Category Archives: Newsletters

  “You put aside the commandment of God to cling to human traditions.” We now return to Saint Mark, for the rest of the year. The Gospel brings out one of the central problems of all religion: the way in … Continue reading →

“Whom shall we go to? You have the message of eternal life.” Failure, rejection and isolation: these are the themes of today’s remarkable Gospel ‑ but they are not all. In the face of them we see persever­ance, fidelity and … Continue reading →

The Almighty has done great things for me, he has exalted the lowly. This great feast is a twin to the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. Then, if you recall, the preface of the Mass contained these words: … Continue reading →

“I am the living bread which has come down from heaven.” The bread that comes down from heaven is not just a bread which nourishes the body, but one which gives renewed life ‑ be this in the form of … Continue reading →

We continue reading from John 6: this is the aftermath of the miracle, and we see the beginnings of a misunderstanding that will develop over the next four weeks. People have seen the miracle, but not the message: they have … Continue reading →

“Jesus gave out as much as was wanted to all who were sitting ready.” For the next five weeks we take our leave of Saint Mark’s Gospel (since it is not long enough to fill the year) and read Chapter … Continue reading →

“They were like sheep without a shepherd.” “Sheep without a shepherd.” This is the simple theme of today’s readings. It is interest­ing that Jesus’ reaction to the crowd is one of pity – as he sees their great thirst for … Continue reading →

  “He began to send them out.” Again it is prophecy that is our theme (see last week). Here, we concentrate on the sending of prophets, the entrusting of the mission to them, and most importantly the neces­sary qualifications to … Continue reading →

A prophet is only despised in his own country.” A prophet’s job is to open people’s eyes to the reality of their situation ‑ pointing out to them the things they would rather forget or ignore. A prophet is a … Continue reading →

You are Peter, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Peter and Paul are the two great heroes of the Apostolic Age ‑ Peter for leading the first Christian communities and binding them in unity, … Continue reading →