"Five loaves and two fish are all we have here."

This Sunday's Readings for Aug. 3, 2014 -- the Gospel of the miracle of the multiplication of loaves and fish -- causes us to pause for careful reflection about the serious immigration dilemma we currently face at our borders. This Gospel is so central to the Bible that it is one of the few miracles found in all four gospels. It help us recognize the gifts we have been given and the responsibility we have to give to others.

Sunday Readings' Discussion Questions
Eightteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Aug 3, 2014 (18A)
From the Center for Liturgy at Saint Louis University

Sunday Mass Readings
Podcast of the Readings 
Video of Reflections on Readings
Lecturas y Comentarios 
Prayer of the Hours
BQ: Eucharist ? Communion ? Which is it ?

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Questions on Sunday's Readings for use by discussion groups,
prayer groups, or for individual prayer.
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First Reading
First Book of Kings, Chapter 3, Verses 5, 7-129

1. Isaiah was writing for a poor community.What images and ideas in this reading would be of particular interest to them? What does God tell us to do in this reading to share in the abundant banquet of rich fare?

2. What is the food that can satisfy your soul’s deepest hunger?

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 145: 8-9, 15-18
1. Our Psalm says that the Lord feeds us and gives us our food in due season. What kind of nourishment are you receiving from the Lord?

2. The Psalm says the Lord is near to all who call upon him in truth. How do you approach the Lord to satisfy your spiritual hunger and answer all your needs?

Second Reading
Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 35, 37-39

1. The reading asks us, “What will separate us from the love of Christ.” Does anything separate you completely from those you love? What does communication or the lack of it do for a relationship? Do you communicate with God to keep that relationship close? Whose strength is it that allows nothing to separate you from the love of God?

2. Nothing separated Christ from his love for us, not anguish, or distress, or the sword. Compare this thought with the hungry poor people in the First Reading who are given rich fare to eat and wine and milk. What is the common denominator in these two readings?

Gospel
According to Matthew, Chapter 14, Verses 13-21

1. Feeding 5000 would be a large task for most of us. Are some problems too big to handle? How do you look at “insurmountable” tasks in your own life? What did you think of when you read, “He looked up to heaven and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples?”


2. The people in today’s readings were poor first, then rich with God’s abundant gifts to them. In the wedding feast at Cana, first there was not enough wine, then too much. In Sunday’s Gospel reading they first had no food, and then they collected twelve baskets of leftovers. What is the spiritual meaning of these contrasts?

Online Sunday Bible Study Group
Please share below your reflections on the Sunday Readings. May we be blessed by God's words as reflected in your thoughts and experience-sharing.

"The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field"

Sunday's Readings for July 27, 2014 drive us to the dogmatic theology books. The First Reading from 1 Kings speaks about wisdom. The second from Romans speaks about predestination, the Gospel from Matthew speaks about the Christian life. The invitation is placed before us and it is entirely up to us whether we accept it.

Sunday Readings' Discussion Questions
Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 27, 2014 (17A)
From the Center for Liturgy at Saint Louis University

Sunday Mass Readings
Podcast of the Readings 
Video of Reflections on Readings
Lecturas y Comentarios 
Prayer of the Hours
BQ: Is Gambling a Sin?

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Questions on Sunday's Readings for use by discussion groups,
prayer groups, or for individual prayer.
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First Reading
First Book of Kings, Chapter 3, Verses 5, 7-129

1. “Understanding” or “shōmē’a” in Hebrew means listening or obedient. How would the world be different if everyone in a leadership position (parent, teacher, boss, political leaders, religious leaders) earnestly prayed Solomon’s prayer, “Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong”? What impact might “listening” have on good leadership?

2. How difficult do you find the task of applying Christian values to your everyday life? Would anyone’s life change for the better if you had an understanding heart? How do you think you might improve your skills in this area?

Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 119: 57, 72, 76-77, 127-130

1. Our psalmist says that he 'loves the Lord's commands.'If you love the Lord, do you feel that you want to obey his commands? Explain.

2. Our psalmist says that 'in all your precepts I go forward.'In what way are the decrees of the Lord a light that guides you along the path of your spiritual life?


Second Reading
Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 28-30


1. “All things work for the good for those who love God,” St. Paul says. Suffering is inevitable in human life. How can it work for the good?

2. How about the man who sells everything to buy the field where he found the buried treasure? Is this an example of all things working for the good? Explain.

Gospel
According to Matthew, Chapter 13, Verses 44-52


1. Did the treasure in the field and the pearl of great price just appear by accident, or did the pearl-finder and the merchant have to look for them, be shrewd about obtaining them? What about you? How do you recognize the “treasure” or the kingdom of God in your life today? Think of some times you have experienced the glory of the kingdom of God, to whatever degree.

2. Is there any treasure that is worth the investment of everything you have? What other “treasures” might keep you from making a full investment in “the pearl of great price”?

Online Sunday Bible Study Group
Please share below your reflections on the Sunday Readings. May we be blessed by God's words as reflected in your thoughts and experience-sharing. 
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"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed"

What can malicious weed-sowing tell us about the kingdom of God (Matthew 13:25)? The image Jesus uses in this parable is a common everyday example of planting, harvesting, and sorting the good fruit from the bad. Weeds can spoil and even kill a good harvest if they are not separated and destroyed at the proper time. Uprooting them too early, though, can destroy the good plants in the process.

Sunday Readings' Discussion Questions
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 20, 2014 (16A)
From the Center for Liturgy at Saint Louis University

Sunday Mass Readings
Podcast of the Readings 
Video of Reflections on Readings
Lecturas y Comentarios 
Prayer of the Hours
BQ: What is Faith?

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Questions on Sunday's Readings for use by discussion groups,
prayer groups, or for individual prayer.
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First Reading
Book of Wisdom, Chapter 12, Verses 13, 16-19

1. Care, justice, mercy, leniency. What would world history be like if all leaders had possessed these qualities? Are you full of mercy, kindness and caring or could you use a little “tapping off’?

2. Does the fact that you can repent for your sins give you hope? How does this translate into your dealings with other people?

Responsorial Psalm
 Psalm 86: 5-6, 9-10, 15-16

1. Our psalmist pleads with the Lord to hear his prayer. What do you think you have to do to get the Lord to listen to your prayer?

2. Out psalmist is confident of God's mercy ('Lord, you are good and forgiving.') Do you feel that sometimes you are asking too much of the Lord, especially in times when you are not deserving of his mercy? What inspires you to keep petitioning the Lord?


Second Reading
Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 26-28

1. Discuss this quote from Prayer by Hans Urs von Balthasar,

“I have the conviction that my inadequate attempt to understand is supported by the wisdom of the Holy Spirit dwelling within me, that my acts of worship, petition and thanksgiving are borne along and remodeled by the Spirit’s infinite and eternal acts.”… “The Spirit breaks forth out of the very core of the believer’s spiritual life, showing him [her] the way, stirring him to action, thinking, willing and praying with him [her].”

2. What are some ways the Spirit has come to your aid when you have needed help. Do you ever call on the Spirit when you are in need? Do you remember that the Spirit is present with you?

Gospel
According to Matthew, Chapter 13, Verses 24-43

1. In the first parable, is the master patient and lenient or does he judge quickly? Are you patient with others or quick to judge?

2. Can you always tell weeds from flowers, or saints from sinners? When you are quick to judge could you mistake a saint for a sinner? Is God patient with you as regards the “weeds” in your own garden? How patient are you with yourself?

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Please share below your reflections on the Sunday Readings. May we be blessed by God's words as reflected in your thoughts and experience-sharing.

"For my yoke is easy, and my burden light."

Who of us cannot be moved in some way by the consolation that Jesus offers in His words for this Sunday, July 6, 2014 (14A). Brief but exceedingly rich in meaning, these are after all some of the most well-known and most popular passages from all of the Christian Scriptures. How beautiful these words from Jesus are. And yet, so hard to trust.

Sunday Readings' Discussion Questions
Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, July 6, 2014 (14A)
From the Center for Liturgy at Saint Louis University

Sunday Mass Readings
Podcast of the Readings 
Video of Reflections on Readings
Lecturas y Comentarios 
Prayer of the Hours
BQ: "Is Religion for the weak of heart and mind?"

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Questions on Sunday's Readings for use by discussion groups,
prayer groups, or for individual prayer.
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First Reading
Book of the Prophet Zechariah, Chapter 9, Verses 9-10

1. What ideas do you associate with the word king? What ideas do you associate with the word meek? Is “meek king” an oxymoron? How is meekness a strength, and how can it win wars or put a stop to fighting?

2. Who might feel comfortable approaching a king? Who might approach a meek king? What bearing do humility and meekness have on a person’s approachability? How approachable are you? When did Jesus enter the city ”riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey?”

Responsorial Psalm
Ps 145:1-2, 8-9, 10-11, 13-14

1. Do you believe that the Lord lifts up all who are falling and raises up all who are bowed down? Can you give an example in your life where the Lord lifted you up from a situation or habit that was dragging you down?

2. Do you believe that suffering makes you a better witness for Christ? Can you give an
example of how suffering became meaningful in your life and strengthened your faith?

Second Reading
Letter of St. Paul to the Romans, Chapter 8, Verses 9, 11-13

1. At the Incarnation Christ took on human flesh with all of its delights and burdens. What do you think the Incarnation does for the worth of our own soul/bodies?

2. “The Spirit of God dwells in you.” What does this imply about the wonder and holiness of your own spirit? Could it help you reverence your neighbor?

Gospel
According to Matthew, Chapter 11, Verses 25-30

1. How is Jesus like the meek king in the first reading? If he had never known suffering, would you feel he understands you when you go to him with worries? Can suffering make a person more approachable?

2. Carpenters hand-made the yoke to fit the animal that wore it. What does the idea that your “yoke“ is handmade for you imply? Jesus’ mission was to reveal the Father to us. What did he reveal about God in this reading? If we take his yoke, do you think Jesus will reveal his Father to us?

Online Sunday Bible Study Group
Please share belowyour reflections on the Sunday Readings. May we be blessed by God's words as reflected in your thoughts and experience-sharing. 
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