3rd Sunday of Easter (A); April 26, 2020 Acts 2:1322-23 Ps 16 1 Pt 1:17-21 Lk 24:13-35 Deacon Jim McFadden Why was it so difficult for the two disciples to recognize the Risen Lord? Jesus’ death scattered his disciples and shattered their hopes and dreams. Previously, they had been so full of hope and…
Divine Mercy Sunday (A); April 19, 2020 Acts 2:42-47 Ps 118 1 Pt 1:3-9 Jn 20:19-31 Deacon Jim McFadden Every Sunday at Holy Mass we commemorate the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus; indeed, if that was not the case, the liturgy would be nothing more than a nostalgic remembrance. But during this period…
Easter Sunday: The Resurrection of Our Lord Acts 10:34,37-43 Ps 118 Col 3:1-4 Jn 20:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden Today we are celebrating the apex of the liturgical calendar; indeed, it is the nucleus of our Faith: The Resurrection of the Lord. In the midst of a global pandemic that is bringing so much…
Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord Mt 21:1-11 (proc.); Is 50:4-7 Ps 22 Phil 2:6-11 Mt 27:11-54 Deacon Jim McFadden Every year is a moving experience on Palm Sunday as we go with Jesus towards the Temple, accompanying him on the ascent which leads to the Cross. As Jesus enters Jerusalem,…
5th Sunday of Lent (A); 3-29-20 Ez 37:12-14 Ps 130 Rom 8:8-11 Jn 11:1-45 Deacon Jim McFadden In today’s Gospel reading we have a stark contrast between Jesus, who is the Lord of Life, and the ruins of death. Let us pause and stand before the last of the miraculous signs which Jesus…
4th Sunday of Lent (A); March 22, 2020 1 Sam 16: 1b,6-7,10-13a Ps 23 Eph 5:8-14 Jn 9:1-41 Deacon Jim McFadden As we read today’s Gospel from John (9:1-41), it will be helpful to remember John’s audience and his purpose. John is writing at the end of the first century to people who were…
2nd Sunday of Lent (A); March 8, 2020 Gen 12:1-4a Ps 33 2 Tim 1:8b-10 Mt 17:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden Our magnificent first reading is a short passage from the beginning of the 12th chapter of the book of Genesis. Prior to it are chapters 3-11, which describe, not the world that God intended,…
3rd Sunday of Lent (A); March 15 , 2020 Ex 17:3-7 Ps 95 Rom 5:1-8 Jn 4:5-42 Deacon Jim McFadden This Sunday we have the great privilege of hearing the story of the woman at the well, the definitive text on Christian evangelization. As we reflect upon this magnificent story, notice that as the…
1st Sunday of Lent (A); March 1, 2020 Gn 2:7-9, 3:1-7 Ps 51 Rom 5:12-19 Mt 4:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden Each year, the first reading and the Gospel of the First Sunday of Lent set before us the narrative of how to respond to temptation. What we see at the beginning of Creation (the…
7th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); 2-23-20 Lv 19:1-2,17-18 Ps 103 1 Cor 3:16-23 Mt 5:38-48 Deacon Jim McFadden Last Sunday we reflected how Jesus instructed his disciples on the Sermon of the Mount to watch over little things that undermine our love relationships. Today, he goes further by calling us to love…
The Cross is the Way Home 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 30, 2026 Jer 20:7-9. Ps 63. Rom 12:1-2. Mt 16:21-27 Deacon Jim McFadden After establishing Peter as the rock of his Church, Jesus then begins to speak…
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 23, 2026 Is 22:19-23. Ps 138. Rom 11:33-36. Mt 16:13-20 Deacon Jim McFadden Midway through his public ministry, Jesus ventured with his disciples to the northern reaches of the Promised Land, to the…
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 16, 2026 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’s encounter with a Canaanite woman,…
WWW.DEACONJIM.BLOG 