Sunday Reflections
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Fire was often used as a symbol of God’s presence in the Old Testament. Moses saw a bush burning without being consumed, and had his first encounter with God (Exodus 3). The message of God…
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Life in the west is very different to that of Jesus’s time. Only very rich people have servants. In first-century Palestine, however, many people would have been employed either as servants or -…
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Greed and its futility seem to be the theme of today’s liturgy. Ecclesiastes is one of the wisdom books of the bible, and the extract for today points out that all worldly gain, though it may be…
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah was seen by the Old Testament writer as a punishment for grave sin. Recent archeological discoveries have pin-pointed the probable location of these cities.…
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Many people, especially feminists, might feel that Jesus was being very unfair to Martha, who was heroically trying single-handedly to provide him with the best possible hospitality. She must have…
Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The lawyer who questioned Jesus about how to obtain eternal life would have been versed in Mosaic law. However his idea of neighbour was probably someone near or like him, in other words a fellow…
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke is the only evangelist to mention 72 disciples sent out ahead of Jesus. This would indicate that he already had far more trusted followers than just the twelve. In a way they were like John…
Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Jesus has already started preparing his disciples for his coming death, and is setting out for Jerusalem. He had talked about entering through the narrow gate (Matt. 7:13-14), which means not…
Feast of Corpus Christi
The eucharist is at the centre of our Christian faith. It is the commemoration of the loving self-giving of Jesus in his passion and death. On Holy Thursday, we celebrate the institution of the…
The Feast of the Most Holy Trinity
The doctrine of the Trinity was only clearly defined at the Councils of Nicaea in 325 and Constantinople in 381. Though references are made in both the Old and New Testaments, it sees to have…