Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (23: 1-12) in which Jesus says, ‘The greatest among you will be your servant’. Fr Paul says this chapter has the harshest things Matthew says about the scribes and Pharisees. He introduces a seven-fold curse on them. Keeping in mind that the scribes and [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (6: 36-38) in which Jesus says, ‘do not judge and you will not be judged’. Fr Paul reminds us of the Gospel we heard from Matthew (5: 43-48) on Saturday about the six standards with the central theme of ‘Love’ running through them and [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (5: 20-26) in which Jesus tells his followers to sort out their differences with each other before making an offering at the altar. In the scriptures, Fr Paul says, Jesus gives six ways in which true righteousness goes beyond what is in the Old [...]
In today’s reflection, Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (7: 7-12) where Jesus says to his disciples, “Ask and it shall be given to you, Seek and you shall find and Knock and the door shall be opened”. Fr Paul reflects on how the Petitionary Prayer can often be a problem theologically as we address our prayers [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (11: 29-32) in which Jesus says, ‘as Jonah was a sign to the Ninevites, so also will the Son of Man be to this generation’. Fr Paul says, in this Gospel, we hear Luke use the term ‘Son of Man’, which he often uses in [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (6: 7-15) in which Jesus teaches his disciples how to pray. Today, Fr Pauls says, we hear Jesus delivering part of the Sermon on the Mount and Matthew, whose Gospel we are reading from today, places ‘The Lord’s Prayer’ right in the middle. In [...]
After Fr Paul reads from today’s Gospel from Matthew (16: 13-19) in which Peter declares that Jesus is the Messiah, he shares a little about the feast of the Chair of St Peter the Apostle, which we celebrate today. Fr Paul says, it might seem a bit funny to have a feast [...]
FRIEND OF SINNERS Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Luke (5:27-32) in which says Jesus calls Levi, the tax collector, to be one of his close associates. Fr Paul says, we need to understand that tax collectors were despised and shunned on religious grounds by people like the Pharisees and others. The [...]
Fr Paul reads from the Gospel of Matthew (9: 14-15) in which Jesus is questioned about why the Pharisees fast but his disciples do not. Fr Paul says the Gospel we’ve heard today can be a bit puzzling because it seems to say that fasting is not to be done as we [...]
Fr Paul reads from Matthew’s Gospel (6: 1-6, 16-18) in which Jesus warns against parading good deeds before others to attract their notice. Afterwards, he reflects on the significance of Ash Wednesday as we begin our Lenten Journey. Fr Paul says Ash Wednesday is one of the most important Holy Days in [...]