of the Immaculate Heart of Mary
(Mark 10:17) Prayer – Come, Holy Spirit. Let me sacrifice everything to follow Jesus. Imagination: (Picture the young man asking Jesus about eternal life.) Context: The gospel begins “As Jesus set out”. This sets the scene. Jesus is on a journey. A man “kneels down.” This shows great piety and he truly wants eternal life. …
Continue reading “OCTOBER 11, 2015 – WEEK TWENTY EIGHT – SUNDAY (B) – THE RICH YOUNG MAN”
(Mark 10:2-12) Prayer – O Jesus, restore me. Make me pure as was the beginning creation. Imagination: (Picture Jesus teaching the holiness of marriage.) Context: Even though the Jewish people received God’s revelation, they wandered from the truth. Because of their hardness of heart, Moses even allowed a man to divorce his wife and marry …
Continue reading “OCTOBER 4, 2015 – WEEK TWENTY SEVEN – SUNDAY (B) – AS AT THE BEGINNING”
(Mark 9:38-43; 47-48) Prayer – O Jesus, purify my heart and guide my decisions. Imagination – (Picture Jesus with his disciples) Context: This gospel has many little parts. Some teach about relationships within the believing community. Others explain what is needed for personal salvation. Both are important. Jesus mentions the “fire of Gehenna”. This was …
Continue reading “SEPTEMBER 27, 2015 – WEEK TWENTY SIX – SUNDAY (B) – GAINING HEAVEN”
(Mark 9:30-37) Prayer: O Jesus, I want to serve you and your friends. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with a child in the middle of his disciples.) Context In the second half of Mark’s gospel, Jesus deliberately withdraws from the crowds to teach his disciples about his suffering and death, and about their difficult duties as disciples. …
Continue reading “SEPTEMBER 20, 2015 – WEEK TWENTY FIVE – SUNDAY (B) – DISPUTING ABOUT IMPORTANCE”
(Mark 8:27-33) Prayer – Lord Jesus, lift me up and I will be secure in your arms. Imagination- (Picture Jesus with his apostles.) Context: This text is central to Mark’s gospel (exactly the midpoint) and contains the two themes of the gospel, Jesus is the Messiah and he is a suffering Messiah. For many chapters, …
Continue reading “SEPTEMBER 13, 2015 – WEEK TWENTY FOUR -SUNDAY (B) – THE RISE AND FALL OF PETER”
(Mark 7:3-37) Prayer – O Jesus, open my ears to hear your gospel, and my tongue to speak your word. Imagination – (Picture Jesus healing the deaf and dumb man.) Context: Since the Ten Cities are outside of Israel, Jesus becomes a preacher to the Gentiles. Because the Gentile crowd might not understand, he takes …
Continue reading “SEPTEMBER 6 , 2015 – WEEK TWENTY THREE – SUNDAY (B) – THE ENTHUSIASTIC CROWD”