“I often think of John the Baptist at one particularly dramatic moment during Mass,” writes Father Patrick Briscoe. “John is the forerunner, the one who gives testimony. ‘I am not the Messiah,’ John says in answer to those asking if he was
John the Baptist stands apart in a number of ways: he is the forerunner of Christ, regarded by Jesus as “greatest among the prophets,” and even has two feast days in the Church calendar. One of these feast days is “The Passion
Be reading for Mass on the Second Week of Ordinary Time. This week, Father Joshua Whitfield writes that John the Baptist sees Jesus coming toward him and testifies. John the Baptist sees the Spirit remain on Jesus; as Isaiah foretold, “the spirit
Monsignor Charles Pope addresses the topic of general absolution. When is it appropriate, and how should penitents proceed? Monsignor Pope explains that it is rare for general absolution to be necessary. He writes: “General absolution should be offered only in the rarest
For Gaudete Sunday next weekend, Timothy O’Malley writes in his reflection that we Christians celebrating Advent might learn from the “not-ness” of John the Baptist. John’s “not-ness” is not an occasion of self-abnegation. His mission is to proclaim the Dayspring from on
Sometimes a literal interpretation of the Bible leads to confusion. So, what does John the Baptism mean when he says he did not know Jesus? They were cousins, after all. Monsignor Charles Pope explains that Saint John the Baptist probably meant that
In the Opening the Word for the Second Sunday of Ordinary Time, Timothy P. O’Malley contrasts John the Baptist’s confession of the Messiah vs. John’s question if Jesus is the Messiah. Part of the Christian experience is John’s recognition that Jesus is
Be ready for Mass this weekend by reading the Opening the Word for the Third Sunday of Advent. Tim O’Malley writes that the arrival of the kingdom of God will not be bloodless. It will result in the death of John the
In the Opening the Word for the Second Sunday of Advent, Timothy O’Malley writes that the voice of John the Baptist still cries out to us. We hear it in the Scriptures, as we stand to listen to the voice of our
In rare cases, priests can withhold absolution from the penitent if they refuse to cease immoral acts