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Showing posts from January, 2025

Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle C)

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The Pharisee and the Tax Collector   Lectionary: 150 Reading 1 -  Sirach 35:12-14, 16-18 [sic] Responsorial Psalm -  Psalm 34:2-3, 17-18, 19, 23 Reading 2 -  2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 Alleluia -  2 Corinthians 5:19 Gospel -  Luke 18:9-14 '... for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.' In today’s Gospel, Jesus presents us with the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector. This story is closely connected to the one which comes just before it about the persistent widow who secures a just decision from a dishonest judge. While the first encourages us to pray and never give up. The second reminds us how, and in what manner, we ought to pray. However, to fully understand the example Jesus gives us, we should look more closely at first the century audience that He initially spoke to. A faithful Jew at that time would have assumed two things: That the Pharisee was a very holy and devout man.  And that...
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Third Sunday in Ordinary Time (Cycle C)

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Sunday of the Word of God Lectionary: 69 Reading 1 -  Neh 8:2-4a, 5-6, 8-10 Responsorial Psalm -  Ps 19:8-10, 15 Reading 2 -  1Cor 12:12-30 Alleluia -  Luk 4:18 Gospel -  Lk 1:1-4, 4:14-21 Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled … Today we gather to celebrate the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, also known as the Sunday of the Word of God … established by Pope Francis in an apostolic letter just over five years ago … saying that sacred Scripture is essential [part of] our identities as Christians. In addition, he also reminds us that, without the Spirit of the Lord, who opens our minds to [the Scriptures], it is impossible to understand [them] in depth … and without the Scriptures, the events and mission of Jesus Christ in this world would not be comprehensible. In other words, the Word of God is not merely a collection of texts; it is the living voice of God, so it is important for “the Christian community to set aside moments to reflect on the importance of...
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Reflection - Holy Hour for Life 2025

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Parish HOLY HOUR FOR LIFE (HHFL) Welcome to this Holy Hour for Life here at Our Lady Star of the Sea. This is one of many such times of Adoration and prayer that are held throughout the Archdiocese of Boston each year in conjunction with the national observance of a Day of Prayer and Penance on January 22nd, and this year’s annual March for Life in Washington DC this coming Friday, January 24th. The purpose of these Holy Hours is to bring Catholics together in prayerful solidarity, united by our desire for an increased respect for the dignity of human life, from conception to natural death, and by our own need for the tender compassion of God and the generous mercy of His Son, Jesus Christ. Life is a precious gift from God, created in His image and likeness. This is how we know that there is always a beauty and dignity inherent in each individual. Each person, regardless of their circumstance, is deserving of love and respect … and …as we hear in our first reading tonight from Isaia...
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Review: How to Read the Psalms

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How to Read the Psalms by Tremper Longman III My rating: 4 of 5 stars I struggle with poetry in English … you can imagine how much more difficult are the Psalms; I was very interested in how this book might help with that (quite a bit it turns out). The book is divided into three (3) parts, with the first providing a solid introduction on what the Psalms are and how they are used. After each chapter, there are questions/exercises to help drive the point home as well as a list of sources for further research. Each chapter developed a specific theme in clear language that should be easy for pretty much any reader to understand. Of course, this is all an introductory work … so if you are already familiar with any of the scholarship surrounding the Psalms, this may be too simple a read … but I enjoyed it a lot. Part two (2) provides the reader with a few, more complex tools by which we can better interpret and understand the Psalm … somewhat necessary be...
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