Reflections

Jesus Christ, the Universal King Today, the last Sunday of the liturgical year, is when we celebrate Jesus Christ, the Universal King.  The end of the liturgical year anticipates the end of time when “the Kingdom of God will come in all its fulness.  Then the just will reign with Jesus Christ for ever, glorified…

Therapy of Divine Love Purgation is a process of purification.  Purgatory is not specifically mentioned in the bible but the doctrine of purgatory is a beautiful development which holds in unity two ideas which might seem to be contradictory.  Firstly, the doctrine of God’s holiness reminds us of God’s unique otherness, glory and blinding light,…

  Normally, our weekly reflection is based on the Gospel of Sunday, but this week we will concentrate on November which commenced last Tuesday, the Feast of All Saints. In the northern hemisphere, November is the darkest month.  The poet, Thomas Hood, captured the mood. “No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees, No fruits,…

Humble Prayer will pierce the clouds The parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector (Luke 18:9-14) was addressed to people who prided themselves on being virtuous and despised everyone else. In the traditional list of the roots of sin, known as the seven capital sins, the first in the list is pride, and rightly…

Pray continually and never lose heart The message of today’s Gospel (Luke 18: 1-8) is clearly expressed in the opening line. Pray continually and never lose heart.  We are prepared for this lesson by the First Reading which gives us a picture of Moses at prayer.  A battle was being fought and as long as…

Gratitude is the heart of prayer Luke, more than the other writers, is the evangelist of prayer. This Sunday’s Gospel (Luke 17:11-19), the story of the healing of ten lepers, instructs us on having trust in our prayer of petition and returning to God in thanksgiving.  Asking and thanking. “Jesus! Master! Take pity on us.”…

  The Unadorned Table There are ten meals in Luke’s Gospel and each one is not only a table of food but also a table of the word … just as we have in the liturgy of the Eucharist.  Each meal is the setting for some important teaching.  We are familiar with the Last Supper,…

Dives and Lazarus Luke, more than the other evangelists, portrays Jesus as being on the side of the poor.  In last Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus referred to money as tainted with temptation.  Today’s Gospel (Luke 16:19-23) is the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.  Although he is commonly called Dives, the rich man is not…

  In the past I often heard people complaining that too many Sunday sermons were about money.  I don’t hear it nowadays, probably because the parish newsletter and parish council publicize the financial needs.  This Sunday however the Gospel (Luke 16:1-13) suggests that the preacher should talk about money, dealing with its wrong use and…