There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test him and said, "Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" The key phrase here is "to test him". Was...
We live in the reality of mystery, in the reality of revealed truth and in the reality of the present moment. In this moment we experience the tension between good and evil. In...
There is a difference between loving someone and being in love with that person. I can love many people, but I am in love with God and a spouse. I can love sincerely...
"With Christ we have nothing to fear. Nothing and no one can do us harm, if we ourselves do not allow it. After the coming of Christ, said an ancient Father of the...
"I, Paul, am already being poured out like a libation, and the time of my departure is at hand. I have competed well; I have finished the race; I have kept the faith....
"He loves, He hopes, He waits. Our Lord prefers to wait Himself for the sinner for years rather than keep us waiting an instant." (St. Maria Goretti ) God is waiting for us...
"Spiritual life demands that you never turn back or stop going forward; but rather that, as soon as you taste it, you make progress day by day and, forgetting what lies behind, strain...
"There is so much talk of wasted lives. However, wasted only is the life of a man who never realized that God exists and that he, his very self, stands before this God."...
"Life in man is the glory of God; the life of man is the vision of God." (St. Iranaeus) What gives me life is your life in me. That life is your glory....
Reflections on Scripture Fourteenth Sunday Ordinary Gospel C
By spiritaflame 10:40 AM Reading ReflectionsAt that time the Lord appointed seventy-two others whom he sent ahead of him in pairs to \ every town and place he intended to visit. These seventy-two are disciples other than the...
"If the poison of pride is swelling up in you, turn to the Eucharist; and that Bread, Which is your God humbling and disguising Himself, will teach you humility. If the fever of...
To return to the heart means to return to what is most personal and interior to us. Sometimes we are afraid to return to the heart. We are afraid of the hurt memories...
"There are great people who make others feel small. But the real great person is the one who makes others feel great." Is this one of the differences between a sinner and a...
Why is there suffering? Since the Fall of Adam and Eve, since the entrance of sin into the world, suffering is part of the human experience. God said to Eve:"I will intensify your...
"I die the King’s faithful servant, but God’s first" (St. Thomas Merton) Do we have our priorities in the same order? Is God first in my life or is there another in reality...
"It is better to be a child of God than king of the whole world!" (St. Aloysius Gonzaga) This is a simple but profound insight into real life. Maybe that is why Jesus...
Reflections on Scriptures Thirteenth Sunday Ordinary Time C
By spiritaflame 10:07 AM Reading ReflectionsWhen the days for Jesus’ being taken up were fulfilled, he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem, and he sent messengers ahead of him. Jesus’ ministry in Galilee has been completed. Now, Jesus...
In the Gospel the Lord reveals a sobering truth: "the measure with which you measure will be measured back to you." We could say today: "choose your poison". In another passage in the...
I customarily say I love you, Lord. I do. But words need to be acted on, less they remain just words. There are times I do and times I don't. Love in action...
"How do we wait for God? We wait with patience. But patience does not mean passivity. Waiting patiently is not like waiting for the bus to come, the rain to stop, or the...
We read in the scriptures that we are to be perfect as our Heavenly Father is perfect or in another place we are called to be holy as our Heavenly Father is holy. These...
Reflections on Scripture Twelfth Sunday Ordinary Time Gospel C
By spiritaflame 2:23 PM Reading ReflectionsOnce when Jesus was praying by himself, and the disciples were with him, he asked them, "Who do the crowds say that I am?" Jesus is praying alone, even thought the disciples are...
"Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak." (Anthony of Padua) How true this is! How often have we spoken words because they were the right thing to...
"When we think about Jesus as that exceptional, unusual person who lived long ago and whose life and words continue to inspire us, we might avoid the realization that Jesus wants us to...
"O Lord and Master of my life, take from me the spirit of sloth, meddling, lust of power, and idle talk. But give rather the spirit of chastity, humility, patience and love to your...
"We are so obsessed with doing that we have no time and no imagination left for being. As a result, men/women are valued not for what they are but for what they do...
Lord, help me to be more attentive to you today, to be attentive to your grace and movement of your Spirit within me. In the midst of all the sounds around me, let...
Father, what would my life be if I would let you write the script? What if I chose to follow your plan for me without question? It would be totally different. Did you...
This Solemnity of your Sacred Heart gives me a moment of pause to reflect once more on your unconditional, life-giving love. Above all, I thank you for your love shown in many ways,...
"Very often we distance ourselves from Jesus. We say, 'What Jesus knew we cannot know, and what Jesus did we cannot do.' But Jesus never puts any distance between himself and us. He...
"Stir into flame the gift of God you have through the imposition of hands." These words of St. Paul to Timothy are applicable to each of us. We have been given supernatural, spiritual gifts...
