Gospel Commentary - The Arlington Catholic Herald

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Faith / Your Faith / Gospel Commentary

Returning late in the day

I don’t know if you feel the same way, but for the past few weeks, the Lord, in the Gospels, has been really challenging my way of thinking. It is almost like he is grabbing me by the britches, turning me upside down and shaking loose certain preconceived, false views on life. Today’s Gospel passage is no different.

9/16/20

Jack Peterson

A parable of forgiveness

Desperate people, experience tells us, will often make wild promises, swearing anything to God or others to avoid the final enclosure of despair in a moment of panic. It’s a pitiable moment whenever we see it in film or literature, and even more so if we experience it in real life. Christ’s parable about forgiveness provides us with just such a scene, illustrating for us the true drama of mercy.

9/3/20

FR. JOSEPH M. RAMPINO

A roadmap to resolution

In this week's installment of Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus gives us the famous roadmap to resolving conflicts and setting healthy boundaries. The entire passage presumes that Christian believers should be at harmony with each other. Why? Because we are in the presence of Christ, and by our baptism are grafted into the prince of peace himself. After all: “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them.”

9/2/20

RICHARD A. MISERENDINO |Gospel Commentary Sept. 6, Mt 18:15-20
You, too, take up your cross

It’s a shocking scene. Peter, just having heard Jesus foretell his coming suffering, death and resurrection for the first time, takes Jesus and rebukes him. “God forbid, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” It seems like a loving concern the disciple has for his Master. But Peter is thinking as men do, not as God does. He does not realize the true nature of Jesus’ mission and that it involves suffering, dying and rising again.More

8/26/20

Steven Oetjen

‘Who do you say that I am?’

Imagine taking a walk with Jesus and a crowd of his disciples and watching him stop suddenly, turn around, look you in the eye, and ask you, “Who do you say that I am?”More

8/18/20

Jack Peterson

An important encounter

Few of Jesus’ interactions with people in the Gospels are more jarring than the one presented us this week. We are used to Christ as the understanding, merciful one who supports and encourages the poor. So when he initially refuses the request of this woman in trouble, even as she cries out “Lord, help me,” we can easily be troubled.More

8/12/20

JOSEPH M. RAMPINO

Taking the first step

Have you ever tried to walk on water? It’s slightly more difficult than our imagination lets on. Of course, there’s the obvious problem of not sinking. But let’s suppose you had that covered, by pontoon shoes or the grace of God. You’d still have to work out the problems of balance and standing up straight. The water, after all, is not a level surface: It comes in waves and is likely to be a bit squishy under your feet. At any moment your level ground may become a hill, a slope, a peak, and then rolls past, leaving you on the other side. More

8/5/20

RICHARD A. MISERENDINO

On earth as it is in heaven

Pay attention to Jesus’ eyes in this Sunday’s Gospel. What does he see? Where does he look?More

7/29/20

Steven G. Oetjen

Are you a student of Christian life?

Recently, I played a very enjoyable round of golf with a friend of a friend for the first time. This gentleman has a very solid golf game which is an absolute pleasure to watch. He has a very consistent swing and a putting routine that is well-tuned and effective. He plays golf with a certain ease and comfort; that is, he can hold a conversation with you that is personal and thoughtful. At the same time, he is quite focused on the game he is playing, paying attention to important details like the direction and strength of the wind, the speed of the greens and where to land on the green so that you have an uphill putt. It became very obvious to me that this guy is a real student of the game of golf. More

7/22/20

Jack Peterson

Wheat and weeds

Isaiah Chapter 55 says, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways” (55:8). This reminder the Lord gives us through his prophet may well resound in our minds as we consider the Gospel passage for the 16th week in ordinary time. In this text, Christ makes clear that though the wicked certainly grow among the good in the field of the world, he is the one who will separate them out at the end of time, and it is not ours to root them out at will.More

7/9/20

JOSEPH M. RAMPINO

A farmer’s work

I recently witnessed a minor miracle in my parents’ backyard. After almost a decade of work, my dad finally got nice, green grass to grow in what had been a desert-dry bald spot for most of my childhood and beyond. It took years of cultivation, preparing soil and scattering seed, often with mixed results. But finally: success. More

7/8/20

RICHARD A. MISERENDINO

A well-fitted yoke

Industrial and technological developments in recent decades have ushered in a world of conveniences, unimagined by our ancestors, that have lifted nearly every physical burden from our daily lives. We have air conditioning and hair conditioning. We have Wawa and Wi-Fi. We have indoor plumbing and outdoor grilling. We have instant coffee, instant messaging, instant oatmeal, instant pizza, instant noodles, instant approval credit, and if something isn’t instant yet, just give it a few more years. But with so many burdens lifted, why is it that life still feels so burdensome? The answer is that the comforts of the body have no power to comfort the soul. It's why the invitation we hear in the Gospel this week is one of the most compelling verses in the Scriptures: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest … for my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”More

7/1/20

James C. Hudgins

A cup of water

Today, the church celebrates the 13th Sunday in ordinary time. I am not a big fan of the use of the word “ordinary” to describe this moment in the church’s liturgical year. At a minimum, it informs us that we are not in the Advent, Christmas, Lent or Easter seasons. However, during “ordinary time,” we strive to allow the profound mysteries and abundant graces of Christ which we celebrate during Christmas and Easter seasons to penetrate the depths of our hearts, heal our brokenness and empower us to live Christlike lives. There is nothing ordinary about that reality. More

6/24/20

Jack Peterson

To be known in loving detail

The Gospel of Matthew says, “Do not be afraid … all the hairs of your head are counted” (10:30). The Lord Jesus reminds us in the Gospel of this week that even the smallest matters of our life are of importance to God. We do not have a God who stands at a distance, aloof from us and from how our lives unfold, but a God who is invested down to the last hair, who cares about each detail of our existence.More

6/19/20

JOSEPH M. RAMPINO

Solemnity of Corpus Christi

Today we celebrate the solemnity of Corpus Christi, that is, the solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ. This feast day is a beautiful culmination of our recent feast days: On Easter we celebrated the resurrection of Our Lord Jesus, who triumphed over sin, suffering, death and evil itself. On the Ascension, we celebrated Our Lord entering gloriously into heaven, thereby fulfilling the promise to be with each of us every moment and prepare a place for each of us in heaven. On Pentecost, we celebrated the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles, who then went forth to found the church, preaching the Gospel and making Our Lord present through the sacraments. And last week, we celebrated the solemnity of the Holy Trinity, the God who is love, who has revealed himself as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and who invites us to remain in that love. More

6/10/20

William P. Saunders

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