Word Wide Open: The Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) - 8/1/21

First Reading (Exodus 16:2-4, 12-15)

A reading from the Book of Exodus.

The whole Israelite community grumbled against Moses and Aaron. 

The Israelites said to them,

“Would that we had died at the LORD’s hand in the land of Egypt,

as we sat by our fleshpots and ate our fill of bread! 

But you had to lead us into this desert

to make the whole community die of famine!”

Then the LORD said to Moses,

“I will now rain down bread from heaven for you. 

Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion;

thus will I test them,

to see whether they follow my instructions or not.

“I have heard the grumbling of the Israelites. 

Tell them: In the evening twilight you shall eat flesh,

and in the morning you shall have your fill of bread,

so that you may know that I, the LORD, am your God.”

In the evening quail came up and covered the camp. 

In the morning a dew lay all about the camp,

and when the dew evaporated, there on the surface of the desert

were fine flakes like hoarfrost on the ground. 

On seeing it, the Israelites asked one another, “What is this?”

for they did not know what it was. 

But Moses told them,

“This is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.”

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? Why do we often blame God for our problems and sufferings? How does the manna in the desert prefigure the Eucharist?


Second Reading (Ephesians 4:17, 20-24)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians.

Brothers and sisters:

I declare and testify in the Lord

that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do,

in the futility of their minds;

that is not how you learned Christ,

assuming that you have heard of him and were taught in him,

as truth is in Jesus,

that you should put away the old self of your former way of life,

corrupted through deceitful desires,

and be renewed in the spirit of your minds,

and put on the new self,

created in God’s way in righteousness and holiness of truth.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How are we called to live differently than non-Christians? What are things we need to live behind to follow Christ?

Gospel (John 6:24-35)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John.

When the crowd saw that neither Jesus nor his disciples were there,

they themselves got into boats

and came to Capernaum looking for Jesus. 

And when they found him across the sea they said to him,

“Rabbi, when did you get here?” 

Jesus answered them and said,

“Amen, amen, I say to you,

you are looking for me not because you saw signs

but because you ate the loaves and were filled. 

Do not work for food that perishes

but for the food that endures for eternal life,

which the Son of Man will give you. 

For on him the Father, God, has set his seal.” 

So they said to him,

“What can we do to accomplish the works of God?” 

Jesus answered and said to them,

“This is the work of God, that you believe in the one he sent.” 

So they said to him,

“What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? 

What can you do? 

Our ancestors ate manna in the desert, as it is written:

    He gave them bread from heaven to eat.”

So Jesus said to them,

“Amen, amen, I say to you,

it was not Moses who gave the bread from heaven;

my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 

For the bread of God is that which comes down from heaven

and gives life to the world.”

So they said to him,

“Sir, give us this bread always.” 

Jesus said to them,

“I am the bread of life;

whoever comes to me will never hunger,

and whoever believes in me will never thirst.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? What earthly things we settle for instead of God? What does the Bread of Life discourse teach us about the Eucharist?

Word Wide Open: The Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) - 7/25/21

First Reading (2 Kings 4:42-44)

A reading from the Second Book of Kings.

A man came from Baal-shalishah bringing to Elisha, the man of God,

twenty barley loaves made from the firstfruits,

and fresh grain in the ear. 

Elisha said, “Give it to the people to eat.” 

But his servant objected,

“How can I set this before a hundred people?” 

Elisha insisted, “Give it to the people to eat.” 

“For thus says the LORD,

‘They shall eat and there shall be some left over.’” 

And when they had eaten, there was some left over,

as the LORD had said.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? What is the food God provides for us and what does it do for us?


Second Reading (Ephesians 4:1-6)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians.

Brothers and sisters:

I, a prisoner for the Lord,

urge you to live in a manner worthy of the call you have received,

with all humility and gentleness, with patience,

bearing with one another through love,

striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace:

one body and one Spirit,

as you were also called to the one hope of your call;

one Lord, one faith, one baptism;

one God and Father of all,

who is over all and through all and in all.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How do we live in a manner worthy of the call we have received? Why should we try to be more patient with others?

Gospel (John 6:1-15)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John.

Jesus went across the Sea of Galilee. 

A large crowd followed him,

because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. 

Jesus went up on the mountain,

and there he sat down with his disciples. 

The Jewish feast of Passover was near. 

When Jesus raised his eyes

and saw that a large crowd was coming to him,

he said to Philip,

“Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?” 

He said this to test him,

because he himself knew what he was going to do. 

Philip answered him,

“Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough

for each of them to have a little.” 

One of his disciples,

Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, said to him,

“There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish;

but what good are these for so many?” 

Jesus said, “Have the people recline.” 

Now there was a great deal of grass in that place. 

So the men reclined, about five thousand in number. 

Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks,

and distributed them to those who were reclining,

and also as much of the fish as they wanted. 

When they had had their fill, he said to his disciples,

“Gather the fragments left over,

so that nothing will be wasted.” 

So they collected them,

and filled twelve wicker baskets with fragments 

from the five barley loaves

that had been more than they could eat. 

When the people saw the sign he had done, they said,

“This is truly the Prophet, the one who is to come into the world.” 

Since Jesus knew that they were going to come and carry him off

to make him king,

he withdrew again to the mountain alone.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? In what ways does God always provide for us? How does the Eucharist sustain us in faith? 

Word Wide Open: The Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) - 7/18/21

First Reading (Jeremiah 23:1-6)

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Jeremiah.

Woe to the shepherds

who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture,

says the LORD. 

Therefore, thus says the LORD, the God of Israel,

against the shepherds who shepherd my people:

You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. 

You have not cared for them,

but I will take care to punish your evil deeds. 

I myself will gather the remnant of my flock

from all the lands to which I have driven them

and bring them back to their meadow;

there they shall increase and multiply. 

I will appoint shepherds for them who will shepherd them

so that they need no longer fear and tremble;

and none shall be missing, says the LORD.

    Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD,

        when I will raise up a righteous shoot to David;

    as king he shall reign and govern wisely,

        he shall do what is just and right in the land.

    In his days Judah shall be saved,

        Israel shall dwell in security.

    This is the name they give him:

        “The LORD our justice.”

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? What makes a leader a good leader? How is Jesus the good shepherd?


Second Reading (Ephesians 2:13-18)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians.

Brothers and sisters:

In Christ Jesus you who once were far off

have become near by the blood of Christ.

For he is our peace, he who made both one

and broke down the dividing wall of enmity, through his flesh,

abolishing the law with its commandments and legal claims,

that he might create in himself one new person in place of the two,

thus establishing peace,

and might reconcile both with God,

in one body, through the cross,

putting that enmity to death by it. 

He came and preached peace to you who were far off

and peace to those who were near,

for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? How does God draw us closer to Himself? How are we reconciled with God?

Gospel (Mark 6:30-34)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Mark.

The apostles gathered together with Jesus

and reported all they had done and taught. 

He said to them,

“Come away by yourselves to a deserted place and rest a while.” 

People were coming and going in great numbers,

and they had no opportunity even to eat. 

So they went off in the boat by themselves to a deserted place. 

People saw them leaving and many came to know about it. 

They hastened there on foot from all the towns

and arrived at the place before them.

When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd,

his heart was moved with pity for them,

for they were like sheep without a shepherd;

and he began to teach them many things.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? Why is private prayer time so important? How does Jesus how us to love others?

Word Wide Open: The Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (B) - 7/11/21

First Reading (Amos 7:12-15)

A reading from the Book of the Prophet Amos.

Amaziah, priest of Bethel, said to Amos,

“Off with you, visionary, flee to the land of Judah! 

There earn your bread by prophesying,

but never again prophesy in Bethel;

for it is the king’s sanctuary and a royal temple.” 

Amos answered Amaziah, “I was no prophet,

nor have I belonged to a company of prophets;

I was a shepherd and a dresser of sycamores. 

The LORD took me from following the flock, and said to me,

Go, prophesy to my people Israel.”

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? Why does God often call us out of our comfort zone? What are difficult things God asks us to do?


Second Reading (Ephesians 1:3-14)

A reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Ephesians.

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has blessed us in Christ

with every spiritual blessing in the heavens,

as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world,

to be holy and without blemish before him. 

In love he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ,

in accord with the favor of his will,

for the praise of the glory of his grace

that he granted us in the beloved.

In him we have redemption by his blood,

the forgiveness of transgressions,

in accord with the riches of his grace that he lavished upon us. 

In all wisdom and insight, he has made known to us

the mystery of his will in accord with his favor

that he set forth in him as a plan for the fullness of times,

to sum up all things in Christ, in heaven and on earth.

In him we were also chosen,

destined in accord with the purpose of the One

who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will,

so that we might exist for the praise of his glory,

we who first hoped in Christ. 

In him you also, who have heard the word of truth,

the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him,

were sealed with the promised holy Spirit,

which is the first installment of our inheritance

toward redemption as God’s possession, to the praise of his glory.

The word of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this reading? What does it mean to be chosen before the foundation of the world? How do we achieve the purpose of the One?

Gospel (Mark 6:7-13)

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Mark.

Jesus summoned the Twelve and began to send them out two by two

and gave them authority over unclean spirits. 

He instructed them to take nothing for the journey

but a walking stick—

no food, no sack, no money in their belts. 

They were, however, to wear sandals

but not a second tunic. 

He said to them,

“Wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave. 

Whatever place does not welcome you or listen to you,

leave there and shake the dust off your feet

in testimony against them.” 

So they went off and preached repentance. 

The Twelve drove out many demons,

and they anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.

The Gospel of the Lord.

Asking the big questions: Is there anything that stuck out to you from this Gospel reading? What are the powers that Christ gives His people today? Why is relying on God for everything so difficult?