The BreadCast

jameshkurt@gmail.com
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Spirit-filled daily reflections on the Mass Readings of the Roman Catholic Church from the book Our Daily Bread by James Kurt (with imprimatur). The daily podcasts are voice only, while the podcasts for Sundays and Solemnities are produced with music and other elements. Another podcast recently added: Prayers to the Saints - a prayer to each saint on the calendar for the US. Also with imprimatur.

  1. 15h ago

    July 28 - Tuesday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Jer.14:17-22;   Ps.79:8-9,11,13;   Mt.13:36-43) “Remember not against us the iniquities of the past; may your compassion quickly come to us, for we are brought very low.” If the prophet’s “eyes stream with tears day and night, without rest, over the great destruction which overwhelms the virgin daughter of [his] people, over her incurable wound,” how many more tears will there be “at the end of the world” when the “weeds are collected and burned”?  For in our first reading Jeremiah sees “those slain by the sword” and “those consumed by hunger,” suffering enough to bring tears – but this “blow” struck by the Lord is not one which “cannot be healed.”  “A time of healing” shall indeed come as the nation is brought back from exile only seventy years after its being taken; and soon Jesus shall come to “free [all] those doomed to death,” to set prisoners free… to make permanent the compassionate deliverance of the Lord God.  But at the end of the age, when Jesus comes again and finally, the sentence that is passed against those who have sinned shall have no means of repeal; the death upon souls shall be everlasting. In our gospel today Jesus speaks in plain terms as He explains “the parable of the weeds in the field.”  This is no mere fable but the delineation of the harvest time that shall come upon all.  To heaven or to hell all shall go, and there shall be no more changing: no more opportunity for redemption for those set upon evil, and no more faltering into wickedness for those set upon good.  Great shall be the eternal gifts showered upon the blessed, but what of the wailing then… what of the wailing? “We have sinned against you.”  “We recognize, O Lord, our wickedness.”  We pray you shall “remember your covenant with us,” and from all our sin set us free.  “Deliver us and pardon our sins” and we “will give thanks to you forever; through all generations we will declare your praise.”  Keep us safe from your judgment on the Last Day.  Do not “cast [us] off completely,” but raise our lowly hearts unto your kingdom. ******* O LORD, we are doomed to death for our sin, but Jesus comes to save us from the fiery furnace that we might shine your light forever in the kingdom. YHWH, remember not against us the iniquities of the past but let us be purged of all sin, that we might shine with you in your kingdom.  For the glory of your NAME forgive our wickedness and let us share your glory in your holy Day. You are right to punish us, LORD, and to condemn us if we harden our hearts on the day of judgment.  But we beg you to hear the sighing of the prisoners and free those doomed to death.  Make us as the sheep of your pasture and we will give thanks to you forever. Our very lives are dependent on you, LORD our God.  We cannot eat or breathe except that you feed us, except that you give life to our souls.  If you remove your providential hand, we cannot but be destroyed, we cannot but perish in our sins.  But you are our Savior – let your will be accomplished among us and let us be redeemed!  Save us from the fiery furnace and let us stand as citizens of your kingdom, Father of us all.

  2. 1d ago

    July 27 - Monday of the 17th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Jer.13:1-11;   Dt.32:18-21;   Mt.13:31-35) “You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you. You forgot the God who gave you birth.” So Moses says of the people he led through the desert.  So Jeremiah is told of the Lord’s chosen at the time of the Babylonian exile.  So it is with those who are deaf to Jesus’ parables.  And so we, too, forget the Lord whenever we turn from Him in sin. So close were the Lord’s children to Him and His blessings: “As close as the loincloth clings to a man’s loins, so had I made the whole house of Israel and the whole house of Judah cling to me, says the Lord.”  The God of earth and heaven calls them “my people, my renown, my praise, my beauty.”  He has set them aside to be His own, to make them holy in the eyes of the world.  “But they did not listen.”  But they did not remain faithful.  Going after “strange gods to serve and adore them,” they showed themselves to be “sons with no loyalty in them.”  And so they became “rotted, good for nothing.” How sad is sin.  “What a fickle race [we] are.”  For all we need the Lord provides, yet we “walk in the stubbornness of [our] hearts” a path away from Him, apart from His love.  And now Jesus “announce[s] what has lain hidden since the creation of the world.”  In parables He speaks of the kingdom of God.  But how many hearts are closed to His teaching?  How many “refuse to obey [His] words?”  And should the Lord not therefore be “filled with loathing and anger toward His sons and daughters”? The kingdom of heaven cannot grow in us if we separate ourselves from Jesus.  As Israel and Judah were cast off, so shall we be, if we do not heed His commands.  Following the “vain idols” of the nations will not bring us to His kingdom, but only make us abominable in His sight.  And what horror to lose His blessing, to turn our renown and beauty to an everlasting curse. It need not be so.  To Him we can return, with open ears and understanding hearts and light thus filling our eyes.  Remaining ever in His presence, remembering His Name, He who has planted us as seed “in His field,” He who has given birth to new life within us, will see that each day we grow.  And on the last Day we shall be formed in His image. ******* O LORD, your Son announces the kingdom of God; let us listen to His voice and turn from our disloyalty, that we might enter His reign. YHWH, you are hidden within Creation and so within us; from the beginning you are with us, though we be blind to your presence.  But your Son comes to reveal your glory, your blessing upon our souls.  You are our very life – let us not turn away from your love. To the Word of your Son let us listen, LORD, that the humble seed He is might be planted well within our hearts and so grow unto eternity, and we might come to dwell with you.  Let us rise with Him who has died for us, who has taken upon Himself the rottenness of our sin and stubborn pride. We are good for nothing, LORD.  Having provoked you with our disloyalty, what can we be but cut off from your grace and the light of your holy face.  Yet you come to speak to our souls and call us home to you, if we would but listen.  O let us heed your word of chastisement wherein is your call; let us understand the wisdom so hidden from our limited vision.  May we learn our lesson well and so come to dwell in Heaven.

  3. 4d ago

    July 24 - Friday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Jer.3:14-17;   Jer.31:10-13;   Mt.13:18-23)  “At that time they will call Jerusalem the Lord’s throne; there all nations will be gathered together to honor the name of the Lord at Jerusalem.” I would like today to focus the attention particularly of the Lord’s chosen race on the following prophecy of the great Jeremiah: “They will in those days no longer say, ‘The ark of the covenant of the Lord!’ or miss it, or make another.”  For I must in obedience to the Spirit of Truth ask the question: If the temple of the Lord has been destroyed, how is it Judaism can be said to yet exist?  With the discontinuance of the sacrifices, does the heart of the Mosaic Law not undergo a certain transformation?  To the point: Does the sacrifice of Christ not supplant – even as it fulfills, perfectly – the Old Covenant?  Is His blood poured upon the altar now and sprinkled upon all our souls, is it not this which gives birth to the New Jerusalem, where “they shall come streaming to the Lord’s blessings”? And does not the destruction of the temple so soon after the death of Him who prophesied it in tears not substantiate His claim as the Temple not built by human hands?  And does the fact that the ancient walls have remained in ruins for some two thousand years not indicate its permanent end?  Would the Lord really wish it to be built again?  And do you think He would leave you alone for so long a time?  Has He not come? My brothers, my sisters, should not he who has the deepest “roots” be the strongest tree reaching to the greatest heights?  Is He not?  And should you not be as this quintessential Jew, suffering for the sake of all at the hands of those who breathe condemnation?  (Here is a message to those who would take the Lord’s justice in their violent hands – you shall not escape condemnation for your sin.  Whatever good may seem to result from your prideful persecution, though His chosen may turn at your threat, yet your sin will be remembered.) “Shouting, they shall mount the heights of Zion.”  This word is for all who understand “the message about God’s reign” Jesus comes to sow in receptive hearts.  And so, “hear the word of the Lord, O nations, proclaim it on distant coasts” to all God’s “rebellious children,” to all who yet walk “in their hardhearted wickedness” – for all may now “become fruitful in the land.”  (And you, brother Catholic, do you know the blessing that is upon you; do you see that you stand in the New Jerusalem?)  But still the chosen are called first of all; still the Lord waits for those most blessed, to pour His new graces upon them. Let no man’s soul be choked by “worldly anxiety”; let all come now to the Lord’s glorious throne, here in the heavenly Jerusalem. ******* O LORD, let us not falter along the way but come streaming to your blessings. YHWH, how shall we bear a fruitful yield, we who have been so rebellious?  Have we not choked your Word off from our souls; are we not today void of the roots of your kingdom?  Yet you remain as a Shepherd who cares for His flock, you continue in your love for us, and so you call us back to the land set aside for our flourishing – you ransom us from our sin that your City we might enter with dancing. Open our ears to hear the Word of your Son.  Open our hearts to receive your grace.  Let us be planted in good soil, in the flesh of Jesus; let us be as the New Jerusalem.  In the Temple of His Body let us make our home, all hardness of heart taken from us.  O LORD, let us again be blessed to be your children, washed clean by the blood of the Christ. These waters from Heaven fall upon our souls that indeed we might grow and produce an abundant harvest in your NAME, O LORD.

  4. 5d ago

    July 23 - Thursday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Jer.2:1-3,7-8,12-13;   Ps.36:6-11;   Mt.13:10-17) “They look but do not see, they listen but do not hear or understand.” Oh how “sacred to the Lord was Israel, the first fruits of His harvest.”  And oh how they loved the Lord “as a bride,” following Him so closely.  But oh how they have forgotten “the devotion of their youth” and turned from Him.  For when He “brought [them] into the garden lands to eat its goodly fruits,” they did not seek Him from whom all their blessings flowed, but rather “entered and defiled [His] land,” and “made [His] heritage loathsome.”  So blindly “they have forsaken [the Lord], the source of living waters [and] have dug themselves cisterns, broken cisterns, that hold no water.”  And so, how empty of life they have become. And so Jesus echoes Isaiah’s prophecy upon the people today, declaring it now fulfilled: “Listen as you will, you shall not understand, look intently as you will, you shall not see.”  Though the Son of God stand before them, though their blessing is complete in their midst, strain as they might they cannot see what is so obvious – for “sluggish indeed is this people’s heart.”  Too long have they turned their sights away from Him, and now what shall refresh their vision? Should they not sing with David of the Lord’s glory – “How precious is your kindness, O God!”  Should they not “take refuge in the shadow of [His] wings?”  Does He not spread them above them this day?  In Jesus should they not “have their fill of the prime gifts of [His] house”; does the Lord not “give them to drink” from this “delightful stream”?  Then why are their mouths closed to receiving this precious gift offered upon His altar?  Is He not the holy sacrifice of the covenant renewed?  Is it not so that in drinking His blood all find life?  Is He not the source of living water? O Lord, “with you is the fountain of life, and in your light we see light.”  Awaken our hearts to see your face; let us “turn back to [you]” that you may “heal [us].”  For you are Light and Life itself, and all our blessings flow from you and from your Body and Blood offered for our sakes.  In your Son may we find again our home; may our hearts be open to understand your love present in our midst. ******* O LORD, let us be blessed to hear your word of forgiveness, we who have blinded ourselves to your good gifts. YHWH, you are the fountain of life, the source of living water; in you we find all blessings.  You provide for all our needs, planting us in a garden land filled with good fruits.  You make us as your holy Bride – such is your love for your faithful child. But we are not faithful to you, O LORD.  We do not drink from the fountain of living water but dig for ourselves broken cisterns, the creation of our soiled hands, of our wayward hearts and minds.  And so our soul languishes in a foreign land. How shall you heal our blindness, LORD?  How shall our ears open to your Word?  How shall we return to you and find again your blessing?  Your kindness knows no bounds and so you send your Son among us.  To His teaching let us be obedient; let our hearts open before Him that we might be redeemed. How blessed are we to have the living God in our midst, His face shining upon us, His voice speaking to our hearts…  O LORD, take not your Son from us, but let us be healed by His presence.

  5. Jul 20

    July 21 - Tuesday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Mic.7:14-15,18-20;   Ps.85:2-8;   Mt.12:46-50)  “Then extending His hands to His disciples, He said, ‘There are my mother and my brothers.’” The Lord’s blessing rests upon all who worship Him in spirit and in truth, and it comes to us primarily through the forgiveness of our sins.  For the Lord extends His hands to His disciples first of all to “cast into the depths of the sea all our sins.”  This is His principal work, He whose name means “God saves.”  And by such compassion poured upon us, by His “treading underfoot our guilt,” we are drawn into His holy fold; we become “the flock of His inheritance” by the death that brings us life. “Who is there like you, the God who removes guilt and pardons sin for the remnant of His inheritance?”  Who indeed is like Jesus?  For He dies and we live.  He washes us clean of sin, and we become His children.  Though we deserve His “burning anger,” He abandons not us but “[His] displeasure against us.”  He “does not persist in anger forever, but delights rather in clemency,” a clemency that not only forgives but redeems – for Jesus also extends His hands to His disciples to gather them into the Father’s arms. “You have favored, O Lord, your land; you have restored the well-being of Jacob.  You have forgiven the guilt of your people; you have covered all their sins.”  How shall we thank you, Lord, who “grant us our salvation”?  How shall we praise you, Lord, whose “kindness” has made us your own?  “Shall not your people rejoice in you?”  Will we not sing of your glory forever?  Will we not stand in your presence and serve you for all ages to come?  “You have withdrawn all your wrath.”  You “will again have compassion on us.”  In you we take refuge always, as your blessed daughters and sons. O Mother in heaven, pray for us, that children of the Lord we shall ever remain, doing the will of the Father as thou hast done. ******* O LORD, could you be kinder than to make us your own flesh and blood? YHWH, shepherd your people; make us as your Son’s brothers and sisters – make us as His Mother.  Forgive us our sins that we might be gathered into your outstretched arms. How kind you are to us, dear LORD, how compassionate.  Who could imagine such a love as makes us one with God Himself?  Who could have believed you would send your only Son, your very self, into our midst to save us and make us your inheritance?  Your kindness is unsurpassable – no greater gift could we find. Be not angry with us for our sins this day, O LORD, but grant us your mercy as you do for all your children who turn to you.  Make us your disciples, truly brothers and sisters of Jesus, one with the Blessed Mother and all the saints.  Into your kingdom let us come; let us pasture on your holy mountain. How blessed are we when your anger is passed, dear LORD.  Let us be your flock, living in your peace even this day.

  6. Jul 19

    July 20 - Monday of the 16th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Mic.6:1-4,6-8;   Ps.50:5-6,8-9,16-17,21,23;   Mt.12:38-42)  “The Lord has a plea against His people, and He enters into trial with Israel.” “God Himself is the judge,” brothers and sisters.  And so He declares: “Gather my faithful ones before me, those who have made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”  All are brought before His throne, and all must “present [their] plea” in His presence. And what shall we say on that Day?  Will you “come before Him with holocausts, with calves a year old?  Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with myriad streams of oil?”  Hear His word to His people: it is not these the Lord desires.  It is not the sacrifices offered in the temple built by human hands the Lord seeks of His chosen ones.  The temple He has destroyed, and with it the vain works of the flesh.  It is now the Lord’s desire that you but “walk humbly with your God.”  And so He promises: “To Him that goes the right way I will show the saving power of God,” and proclaims, “He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me.” Oh how we should praise Him! He who is “greater than Jonah” and “greater than Solomon.”  Oh how we should repent and reform our lives at His preaching!  Oh how we should walk in the light of His wisdom!  But are we not too often like those who offer vain sacrifice and seek to have our eyes impressed by some extraordinary sign?  The sign stands before us.  But all too often we are as faithless and blind as the scribes and Pharisees in our gospel today. What a terrible thought that we might be condemned for our lack of faith by the “citizens of Nineveh” and “the queen of the South,” who needed so little, really, to believe in the greatness of the Lord.  Has He not “brought [us] up from the land of Egypt”?  Has He not released us from “the place of slavery”?  Why do we so soon forget what the ancients knew by much less?  Is not Jesus in our midst this day?  Let us not be blind to His presence, and let us not offer our sacrifice unworthily.  For here before us stands the Lord of all; into our souls and bodies we receive Him by Word and by Sacrament.  All He asks of us is our faith.  And will we believe Him?  Or is our worship only on the tongue and not burning in our heart?  Let Him not find you faithless this day. ******* O LORD, teach us your way of humility; let us seek only to be as you. YHWH, how can we seek a sign from you when it is we who should be offering a sign to you, and more than a sign – our very lives.  For your Son comes to us bringing salvation to our souls and teaching us the way to find it; should we not repent of our sin, rend our hearts before Him, and praise you for your mercy this day? But we have not faith, LORD, and so we come only with vain sacrifices, mere words  on our lips and a heart seeking our own will to be done.  We would create you – but it is you who have created us!  You have created us and you would redeem us, and so you enter into trial with us to see if we shall merit your love.  Bring our sins up before our eyes, that by your grace we might turn from them and walk humbly with you. Why should we even need your Son to be buried in the earth, LORD?  Should our faith not recognize you before us without such a sign?  Ah, but we are blind, so blind.  Discipline us in your love that we might reform our lives and find the way to you.

  7. Jul 17

    July 18 - Saturday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Mic.2:1-5;   Ps.10:1-4,7-8,12,14;   Mt.12:14-21) “When the Pharisees were outside they began to plot against Jesus to find a way to destroy Him.” Is it not of these David sings when he declares, “He lurks in ambush near the villages; in hiding he murders the innocent; his eyes spy upon the unfortunate”?  And though He withdraw from them this day, though He will silently subject Himself to torture and death at their hands, be assured that the Lord is “planning against this race an evil from which [they] shall not withdraw [their] necks.” “Woe to those who plan iniquity, and work out evil on their couches.”  And what greater woe can there be than for the one who plots disaster upon the head of the Chosen One?  These are they who would “cheat [the] owner of his house, a man of his inheritance”; for here is the One of whom Isaiah prophesies in the name of the Lord: “Here is my servant whom I have chosen, my loved one in whom I delight.”  Yet by “cursing, guile, and deceit” these would steal the inheritance of the only Son.  But the Lord shall not “stand aloof” forever, and over these soon “shall be sung… a plaintive chant: ‘Our ruin is complete, our fields are portioned out among our captors.’”  What the Lord has promised He has accomplished in wresting the House of God from the disobedient and placing it in the hands of His children of light. Now the Lord does “proclaim justice to the Gentiles.”  And we who suffer with Him, we “the afflicted, who are caught in the devices the wicked has contrived,” rejoice in the knowledge that “judgment is made victorious” in Him – “on [Him] the unfortunate man depends,” and his fortunes are made prosperous as the Lord’s own. “‘There is no God,’ sums up his thoughts,” the evil one who turns from the Lord.  But the One they kill is God Himself, whose patient endurance of their crown of thorns shall bring the wicked to ruin.  Caught in their own snares, “misery and sorrow” shall be theirs forever, even as the Lord and His anointed find release from the plots of men and are gathered into the kingdom of heaven.  The beast is slain by a word from His mouth, opened on that Day; though silent now His redeeming Word goes forth to the ends of the earth, setting free all suffering prisoners. ******* O LORD, we find our hope in you, for you save the poor and afflicted soul even as you destroy his wicked tormentors. YHWH, look upon the afflicted who are pursued as was your Son; you see our misery and sorrow – save us from the plottings of men. The greedy and deceitful you will thwart, O LORD.  The violent you will destroy.  You will save your poor ones who cry out to you; the plans of the wicked will not succeed. Though your Son is captured by their snares, though the hands of men take hold of His body and nail it to the Cross, they will find, O LORD, they cannot touch His Spirit, and that Spirit will bring them to ruin. On the third day He rises from the dead, LORD, and so we shall rise with Him.  Though trodden down and deprived of our earthly possessions, yet forever we shall live in the riches of Heaven. Silently let your Word go forth now, LORD, calling all to repentance and healing.  All you give opportunity to turn to you – crush us not till we know your mercy upon our souls.

  8. Jul 16

    July 17 - Friday of the 15th Week in Ordinary Time, Year II

    (Is.38:1-8,21-22;   Is.38:10-12,16-17;   Mt.12:1-8) “Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the Lord.”  “When Hezekiah was mortally ill, the prophet Isaiah, son of Amoz, came and said to him: ‘Thus says the Lord: Put your house in order, for you are about to die.’”  When the Jewish race was about to perish for lack of love, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, came to the Pharisees and declared, “It is mercy I desire and not sacrifice.”  And if they heed not His word, they indeed shall die. But will what occurred “in those days” with the king of Judah recur with these leaders of the Jews?  Will they, too, turn their face to the wall and cry out to the Lord?  For there is a greater threat than “the hand of the king of Assyria” upon their race now.  Here is a greater threat than death.  The condemnation they cast so freely upon “innocent men” now begins to overshadow their souls. “To the gates of the netherworld I shall be consigned for the rest of my years,” Hezekiah cries out; and indeed his fears shall be realized in these.  For they “shall see no more the Lord in the land of the living” if they refuse to see Him here as He stands before them.  They shall know no longer the mercy that sustains all life if they harden their hearts to Him who holds that mercy in His flesh and blood. The Lord seeks to open their eyes and their hearts to the power and love of God.  By their own Scripture and history and law He proves their judgment wrong, asking, “Have you not read what David did when he and his men were hungry…?  Have you not read in the law how the priests on temple duty can break the sabbath without incurring guilt?”  But yet would they condemn King David and the temple priests, placing their own judgment over the law of the love of God. I fear for them, brothers and sisters, as for all who are obstinate of heart.  For here are the chosen of God.  Here are those graced with the Lord’s promise.  But what shall become of their blessing if they reject the Promise when He stands before them?  What shall become of those who turn the grace of God to empty wind?  Oh how their bones shall rot!  Oh how the fears of Hezekiah shall be fulfilled!  Oh that they could hear the words the Lord speaks to His repentant king: “I have heard your prayer and seen your tears.  I will heal you.”  Oh that they would know the mercy of God. To Him may all come, for He who stops the sun and moves it back upon its course indeed holds all in His loving hands.  The Temple of the Lord is here. ******* O LORD, you raise us up from death, from condemnation for our sins, for you are the LORD our God. YHWH, have mercy on our poor, judgmental souls, for we have come close to death because of our sins, for the lack of mercy we have shown.  But you are not like us, for you have pity on those who cry out to you, on those who hunger for your food – hear us as we cry to you this day for your forgiveness upon our souls, that even this day we might live in your sight. Our sins would have cut off our life, LORD; our disobedience but brings us to the nether world.  But Jesus is Son of Man and God like you and He walks amongst us as your mercy, seeking to redeem our fallen souls from the grave we have made by our transgressions.  And He brings us new life. O LORD, let the days be turned back that we might make amends for our past sins, that we might have years to reform our lives and set our house in order for your Son’s return.  If you had not mercy upon us, we would already be dead, doomed by our disobedience.  But remember us and make us faithful and wholehearted in your sight; feed us with the Bread of life.

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Spirit-filled daily reflections on the Mass Readings of the Roman Catholic Church from the book Our Daily Bread by James Kurt (with imprimatur). The daily podcasts are voice only, while the podcasts for Sundays and Solemnities are produced with music and other elements. Another podcast recently added: Prayers to the Saints - a prayer to each saint on the calendar for the US. Also with imprimatur.

Information

  • Creator
    jameshkurt@gmail.com
  • Years Active
    2007 - 2026
  • Episodes
    499
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © James Kurt
  • Show Website
    The BreadCast