THE SEASON OF ADVENT
“Be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come” (Mt 24:44).
With these words, our Lord helps to prepare us for his coming. As we begin a new liturgical year today, the First Sunday of Advent, allow me to reflect on the season of Advent and the Gospel of Matthew (from which we will hear extensively during this liturgical year).
We human beings cannot live without hope. Unlike the rest of the animals in this world, we are blessed with the ability to recognize the […]
SOLEMNITY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, KING OF THE UNIVERSE
This, the last Sunday of the Church’s liturgical year, the Church calls us to reflect on the kingship of Jesus Christ. His kingship is anticipated in the anointing of David as the king of Israel. In today’s first reading at Mass from 2 Samuel, we hear the Lord God say to David, “You shall shepherd my people Israel.” And, in the Gospel passage from Luke, we hear the Jewish rulers, who have just succeeded in having Jesus crucified, taunt him with “If you are the King of the Jews, save […]
SAINT CHARLES BORROMEO SEMINARY ANNUAL APPEAL
As plans were being finalized for its relocation, St. Charles Borromeo Seminary opened once again this fall for the education and formation of 148 seminarians from 11 (arch)dioceses and six religious congregations, including Allentown, Harrisburg, Lincoln, NE, Trenton, NJ, as well as dioceses in Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Vietnam! We are blessed to have 65 of the seminarians preparing to become priests in our archdiocese. Founded in 1832, our seminary has provided excellent priestly formation for our archdiocese, (arch)dioceses around the country and, indeed, worldwide. I am very proud of […]
THIRTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Do you know the difference between the Pharisees and the Sadducees? We hear about these two groups of Jewish leaders all the time in the gospels. They’re always trying to discredit Jesus. They saw him as a threat to their religion and, more important, their status as religious leaders. It seems that too many of them were more concerned about taking care of themselves than their people and they felt threatened by Jesus who constantly talked about loving your neighbor and caring for the poor. So, they were united in […]
Solemnity of All Saints and Feast of All Souls
This Tuesday, 1 November, we will join with the universal Church is celebrating the Solemnity of All Saints. On Wednesday, we will celebrate the Commemoration of all the Faithful Departed, commonly known as All Souls. Both of these annual feasts speak powerfully about one of the very important tenets of our faith – belief in everlasting life for everyone – and have ancient roots. The Solemnity of All Saints dates back to the days of ancient Roman, when the people throughout the Empire often deified and worshipped their ancestors, and […]