, our hearts are broken open like fresh soil. That wound within bears fruit – thirty, sixty, or a hundred-fold.

But Jesus tells us that we have a say in what type of fruit that will be. 

Without faith, our hearts can dry up like dirt, leading to bitterness and anger.                         

But with faith, we can mysteriously begin to bear good fruit – thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold.  

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For example, knowing the sorrow that death brings, can allow us to grow in empathy, ministering to others in a more compassionate way. 

Knowing the twinge of hunger can motivate us to feed others who have empty stomachs.

Knowing the pain of loneliness can inspire us to visit others, who may otherwise feel forgotten. 

In the words of one spiritual writer, Jesus can transform us into, “wounded healers.” I’ve found this to be true in my own life: God has used some of my more painful experiences to make me a more merciful minister of the Gospel.

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May the Lord take whatever is broken within us and bless it, so that we can bear good fruit – thirty, sixty, or a hundredfold.

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Image credits: (1) Redeeming God (2) Ibid. (3) Archdiocese of Los Angeles