Today’s Gospel is taken from St. John and continues our short five-week break from Mark’s Gospel that we’ve been hearing during this liturgical year. The focus of the passages during these five weeks is the Eucharist and the Lord’s abundant love for each of us. So much power and promise are contained in the sixth chapter of John’s gospel, that […]
Into the Deep
Into the Deep offers practical insight and encouragement for being a faithful disciple of Jesus Christ. Deacon Bickerstaff draws from Sacred Scripture, Church teaching and personal testimony to help readers life the faith throughout the day. Each week, he reflects and teaches on a passage from the bible, a truth of the faith, a Person of God, an event in the life of Christ or his saints, in a way that resonates with readers more important questions about life.
The Eucharist in the Gospel of John
During this Liturgical Year (Year B), the gospel readings at Mass on Sundays are taken primarily from the Gospel of Mark. However, beginning this weekend, we will spend five consecutive Sundays hearing from the sixth chapter of the Gospel of John and the focus will be on the Eucharist. To set the scene, we need to look back to last […]
Blessed Are You
“Our duty is to share the Lord. It is the responsibility of the Holy Spirit to convert souls. We mustn’t show frustration or anger when people do not respond as we expect them to. We must simply remain faithful and love them.” Jesus said, “Blessed are you when men revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against […]
Do Not Be Afraid to Touch Jesus
The Gospel for the Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B) comes from Mark 5:21-43 and consists of the accounts of two miracles Jesus performed. Jairus, a synagogue official desperate to save the life of his daughter, seeks out Jesus. On His way with Jairus to restore his daughter, Jesus encounters the woman with a hemorrhage. Mark frequently interrupts one story to […]
Confronted By Life’s Storms
Life has a way of confronting us with many and varied challenges and trials, often when least expected. These storms take many forms: the loss of a loved one, a job, or a home… sometimes we find that our good health is not so good anymore. I would guess that many of us, back in late 2019, did not anticipate […]
Faith That Can Move Mountains
And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts […]
Jesus Christ Truly Present
The Altar of Sacrifice of the Old Covenant The passage from Exodus used for today’s first reading recounts the sealing of the Old Covenant mediated by Moses between God and Israel. The blood of the offering sprinkled upon the altar (representing God) and the people of Israel, consecrated the Israelites to right living, right belief and right worship. They were […]
The Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity
We are able to know certain eternal truths without the light of faith. According the Church for example, the greatest truth of all—God exists—is knowable from the light of human reason and the works of creation alone. But there exist truths that we cannot discover until God reveals them to us. The doctrine of God as a Trinity of Divine Persons is […]
Pentecost—God’s Love Ablaze
“Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says ‘Jesus be cursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3). “Nevertheless I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counselor […]
The Ascension of the Lord and Our Mission
Years before that first Ascension Thursday, God entered into His own creation as the God-man, Jesus. He came as a humble babe, conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. His birth took place in a stable that housed livestock. Little is recorded of His early years; He was a thirty-year-old when He began His public ministry. […]