To provide the best experiences, we use technologies like cookies to store and/or access device information. Consenting to these technologies will allow us to process data such as browsing behavior or unique IDs on this site. Not consenting or withdrawing consent, may adversely affect certain features and functions.
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
Gospel Reflection – January 12, 2026
Starting Over
We begin Ordinary Time by reading the book of Samuel. He was the greatest of Israel’s judges and the one who—not without some pushback—prepared the way for the line of King David. This is really setting the stage for the arrival of the new David: the true King who brings God’s reign, whose birth we just celebrated.
The liturgy invites us regularly to set aside our daily worries and stop to contemplate the great mysteries of our faith, just as we did during Christmas and as we will do later in Lent and Easter. But the point isn’t to disconnect from our daily lives. Rather, enlightened by these mysteries, we return to our normal routines with a clear awareness: this is exactly where God has come to visit us. He accompanies us and calls us to make our daily jobs the place where we follow Him.
Faith doesn’t pull us out of the world. We live here alongside everyone else—believers and non-believers, people of other faiths, or those with different moral convictions. We share the same worries, the same problems, and the same joys and sorrows. Faith tells us that Jesus came specifically into this shared world through the Incarnation.
That is why, as we start this Ordinary Time, the Word of God invites us to let Jesus approach us and call us to follow Him. He is the one walking up to our shore, our boats, and our nets. His arrival doesn’t take us away from our reality: if we are fishermen, we remain fishermen. But, just as Jesus does not abolish the law and the prophets but brings them to fulfillment (cf. Mt 5:17), He does the same with us. He elevates our natural condition—our gifts, abilities, and preferences—to a new dimension: “I will make you fishers of men.”
What we are is transformed by Jesus’ presence. We still have the same bills, needs, aches, and joys as everyone else, but now, all of it is pierced through by God’s love and the nearness of His Kingdom. If we answer the call, untangle ourselves, and follow Him, we become witnesses, heralds, and apostles right where we are.