Today’s Readings – Thursday of Week 1 of Ordinary Time - First Reading

Commentary on Hebrews 3:7-14

As we have seen, one of the reasons for the writing of this Letter was to forestall the difficulties that some of its target audience, a community of Jewish Christians, were having in accepting Jesus Christ as Messiah and Lord. Today’s reading is a warning not to fall into the unbelief of which the Israelites were guilty in the past. A large part of the reading is taken up with a quotation from Psalm 95 (v 8-11), which is also the Responsorial Psalm for today’s Mass.

The author calls for a firm faith in Jesus. He bases his warning on the experience of Israel during the Exodus. In the Old Testament, the prophets (especially Isaiah) used the Exodus as a symbol of the return of Israel from their exile in Babylon. In the New Testament, the redemptive work … Continue

Yesterday’s Readings – Wednesday of Week 1 of Ordinary Time - First Reading

Commentary on Hebrews 2:14-18

The readings from Hebrews continue to emphasise the reality of the Incarnation and Christ’s total solidarity with peoples everywhere. Jesus shares with us the same “blood and flesh". In this way, as one of us, he could offer his life and death t … Continue