Have you ever noticed how much of the story around Jesus’ public ministry involves a meal and food?  From his first miracle at the wedding feast at Cana to the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves – so significant that it is found in all four Gospels – to the story of the woman who asked Jesus to heal her child as he reclined at table, to the account of the woman who wept and bathed Jesus’ feet with her tears as he dined with a Pharisee, to the […]

o, who do you pray to?  I know – you pray to God, but how do you understand God?  Today, we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. As we profess in our creed, we believe in one God, the Father almighty, in Jesus Christ his only begotten Son and in the Holy Spirit.  One God in three persons, in perfect communion with one another.  It is, indeed, a mystery of our faith and, as we read in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “[t]he mystery of the Most […]

We speak of Pentecost as the birthday of the Church.  It’s a very important event for all of us who follow Jesus.  We even have a stained glass window featuring the Pentecost event; you’ll find it in the back of the church to your left.  Just as the Passover event marked the birth of Judaism, so Pentecost marks the birth of Christianity.  As you know, we Christians are the spiritual descendants of the Jews and so many of our important celebrations represent the fulfillment of the promises made to the […]

We’re all familiar with the story we heard in tonight’s first reading.  It’s easy to pass it off as just another cute story but it is important to understand its significance in our Salvation History and the lesson it teaches us.  The account of the Tower of Babel is one of the mythical stories we find in the Book of Genesis.  And remember, these are legendary stories that teach us about God.  This one explains why there were so many languages in the world.  It follows the stories of Adam […]

If you knew that the prayers you offered up today would be among your last, what would you pray for?  Wouldn’t you focus on your highest priorities and most heartfelt desires – for yourself, for those dear to you?  That’s what Jesus did.  Our gospel passage today is part the last major prayer Jesus offered before his arrest and crucifixion.  He had just spent three years in intense ministry with his disciples.  Thousands of people had heard his message and seen and experienced his miracles.  By his death, he would […]