Sunday Reflections, 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, 1 February 2026

 

Lala Vicente with Jordan Navor

L'Arche, Cainta, near Manila. I have known both for many years.

In Ireland this Sunday is the Feast of St Brigid, Secondary Patroness of the country. The Mass is that of St Brigid but the readings are those of the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A.

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand)

Readings (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: (England & Wales, Scotland, India)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel Matthew 5:1-12a (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

At that time: Seeing the crowds, Jesus went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.’ 

Léachtaí i nGaeilge

The Beatitudes

L’Arche, Bognor Regis, England

Down Syndrome Abortion Rate

A study of abortions in the United States from 1995-2011 found that 67% of women who were told their baby would have Down syndrome decided to abort. This number is much higher in other countries. BBC reports that 90% of women in England whose babies are diagnosed with Down syndrome choose to abort . . . We see that trend in other countries as well. For instance, the Life Institute reports that in Iceland, nearly 100% of babies with Down syndrome are aborted. And in Germany, more than 90% of babies with Down syndrome are aborted.

Research will show that these figures have become higher in recent years in Western Countries. Since 2018 it has been legal in the Republic of Ireland, where I am from, to abort children in the womb simply because they have Down Syndrome.

Pope Francis on abortion

This central paragraph in Laudato si', the encyclical of Pope Francis 'On care for our common home' is all but ignored by the vast majority who profess to be concerned about Planet Earth. I've highlighted the words of Pope Francis and of Pope Leo XIV below because of the importance and clarity.

Since everything is interrelated, concern for the protection of nature is also incompatible with the justification of abortion. How can we genuinely teach the importance of concern for other vulnerable beings, however troublesome or inconvenient they may be, if we fail to protect a human embryo, even when its presence is uncomfortable and creates difficulties? 'If personal and social sensitivity towards the acceptance of the new life is lost, then other forms of acceptance that are valuable for society also wither away' (Laudato Si’, No 120).

Pope Leo XIV on family, abortion and surrogacy

On 9 January in his address to the diplomatic corps accredited to the Holy See Pope Leo said: The vocation to love and to life, which manifests itself in an important way in the exclusive and indissoluble union between a woman and a man, implies a fundamental ethical imperative for enabling families to welcome and fully care for unborn life.  This is increasingly a priority, especially in those countries that are experiencing a dramatic decline in birth rates.  Life, in fact, is a priceless gift that develops within a committed relationship based on mutual self-giving and service.

In light of this profound vision of life as a gift to be cherished, and of the family as its responsible guardian, we categorically reject any practice that denies or exploits the origin of life and its development.  Among these is abortion, which cuts short a growing life and refuses to welcome the gift of life.  In this regard, the Holy See expresses deep concern about projects aimed at financing cross-border mobility for the purpose of accessing the so-called 'right to safe abortion.' It also considers it deplorable that public resources are allocated to suppress life, rather than being invested to support mothers and families.  The primary objective must remain the protection of every unborn child and the effective and concrete support of every woman so that she is able to welcome life.

Likewise, there is the practice of surrogacy.  By transforming gestation into a negotiable service, this violates the dignity both of the child, who is reduced to a 'product,' and of the mother, exploiting her body and the generative process, and distorting the original relational calling of the family. 

Postscript

A report on Thursday 29 January says that primary school enrolment in the current school year in the Republic of Ireland is down by 6,470 compared to last year when enrolment fell by almost 4,000 and by just over 2,000 two years ago. 

In 2018, when abortion on demand was legalised up to 12 weeks and, in special cases at a later stage of pregnancy, there were 6,666 abortions. In 2024 there were more than 10,000. 

I haven't seen any commentaries yet on the clear connection between these two sets of statistics.

Rachel's Vineyard offers healing retreats in many countries for persons affected by abortion.

Lala and Hachiko, each looking more content than the other!

Sadly, this beautiful dog choked to death from a chicken-bone.

Second Reading. 1Corinthians 1:26-31

For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.”

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The two photos of Lala above show to me the truth of the words of St Paul. They show pure love. I have seen both Lala and Jordan draw love out of others, especially out of those living in L'Arche (Ang Arko): the 'core members' - the VIPs, if you wish - and the assistants.

Pope Benedict with young friends

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:3; Gospel).

Traditional Latin Mass

Septuagesima Sunday

The Complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 02-01-2026 if necessary).

Epistle: 1 Corinthians 9:24-27; 10:1-5. Gospel: Matthew 20:1-16.

Gospel Lectionary of Henry III

German Miniaturist [Web Gallery of Art]

This illustration of the Gospel shows the labourers working in the vineyard  and receiving their wages.

For the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard (Matthew 20:1; Gospel).

 

           

Sunday Reflections, 3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, 25 January 2026

 

San Giorgio Maggiore at Dawn

Joseph Mallord William Turner [Web Gallery of Art]

For those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned (Mt 4:16, Gospel; see Isaiah 9:2, First Reading).

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand)

Readings (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: (England & Wales, Scotland, India)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel Matthew 4:12-23 or 4:12-17 (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galilee. And leaving Nazareth he went and lived in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, so that what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled: ‘The land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, the way of the sea, beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the Gentiles — the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.’ From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, ‘Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.’

[While walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon (who is called Peter) and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea, for they were fishermen. And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ Immediately they left their nets and followed him. And going on from there he saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee and John his brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets, and he called them. Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.

And he went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction among the people.]

 Léachtaí i nGaeilge

Matthew 4:12-23 in Filipino Sign Language

Last Sunday in the Philippines was the Feast of the Santo Niño (Holy Child). The gospel was Matthew 18:1-5, 10 in which Jesus tells us, Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. I saw his words come to life twelve years ago at the end of Mass in Holy Family Home for Girls in Bacolod City. I lived in that city from 2002 until 2017.

In January 2014 four new girls arrived at the home. One, whom I'll call 'Josie', was aged 14 and was profoundly deaf. Her main way of communicating was Sign Language. The Sisters, staff and some of the girls began to learn some Sign Language. The other three new girls included two aged ten and one aged six.

At the end of Mass I saw 'Josie' sitting and quietly crying. I wasn't quite sure why. One of the ten-year-old new girls, rather small for her age but very lively and whom I'll call 'Grace', went over to 'Josie' and put her arms around her to comfort her. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

The majority of the girls in Holy Family Home have had horrific experiences, in most cases within their own wider family circle. They truly know what it is to be dwelling in darkness.

['Josie' was able to go home in 2016. We discovered that she had some hearing and, with hearing aids, she has improved her speech and hearing considerably. The other three girls were still at Holy Family Home when I left the Philippines in June 2017].

The Virgin and Child with St Martina and St Agnes

El Greco [Web Gallery of Art]

In my latter years in Bacolod City I used to celebrate Mass in Holy Family Home on to mark the feast of St Agnes, 21 January. Each year we combined a celebration of St Agnes the Martyr (c.291 - c.304), patron saint of chastity, of young girls and of rape victims, and Blessed Laura Vicuña (1891 - 1904), a patron of abuse victims who offered her life for the conversion of her mother and whose feast day is 22 January. Their years of birth and death paralleled with 16 centuries between them.

Each year I told the girls that the life of Blessed Laura, whose father died when she was young, was so like their own and that she became a saint in the midst of and through her sufferings, especially the cruelty of her stepfather who wasn't married to her mother. Despite her young age she had the maturity, generosity and holiness to offer her life so that her mother would return to the Lord. She told this to her mother when she, Laura, was dying. It was the physical abuse of her stepfather that led to her death. Laura's prayers were answered.

Blessed Laura Vicuña [Wikipedia]

Laura understood the stark reality of the words of Jesus in today's gospel: Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. She also understood the power of God's mercy. In Holy Family Home I frequently made myself available for confession and many of the girls would come. Sometimes I girl would ask me to hear her confession.

Holy Family Home exists because of the sins of adults against girls, some only small children. It is a place where most of the girls have been among those dwelling dwelling in the region and shadow of death (Gospel), in a land of deep darkness (First Reading). I have brought many visitors to Holy Family Home and the one word they nearly all have used to sum up their experience is 'joy', a joy they find among the girls, though they aren't always aware of the suffering. Those who live there are a testimony to the truth of the words of Isaiah that we listen to in the First Reading, words we also listened to at the Mass During the Night at Christmas: 

The people who walked in darkness    

   have seen a great light;

those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,   

   on them has light shined.

Call of the Sons of Zebedee

Marco Basaiti [Web Gallery of Art]

The second part of today's gospel - very likely the celebrant will omit this and use the shorter gospel reading -  tells us of the call of the first disciples who were later called to be apostles, the brothers Simon Peter and Andrew, and the sons of Zebedee, James and John. Immediately they left their nets . . . Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. Yet we know from the gospels that they continued to fish from time to time and to encounter stormy weather.

In the Philippines most fishermen are poor and go to sea in very small boats. In some countries larger boats go far from land and often encounter very dangerous weather. And a very large percentage of international seafarers are Filipinos.

In our prayers to day let us remember our fishermen, our seafarers and those involved in rescue work at sea. Let us also remember the members of a number of European navies who in recent years have saved countless refugees travelling in unsafe boats from north Africa to southern Europe. Tragically, many refugees never make it.

Home from the Sea

Written by Phil Coulter, sung by Liam Clancy

Traditional Latin Mass

Third Sunday After the Epiphany

The Complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 01-25-2026 if necessary).

Epistle: Romans 12:16-21. Gospel: Matthew 8:1-13.

Book Cover

Unknown French Master [Web Gallery of Art]

Below left: Jesus healing a leper (Matthew 8:1-4; today's Gospel).

 

           

 

                                                  

 

Sunday Reflections, 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A, 18 January 2026

The Gospel of John (1:29-34)

Directed by Philip Saville

I am posting this on Sunday night. We had no WiFi from Friday afternoon until tonight.

Readings(Jerusalem Bible: Australia, Ireland, New Zealand)

Readings (English Standard Version, Catholic Edition: (England & Wales, Scotland, India)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel John 1:29-34 (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

At that time: John saw Jesus coming towards him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! This is he of whom I said, “After me comes a man who ranks before me, because he was before me.” I myself did not know him, but for this purpose I came baptising with water, that he might be revealed to Israel.’ And John bore witness: ‘I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptise with water said to me, “He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptises with the Holy Spirit.” And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.

 

           Léachtaíi nGaeilge

 L

Fr Barry Cairns and Mr  Dismas Shigeru Kato 

Fr Barry Cairns, a Columban priest born in New Zealand in 1931 who is still enthusiastically  testifying in Japan that this is the Son of God tells a story in a number of our Columban magazines of one of his parishioners, Mr Dismas Shigeru Kato, who is doing the same in his 90s.He became a Catholic as an adult. Only about one person out of 200 in Japan is a Catholic.  Father Barry tells us about his parishioner when they were both younger.

I would like to introduce Mr Dismas Shigeru Kato. He was born 91 years ago in a small fishing village called Kushimoto in Wakayama Province of Japan. In his youth and when drafted into the wartime army he built up a massive debt for alcohol at different bars.

Then he got married. His wife was very patient with him. Mr Kato worked for the Kansai Electric Power Company. He cared for external power lines. He was paying off his debts bit by bit.

Then Mr Kato became a Christian, first with the local Protestant Church and later the Catholic Church where he was baptized. He chose as his baptismal name Dismas, which is the traditional name of the penitent brigand on a cross beside Jesus at his crucifixion.

At this time I was pastor of Kushimoto which was one of the smallest parishes in Japan. It was definitely a mission of primary contact to the un-evangelized! At Sunday Mass we had 5-10 people attending. However after Mass, 50 non-Christian children from the village came for Sunday school. Mr Kato's daughter, Majimi, was the only Christian.

It was here that Mr Dismas Shigeru Kato really shone in the darkness. For the children we used a projector showing a film strip about a small Catholic boy in Africa. Remember this was before TV came into the village. The film strip was in colour and most extensive with many episodes. Mr Kato would study each episode during the week and in the darkness needed for the projector could tell the story without looking at the script. Each character in the story was given in its own distinctive voice. It was a masterful and captivating presentation. I often heard the children discussing both the developing story and its Christian message.

At this time too Mr Kato was giving witness in another field. The Kansai Electric Company had a trade union seminar. The subject was traffic safety. During the open discussion Mr Kato stood up and said: ‘As many of you know I am a Christian. You have probably heard that Christ 2,000 years ago was strong on love of others. A modern aspect of love of neighbour is safe driving. Let the driver be concerned and respectful for others who use the road. Aggressive, dangerous driving can be a form of self-centredness. Careful, considerate driving is a form of love of neighbor. Let this be our motive for safe driving.’

A moment of spontaneous reflective silence was followed by massive applause. This was a new, different, and appealing approach.

The provincial section of the newspaper featured Mr Kato and his talk emphasising motivation for safe driving instead of just keeping rules for their own sake.

At 91 Shigeru Kato has moved into a Catholic-run retirement home. Here he is a leader of a group who pray the Rosary together.

I pray for more like Mr Kato to evangelize this nation of Japan.

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Mr Kato's life, where his Catholic Christian faith permeates everything he does, reflects the spirit of the Letter to Diognetus, written in the second century, which speaks of how we Christians are meant to live in the world. We can get a flavour of it here.

For the Christians are distinguished from other men neither by country, nor language, nor the customs which they observe . . . They dwell in their own countries, but simply as sojourners. As citizens, they share in all things with others, and yet endure all things as if foreigners. Every foreign land is to them as their native country, and every land of their birth as a land of strangers. They marry, as do all [others]; they beget children; but they do not destroy their offspring. They have a common table, but not a common bed.

People in many countries, and many here in Ireland itself, were utterly shocked and disheartened at the many voters here in recent referendums  - one in 2015 that re-defined marriage as no longer necessarily involving a man and a woman, the other in 2018 to do with the sacredness of the life of the unborn child - who saw no connection between their faith and the way they voted. We can never separate the reality that through our baptism we become the beloved sons and daughters of God the Father, brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ and of one another, from the reality of our daily lives and our lives as citizens. Everything is meant to be permeated by that marvellous truth in which we find our deepest identity, the truth that by baptism we are the beloved sons and daughters of God the Father.

Kinasai-omoniwo-oumono

Composed by Saburo Takada

This Japanese hymn is based on Matthew 11:28-30. Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

  Traditional Latin Mass

Second Sunday After the Epiphany

The Complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 1-18-2026 if necessary).

Epistle: Romans 12:6-16. Gospel: John 2:1-11.

Marriage at Cana (detail)

Paolo Veronese [Web Gallery of Art]

The steward of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, 'Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now' (John 2:9-10; Gospel).