Gospel Reflections

Forty Days: Scott Hahn on the 1st Sunday in Lent In today’s epic Gospel scene, Jesus relives in His flesh the history of Israel. We’ve already seen that, like Israel, Jesus has passed through water and been called God’s beloved Son (see Luke 3:22; Exodus 4:22). Now, as Israel was…

Heart and Mouth: Scott Hahn on the 8th Eighth Sunday In today’s readings we hear Jesus speaking in Galilee as well as a Jewish sage named Sirach writing in Jerusalem more than a century earlier. The two of them touch upon a single truth: The words that come out of…

Davids and Sauls: Scott Hahn on the 7th Sunday The story of David and Saul in today’s First Reading functions almost like a parable. Showing mercy to his deadly foe, David gives a concrete example of what Jesus expects to become a way of life for His disciples. The new…

Rich in Poverty: Scott Hahn on the 6th Sunday The blessings and woes we hear in today’s Gospel mark the perfection of all the wisdom of the Old Testament. That wisdom is summed up with marvelous symmetry in today’s First Reading and Psalm: Each declares that the righteous—those who hope…

Into the Deep: Scott Hahn on the 5th Sunday Simon Peter, the fisherman, is the first to be called personally by Jesus in Luke’s Gospel. His calling resembles Isaiah’s commissioning in the First Reading: confronted with the holiness of the Lord, both Peter and Isaiah are overwhelmed by a sense…

In the Wedding: Scott Hahn on the 2nd Sunday Think of these first weeks after Christmas as a season of “epiphanies.” The liturgy is showing us who Jesus is and what He has revealed about our relationship with God. Last week and the week before, the imagery was royal and…

The Anointing: Scott Hahn on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord The Liturgy last week revealed the mystery of God’s plan—that in Jesus all peoples, symbolized by the Magi, have been made “coheirs” to the blessings promised to Israel. This week, we’re shown how we claim our inheritance.…

Our True Home: Scott Hahn on the Feast of the Holy Family Why did Jesus choose to become a baby born of a mother and father and to spend all but His last years living in an ordinary human family? In part, to reveal God’s plan to make all people…

What Do We Do? Scott Hahn on the 3rd Sunday of Advent The people in today’s Gospel are “filled with expectation.” They believe John the Baptist might be the messiah they’ve been waiting for. Three times we hear their question: “What then should we do?” The messiah’s coming requires every…