More parables! More puzzles! Last Sunday’s gospel selection was taken from the opening of Matthew 13, the third of five great sermons Matthew constructed in his gospel from traditions about Jesus and to meet the needs of his Christian Community. Last Sunday’s parable: the Sower and the...
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This gospel selection begins a series of three Sundays on the 13th chapter of Matthew. This chapter is the third of the five great sermons of Jesus which Matthew constructs from oral and written tradition for the catechetical needs of his Christian Community.  Matthew begins, “On that da...
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The gospel of this day is Jesus’ hymn of praise and thanksgiving to his heavenly Father for the gift of revelation. Many of the thoughts expressed in this hymn are similar to thoughts and expressions found in Old Testament Wisdom Literature and in various Old Testament Prophets. Matthew begin...
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Today’s gospel selection is a continuation of last Sunday’s gospel – instructions for Christian missionaries in the eighties of the first century of Christianity. The author of the Gospel accord-ing to Matthew gradually moved his catechesis from specific instructions for missionar...
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The context of this gospel selection is the second of five great sermons the author of Matthew’s gospel constructed from traditions about Jesus. This sermon is called “Missionary Instructions.” The headline: “The harvest is great, but the laborers are few. Pray, therefore, t...
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The gospel for the Feast of Corpus Christi is the heart of the Bread of Life Discourse in the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John. In the skillful arrangement of catechesis in this chapter John begins with a miracle, the sign of Jesus feeding a multitude of five thousand with a few loaves of bread...
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For the existence of the Holy Trinity we must rely entirely on revelation in the New Testament and the oral tradition of the Church which was the foundation of the New Testament. Human reason or observance of nature does not reveal the Trinity.  Some claim that the Holy Trinity is revealed in...
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What is the meaning of the Greek word Pentecoste? It is the ordinal number ‘fiftieth.’ Greek-speaking Jews used this word for the fiftieth day after Passover. The Aramaic or Hebrew equivalent is Shavuoth, meaning ‘Weeks,’ or the Feast of Weeks. The name refers to the seven w...
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THE ASCENSION OF THE LORD, YEAR A MATTHEW 28:16-20 (Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9; Ephesians 1:17-23)   The Gospel of Matthew closes with the Great Commission – the gospel selection for the Ascension of Jesus.  In Matthew 28, the faithful women disciples from Galilee had watch...
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Selections from the Last Supper Discourse of Jesus with its theme of departure continues on this Sunday, but with a difference. Last Sunday the emphasis was on faith in Jesus, and faith in God as the same faith. This Sunday the emphasis is on love  - love of Jesus by his disciples. This gospel...
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