Daily Gospel (2719)
March 20, 2022
Written by
Gospel: Luke 13:1-9
One day, some people told Jesus what had occurred in the temple: Pilate had had Galileans killed, and their blood mingled with the blood of their
sacrifices. Jesus asked them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans, because they suffered this? No,
I tell you. But unless you change your ways, you will all perish, as they did. And those eighteen persons in Siloah, who were crushed when the
March 19, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 1:16, 18-21, 24a (or Luke 2:41-51a)
Jacob was the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and from her came Jesus who is called the Christ—the Messiah.
This is how Jesus Christ was born: Mary his mother had been given to Joseph in marriage, but before they lived together,
she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. Then Joseph, her husband, made plans to divorce her in all
March 18, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 21:33-43, 45-46
Listen to another example: There was a landowner who planted a vineyard. He put a fence around it, dug a hole
for the wine press, built a watchtower, leased the vineyard to tenants, and then, went to a distant country. When harvest
time came, the landowner sent his servants to the tenants to collect his share of the harvest. But the tenants seized his
March 17, 2022
Written byGospel: Luke 16:19-31
Once there was a rich man who dressed in purple and fine linen and feasted every day. At his gate lay Lazarus, a poor
man covered with sores, who longed to eat just the scraps falling from the rich man’s table. Even dogs used to come and
lick his sores. It happened that the poor man died, and angels carried him to take his place with Abraham. The rich man also
March 16, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 20:17-28
When Jesus was going to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside and said to them, “See, we are going to
Jerusalem. There, the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law; and they will condemn
him to death. They will hand him over to the foreigners, who will mock him, scourge him and crucify him. But he will be
raised to life on the third day.” Then the mother of James and John came to Jesus with her sons, and she knelt down, to ask a favor.
Jesus said to her, “What do you want?” And she answered, “Here, you have my two sons. Grant, that they may sit, one at your right hand
and one at your left, in your kingdom.” Jesus said to the brothers, “You do not know what you are asking. Can you drink the cup that I am
about to drink?” They answered, “We can.” Jesus replied, “You will indeed drink my cup; but to sit at my right or at my left is not for me to
grant. That will be for those, for whom my Father has prepared it.” The other ten heard all this, and were angry with the two brothers. Then
Jesus called them to him and said, “You know, that the rulers of nations behave like tyrants, and the powerful oppress them. It shall not be
so among you: whoever wants to be great in your community, let him minister to the community. And if you want to be the first of all, make
yourself the servant of all. Be like the Son of Man, who came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life to redeem many.”
Reflection:
The Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary defines empathy as:
“the action of understanding, being aware of, being
sensitive to, and vicariously experiencing the feelings,
thoughts, and experience of another of either the
past or present without having the feelings,
thoughts, and experience fully communicated in an
objectively explicit manner.” Some are born with the gift
of empathy. Some have to really work hard at practicing
empathy. In today’s gospel neither the disciples nor the
mother of the sons of thunder show empathy towards Jesus.
Here is Jesus achingly confiding in his beloved ones the
heartbreaking reality of his impending death. But they do not
have a word of consolation for him. Worse, some choose that
very moment or immediately after, to bring up issues of their
preferred seating arrangements in heaven! Mercifully, Jesus was
empathy-incarnate. Without taking offence, but setting aside
his own pain, he gives them a patient, kind hearing.
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022
March 15, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 23:1-12
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples. “The teachers of the law and the Pharisees have sat down
on the chair of Moses. So you shall do and observe all they say; but do not do as they do, for they do not do what
they say. They tie up heavy burdens and load them on the shoulders of the people, but they do not even lift a finger
March 14, 2022
Written byGospel: Luke 6:36-38
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. Don’t be a judge of others and you will not be judged; do not
condemn and you will not be condemned; forgive and you will be forgiven; give and it will be given to you, and you will
March 13, 2022
Written byGospel: Luke 9:28b-36
About eight days a f t e r Jesus had said all this, he took Peter, John and James, and went up the mountain to pray. And while he was praying, the
aspect of his face was changed, and his clothing became dazzling white. Two men were talking with Jesus: Moses and Elijah. Appearing in the glory of
heaven, Moses and Elijah spoke to Jesus about his departure from this life, which was to take place in Jerusalem. Peter and his companions had
March 12, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 5:43-48
You have heard, that it was said: Love your neighbor and do not do good to your enemy. But this I tell you: love your enemies;
and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in Heaven. For he makes his sun rise on both
the wicked and the good; and he gives rain to both the just and the unjust. If you love those who love you, what is special
March 11, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 5:20-26
I tell you, if your sense of right and wrong is not keener than that of the Lawyers and the Pharisees, you will not enter
the kingdom of heaven. You have heard, that it was said to our people in the past: Do not commit murder; anyone who
murders will have to face trial. But now, I tell you: whoever gets angry with a brother or sister will have to face trial.
More...
April 10, 2022
Written byGospel: Luke 23:1-49 (or Luke 22:14–23:56)
The whole council rose and brought Jesus to Pilate. They gave their accusation: “We found this man subverting our nation,
opposing payment of taxes to Caesar, and claiming to be Christ the King.” Pilate asked Jesus, “Are you the King of the
Jews?” Jesus replied, “You said so.” Turning to the chief priests and the crowd, Pilate said, “I find no basis for a case against this
March 10, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 7:7-12
Ask, and you will receive; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened. For everyone who asks,
receives; whoever seeks, finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Would any of you give a stone to your
son, when he asks for bread? Or give him a snake, when he asks for a fish? However bad you may be, you know how to
March 09, 2022
Written byGospel: Luke 11:29-32
As the crowd increased, Jesus spoke the following words: “People of the present time are troubled people. They ask for a sign,
but no sign will be given to them except the sign of Jonah. As Jonah became a sign for the people of Nineveh, so will the Son
of Man be a sign for this generation. The Queen of the South will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and
accuse them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and here, there is greater than Solomon. The people of
Nineveh will rise up on Judgment Day with the people of these times and accuse them, for Jonah’s preaching made them turn from their sins,
and here, there is greater than Jonah.
Reflection:
An interesting anecdote is said of St. John of the Cross. While he
was in Lisbon, his confreres were eager to visit a famed stigmatic in
that city. They urged John to go with them to meet the stigmatic.
But John refused. He wasn’t interested in the miraculous.
Hence, while his brothers eagerly visited the stigmatic, John spent
the evening by the sea, reading the Bible. People such as John
would be a minority; for we have an insatiable lust for the
miraculous. We thirst for signs and miracles. Such obsession for signs
unfortunately reveals our lack of faith and trust in God, because,
for a person who has faith, isn’t every moment of life a miracle
and every event in life a sign of God’s presence and love? When
we have such faith-filled eyes, we will look at every bird and every
lily and see the signs of God’s everyday Providence, as Jesus
could and did (cf. Mt 6: 25-34).
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022
March 08, 2022
Written byGospel: Matthew 6:7-15
When you pray, do not use a lot of words, as the pagans do; for they believe that, the more they say, the more
chance they have of being heard. Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need, even before you ask him.
This, then, is how you should pray: Our Father in heaven, holy be your name, your kingdom, come, your will, be
done on earth, as in heaven. Give us today, our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we forgive those who are in debt to us.
Do not bring us to the test, but deliver us from the evil one. If you forgive others their wrongdoings, your Father in heaven will also
forgive yours. If you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive you.
Reflection:
Being the International Day of Women, we shall listen to an
extraordinary woman. Here is Simone Weil speaking of her
practice of reciting the Lord’s Prayer, in her book Waiting for God:
“The effect of this practice is extraordinary and surprises
me every time, for, although I experience it each day, it
exceeds my expectation at each repetition. At times
the very first words tear my thoughts from my body and
transport it to a place outside space where there is neither
perspective nor point of view. The infinity of the ordinary
expanses of perception is replaced by an infinity to
the second or sometimes the third degree. At the same time,
filling every part of this infinity of infinity, there is silence,
a silence which is not an absence of sound but which
is the object of a positive sensation, more positive than
that of sound. Noises, if there are any, only reach me after
crossing this silence.”
© Copyright Bible Diary 2022
