For a few days we shall hear excerpts from Paul’s second letter to Timothy. It is ascribed to Paul but probably written by his disciple or scribe. It emphasises the role of both priests and laity in serving the gospel without fear. With arguments that are a bit difficult to follow, Jesus upholds the resurrection […]
Greeting (see the gospel) Jesus tells us here: “I am the living bread from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh for the life of the world.” May the Lord Jesus give us this bread always and always stay with you. R/ And
Paul, or the author using Paul’s name, beseeches Timothy to keep preaching the word of God, in season and out of season, to be a good minister of the Lord and to give himself, as Paul had done. Jesus, who lived in the hands of the Father, points out to his disciples how much a
The author of 2 Timothy asks Timothy to learn from Paul how to bear persecution and difficulties. He assures Timothy that the persecutors will be punished. Then he asks Timothy to hold on firmly to the faith and to the sacred writings that express it. The scriptures are inspired by God and are like a
St. Boniface (672/5-754), an English Benedictine monk, is considered one of the greatest missionaries of the early Middle Ages. He spread the gospel particularly in Germany, where he is also buried in Fulda. He was slain by the Frisians. Opening Prayer Lord our God, your holy bishop Boniface proclaimed your name with great zeal and
Our text is a profession of faith and a liturgical hymn. The profession of faith is made because Gnosticism was creeping in. As there were so many rules of the Law to observe, it is easy to understand the desire of scribes to ask which was the key commandment. Twice a day, pious Jews professed
In 1886, barely a few years after Christianity had been introduced in Uganda, King Mwanga, fearing that Christianity would put an end to his lucrative slave trade, started a persecution; his first victims were the pages of his court, even some of his relatives, among them, who had refused to submit to his perverse solicitations.
2 Peter deals with the problem of the delay of the coming of Christ. The old world has to give way to a new heaven and a new earth. But the concept of time does not exist for God, and the patient God gives us time for conversion. Sometimes the Church is accused of meddling
Probably written by someone belonging to the group of Peter’s disciples in the 2nd century, the author of 2 Peter warns against false teachers and against fear of the coming of Christ in the Parousia. The parable of the wicked farmers or tenants who rent and cultivate the vineyard describes first of all, in moving
St. Justin, a philosopher living in the second century, was an honest seeker of the truth. Disappointed at pagan philosophies, he came to recognise the way of Christ as the true philosophy and the full truth. After his conversion he served the Church as an apologist (defender of the faith) and founded in Rome the
