Celebrating at Home: Close Encounters with the Kingdom of God17th Sunday in Ordinary TimeIn the Gospel, Jesus compares the Kingdom to treasure hidden in a field, to a merchant on the lookout for fine pearls and to a fisherman’s dragnet which brings in a very mixed catch. The point of the parables is the behavior of the people in them.In the first two parables the joy and delight of those who find (experience) the Kingdom is obvious. It is so strong that nothing is spared in order to posses the Kingdom. The pur ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: The Patient Gardener16th Sunday in Ordinary TimeThe section of St Matthew’s Gospel from which we are now reading concerns the Kingdom of God. Jesus uses this expression frequently in his teaching. The Kingdom is not heaven, it is the life and heart of God. We live in the Kingdom when we live according to the mind and heart of God. The Kingdom, or reign of God, breaks into human reality when human beings live, breathe and act out of the life of God; when the heart of God becomes ours; when we al ...Continue Reading

 Celebrating at Home: Becoming Rich Soil15th Sunday in Ordinary TimeThe section of St Matthew’s Gospel from which we are now reading concerns the Kingdom of God. Jesus uses this expression frequently in his teaching. The Kingdom is not heaven, it is the life and heart of God. We live in the Kingdom when we live according to the mind and heart of God.This section about the Kingdom of God is the centrepiece of St Matthew’s Gospel.This week we begin the series of parables about the Kingdom with the parable of the ...Continue Reading

  Celebrating at Home: Lifting the Burden; Lightening the Load14th Sunday in Ordinary TimeThe Gospel today is a joyful, ecstatic outburst of feeling by Jesus.Matthew’s community must have been deeply troubled by the fact that the ‘learned and clever’ religious leaders of their day did not accept the message of Jesus. Surely they, of all people, should have been able to recognise the truth. But in this passage, Matthew explains that it is not from a position of knowledge or power that one recognises who Je ...Continue Reading

July  –  Julio  –  Luglio 2026ENGLISH | ESPAÑOL | ITALIANODownload English: ocarm.org/en/prayer/lectiodivina Descargar Español: ocarm.org/es/prayer/lectiodivina Scarica Italiano: ocarm.org/it/prayer/lectiodivina ENGLISHLECTIO DIVINA - July 2026[*]Lectio Divina - July 2026 [Pdf][*]Lectio Divina - July 2026 [ePub][*]Lectio Divina - July 2026 [Mobi] If you wish to receive updates on current news from the Carmelite Order, subscribe to CITOC News at ocarm.or ...Continue Reading

 Celebrating at Home: True Discipleship13th Sunday in Ordinary TimeToday’s Gospel is the final in this section of Matthew’s Gospel about the spread of the Kingdom and the role of the disciples. So far in this sermon we have heard Jesus teach that the truly virtuous are those who exercise mercy; disciples are to proclaim the Kingdom of God with works of compassion and mercy; they are not to let fear compromise the message, but are to trust always in God.Today’s Gospel passage highlights both the cost and reward ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: Be the Living Gospel12th Sunday in Ordinary TimeThe second part of Jesus’ instruction to the disciples as they set out for their mission is the text of the Gospel today. The opening sentence sets the tone for the disciples’ mission: Do not be afraid - a phrase which is repeated twice more in this Gospel passage.Preaching in the name of God is a risky and frightening business, as Jesus knows. So he urges the disciples not to be afraid of small beginnings, of those who can kill only the body, or ...Continue Reading

 Celebrating at Home: Growing Disciples11th Sunday in Ordinary TimeThis week’s Gospel contains the first part of Jesus’ instructions to the disciples as they set out on their mission.To these twelve Jesus entrusts the mission of proclaiming that the kingdom of God is close at hand. This is not an ‘end of the world’ prediction. The disciples are to be a sign of God’s kindness which brings health and wholeness. The proclamation of the Good News is always to be done generously and without counting the cost.Read m ...Continue Reading

Celebrating at Home: The Real Presence in UsBody and Blood of ChristWe are very used to talking about the Real Presence of Jesus being in the Blessed Sacrament. But the real presence of Christ is also in the community when it gathers in his name.The Eucharist is not only an object to be looked at, but an action to be done so that the living presence of Jesus continues to touch and heal.Maybe we need to think more deeply about the real presence of Jesus being in real, living human beings.Read more ...[*]Celebrating ...Continue Reading

Elisha and his servant. Glass by Skeat in a bottom panel of a Warrington window. Circa 1960.Author: Jules & Jenny. Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/78914786@N06/4954764436June  –  Junio  –  Giugnio 2026ENGLISH | ESPAÑOL | ITALIANODownload English: ocarm.org/en/prayer/lectiodivina Descargar Español: ocarm.org/es/prayer/lectiodivina Scarica Italiano: ocarm.org/it/prayer/lectiodivina ENGLISHLECTIO DIVINA - June 2026[*]Lectio Divina June 2026 [Pdf][*]Lecti ...Continue Reading