My dear Holy Family family, when I preach a wedding, I often tell the bride and groom there may be times they will have to defend their spouse against their family, friends, and others. In today's Gospel, we hear about exactly this issue- the story of Bartimaeus, his friends, and those in the crowd with him. 

My dear Holy Family family: In the beginning, Adam found no suitable partner for himself in the Garden of Eden. God took a rib from the man and fashioned a woman. The significance of the rib - the middle of the body – is that both Adam and Eve were created equal. As husband and wife, they were the first family. The effects on marriage of our first family’s Original Sin was what Jesus was addressing in today’s Gospel when He talked about divorce.

Today Jesus reveals Himself as the Divine Physician. We see in today’s Gospel Jesus dealing with life’s most difficult yet common problems - the problems of worry and anxiety. Let’s look at what we just read to see how this is so.

Today's readings are just as relevant for us today as the day they were

written. Let's do a quick dive into the background of these readings so we

can understand the context of what was written.

My dear Holy Family family, in today’s Gospel, Jesus shows us something really profound. He shows us how to address the many things that worry us so much these days.

God said to Noah and to his sons with him: “See, I am now establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you and with every living creature that was with you.

The days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their fathers.

Jesus is at the gate of the sheepfold, welcoming us back in where we can lick our wounds, regain our health and learn from our mistakes.

“Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”

He answered them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons

that the Father has established by his own authority.

Father's Day