In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so please feel free to share with others these homilies and your own personal faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.
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Fr. Gilles' blog post reflection on: The school shooting in B.C. is tragic and we stand in solidarity with them... and it highlights a regrettable other tragedy... the mutilation of adolescents....
The Sunday readings and homilyđ
6th Sunday in Ordinary Time
God makes us an offer we can refuse, but we really want to accept.
Saturday 5:00 p.m. Mass at Transfiguration
February 14th, 2026
Sunday 10:30 a.m. Mass at Transfiguration
February 15th, 2026
First reading: Sirach 15:15-20
Responsorial: Psalm 119 "Blessed are those who walk in the law of the Lord."
Second reading: 1 Corinthians 2:6-10
Alleluia. Alleluia. I am the light of the world, says the Lord; whoever follows me will have the light of life. Alleluia.
Gospel: Matthew 5:17-37
The Sermon on the Mount continues....
Homily Notes
Sirach also known as Ecclesiasticus ca. 187 B.C. "The Wisdom of Ben Sira". This is one of the "Wisdom Books" in the O.T. There is much "wisdom" in this book as well as in the other readings from today.
We Catholics are fairly "ignorant" of the Bible, the Word of God
Sadly, we Roman Catholics are generally fairly ignorant of the Bible, the Word of God. From the time of the Apostles until the 16th century, the "books" of the Bible were hand written on scrolls made from sheep skins or papyrus... these were extremely expensive treasures that only the very wealthy could afford to have. Even more so the entire Bible, which would have consisted of around 72 scrolls.
In 1456 Johannes Gutenberg published the very first printed Bible, in German, which initiated the printing revolution; as well as initiating a new period of availability of the Bible. In the past century, anyone could now afford their own copy of the Bible, and in recent years, the Bible has been published to the internet for free access in several versions and translations and languages.
Here are only a few good Catholic Bibles, Catholic because Martin Luther, one of the Protestant Reformers, "threw out" a double handful of Books from the Bible. These were books included in the Jewish Bible translated into the Greek language for the Greek-speaking Jewish community centered in Alexandria, Egypt, a few centuries before Christ. The targeted books had been heavily quoted by the early Christians, which caused the Jewish religious leaders to exclude them from their official list or "canon" of inspired Bible Scriptures. Luther endorsed this decision. The Magisterium of the Roman Catholic Church kept these books in their endorsed list or "canon" of inspired books in the Bible. Here is how the Bible breaks down.
The Books of the Bible, which is a "library of inspired books"
1. The "Torah" Hebrew for the "Law", also called the Pentateuch, a Greek term meaning "five books"; i.e. the first five books of the Bible: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy; which tells the faith story from the Creation, through the exodus of the Jewish People from Egypt under Moses, and their settlement into the "Promised Land", Canaan, known now as Palestine / Israel.
2. The "Historical Books" (16) which tells the story from the arrival into the Promised Land until a few centuries before Christ: Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel (2), Kings (2), Chronicles (2), Exra, Nehemiah, Tobit, Judith, Esther, Maccahees (2).
3. The "Wisdom Books" (7): Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Wisdome of Solomon, Sirach (Ecclesiasticus).
4. The "Prophets" (18) - the 3 "major prophets": Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel; the 12 "minor prophets": Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi; and also Lamentations, Baruch, and Daniel. Orthodox Bibles include the "Letter of Jeremiah", which in Catholic Bibles is generally included in the Book of Baruch.
God daily makes us an offer we can refuse
We don't really "know" God... we experience God's grace, his gifts, his love, but we have yet to know more about God or to "know Him" better. That is why each day God offers us to know Him by offering us his "inspired Word", contained in The Bible. In our day, the Bible is everywhere available; so, we have no excuse.
Good Catholic Bibles
1. The Catholic Prayer Bible Lectio Divina Edition - NRSVCE (Catholic Edition) by Paulist Press - This is the translation we have in the Lectionary from which we hear the Word of God at Mass, both on Sundays and on weekdays, since 2011.
2. The Catholic Youth Bible - NRSVCE by St. Mary's Press - This is the translation we have in the Lectionary from which we hear the Word of God at Mass, both on Sundays and on weekdays, since 2011.
3. Christian Community Bible Catholic Pastoral Edition "Translated, presented and commented for the Christian Communities of the Philippines and the Third World; anf for those who seek God. Complete text translated from Hebrew and Greek. By Claretian Publications, Saint Paul Publications, and Divine Word Publications. Features: Jesus, the Bible, and Tradition; How to read and not to misunderstand the Bible; What was in the world before the Bible? Summary and Dates of Sacred History - The Old Testament, The New Testament; From the Apostles to us; Index of the Gospel (events, teachings, miracles, etc.); Index of words; Names of Persons; Biblical Teaching - The Old Testament: God teaches his people - The New Testament: the Faith of the Apostles.
4. Bible Gateway - The whole Bible online and free - Here is a link to it showing the Gospel of Matthew. At the top there is a drop down menu listing dozens of different versions and translations of the Bible. The one we find in the Lectionary from which we hear the Word of God at Mass is the NRSVCE - New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition. Just below this line is another drop down menu listing the books of the Bible, both Old and New Testaments. Once you select a book you also see a list of chapters to choose from.
There are also other versions and editions of Catholic Bibles. The clerk at The Bible House would be able to advise you according to what you are looking for.
Comment on today's Scriptures
We are free to choose between good and evil; though other factors influence us. Sirach is a precious book of wisdom among others; they reveal to us the mind and heart of God, sounding like grandparents passing on wisdom to their grandchildren. We have not been raised to read the Bible daily during our prayer time; this might be a good practice to give ourselves during Lent.
St. Paul also spoke of wisdom, making a differenc between the wisdom of this world, which thought it a good idea to kill Jesus, and the wisdom which is in God. God's wisdom cannot be taken in by injection or in the form of a pill; but it can only be assimilated a little at a time, day by day, by reading, pondering, and praying the Sacred Scriptures.
In the Gospel, Jesus contrasts a number of truths found in this world to the truth that comes from God. We may not always like the truth of God coming from the mouth of Jesus. However, we must come to terms with God's truth, and we can either do so now, or else we will have to accept it when we come face to face with God when we leave our body after our last breath.
For the Gospel and Homily - Audio File... please email me.
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In the "New Covenant" made by our Creator God with humanity, as reported in Jeremiah 31:31-34, every human being can know God from within - because the Holy Spirit is revealing our Creator to all who are willing to know the Lord and trust in Him. We can still help each other along the way; so please feel free to share with others these homilies and your own personal faith in God through Jesus Christ. G.S.
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© 2006-2026 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2006-2026 Tous droits rĂ©servĂ©s AbbĂ© Gilles Surprenant, PrĂȘtre AssociĂ© de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, MontrĂ©al QC
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