The disciples came to Jesus one day and asked, “Teach us to pray just as John taught his disciples.”  Have you ever thought about that request?  It’s rather curious, if you think about it.  After all, the Jewish faith is filled with examples of prayer.  Just look at today’s first reading where we hear Abraham praying to save Sodom and Gomorrah or turn to the Book of Psalms which is filled with prayers of praise and petition, lament and thanks.  Does the disciples’ question indicate that they think that there […]

I don’t know about you, but I was really excited to see the first images of the universe that the James Webb Telescope – the world’s largest space telescope – provided us last week.  Those photographs of the Carina nebula, where stars are born and Stephan’s Quintet, a visual grouping of five galaxies demonstrate how this new telescope will help us to peer deeply into the mysteries of our universe back to its origin some 13 billion years ago.  I look forward to learning more about these photographs and the […]

We all know the importance of laws in our lives.  They keep us on the right side of the road so we don’t run into each other on the road and assure us that the product we’re buying is exactly as described on the label.  But, laws are not intended to draw us closer to one another or to God; only love can do that.  God gave his people Israel the Ten Commandments as a sign of his great love for them and to help them understand how they could […]

We all know that Jesus is God. He can do all things.  While he was in our midst, he healed the sick, fed the hungry, brought the dead back to life and even overcame the power of the devil as he rose from the dead.  So, why did he need the help of the seventy-two we hear him send out two by two in today’s Gospel?  Actually, he didn’t need their help.  Jesus saves the world all by himself.  However, God, in his divine providence calls on us to assist […]