The Better Part

John 1:29-34   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n After weeks of preparing and celebrating the feast of the Light coming in the world, we now return to Ordinary Time. The church changes the colour to green. In many parts of the world, snow covers the ground; there is no green. When we finally see green poking though the snow and green beginning to cover the bare branches of trees, we know spring comes. Things grow. Ordinary Time is a good time for growing—growing in Go

Matthew 3.13-17 Click here to listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n We are coming to the end of the Christmas season. Most people think Christmas ends on December 26th, or that maybe the season lasts for twelve days, but the Church celebrates God becoming human like us  for three Sundays. The Baptism of the Lord is the last of the three Sundays of the feast of Christmas. After hearing about Jesus as a baby for two Sundays, now we hear about Jesus as a grown man. He comes

Matthew 2.13-15 , 19-23 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel reading this Sunday, we hear Joseph take his family away from their home country of Israel when it is no longer safe for them to stay. They travel to Egypt, a country far away from the forces that want to harm Jesus. The little family stays there until it is safe for them to return to Israel, and settle in Nazareth, a safe town away from danger, where Jesus can grow up in safety. Clearly, God want

Matthew 1:18-24 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n Throughout the Bible, we discover many names and titles for Jesus. We can find one for each day of Advent and still have more to find! Thinking about the different names and titles helps us go deeper into the mystery of who Jesus is, deeper into the mystery of God. In the Gospel for this fourth Sunday of Advent, when Joseph learns about God's plan, we hear two different names for the baby. Now the birth of Jesus the Me

Matthew 11.2-11 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n (Adults, you could begin by reading the Gospel to your child.) Matthew 11.2-11 This Sunday is called Gaudete  Sunday. We light the third candle of the Advent wreath, the pink one. Gaudete  means rejoice  and pink is the colour for rejoicing . We wonder, though, why  do we rejoice ? Last Sunday, we heard about John the Baptist—the Preparation  Person— preparing  the people of Israel for Jesus who comes. John the Baptist

Matthew 3.1-12 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday when we light the second candle on our Advent wreath, we hear about John the Baptist who is a cousin of Jesus. John the Baptist is a preparation  person. He prepares  the people of Israel for Jesus who comes to speak about the Kingdom of God  in a way no one has ever spoken before. In Advent , we listen to John the Baptist as we   prepare  to celebrate the feast of the Light of God coming i

Matthew 24.37-44 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n This Sunday is the first Sunday of Advent . Advent  is a season of preparing  for the feast of the the light of God coming into the world. We think about the moment when that light first came into the world and we prepare for the moment when that light fills all the world. The colour for the season is purple . We know that Jesus is the light of the world and that he is born in Bethlehem. We know that he grows to be

Luke 23.35-43 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n This Sunday is a special feast day called Christ the King. "Christ" is a title given to Jesus that means "One Who Is Anointed"—one who is chosen by God for something special. The reading for this Sunday talks about Jesus dying on the cross. Is this the "something special" God chooses him for? Is this our King? "Forget-me-nots" (Image by RÜŞTÜ BOZKUŞ from Pixabay.) The reading begins: And the people stood by, watching...

Luke 21.5-19 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus speaks about some upsetting things. He knows that the world is not perfect. He knows that bad things happen. What does he want us to know about these things? When some were speaking about the temple, how it was adorned with beautiful stones and gifts dedicated to God, Jesus said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another; all wil

John 2.13-25   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n This Sunday, we celebrate a holy place—a special holy building called a "basilica" in Rome. In our Gospel reading, Jesus arrives at a holy place—a special holy building called "the Temple" in Jerusalem. The Temple is the most holy  place in all of Jerusalem because in the Temple is God. The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the Temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, a

Luke 7.11-17 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n This Sunday is a feast day. It is November 2nd, the feast of All Souls. Each year on this day, we think in a particular way about those people who died before us. Death is a part of life that touches us close to our hearts. On this day, we listen to the Gospel to find out what Jesus thinks about death. We want to learn something of his heart. Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went with

Luke 18.9-14 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus tells a parable about how we should be when we pray. We remember that parables are little stories to help us understand. In this parable, there are two people who go to the Temple to pray. The Temple is the most holy place in all Jerusalem, in all of Israel, because in the Temple, behind the great gold doors of the Tabernacle, is the Holy of Holies. Only a certain holy priest on a cert

Luke 18:1-8 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus tells us a parable about prayer. We know that parables are stories, little mysteries that invite us to ask the question: What more  can Jesus mean? “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor had respect for people. In that city there was a widow who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Grant me justice against my opponent.’ There are two people in this parable: a judge—s

Luke 17.11-19 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n A strange thing happens in the Gospel for this Sunday. On the way to Jerusalem,...

Luke 17.5-10 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, the apostles want something that only God can give....

Luke 16.19-31 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n (Adults, the parable in this Sunday's Gospel presents us with two very different...

Luke 1 6:10-13 (full reading: Luke 16 .1-13 ) Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus tells the...

John 3.1 3-17   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n This Sunday we celebrate the feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross. To...

Luke 14:25-33 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus looks out at the large crowds of people....

Luke 14:1, 7-14   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus and his friends go to someone's home for...

Luke 13.22-30   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus makes his way to Jerusalem, the most holy...

Luke 12:49-53 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n (Adults, this reflection considers simply the first two verses of the Gospel...

Luke 12.32- 34   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n (Adults, the Gospel for this Sunday is quite long and yet the first verses of...

Luke 12.13-21 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n We know that Jesus died and is Risen. The Light of his Risen life continues to...

Luke 11.1-13   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n Prayer is a mystery. We know that prayer is conversation with God. God speaks....

Luke 10.38-42   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n We know it is important that we listen to the Word of God. When we listen, we...

Luke 10.25-37   Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n Often, when we listen to stories about Jesus in the Bible, we hear people...

Luke 10.1-12, 17-20 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n In the Gospel this week, Jesus and his disciples journey towards...

Matthew 16.13- 19 Listen here to the Gospel and Reflectio n The Gospel for this Sunday occurs after the disciples travel with Jesus for...

Luke 9.11b-17   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday, we celebrate the Feast of the Body and the Blood of Christ. On this...

John 16.12-15   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection Deep in our hearts, we all want to know God. We want to know God and we want God to...

Acts 2.1-11 Listen to the Gospel and Reflection Last week, we heard about Jesus ascending into heaven to oversee the building of the...

Luke 24.44-53   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday we celebrate the last Sunday of the Easter season. For forty days...

John 14.23-29   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday we celebrate the sixth Sunday of Easter. We take so much time to...

John 13.1,31-33a, 34-35   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday, we celebrate the fifth Sunday of Easter. But even as we...

John 10.27-30   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection Every year on the fourth Sunday of Easter, we celebrate Jesus the Good Shepherd. We...

John 21.1-19   Listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday we celebrate the third Sunday of Easter. We are not even halfway through...

John 20:19- 23 Listen to the Gospel and Reflection The Gospel for this Sunday actually begins on the evening of the day that Jesus rises...

John 20:1-18 Listen to the Gospel and Reflection We know that when Jesus is born, a new moment begins in the History of the Kingdom of...

Luke 22:14-20 , Luke 23:32-43   (full reading: Luke 22.14 - 23.56 ) Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection This Sunday marks...

John 8.1-11 Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection (Adults, this is a difficult passage from the Gospels—for adults as well as...

Luke 15.1-3, 11-32   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection Jesus often speaks about the love of God. It seems important to...

Luke 13:1-9   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection The Gospel for this Sunday mentions two tragic events in which people...

Luke 9.28b-36   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection Many times in St. Luke's Gospel, we hear about Jesus praying. In the...

Luke 4.1-13   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection We enter a new season in the church called Lent , a time of preparation...

Luke 6:39-45   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection In the Gospel for this Sunday, Jesus tells us some parables about...

Luke 6:27-38   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection Last week we thought about the Kingdom of God as level ground. We...

Luke 6:17, 20-26   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection The Gospel for this Sunday begins with Jesus coming down from a...

Luke 5.1-11   Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflection So often when we listen to the Gospel, we hear about Jesus and his...

Luke 2.22-40 Click here to listen to the Gospel and Reflectio n Today, it seems we move back in time! We thought we left the Christmas...