

Daily Gospel Exegesis
Logical Bible Study
This is a short daily podcast, where we go through an exegesis of the gospel reading from the current day's Mass.
The Catholic Church teaches that in order to understand the Scriptures, we must start with the literal sense - in other words, how the original hearers of the text would have understood it.
That is our aim in this podcast - to help understand what the gospel writers (and more importantly, Jesus) were intending to communicate in today's reading, as well as providing links to the Catechism. Each episode is short and designed to be listened to before or after attending daily Mass.
The Catholic Church teaches that in order to understand the Scriptures, we must start with the literal sense - in other words, how the original hearers of the text would have understood it.
That is our aim in this podcast - to help understand what the gospel writers (and more importantly, Jesus) were intending to communicate in today's reading, as well as providing links to the Catechism. Each episode is short and designed to be listened to before or after attending daily Mass.
Episodes
Mentioned books

May 2, 2025 • 22min
Feast of Saints Phillip & James, Apostles - John 14: 6-14
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 14: 6-14 - 'To have seen me is to have seen the Father.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 74 (in 'The Transmission of Divine Revelation') - God "desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth: that is, of Christ Jesus Christ must be proclaimed to all nations and individuals, so that this revelation may reach to the ends of the earth.- 459 (in 'Why did the Word become Flesh?') - The Word became flesh to be our model of holiness: "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me." "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me" (abbreviated).- 1698 (in 'Life in Christ') - The first and last point of reference of this catechesis will always be Jesus Christ himself, who is "the way, and the truth, and the life" (abbreviated).- 2466 (in 'Living in the Truth') - In Jesus Christ, the whole of God's truth has been made manifest. "Full of grace and truth," he came as the "light of the world," he is the Truth. "Whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness." The disciple of Jesus continues in his word so as to know "the truth [that] will make you free" and that sanctifies (abbreviated).- 2614 (in 'Jesus teaches us how to pray') - When Jesus openly entrusts to his disciples the mystery of prayer to the Father, he reveals to them what their prayer and ours must be, once he has returned to the Father in his glorified humanity. What is new is to "ask in his name." Faith in the Son introduces the disciples into the knowledge of the Father, because Jesus is "the way, and the truth, and the life."- 470 (in 'How is the Son of God Man?') - The Son of God therefore communicates to his humanity his own personal mode of existence in the Trinity. In his soul as in his body, Christ thus expresses humanly the divine ways of the Trinity.- 516 (in 'Characteristics common to Jesus' ministry') - Christ's whole earthly life - his words and deeds, his silences and sufferings, indeed his manner of being and speaking - is Revelation of the Father. Jesus can say: "Whoever has seen me has seen the Father", and the Father can say: "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!" Because our Lord became man in order to do his Father's will, even the least characteristics of his mysteries manifest "God's love. . . among us".- 2614 (in 'Jesus teaches us how to pray') - When Jesus openly entrusts to his disciples the mystery of prayer to the Father, he reveals to them what their prayer and ours must be, once he has returned to the Father in his glorified humanity. What is new is to "ask in his name." Faith in the Son introduces the disciples into the knowledge of the Father, because Jesus is "the way, and the truth, and the life" (abbreviated).- 2633 (in 'Prayer of Petition') - When we share in God's saving love, we understand that every need can become the object of petition. Christ, who assumed all things in order to redeem all things, is glorified by what we ask the Father in his name (abbreviated).- 2815 (in 'The Seven Petitions') - Prayer to our Father is our prayer, if it is prayed in the name of Jesus (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

May 1, 2025 • 19min
Friday of Week 2 of Eastertide - John 6: 1-15
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 6: 1-15 - 'The feeding of the five thousand.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 439 (in 'Christ') - Many Jews and even certain Gentiles who shared their hope recognized in Jesus the fundamental attributes of the messianic "Son of David", promised by God to Israel. Jesus accepted his rightful title of Messiah, though with some reserve because it was understood by some of his contemporaries in too human a sense, as essentially political.- 559 (in 'Jesus messianic entrance into Jerusalem') - How will Jerusalem welcome her Messiah? Although Jesus had always refused popular attempts to make him king, he chooses the time and prepares the details for his messianic entry into the city of "his father David" (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

May 1, 2025 • 17min
Thursday of Week 2 of Eastertide - John 3: 31-36
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 21: 1-14 - 'Jesus stepped forward, took the bread and gave it to them, and the same with the fish.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 504 (in 'Mary's virginal motherhood in God's plan') - Jesus is conceived by the Holy Spirit in the Virgin Mary's womb because he is the New Adam, who inaugurates the new creation: "The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven." From his conception, Christ's humanity is filled with the Holy Spirit, for God "gives him the Spirit without measure." From "his fullness" as the head of redeemed humanity "we have all received, grace upon grace."- 690 (in 'The Joint Mission of the Son and the Spirit') - Jesus is Christ, "anointed," because the Spirit is his anointing, and everything that occurs from the Incarnation on derives from this fullness...The notion of anointing suggests . . . that there is no distance between the Son and the Spirit. Indeed, just as between the surface of the body and the anointing with oil neither reason nor sensation recognizes any intermediary, so the contact of the Son with the Spirit is immediate, so that anyone who would make contact with the Son by faith must first encounter the oil by contact. In fact there is no part that is not covered by the Holy Spirit. That is why the confession of the Son's Lordship is made in the Holy Spirit by those who receive him, the Spirit coming from all sides to those who approach the Son in faith (abbreviated). - 1286 (in 'Confirmation in the Economy of Salvation') - He was conceived of the Holy Spirit; his whole life and his whole mission are carried out in total communion with the Holy Spirit whom the Father gives him "without measure." (abbreviated).- 161 (in 'The Necessity of Faith') - Believing in Jesus Christ and in the One who sent him for our salvation is necessary for obtaining that salvation. "Since "without faith it is impossible to please (God) " and to attain to the fellowship of his sons, therefore without faith no one has ever attained justification, nor will anyone obtain eternal life 'But he who endures to the end.'"Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

Apr 29, 2025 • 23min
Wednesday of Week 2 of Eastertide - John 3: 16-21
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 3: 16-21 - 'God sent his Son into the world so that through him the world might be saved.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 219 (in 'God is love') - God's love for Israel is compared to a father's love for his son. His love for his people is stronger than a mother's for her children. God loves his people more than a bridegroom his beloved; his love will be victorious over even the worst infidelities and will extend to his most precious gift: "God so loved the world that he gave his only Son." - 444 (in 'The Only Son of God') - Jesus calls himself the "only Son of God", and by this title affirms his eternal pre-existence. He asks for faith in "the name of the only Son of God" (abbreviated).- 458 (in 'Why did the Word become Flesh'?) - The Word became flesh so that thus we might know God's love: "In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him." "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."- 678-679 (in 'To Judge the Living and the Dead') - Following in the steps of the prophets and John the Baptist, Jesus announced the judgement of the Last Day in his preaching. Then will the conduct of each one and the secrets of hearts be brought to light. Then will the culpable unbelief that counted the offer of God's grace as nothing be condemned...Christ is Lord of eternal life. Full right to pass definitive judgement on the works and hearts of men belongs to him as redeemer of the world. He "acquired" this right by his cross. the Father has given "all judgement to the Son". Yet the Son did not come to judge, but to save and to give the life he has in himself. By rejecting grace in this life, one already judges oneself, receives according to one's works, and can even condemn oneself for all eternity by rejecting the Spirit of love (abbreviated).Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

Apr 29, 2025 • 6min
Announcement - Gospel of John Commentary
The complete chronological verse-by-verse audio commentary for the Gospel of John is now available!Check out the commentary here:https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850p

Apr 28, 2025 • 23min
Tuesday of Week 2 of Eastertide - John 3: 7-15
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 3: 7-15 - 'No one has gone up to Heaven except the Son of Man who has come down from heaven.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 526 (in 'Little Child, God eternal') - To become a child in relation to God is the condition for entering the kingdom. For this, we must humble ourselves and become little. Even more: to become "children of God" we must be "born from above" or "born of God" (abbreviated).- 591 (in 'Jesus and Israel's faith in the One God and Saviour') - Jesus asked the religious authorities of Jerusalem to believe in him because of the Father's works which he accomplished. But such an act of faith must go through a mysterious death to self, for a new "birth from above" under the influence of divine grace (abbreviated).- 423 (in 'The Good News: God has sent his son') - We believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth, born a Jew of a daughter of Israel at Bethlehem at the time of King Herod the Great and the emperor Caesar Augustus, a carpenter by trade, who died crucified in Jerusalem under the procurator Pontius Pilate during the reign of the emperor Tiberius, is the eternal Son of God made man. He 'came from God', 'descended from heaven', and 'came in the flesh'. For 'the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. . . and from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace.'- 440 (in 'Christ') - Jesus unveiled the authentic content of his messianic kingship both in the transcendent identity of the Son of Man "who came down from heaven", and in his redemptive mission as the suffering Servant: "The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many." Hence the true meaning of his kingship is revealed only when he is raised high on the cross (abbreviated).- 661 (in 'He Ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father') - This final stage stays closely linked to the first, that is, to his descent from heaven in the Incarnation. Only the one who "came from the Father" can return to the Father: Christ Jesus. "No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man." Left to its own natural powers humanity does not have access to the "Father's house", to God's life and happiness. Only Christ can open to man such access that we, his members, might have confidence that we too shall go where he, our Head and our Source, has preceded us.- 2130 (in 'You shall not make for yourself a graven image') - Nevertheless, already in the Old Testament, God ordained or permitted the making of images that pointed symbolically toward salvation by the incarnate Word: so it was with the bronze serpent, the ark of the covenant, and the cherubim.Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

Apr 27, 2025 • 30min
Monday of Week 2 of Eastertide - John 3: 1-8
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 3: 1-8 - 'Unless a man is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 782 (Characteristics of the People of God') - The People of God is marked by characteristics that clearly distinguish it from all other religious, ethnic, political, or cultural groups found in history: One becomes a member of this people not by physical birth, but by being 'born anew,' a birth of 'water and the Spirit,' that is, by faith in Christ and Baptism (abbreviated).- 691 (in 'The Proper Name of the Holy Spirit') - The term "Spirit" translates the Hebrew word ruah, which, in its primary sense, means breath, air, wind. Jesus indeed uses the sensory image of the wind to suggest to Nicodemus the transcendent newness of him who is personally God's breath, the divine Spirit (abbreviated).- 720 (in 'John, precursor, prophet and baptist') - Finally, with John the Baptist, the Holy Spirit begins the restoration to man of "the divine likeness," prefiguring what he would achieve with and in Christ. John's baptism was for repentance; baptism in water and the Spirit will be a new birth.- 1215 (in 'What is this Sacrament called') - This sacrament is also called "the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit," for it signifies and actually brings about the birth of water and the Spirit without which no one "can enter the kingdom of God."- 1225 (in 'Christ's Baptism') - The blood and water that flowed from the pierced side of the crucified Jesus are types of Baptism and the Eucharist, the sacraments of new life. From then on, it is possible "to be born of water and the Spirit" in order to enter the Kingdom of God (abbreviated).- 1238 (in 'The Mystagogy of the Celebration') - The baptismal water is consecrated by a prayer of epiclesis (either at this moment or at the Easter Vigil). the Church asks God that through his Son the power of the Holy Spirit may be sent upon the water, so that those who will be baptized in it may be "born of water and the Spirit."- 1257 (in 'The Necessity of Baptism') - The Lord himself affirms that Baptism is necessary for salvation. He also commands his disciples to proclaim the Gospel to all nations and to baptize them. Baptism is necessary for salvation for those to whom the Gospel has been proclaimed and who have had the possibility of asking for this sacrament. The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; this is why she takes care not to neglect the mission she has received from the Lord to see that all who can be baptized are "reborn of water and the Spirit." God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments.- 1262 (in 'The Grace of Baptism') - The different effects of Baptism are signified by the perceptible elements of the sacramental rite. Immersion in water symbolizes not only death and purification, but also regeneration and renewal. Thus the two principal effects are purification from sins and new birth in the Holy Spirit.- 2790 (in 'Our Father') - Grammatically, "our" qualifies a reality common to more than one person. There is only one God, and he is recognized as Father by those who, through faith in his only Son, are reborn of him by water and the Spirit.- 526 (in 'Little Child, God eternal')- 591 (in 'Jesus and Israel's faith in the One God and Saviour')Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

Apr 27, 2025 • 19min
Gospel of John Introduction
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pIn this bonus episode, we get ready to hear from the Gospel of John in the coming weeks, by discussing the author, date, audience, purpose and themes of the book. GOSPEL OF JOHN RESOURCES:- The Gospel of John (Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture) - Francis Martin & William M Wright IV- Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: The Gospel of John - Scott Hahn & Curtis Mitch- The Gospel for all Christians: Rethinking the Gospel Audiences - Richard Bauckham

Apr 26, 2025 • 28min
Divine Mercy Sunday (2nd Sunday of Easter) - John 20: 19-31
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pJohn 20: 19-31 - 'Eight days later, Jesus came again and stood among them.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 645 (in 'The Condition of Christ's risen humanity') - By means of touch and the sharing of a meal, the risen Jesus establishes direct contact with his disciples. He invites them in this way to recognize that he is not a ghost and above all to verify that the risen body in which he appears to them is the same body that had been tortured and crucified, for it still bears the traces of his Passion. Yet at the same time this authentic, real body possesses the new properties of a glorious body: not limited by space and time but able to be present how and when he wills; for Christ's humanity can no longer be confined to earth, and belongs henceforth only to the Father's divine realm (abbreviated).- 1120 (in 'The Sacraments of the Church') - The ordained priesthood guarantees that it really is Christ who acts in the sacraments through the Holy Spirit for the Church. the saving mission entrusted by the Father to his incarnate Son was committed to the apostles and through them to their successors: they receive the Spirit of Jesus to act in his name and in his person (abbreviated).- 1441 (in 'Only God forgives sin') - Only God forgives sins. Since he is the Son of God, Jesus says of himself, "The Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" and exercises this divine power: "Your sins are forgiven." Further, by virtue of his divine authority he gives this power to men to exercise in his name.- 858 (in 'The Apostles' Mission) - Jesus is the Father's Emissary. From the beginning of his ministry, he "called to him those whom he desired; .... and he appointed twelve, whom also he named apostles, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach." From then on, they would also be his "emissaries" (Greek apostoloi). In them, Christ continues his own mission: "As the Father has sent me, even so I send you." The apostles' ministry is the continuation of his mission; Jesus said to the Twelve: "he who receives you receives me."- 976 (in 'I Believe in the Forgiveness of Sins') - The Apostle's Creed associates faith in the forgiveness of sins not only with faith in the Holy Spirit, but also with faith in the Church and in the communion of saints. It was when he gave the Holy Spirit to his apostles that the risen Christ conferred on them his own divine power to forgive sins: "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."- 1485 (in 'The Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation')- 788 (in 'The Church is communion with Jesus')- 1287 (in 'Confirmation in the economy of salvation') - This fullness of the Spirit was not to remain uniquely the Messiah's, but was to be communicated to the whole messianic people. On several occasions Christ promised this outpouring of the Spirit, a promise which he fulfilled first on Easter Sunday and then more strikingly at Pentecost (abbreviated).- 1461 (in 'The Minister of this Sacrament')- 448 (in 'Lord')- 514 (in 'Christ's Whole Life is a Mystery')- 644 (in 'The Appearances of the Risen One')- 1087 (in 'from the time of the church of the apostles')- 730 (in 'Christ Jesus')Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!

Apr 25, 2025 • 14min
Easter Saturday - Mark 16: 9-15
To support the ministry and access exclusive content, go to: http://patreon.com/logicalbiblestudyFor complete verse-by-verse audio commentaries from Logical Bible Study, go to: https://mysoundwise.com/publishers/1677296682850pMark 16: 9-15 - 'Go out to the whole world; proclaim the Good News.'Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraphs:- 643 (in 'The Appearances of the Risen One') - Given all these testimonies, Christ's Resurrection cannot be interpreted as something outside the physical order, and it is impossible not to acknowledge it as an historical fact. It is clear from the facts that the disciples' faith was drastically put to the test by their master's Passion and death on the cross, which he had foretold. The shock provoked by the Passion was so great that at least some of the disciples did not at once believe in the news of the Resurrection. Far from showing us a community seized by a mystical exaltation, the Gospels present us with disciples demoralized ("looking sad") and frightened. For they had not believed the holy women returning from the tomb and had regarded their words as an "idle tale". When Jesus reveals himself to the Eleven on Easter evening, "he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen."- 888 (in 'The Teaching Office') - Bishops, with priests as co-workers, have as their first task "to preach the Gospel of God to all men," in keeping with the Lord's command. They are "heralds of faith, who draw new disciples to Christ; they are authentic teachers" of the apostolic faith "endowed with the authority of Christ."Got a Bible question? Send an email to logicalbiblestudy@gmail.com, and it will be answered in an upcoming episode!