Today’s Readings – Friday of Week 8 of Ordinary Time - First Reading

Commentary on Sirach 44:1, 9-13

We now come to a section of Sirach, near the end of the book, which is a hymn in honour of the great ancestors of Israel. The eulogy shows how a devout Jew of the second century BC thought of the history of his people.

He recalls two sets of people – both the famous and the unknown. In today’s reading he recalls those countless good people who have lived down through the ages but of whom nothing is known and everything forgotten. Generation after generation, they brought children into the world and handed on their traditions and will continue to do so.

Later he will sing the praises, one by one, of some of the prominent personalities of the Hebrew Testament. Some of these portraits are read in our weekday liturgies at the end of a week whic … Continue

Yesterday’s Readings – Saint Justin, Martyr

St Justin, Martyr (Memorial)

Justin (100-165) was an early Christian apologist (i.e. a defender of the Christian faith against heresies and false beliefs). His works represent the earliest surviving Christian apologies of significance. Most of what we know about the life of Justin comes … Continue