On this feast of St. Augustine (the patron of my Diocese) we pause to reflect on God’s love for us. God is love, and this love is meant to find a home in our hearts and then flow out into the lives of those we meet.
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Category Archives: Ordinary Time
22nd Sunday of the Year: The spiritual battle is within our hearts.
Study: Reflect on a time when you struggled with something in the privacy of your heart. What helped you?
Pray: Ask the Lord for the grace and healing you need to fight the challenges within you.
Serve: Perhaps you know someone who is facing a difficult time alone. How might you reach out?
Mass Readings – 22nd Sunday of the Year
Listen to the Lord’s words to the people in this Sunday’s Gospel:
He summoned the crowd again and said to them,
“Hear me, all of you, and understand.
Nothing that enters one from outside can defile that person;
but the things that come out from within are what defile.
“From within people, from their hearts,
come evil thoughts, unchastity, theft, murder,
adultery, greed, malice, deceit,
licentiousness, envy, blasphemy, arrogance, folly.
All these evils come from within and they defile.” Mark 7: 14-15,21-23
We see the effects of sin on the outside in the words and actions that are evident through observation and experience. Yet the Lord reminds us that the origin of our sin begins within the human heart, and it is there that the battle rages.
We can cloak our lives, guarding our speech and hiding our actions, yet eventually the pattern of our soul emerges through our interactions with one another. Only God clearly sees our hearts, and it is to the Lord that we turn to:
- Recognize the role of sin in our hearts
- Call upon God for the grace we need to be made whole
- Live our lives in freedom from sin, guided by the Holy Spirit
- Renew our strength through Sacraments, Scripture, Fellowship, and Prayer
Because our hearts are hidden from view, it is crucial that we take time for reflection and prayer to review the state of our souls. Some powerful tools to help us:
- A good Examination of Conscience
- A visit to the Confessional
- Frequent attendance at Mass and reception of Holy Communion
- Personal Prayer
- Someone to whom we are accountable for our thoughts, words, and actions
May we pause to look honestly at our hearts, and call upon Jesus Christ for the grace we need to fight the battle within!
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Note: this post was first published on August 25, 2018.
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21st Sunday of the Year: Facing hard times with faith. Catholic Inspiration
The passage from John’s Gospel marks a low point in the active ministry of Jesus. The people have seen healing miracles and the multiplication of the fishes and loaves, but when they hear the Lord’s teaching about the Eucharist they turn away. It is in this rock-bottom moment that Peter reminds us that we face hard times with the power of our faith in Christ.
Mass Readings – 21st Sunday of the Year
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Daily Mass: Service that leads to greatness. Catholic Inspiration
Do you want to be great in the Kingdom of Heaven? Then follow the path of service. Our example is Jesus, and the Lord will walk with us every step of the way.
Mass Readings – Saturday of the 20th Week of the Year
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Daily Mass: Acknowledging Jesus as Lord. Catholic Inspiration
Nathaniel is brought to the Lord by Philip and testifies that Jesus is the Son of God. We, too, can acknowledge that Jesus is Lord, and in doing so we have the opportunity to put our faith into practice.
Mass Readings – St. Bartholomew, Apostle
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Daily Mass: Our response to God’s invitation. Catholic Inspiration
The parable in the Gospel of Matthew shows a variety of responses to an invitation. The same is true for our response to the Lord’s invitation to live our faith. What will we do today?
Mass Readings – Thursday of the 20th Week of the Year
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Daily Mass: God’s generosity toward us. Catholic Inspiration
Jesus offers a parable that reveals God’s amazing generosity toward us…inspiring us to extend that generosity to one another.
Mass Readings – The Queenship of the Blessed Virgin Mary
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Daily Mass: There is a God, and it’s not me. Catholic Inspiration
The Scriptures today reveal the awesome power of God – the source of all life and grace – and helps us understand that our relationship with the Lord requires us to receive with humble respect from the Almighty as we share the gifts we have been given with grateful hearts.
Mass Readings – Tuesday of the 20th Week of the Year
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21st Sunday of the Year: Tough choices guided by faith
Study: Recall a time when you were confronted with a tough decision. Who or what helped you to face your situation?
Pray: Are you facing a difficult time? Ask the Lord for wisdom and courage.
Serve: Is there someone in your life who is struggling with a challenge? How can you help them?
Mass Readings – 21st Sunday of the Year
The crowds had listened to Jesus. They had seen the healings and witnessed the miracle of the fishes and loaves. They had been nourished body and soul by the Lord’s presence, and after hearing the “Bread of Life” discourse they began to doubt and walk away…
“This saying is hard, who can accept it?” – John 6:60
There are moments in life when we are called to confront a difficult situation. We are challenged to understand and carry out a task that may be unpleasant or unwelcome. We have a choice: we can walk away and allow events to run on their own, or we can engage the situation knowing that every step will be hard. What do we do?
Joshua expresses the nature of a tough decision in his words to the Israelites in the first reading:
“If it does not please you to serve the Lord, then decide today whom you will serve.” – Joshua 24:15
Let’s face it. There are times in life when we struggle to make and carry out the right choice. Perhaps we don’t know what to do; perhaps we know but we struggle to do it. Sometimes it can seem like the weight of the world rests on our shoulders as we muddle through hard sayings and tough decisions.
What are you confronting today? What challenges are set before you? May we ask God for two key gifts: Wisdom and Courage. We ask for wisdom to know what to do, and we pray for courage to carry it out!
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Note: This post was originally published on August 18, 2015.
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20th Sunday of the Year: You are what you eat. Catholic Inspiration
Jesus states that we must eat his flesh and drink his blood to have eternal life. May our reception of the Body and Blood of Christ in Holy Communion nourish our souls as the Lord renews us with his grace.
Mass Readings – 20th Sunday of the Year
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Catholic Inspiration – Podcast Archives of Homilies & Talks- Daily Mass: The Lord sends the Twelve on their way
- Daily Mass: We are invited into the family of Jesus
- Daily Mass: The call of St. Matthew
- Study, Pray, Serve: 26th Sunday of the Year
- 25th Sunday of the Year: It's not too late to turn to the Lord!
- Daily Mass: An insight into our temptations
- Daily Mass: What will we offer to the Lord today?
- Daily Mass: We approach Christ in need of mercy and forgiveness
- Daily Mass: We live our faith with zeal and conviction
- Daily Mass: Mary, Our Lady of Sorrows
