UNDERSTANDING TRUE FREEDOM TODAY
“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your heavenly Father, for he makes his sun rise on the bad and the good, and causes rain to fall on the just and the unjust.” (Mt. 5:43-45)
As we celebrate Independence Day this weekend, we rejoice in the freedom God has provided us in this country as the result of a hard battle against […]
THIRTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
I like straight talkers. I find it so much easier to address a situation if I know, up front, what the issues are and what we need to do. Today, we hear our Lord offer us some straight talk and we all will do well to listen carefully. Today’s gospel passage is another portion of the instructions Jesus gave his disciples before he sent them off as his apostles. You will recall the difference between a disciple and an apostle. A disciple is one who follows his teacher, carefully observing […]
TWELFTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Many of us spend a great deal of time and energy being afraid. Some fear a past they cannot change or a future they cannot predict. Others fear what people are thinking or saying about them. There is fear of heights, the dark, spiders, loneliness, etc. During this ongoing coronavirus pandemic, everyone has some fear. Fear can cause confusion, distress and even paralysis.
One of the constant messages of Sacred Scripture is, “fear not!” Whether it’s God speaking to Abraham as he calls him to leave his homeland or to Moses […]
FATHER’S DAY
In June of every year, we honor our fathers. For many fathers, their special and demanding vocation has taken on added meaning as they have spent more time with their children over these past three months due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Fourth Commandment calls us to honor our father and our mother so allow me to offer some reflections on this important national holiday.
Mother’s Day was established by presidential proclamation in 1914, but a holiday honoring fathers did not become official until 1966. This doesn’t mean, however, that the […]
SOLEMNITY OF THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST
“Remember, how for forty years now the Lord, your God, has directed all your journey in the desert,… He let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna,…in order to show you that not by bread alone does one live, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.” These words, taken from today’s first reading, take on particular significance for us today as those of you here in church return to receiving our Lord in Holy Communion after a fast of more than […]
THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST
“Jesus said to the crowds: “I am the living bread come down from heaven. Whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world’” (Jn 6:51). Last week, we explored the central mystery of the Church – the Blessed Trinity. Today, as we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (also known as Corpus Christi), I would like to explore with you another great and important mystery of our faith – the […]