Celebrating water may sound like something more suited to the Easter Season or a child's Baptism. Yet August is Water Quality Month for a reason. As our Indigenous sisters and brothers frequently remind us, water is life.

The readings today make it clear that God nourishes and sustains us, but the food God gives us is to strengthen us to do God’s work.

A common error in the early phase of the spiritual life is to imagine that religion is predominantly a spiritual matter. Spirituality is therefore approached as a sort of neatening-up-of-the-soul, getting our metaphysical affairs in order.

A professor of mine liked to say: “It matters that Jesus didn’t die in his sleep.” Similarly, it matters that Jesus didn’t say, “I am the fish of life.” His choice of bread matters.

We were taking in the sites of midtown Manhattan, chomping on hot pretzels, when a haggard, down-on-her luck woman walked up to my sister and cried, “Help me, please. I’m hungry.”

As we prepare for our journey into the sacred mysteries of our faith, let us acknowledge our failures and ask for forgiveness.

Love doesn't just sit there, like a stone; it has to be made, like bread, remade all the time, made new.

Browse our library for additional Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B material.