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January 23, 2016 Saturday of the Second Week in Ordinary Time Reading 1 2 Sm 1:1-4, 11-12, 19, 23-27 David returned from his defeat of the Amalekites and spent two days in Ziklag.On the third day a man came from Saul's camp, with his clothes torn and dirt on his head.Going to David, he fell to the ground in homage.David asked him, "Where do you come from?"He replied, "I have escaped from the camp of the children of Israel.""Tell me what happened," David bade him.He answered that many of the soldiers had fled the battle and that many of...

January 7, 2016 Thursday after Epiphany Reading 1 1 Jn 4:19 -- 5:4 Beloved, we love God becausehe first loved us. If anyone says, "I love God,:but hates his brother, he is a liar;for whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen. This is the commandment we have from him:Whoever loves God must also love his brother. Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God,and everyone who loves the Fatherloves also the one begotten by him. In this way we know that we love the...

January 6, 2016 Wednesday after Epiphany Reading 1 1 Jn 4:11-18 Beloved, if God so loved us,we also must love one another. No one has ever seen God. Yet, if we love one another, God remains in us,and his love is brought to perfection in us. This is how we know that we remain in him and he in us,that he has given us of his Spirit. Moreover, we have seen and testifythat the Father sent his Son as savior of the world. Whoever acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God,God remains in him and he in God. We...

January 5, 2016 Memorial of Saint John Neumann, Bishop Reading 1 1 Jn 4:7-10 Beloved, let us love one another,because love is of God;everyone who loves is begotten by God and knows God.Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love.In this way the love of God was revealed to us:God sent his only-begotten Son into the worldso that we might have life through him.In this is love:not that we have loved God, but that he loved usand sent his Son as expiation for our sins. Responsorial Psalm PS 72:1-2, 3-4, 7-8 R. (see 11) Lord,...

January 4, 2016 Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious Reading 1 1 Jn 3:22-4:6 Beloved:We receive from him whatever we ask,because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him.And his commandment is this:we should believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ,and love one another just as he commanded us.Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them,and the way we know that he remains in usis from the Spirit whom he gave us. Beloved, do not trust every spiritbut test the spirits to see whether they belong to God,because many false prophets have...

What Do Saints Fear? Msgr. Charles Pope December 27, 2015 The average person may worry about any number of things: finances; security; strife in the family, community, nation, or world; health; the status of a relationship; how he is perceived by others. These tend to be the sorts of things that cause concern.What do saints worry about? To provide an answer, let's consider the words of one of our canonized saints. First, here is the context within which the saint spoke.Napoleon III had surrendered to the Prussians, bringing on the disaster. The Mother General put the sisters at the disposition...

December 28, 2015 Feast of the Holy Innocents, Martyrs Reading 1 1 Jn 1:5--2:2 Beloved:This is the message that we have heard from Jesus Christand proclaim to you:God is light, and in him there is no darkness at all.If we say, "We have fellowship with him," while we continue to walk in darkness,we lie and do not act in truth.But if we walk in the light as he is in the light,then we have fellowship with one another,and the Blood of his Son Jesus cleanses us from all sin.If we say, "We are without sin,"we deceive ourselves, and the...

December 27, 2015 The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph Reading 1 Sir 3:2-6, 12-14 God sets a father in honor over his children;a mother's authority he confirms over her sons.Whoever honors his father atones for sins,and preserves himself from them.When he prays, he is heard;he stores up riches who reveres his mother.Whoever honors his father is gladdened by children,and, when he prays, is heard.Whoever reveres his father will live a long life;he who obeys his father brings comfort to his mother. My son, take care of your father when he is old;grieve him not as long as...

December 26, 2015 Feast of Saint Stephen, First Martyr Reading 1 Acts 6:8-10; 7:54-59 Stephen, filled with grace and power,was working great wonders and signs among the people.Certain members of the so-called Synagogue of Freedmen,Cyrenians, and Alexandrians,and people from Cilicia and Asia,came forward and debated with Stephen,but they could not withstand the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke. When they heard this, they were infuriated,and they ground their teeth at him.But he, filled with the Holy Spirit,looked up intently to heavenand saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God,and he said,"Behold,...

December 25, 2015 The Nativity of the Lord (Christmas)Vigil Mass Reading 1 Is 62:1-5 For Zion's sake I will not be silent,for Jerusalem's sake I will not be quiet,until her vindication shines forth like the dawnand her victory like a burning torch. Nations shall behold your vindication,and all the kings your glory;you shall be called by a new namepronounced by the mouth of the LORD.You shall be a glorious crown in the hand of the LORD,a royal diadem held by your God.No more shall people call you "Forsaken,"or your land "Desolate,"but you shall be called "My Delight,"and your land...

December 23, 2015 « December 22 December 24 » Wednesday of the Fourth Week of AdventLectionary: 199 Reading 1 Mal 3:1-4, 23-24 Thus says the Lord GOD:Lo, I am sending my messengerto prepare the way before me;And suddenly there will come to the templethe LORD whom you seek,And the messenger of the covenant whom you desire.Yes, he is coming, says the LORD of hosts.But who will endure the day of his coming?And who can stand when he appears?For he is like the refiner's fire,or like the fuller's lye.He will sit refining and purifying silver,and he will purify the sons of...

Tuscan 'Excalibur' Mystery to be Unearthed By Rossella Lorenzi, Discovery News The Sword in The Stone March 1, 2004 — Archaeological digging might soon unveil the mystery surrounding a sword buried in a Gothic abbey in Tuscany, Italian researchers announced. Known as the "sword in the stone," the Tuscan "Excalibur" is said to have been plunged into a rock in 1180 by Galgano Guidotti, a medieval knight who renounced war and worldly goods to become a hermit. Built in Galgano's memory, the evocative Gothic abbey at Montesiepi, near the city of Siena, still preserves the sword in a little chapel....

Tuscany's Excalibur is the real thing, say scientists Rory Carroll in Rome Sunday September 16, 2001 The Observer The sword of St Galgano, said to have been plunged into a rock by a medieval Tuscan knight, has been authenticated, bolstering Italy's version of the Excalibur legend. Galgano Guidotti, a noble from Chiusdano, near Siena, allegedly split the stone with his sword in 1180 after renouncing war to become a hermit. For centuries the sword was assumed to be a fake. but research revealed last week has dated its metal to the twelfth century. Only the hilt, wooden grip and ...

Judging by a real artifact, the sword in the stone legend may be partially based on true events. No one pulled a sword from a stone and went on to become a king, as far as we know. In fact, the sword that exists in reality rather than legend is still stuck in its stone. However, there is no denying that such a sword exists. The stone and sword in question are located at Monte Siepi Chapel in the San Galgano Abbey in Tuscany. The abbey is in Italy and the history of it has naught to do with England....

December 11, 2015 Friday of the Second Week of Advent Reading 1 Is 48:17-19 Thus says the LORD, your redeemer,the Holy One of Israel:I, the LORD, your God,teach you what is for your good,and lead you on the way you should go.If you would hearken to my commandments,your prosperity would be like a river,and your vindication like the waves of the sea;Your descendants would be like the sand,and those born of your stock like its grains,Their name never cut offor blotted out from my presence. Responsorial Psalm PS 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6 R. (see John 8:12) Those who...

December 9, 2015 Wednesday of the Second Week of Advent Reading 1 Is 40:25-31 To whom can you liken me as an equal?says the Holy One.Lift up your eyes on highand see who has created these things:He leads out their army and numbers them,calling them all by name.By his great might and the strength of his powernot one of them is missing!Why, O Jacob, do you say,and declare, O Israel,"My way is hidden from the LORD,and my right is disregarded by my God"? Do you not knowor have you not heard?The LORD is the eternal God,creator of the ends...

December 7, 2015 Memorial of Saint Ambrose, Bishop and Doctor of the Church Reading 1 Is 35:1-10 The desert and the parched land will exult;the steppe will rejoice and bloom.They will bloom with abundant flowers,and rejoice with joyful song.The glory of Lebanon will be given to them,the splendor of Carmel and Sharon;They will see the glory of the LORD,the splendor of our God.Strengthen the hands that are feeble,make firm the knees that are weak,Say to those whose hearts are frightened:Be strong, fear not!Here is your God,he comes with vindication;With divine recompensehe comes to save you.Then will the eyes of...

December 6, 2015 Second Sunday of Advent Reading 1 Bar 5:1-9 Jerusalem, take off your robe of mourning and misery;put on the splendor of glory from God forever:wrapped in the cloak of justice from God,bear on your head the mitrethat displays the glory of the eternal name.For God will show all the earth your splendor:you will be named by God foreverthe peace of justice, the glory of God's worship. Up, Jerusalem! stand upon the heights;look to the east and see your childrengathered from the east and the westat the word of the Holy One,rejoicing that they are remembered by God.Led...

After 12 weeks of the NFL season, the New England Patriots are still the heavy favorite to win the Super Bowl. Using Nate Silver's "2015 NFL Predictions," a model that rates each team and then projects how the regular season and playoffs will play out, we can get a better sense of which teams are the true Super Bowl contenders. Heading into Week 13, the New England Patriots are still the favorite with a 28% chance to win the Super Bowl, down from 33% a week ago. The Carolina Panthers (20%) are the favorite in the NFC. In fact, according...

December 4, 2015 Friday of the First Week of Advent Reading 1 Is 29:17-24 Thus says the Lord GOD:But a very little while,and Lebanon shall be changed into an orchard,and the orchard be regarded as a forest!On that day the deaf shall hearthe words of a book;And out of gloom and darkness,the eyes of the blind shall see.The lowly will ever find joy in the LORD,and the poor rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.For the tyrant will be no moreand the arrogant will have gone;All who are alert to do evil will be cut off,those whose mere word...