Every time we gather to celebrate the Eucharist, we recall the new and eternal covenant that Jesus established, the covenant that establishes us as God’s family of faith and anticipates our reunion with God in heaven.  And, at every Eucharistic Celebration, shortly after the bread and wine are transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ – the sign of that new and eternal covenant that Jesus established – the celebrant mentions Mary, Joseph, the apostles and martyrs and all the saints whom we wish to join in the glory […]

“Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?”  We tend to think that Jesus endured a trial only at the end of his life before the Sanhedrin and the Roman leaders.  But, if we read the Gospels more carefully, we see that Jesus was on trial for the entirety of his public ministry, from friend and foe alike.  Every time he did or said something – healed the sick, raised the dead, forgave sins, asserted that he was one with God – we hear […]

SECOND SUNDAY OF ADVENT

“John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”  Notice where John is preaching: not in downtown Jerusalem but in the desert.  That’s a place where God often is found to form his people.  Remember, God called Abraham from his ancestral lands where he was a prosperous farmer and merchant, to dwell in the Negev, a desert region on the shores of the Dead Sea.  God called the people Israel to leave Egypt, […]

As you probably know, our Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV, is in the middle of his first apostolic journey abroad since his election in May.  He began his journey with a visit to Turkey to celebrate the 1,700^th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea.  This celebration marked a very important moment in Church history when the Nicene Creed was written; we will recite it together in just a few moments.  He has now gone on to Lebanon where, as he had already been doing in Turkey, he has been meeting […]