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Category: Church Street
Bishops Renew Plea to Congress and Administration to Repair Affordable Care Act
by USCCB
Today the United States Supreme Court issued a decision upholding as a tax the provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that requires individuals to purchase a health plan—the so-called “individual mandate.” For nearly a century, the Catholic bishops of the United States have been and continue to be consistent advocates for comprehensive health care […]
Reflections for Sunday, July 1, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Wisdom 1:13-15; 2:23-24; Psalm 30:2,4-6,11-13; 2 Corinthians 8:7,9,13-15; Mark 5:21-43) Prayer, A Time for a Personal Encounter with the Lord “He looked around to see who had done it.” (Mark 5:32) Sometimes our prayer life can feel a little like a gumball dispenser. We put a […]
Reflections for Sunday, June 24, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Isaiah 49:1-6; Psalm 139:1-3,13-15; Acts 13:22-26; Luke 1:57-66,80) Being Filled with the Joy of the Lord The Lord called me from birth. (Isaiah 49:1) What do you think is the most amazing thing about John the Baptist? His zeal for the Lord? His passionate preaching? Maybe his […]
Reflections for Sunday, June 17, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Reflections for Sunday, June 17, 2012 Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Mark 4;26-34; Ezekiel 17:22-24; Psalm 92:2-3,13-16 2; Corinthians 5:6-10; Mark 4:26-34) Trusting in the Lord’s Work in Our Lives “The seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how.” (Mark 4:27) When you were a child, you may have been given […]
Reflections for Sunday, June 10, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Exodus 24:3-8: Psalm 116:12-13,15-18; Hebrews 9:11-15; Mark 14:12-16,22-26) Being Transformed by the Eucharist “Take; this is my body.” (Mark 14:22). Have you ever had the experience of recalling a past event, or a person […]
Reflections for Sunday, June 3, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Deuteronomy 4:32-34,39-40; Romans 8:14-17; Psalm 33:4-6,9,18-20,22; Matthew 28:16-20) Immersing Ourselves in the Truths of the Trinity and Proclaiming it to Others Go, therefore… (Matthew 28:19) Have you ever started to leave a friend’s house, but then turned turn back to say: “Oh, and one more thing… .” […]
Reflections for Pentecost Sunday, May 27, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 2:1-11; Psalm 104:1,24,29-31,34; 1 Corinthians 12:3-7,12-13; John 20:19-23) Pentecost, A Time to Say Yes to the Work of the Holy Spirit in Our Lives Scholars tell us that the first Pentecost took place during the Jewish Feast of Weeks. This was a festival at which the […]
Reflections for Sunday, May 20, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47:2-3,6-9; Ephesians 1:17-23; Mark 16:15-20) Saying Yes to Jesus’ Call to Proclaim the Gospel to Others Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel. (Mark 16:15) What a simple, but immense, charge Jesus gave to his disciples! He even told them that […]
Reflections for Sunday, May 13, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Sixth Sunday of Easter Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 10:25-26,34-35,44-48; Psalm 98:1-4; 1 John 4:7-10; John 15:9-17) Growing in Hope and Joy during this Grace-filled Easter Season “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” (John 15:11) It […]
Reflections for Sunday, May 13, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 10:25-26,34-35,44-48; Psalm 98:1-4; 1 John 4:7-10; John 15:9-17) Growing in Hope and Joy during this Grace-filled Easter Season “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.” (John 15:11) It was one o’clock in the morning […]
Reflections for Sunday, May 6, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 9:26-31; Psalm 22:26-28,30-32; 1 John 3:18-24; John 15:1-8) Allowing Ourselves to be Pruned by God, To Bear Fruit for his Kingdom “Whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.” (John 15:5) How comforting it is to know that we do not walk […]
Reflections for Sunday, April 29, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 4:8-12; Psalm 118:1,8-9,21-23,26,29; 1 John 3:1-2; John 10:11-18) Knowing and Experiencing the Love of Our Heavenly Father “We are God’s children.” (1 John 3:2) What a radical statement! How awesome it is that we mere mortals are children of the eternal, almighty God! What could be […]
Reflections for Sunday, April 22, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 3:13-15,17-19; Psalm 4:2,4,7-9; 1 John 2:1-5; Luke 24:35-48) Opening Our Minds and Hearts to Jesus and the Scriptures “He opened their minds to understand the scriptures.” (Luke 24:45) We all love to have our minds stretched in new directions. There is nothing more exciting than listening […]
Reflections for Sunday, April 15, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 4:32-35; Psalm 118:2-4,13-15,22-24; 1 John 5:1-6; John 20:19-31) Opening Ourselves to Receiving God’s Divine Mercy This is the one who came through water and blood. (1 John 5:6) “Throughout the world the Second Sunday of Easter will receive the name Divine Mercy Sunday, a perennial invitation […]
Reflections for Easter Sunday, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Acts 10:34,37-43; Psalm 118:1-2,16-17,22-23; Colossians 3:1-4; John 20:1-9) Allowing the Resurrection of Jesus to Strengthen Our Faith They did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead. (John 20:9) What a humble statement! Here is John, the beloved apostle, admitting that he […]
The Holy Father’s Palm Sunday Homily: The Great Doorway Leading into Holy Week
by Pope Benedict XVI
Dear Brothers and Sisters, Palm Sunday is the great doorway leading into Holy Week, the week when the Lord Jesus makes his way towards the culmination of his earthly existence. He goes up to Jerusalem in order to fulfil the Scriptures and to be nailed to the wood of the Cross, the throne from which […]
Reflections for Sunday, April 1, 2012 (Palm Sunday)
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Isaiah 50:4-7; Psalm 22:8-9,17-20,23-24; Philippians 2:6-11; Mark 14:1–15:47) Opening Ourselves to God as We Contemplate Jesus’ Passion Crucify him! (Mark 15:13) St. Francis de Sales once wrote: “I especially commend earnest mental prayer . . . upon the life and Passion of our Lord. If you contemplate […]
Reflections for Sunday, March 25, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Jeremiah 31:31-34; Psalm 51:3-4,12-15; Hebrews 5:7-9; John 12:20-33) Bearing Much Fruit for the Kingdom of God “Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.” (John 12:24) Have you ever […]
United for Religious Freedom
by USCCB
A Statement of the Administrative Committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops March 14, 2012 The Administrative Committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, gathered for its March 2012 meeting, is strongly unified and intensely focused in its opposition to the various threats to religious freedom in our day. In our […]
Reflections for Sunday, March 11, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Exodus 20:1-17; Psalm 19:8-11; 1 Corinthians 1:22-25; John 2:13-25) Being Angry toward Injustice without Sinning “He made a whip of cords and drove them all out of the temple area.” (John 2:15) Today’s Gospel tells us that Jesus was angry. But just a little more than a […]
Reflections for Sunday, March 4, 2012
by Maurice Blumberg
Meditation and Questions for Reflection or Group Discussion (Genesis 22:1-2,9-13,15-18; Psalm 116:10,15-19; Romans 8:31-34; Mark 9:2-10) Knowing and Living the Gospel Message that God is for Us “If God is for us, who can be against us?” (Romans 8:31) With these ten words, Paul begins to summarize the points he has been making so far […]
