"Jesus, son of David, have pity on me...Son of David, have pity on me." This is what Bartimeaus calls out to Jesus. Fr. Jim reminds us that Bartimeaus is one of the most important figures in the Gospel because he recognizes Jesus as the one who saves, even before the disciples do.

from Mark 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus,
sat by the roadside begging.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to cry out and say,
"Jesus, son of David, have pity on me."
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.
But he kept calling out all the more,
"Son of David, have pity on me."
Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."
So they called the blind man, saying to him,
"Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you."

Read the full scripture passage: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102724.cfm

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James and John ask Jesus to sit at his right and at his left. Little do they know what Jesus will soon go through and who will be on his left and right as he enters his glory. Fr. Jim reminds us that so often we too make long term commitments without knowing the full reality or consequences.

from Mark 10:35-45
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Jesus and said to him,
"Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you."
He replied, "What do you wish me to do for you?"
They answered him, "Grant that in your glory
we may sit one at your right and the other at your left."
Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking.
Can you drink the cup that I drink
or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?"
They said to him, "We can."
Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink, you will drink,
and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized;
but to sit at my right or at my left is not mine to give
but is for those for whom it has been prepared."

Read the full scripture passage: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/102024.cfm

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A rich man comes to Jesus and kneeling before him, asks "Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?" The rich man asks the right question but doesn't like Jesus' answer. Fr. Jim challenges us: What is God asking us to tithe that is holding us back from Him?

from Mark 10:17-30
As Jesus was setting out on a journey, a man ran up,
knelt down before him, and asked him,
"Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?"
Jesus answered him, "Why do you call me good?
No one is good but God alone.
You know the commandments: You shall not kill;
you shall not commit adultery;
you shall not steal;
you shall not bear false witness;
you shall not defraud;
honor your father and your mother."
He replied and said to him,
"Teacher, all of these I have observed from my youth."
Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him,
"You are lacking in one thing.
Go, sell what you have, and give to the poor
and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me."
At that statement his face fell,
and he went away sad, for he had many possessions. ...

Read the full scripture passage: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/101324.cfm

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Mark 10:2-16 addresses the difficult topic of marriage, divorce and re-marriage. In Jesus' time, divorce was very different than it is today. A man could divorce his wife for any reason and with no warning. Jesus is tested with this reality and responds that cavalierly ending a marriage is a sin. Listen as Fr. Jim teaches about the history behind this Gospel and the pastoral realities we face today.

from Mark 10:2-16
The Pharisees approached Jesus and asked,
"Is it lawful for a husband to divorce his wife?"
They were testing him.
He said to them in reply, "What did Moses command you?"
They replied,
"Moses permitted a husband to write a bill of divorce
and dismiss her."
But Jesus told them,
"Because of the hardness of your hearts
he wrote you this commandment.
But from the beginning of creation, God made them male and female.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
So they are no longer two but one flesh.
Therefore what God has joined together,
no human being must separate."
In the house the disciples again questioned Jesus about this.
He said to them,
"Whoever divorces his wife and marries another
commits adultery against her;
and if she divorces her husband and marries another,
she commits adultery."

Read the full scripture passage: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/100624.cfm

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St. John continues to bring concerns to Jesus, this time about someone performing exorcisms in Jesus' name but without being a true follower. Again Jesus has to remind John of the true mission.

from Mark 9:38-43, 45, 47-48
At that time, John said to Jesus,
"Teacher, we saw someone driving out demons in your name,
and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow us."
Jesus replied, "Do not prevent him.
There is no one who performs a mighty deed in my name
who can at the same time speak ill of me.
For whoever is not against us is for us.
Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink
because you belong to Christ,
amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward.

Read the full scripture passage: bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092924.cfm

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Fr. Jim encourages us to look in the mirror and ask ourselves each day, "How am I feeling today? What do I need today?"

from Mark 9:30-37

Jesus and his disciples left from there and began a journey through Galilee,
but he did not wish anyone to know about it.
He was teaching his disciples and telling them,
“The Son of Man is to be handed over to men
and they will kill him,
and three days after his death the Son of Man will rise.”
But they did not understand the saying,
and they were afraid to question him.

Read the full scripture: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092224.cfm

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Fr. Jim teaches that when we know who Jesus is we know who God is, but more than that, we must ask who Jesus is so that we know who we must be.

from Mark 8:27-35
Jesus and his disciples set out
for the villages of Caesarea Philippi.
Along the way he asked his disciples,
“Who do people say that I am?”
They said in reply,
“John the Baptist, others Elijah,
still others one of the prophets.”
And he asked them,
“But who do you say that I am?”
Peter said to him in reply,
“You are the Christ.”
Then he warned them not to tell anyone about him.

Read the full scripture passage: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/091524.cfm

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In this Gospel where Jesus heals the deaf and mute man, Fr. Jim reminds us that our hearing problems may actually be listening problems.

From Mark 7:31-37

...And people brought to him a deaf man who had a speech impediment and begged him to lay his hand on him. He took him off by himself away from the crowd. He put his finger into the man’s ears and, spitting, touched his tongue; then he looked up to heaven and groaned, and said to him, “Ephphatha!”— that is, “Be opened!” — And immediately the man’s ears were opened, his speech impediment was removed, and he spoke plainly...

Read the full Gospel: https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/090824.cfm

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