19th Sunday in Ordinary Time; August 13, 2023 1 Kgs 19:9-13a. Ps 85. Rom 9:1-5. Mt 14:22-33 Deacon Jim McFadden 43 years ago John Michael Talbot released a remarkable faith-filled album, Come to the Quiet, which was a collection of serene meditations, focusing primarily on the Psalms, one of which was Psalm 131. We…
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 20, 2023 Is 56:1,6-7. Ps 67. Rom 11:13-15,29-32. Mt 15:21-28 Deacon Jim McFadden Today’s Gospel (Mt 15:21-28) presents us with a unique example of faith in Jesus’ encounter with a Canaanite woman, a foreigner to the Jews. The scene unfolds as Jesus leaves God’s holy land and…
The Transfiguration of the Lord; August 6, 2023 Dn 7:9-10,13-14. Ps 97. 2 Pt 1:16-19. Mt 17:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden It always struck me as ironic that the first atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 was on Transfiguration Sunday. Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer deals with the real-world consequences brought about by…
17th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); July 30, 2023 1 Kgs 3:5,7-12. Ps 119. Rom 8:28-30. Mt 13:44-52 Deacon Jim McFadden The Christian existentialist Soren Kierkegaard once said, “The saint’s life is about one thing.” The Dane didn’t mean that a saint’s life would be a monotonous existence; rather, he meant that a truly…
16th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 23, 2023 Wis 12:13,16-19 Ps 86 Rom 8:26-27 Mt 13:24-43 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable of the weeds among the wheat continues Jesus’ use of parables to announce the Kingdom of God to the crowds. Among those in today’s Gospel, there is a rather perplexing one: in the…
15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 16, 2023 Is 55:10-11. Ps 65. Rom 8:18-23. Mt 13:1-23 Deacon Jim McFadden Today’s Gospel is about the parable of the Sower, which has been painted by a number of artists, most notably Vincent Van Gogh. As you reflect upon the parable, I’d encourage you to have…
13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 2, 2023 2 Kgs 4:8-11, 14-16a. Ps 89. Rom 6:3-4,8-11. Mt 10:37-42 Deacon Jim McFadden John the Evangelist began his Gospel by proclaiming the Word of God became Flesh in Jesus, which means Jesus is divine. The first line in Mark’s Gospel is that “Jesus Christ (is)…
12th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); June 25, 2023 Jer 20:10-13. Ps 69. Rom 5:12-15. Mt 10:26-33 Deacon Jim McFadden Ringo Starr once sang that “Got to pay your dues if you want to sing the blues/And you know it don’t come easy” (It Don’t Come Easy by Ringo Starr and George Harrison). Applied…
11th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); June 18, 2023 Ex 19:2-6a. Ps. 100. Rom 5:6-11. Mt 9:36-10:8 Deacon Jim McFadden This Sunday we are again faced with the themes of call and discipleship. Today’s readings involve a slightly different perspective in which the demands of discipleship lead to being sent: to be an apostle.…
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 9, 2023 Zec 9:9-10; Ps 145; Rom 8:9-13; Mt 11:25-30 Deacon Jim McFadden In today’s Gospel reading Jesus is not offering us one more philosophy of God. He is offering us the view of the inner life of God and he is inviting us to share in…
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); October 11, 2026 Is 25:6-10a. Ps 23. Phil 4:12-20. Mt 22:1-14 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable we hear in today’s Gospel tells us a lot about the Kingdom of God, which is likened…
27th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); October 4, 2026 Is 5:1-7. Ps 80. Phil 4:6-9. Mt 21:33-43 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable about the mismanagement of the vineyard tells us a lot about the Kingdom of God, the choices we…
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); September 27, 2026 Ez 18:25-28. Ps 25. Phil 2:1-11. Mt 21:28-3 Deacon Jim McFadden In a past issue of the Catholic Herald (September/October 2020), the newsmagazine for the Diocese of Sacramento, there is a…
