Baptism of Christ, Paolo Caliari (Veronese),
c. 1580, Palazzo Pitti (Florence)
(About this Image)

 

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the Second Reading
Baptism of the Lord
Titus 2:11–14, 3:4–7
January 9, 2022

The first section of today’s second reading from the Letter of Paul to Titus was read two weeks ago at the Christmas masses. (Titus 2:11–14) As we noted then, the Letter to Titus was most likely written for a disciple of St. Paul, Titus the leader of the Church in Crete, by a successor of St. Paul. It was a pastoral letter which meant that it addressed practical issues in the church at the time. It was written in Paul’s name, although everyone knew he was dead, to show that his successors understood that they were applying Paul’s teachings in an authentic manner and should be obeyed. This reflects our situation today in an uncanny manner.

Continue reading “Hearing the Spirit’s Renewal Today” →

Virgin and Child mosaic, 9^th century, Hagia Sophia
(About this Image)

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the Second Reading
Feast of the Epiphany
Letter to the Ephesians 3:2–6
January 2, 2022

The second reading for the feast of the Epiphany is from the “Letter to the Ephesians.” (Ep 3:2-3a, 5-6). We examined this letter last summer in these commentaries. Those who read them will see that many passages from the letter would be very appropriate for the feast of the Epiphany but this one is particularly well suited.

We must remember a few things to start. Most scholars would agree that it was written by a disciple of St. Paul after his death. As we have many times noted, this would not be deceitful as his readers would have known that Paul was dead. As we saw last week with the reading of the letter to Titus, this allowed the author and indeed the leaders who followed Paul to show that they were in continuity with him. Who would follow the original apostles as leaders was a real problem and Ephesians is one of the clearest statements on how and why the Catholic Church developed. Continue reading “Epiphany – Joining Together To Be His Presence in the World” →

Juan Diego and His Tilma Showing Our Lady of Guadeloupe
Lawrence OP | Flickr CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the Second Reading
Third Sunday of Advent
St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians 4:4–7
December 12, 2021

Today is Gaudete Sunday. This means rejoice and is reflected in the prayers and readings of the day. To name just a few. The opening prayer encourages us to await the Lord’s birth:

to attain the joys of so great a salvation
and to celebrate them always
with solemn worship and glad rejoicing.

The first line of the first reading in today’s Mass from Zephaniah reads:

Shout for Joy, O daughter Zion;
Sing joyfully O Israel!
Rejoice and exult with all your heart,
O daughter Jerusalem!

Continue reading “3rd Sunday of Advent – The Joy of God’s Presence” →

Cristo Rey (Christ the King), 1953, Cali, Colombia
(About this Image)

So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?”
Jesus answered, “You say I am a king.
For this I was born and for this I came into the world,
to testify to the truth.
Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.”
(John 18:37)

Fr. Smith’s Commentary on the First Reading
Solemnity of Christ the King
Daniel 7:13–14
November 21, 2021