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Text of the page (random words):
es from and exists for him glory to him eternally this weekend in our gospel reading jesus asks the apostles who do you say the son of man is jesus was in caesarea philippi in the northeastern corner of palestine there no one would not look for him he had much to teach the twelve before he could leave them this was quality teaching time so he put the question to them that went to the heart of the matter who do you say i am peter acting as spokesman for the others told him he was the son of the living god peter confesses the deep mystery of jesus who is the christ and the son of god in the light of this inspired confession peter is chosen to be the rock on which the church is built when jesus told him you are peter and on this rock i will build my church peter received the gift of being the leader of the church peter was first among the apostles first among those who were called to proclaim the kingdom of god on earth peter took leadership in the church at pentecost after he the apostles and mary received the holy spirit peter led everyone out to the temple and began preaching the good news to the people after saul became paul after the persecutor of the primitive church accepted jesus christ paul spent three years in the desert reflecting on his experience of the lord on the road to damascus he then went to jerusalem to receive peter s blessing and commission to bring the good news of the gospel to the world we do not know how peter got to rome we know that he was there though we know that peter died in rome crucified head down the excavations under the basilica of st peter revealed a tomb with the words here lies peter we also know that when peter died the charism he was given to lead the church remained active in rome the ones who took his place were st linus and those who followed him st cletus st clement in the apostolic succession right through the centuries up until pope leo in our present time all of the holy fathers are recognized as having received the same charism that the lord gave to peter to lead the church and this has passed down through the centuries as time went on these bishops of rome would be given the title pope papa father of the family leader of the church through our baptism all christians have received a share in the power of the keys to heaven with that power goes responsibility to witness to the gospel god gives authority to those he chooses our challenge is to trust that god is at work through his church and its leaders from the very beginning we have had both saints and sinners among our popes bishops priests religious and laity but the gospel reassures us that in spite of our weakness and the many ways in which we may be found wanting god is still close to us and faith is a journey not a destination so let us continue our journey as we go forward together in faith posted in life liturgy lourdes religion uncategorized and tagged bible christianity faith god jesus leave a comment 15 aug 2026 20th sunday in ordinary time well here we are at the middle of august with just two weeks to go before the schools reopen after the long summer holidays when you stop to think about it time just seems to be passing by it is worrying when a 23 year tells you that his life is flashing by his eyes what must it be doing for those who are older the scripture readings for the20th sunday are all about faith and trust in god the readings show that our heavenly father welcomes everyone and listens to those who seek him the first reading tells us that the lord calls for righteousness and justice foreigners who love and serve him keeping the covenant and observing the sabbath will find acceptance in his house as his house is the house of prayer for all nations in the second reading st paul tells us brothers and sisters as the apostle to the gentiles i glorify my ministry making my race envious for salvation rejection brings reconciliation and god s gifts and call endure mercy awaits all our gospel reading is about the faith of the canaanite woman whose daughter was being tormented by a devil when you read the story we realize it is really about the great faith that she has and it was that faith in jesus that cured her daughter even though she had to be persistent in dealing with the lord the woman in today s gospel story is not satisfied with just tears though her daughter is tormented by a demon parents among us know what that might feel like and how fiercely we would spring into action if a cure was before us for our own sick child she cries out and asks jesus for help and perseveres even when the disciples try to send her away and jesus himself rebuffs her jesus relents because her faith is great in the same story we see much about ourselves and our own faith over a number of years i have known people who have been praying for something for a family member and very often they have said to me that the prayers have not been heard let alone answered i have always told them to hang in there to persist like the canaanite woman and not give up the prayers because they are always heard and this has been the case with so many people throughout history in the same way as the canaanite woman pestered jesus we should never give up though we mightn t have our requests granted when we want them they will be granted when we really need the things that we are praying for the message of today s readings is all about faith life can be a bit of a pickle with good and bad things within it but a life lived with faith will see all the various obstacles being removed would our faith be as persistent as the faith of the woman in this sundays gospel only you can answer that one and i hope that your faith is persistent like the canaanite woman whose daughter jesus cured because faith moves mountains but remember not to stop climbing posted in faith life liturgy and tagged bible christianity faith god jesus leave a comment 08 aug 2026 19th sunday of ordinarytime in the first reading the prophet elijah is on the run from the anger of king ahab and his wife jezebel he finds refuge in a cave on mount horeb where god reveals himself to elijah not through earthquake wind or fire but rather through a gentle breeze the breath of god the subtlety of god s presence is so gentle it could easily be missed by those expecting great signs and wonders in the second reading paul familiar with the teaching of his former jewish faith and converted by his encounter with christ on the road to damascus struggles to understand why his jewish brethren have not also understood the truth that guides him perhaps his anguish is heightened because he was accused of turning away from his jewish faith to preach to the gentiles the gospel reading this sunday is all about jesus s walking on water but if you look beyond the walking on water this story is really about trust and faith in god we have no problem identifying with peter he is so like us he is confident one moment and then when things get difficult and he realizes that he has bitten off more than he can chew he falls apart by then it is too late and he needs help and that is when jesus offers peter his hand and he acknowledge jesus as the son of god life is like that we start something like a new job college marriage or a project to help others but then it gets complex and beyond what we are capable of we are sinking we are drowning not an uncommon experience in so many situations in life and in the way we deal with them god doesn t always give us an immediate cure or a fast solution when we bring ourselves in prayer for others or for ourselves to god god through jesus is not distant from our problems jesus shows us that when he reaches out a hand to peter and to us he is companion with us in the storms of life at times we may well be floundering like peter but jesus reaches out to help us to rescue us what better analogy could there be of our own lives and relationship with jesus we live messy lives we doubt and we lack faith but nevertheless we are still moving towards the lord this sunday we are reminded that we should listen for god in quiet moments and trust him in hard times elijah found god in a gentle whisper peter walked on water but sank when he doubted jesus saved him showing that god does not abandon those who call out for help and that include all of us today posted in faith life liturgy religion and tagged bible christianity faith god jesus leave a comment 01 aug 2026 18th sunday in ordinary time we are at the beginning of august and it will be no time until the schools reopen at the beginning of september and the summer holidays for 2026 will be a distant but hopefully a good memory time waits on no one and for many of us it is passing by just too quickly the first reading is taken from the book of the prophet isaiah 55 1 3 the prophet living among the jewish exiles in babylon utters words of consolation for the despairing exiles here he tells them that yahweh is inviting them to a banquet which he freely gives them yahweh alone can provide for their real needs they are foolish to look elsewhere for consolation or help if they cooperate he will fulfil the promise he had made to david the promise of a future messiah the second reading is from the letter of st paul to the romans 8 35 37 39 st paul concludes this chapter with a hymn in praise of god s love for us with god on our side he says who can be against us then come today s verses which are rhetorical questions showing that there is no power in heaven or on earth that can take away or lessen god s love for us as manifested in christ his incarnate son in our gospel story for this sunday we hear about the feeding of the five thousand the people in this story are a crowd that realize jesus had something to offer them in their deserted places jesus wasn t just filling their stomachs they were not the rich the famous the educated or the powerful they were the afflicted and the marginalized people that jesus went out of his way to seek out the words of jesus were there to afflict the comfortable and comfort the afflicted life may have passed them by but jesus didn t he took note of them and they in turn saw in him a place to be nourished a place where deep hunger and longings would be fulfilled the physical bread of the miracle story was of temporary value it could not satisfy deeper spiritual hungers but it was a sign that jesus can and that his heart is moved with pity for us notice how he handled the food with reverence the same reverence he felt for the crowd whom he knew were the beloved of god the sign for us today is that we too are the beloved sons and daughters of god and we will not be left hungry or alone for god is with us in the good bad happy and sad things that are part and parcel of our daily life in this version of the story there is no boy to provide the loaves and fishes for this miracle the disciples have food with them jesus is asking them to share out of their supplies he is asking them to risk it all to take a chance with him and they take the chance to be agents of change as the disciples have learned that whatever they have it will be more than enough in their collaboration with christ as they risk what they have in his service as we heard last week the person who discovers the treasure in the field goes out and sells everything to buy the field and have the treasure the disciples too are being invited to invest everything they have in jesus are we prepared to follow jesus wherever he leads us as we bring ourselves to the one who does not disappoint for there is no power in heaven or on earth that can take away or lessen god s love for us shown to us through jesus his incarnate son posted in uncategorized and tagged bible christianity faith god jesus leave a comment 25 jul 2026 17th sunday of ordinary time this sunday is the seventeenth sunday in ordinary time and the world day of grandparents and the elderly we give thanks to god for our parents and grandparents and all they mean to us today last monday in dublin as part of the parable tour father mike schmitz spoke at the national stadium with 1600 young people attending before the event a special was mass organized by the irish bishops conference s council for evangelization catechetics and pastoral renewal and was celebrated by bishop fintan gavin bishop of cork and ross many people attended the mass and the next day when i watched father schmitz speak on youtube there was something real and honest in his words as he encouraged those who may be uncertain in their faith not to wait until they have all the answers before taking the next step he said to anyone standing on the edge of faith uncertain hesitant or searching the invitation is not to have all the answers before you begin throughout scripture we see that obedience often comes before understanding mary is a fantastic example of this the archangel gabriel appears to her and says you are going to be the mother of the messiah she then asks how can this be he gives her a clarifying answer and she says let it be done to me he does not give her understanding he does not give her a plan he does not give her a roadmap he simply gives her enough information to take the next step that is the invitation for every one of us god always gives us enough light and enough information to take the next step and we can trust him with that next step the readings for this the 17th sunday help us see what is truly valuable they remind us that wisdom faith and god s kingdom are worth more than anything else we could ever own these gifts bring life joy and strength when we seek them with open hearts in the first reading god tells solomon to ask for anything he wants solomon asks for wisdom to rule well god is pleased and gives him great wisdom more than anyone before or after him in the second reading we are told that god works for good in the lives of those who love him he calls people makes them right with him and gives them glory he shapes them to be like his son in the gospel reading jesus tells us that the kingdom of heaven is like a hidden treasure or a rare pearl so valuable that people give up everything to have it when its great value is recognized one gladly does all that is necessary to obtain it being members of the kingdom means sharing our knowledge of it with others to truly believe in christ means leading other people to the same knowledge by what we say and do for secret faith is no faith at all we should be happy to bring out of the house that is our life all kinds of treasures to share with our neighbors we know life and service in the reign jesus is proclaiming will require sacrifice but these parables encourage us to take the plunge they tell us it is worth whatever you must change or give up but these treasures are not physical things but spiritual attitudes and otherwise that are virtues like love and justice and truth and hope and so on what we bring out from our treasure store are the values of the kingd...