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The Word today, 19C

  • Writer: Admin
    Admin
  • Aug 8, 2025
  • 3 min read

August 11 - August 16, 2025


St Clare, religious


Deuteronomy 10:12-22 This reading may surprise people who are uncomfortable with the Old Testament. It teaches first of all the love of God, that is, the love we should have for God. The second paragraph should speak to us today, conscious as we are of the stranger in our midst.


Matthew 17:22-27 Jesus’ own real freedom in relation to civil authorities is wittily reflected in this rather legendary story.


St Jane Frances de Chantal, religious; St Muredach, bishop; St Attracta, virgin; St Lelia, virgin


Deuteronomy 31:1-8 While the setting is extraordinary, we are witnessing here something familial: the transition of leadership from one figure (Moses) to another (Joshua). The key sentence is a guarantee: he (the Lord) will be with you. Today, this reading, taken literally, is difficult. But by means of this text, ancient Israelites portrayed their God as a God of grace and faithfulness, the God of covenant reliability amidst all harshness and unpredictability of life.


Matthew 18:1-5, 10, 12-14 We could easily miss the culture force of the illustration. A child in the time of Jesus was not a symbol of innocent but of powerlessness. To welcome those without power is to welcome Jesus himself.


Sts Pontian, bishop of Rome, and Hippolytus, priest, martyrs; St Fachtna, bishop


Deuteronomy 34:1-12 According to biblical tradition, Moses died within view of the promised land. Our reading describes his death and burial and gives a final, very moving tribute to the great leader.


Matthew 18:15-20 In this Gospel we are overhearing practices developed in the community of Matthew, most likely centred in Antioch. What to do with people who “stray”? The procedure is in several stages, following common sensitivity and biblical precedent.


St Maximilian Kolbe, priest, martyr


Joshua 3:7-11, 13-17 The final entry in to the Promised Land under Joshua is described as a minor echo of the Exodus. The Jordan stands still to let them pass. The Psalm is a perfect match.


Matthew 18:21-19:1 This is a very sharp wisdom tale. Simply put, if you have been forgiven, you in turn must be forgiving. It may be best to think of it as an extended meditation on the Lord’s Prayer: forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.


Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary


Apocalypse 11:19, 12:1-6, 10 This unusual reading is really about the motherhood of the church and the martyrdom of early Christians. By an accommodated interpretation, it is read for the feast.


1 Corinthians 15:20-26 Our text is really a good example of Christian apocalyptic. One of the concerns of apocalyptic writings was the sequence of the end or when we will see the total victory over death. Paul believed in this, but knew it was not yet.


Luke 1:39-56 The prayer of Mary can still cause surprise because it is not about having a baby but about social reversal or revolution. We overhear in these words the prayer of the Christian anawim YHWH or the poor of the Lord.


St Stephen of Hungary


Joshua 24:14-29 A covenant renewal ceremony is recounted, something we regularly “do” in the Lord’s Supper. As we hear, the commitment involved is scary!


Matthew 19:13-15 It might be reassuring that the disciples got in the way so early!! Jesus corrected them and received the little children.


References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2025br, August 10). Nineteenth Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/081025.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings


 
 
 

The Word today, 18C

  • Writer: Admin
    Admin
  • Aug 2, 2025
  • 3 min read

August 04 - August 09, 2025


St John Mary Vianney, priest


Numbers 11:4-15 We hear the story of the manna in the desert, a story with a long resonance in the New Testament, as we see in today’s Gospel. Perhaps even more interesting is the familiar, even cheeky way, in which Moses addresses God.


Matthew 14:13-21 The first reading goes well with Gospel today in which Jesus acts as the “new” Moses providing the new “manna”, the Eucharist, our food for the journey.


Dedication of the Basilica of St Mary Major’s


Numbers 12:1-13 Within the Biblical tradition, the special role of Moses is always defended against attacks, as we can see in this perplexing story.


Matthew 14:22-36 The Gospels as a whole were written in the light of Easter and to proclaim the resurrection. This is true of the walking on the water. In this case, we are to understand that the risen, living Lord is with his church always, no matter what storms and tempests we face.


The Transfiguration of the Lord


Daniel 7:9-10, 13-14 This may well be the most remembered part of Daniel. From it we get the expression Son of Man, used by Jesus as his own self-designation.


2 Peter 1:16-19 The Bible sometimes uses symbolic tales, of course, but the story of Jesus is grounded in history and in fact.


Luke 9:28-36 Luke changes the way he presents the Transfiguration. Firstly, he underlines the context of prayer. Secondly, he names the subject of the conversation— Jesus’ death, which he called his “exodus.”


Sts Sixtus II, pope, and companions martyrs; St Cajetan, priest


Numbers 20:1-13 Anyone who has experienced the desert will immediately grasp what is at stake: water is life! Anyone who has taken the risk of significant change or journey will also identify with the feeling of looking back and asking “have I done the right thing?” At a deeper level, this is a story of “little faith”, a story with a long resonance in the Old Testament (see Psalm 95). It triggered a powerful echo in John 7:37-39, where Jesus declares himself to be the source of living water.


Matthew 16:13-23 Our reading today combines the story of Caesarea Philippi (in all three Synoptic gospels) with the special role to Peter (only in Matthew). These are linked: Peter can be the rock to others on account of his own faith. It is likely that the promise to Peter reflects his postEaster leadership in Antioch, where this Gospel was written.


St Dominic, priest and religious


Deuteronomy 4:32-40 Our reading of Deuteronomy begins with a great invitation. Moses reminds the people and us today that it is God who initiates and sustains our relationship with him.


Matthew 16:24-28 What is the cost of discipleship? Matthew explores it in two ways. Firstly, he uses sharp paradoxes and then rhetorical questions. These unanswered, open questions we all must put to ourselves. Secondly, he reminds his hearers and readers of the coming judgment, when the faithfulness of each will be assessed. The last sentence of the Gospel leads into the story of the Transfiguration, which is a kind of fulfilment.


St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein), virgin and martyr


Hosea 2:16, 17, 21-22 This reading is chosen to match the feast of this Carmelite martyr, who responded so fully to the call of God. The Psalm continues the marriage symbolism.


Matthew 25:1-13 This parable (didactic tale really) is unique to Matthew. Using nuptial metaphors, it reminds us that certain fundamental life-choices cannot be “outsourced.” Instead, we are each responsible.


References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2025bp, August 3). Eighteenth Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/080325.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings


 
 
 

The Word today, 17C

  • Writer: Admin
    Admin
  • Jul 26, 2025
  • 3 min read

July 28 - August 02, 2025



Exodus 32:15-24, 30-34 It’s a bit of a surprise to find such a frank and sudden collapse into gross idolatry...and yet, with more sophistication perhaps (!), we all do it, moulding God into our own image and likeness!.


Matthew 13:31-35 Today, we have the contrast between small beginnings and extraordinary growth and the hospitality of the Kingdom.


Sts Mary, Martha and Lazarus


Exodus 33:7-11, 34:5-9, 28 What is God like? In our reading today two sides of God are held in tension: ‘The Lord, a God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in kindness and faithfulness; for thousands he maintains his kindness, forgives faults, transgression, sin; yet he lets nothing go unchecked, punishing the father’s fault in the sons and in the grandsons to the third and fourth generation.’


John 11:19-27 The Gospel reading is proper to the feast. All three siblings are mentioned in the excerpt from the rich symbolic narrative of John 11. This is the last and grandest of the “signs” in John’s Gospel, providing a powerful climax in the words of Jesus: I am the resurrection and the life leading to an essential question: Do you believe this?


St Peter Chrysologos, bishop and doctor


Exodus 34:29-35 Something happened to Moses in his encounter with God and afterwards, he was “different.” St Paul reflects on this, contrasting the old and the new, in the second Letter to the Corinthians: Since, then, we have such a hope, we act with great boldness, not like Moses, who put a veil over his face to keep the people of Israel from gazing at the end of the glory that was being set aside. (2Corinthians 3:12–13).


Matthew 13:44-46 Two very mini parables with the same teaching: for those who discover it, the king is worthy all that I am, costing not less than everything.


St Ignatius Loyola, priest and religious


Exodus 40:16-21, 34-38 Often in Bible, God is presented as Godwith-us or Immanuel. God’s presence is symbolised in today’s reading by the cloud.


Matthew 13:47-53 The gospel of Matthew can be uncomfortable and today he does teach that there will be a judgment and a sorting at the end. It is, of course, not a literal description but an invitation not to lose the potential of the present moment.


St Alphonsus Mary de'Liguori, bishop, doctor


Leviticus 23:1, 4-11, 15-16, 27, 34-37 Today, the feasts of the Jewish calendar are enumerated if not all named: Passover and Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, the Day of Atonement, Tabernacles. Our Christian feasts of Easter and Pentecost are rooted in this Jewish calendar.


Matthew 13:54-58 The gospel reading may trigger complacency — the natives were unable to “hear” Jesus because they know him. But we can all block our ears and even block the work of Jesus.


St Eusebius of Vercelli, bishop St Peter Julian Eymard, priest


Leviticus 25:1, 8-17 The Jubilee year was to take place every fifty years—it symbolised the desire to be free, not to bound by the accumulation of debts. It is not really known if this was ever in reality practiced, but the desire is surely a reality! Who would not like such a year?


Matthew 14:1-12 The death of John the Baptist is a sad, even absurd ending to a fiery career. It is reported Mark and Matthew, both of whom use it a warning about the cost of discipleship. It is omitted in Luke and John, probably to avoid any comparisons with the unique death of Jesus. We know a little more about it from Josephus, whose version is less theatrical but rather more credible. See Jewish Antiquities 18.


References

-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2025bn, July 27). Seventeenth Sunday in ordinary time. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/072725.cfm

-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings


 
 
 
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