On Tuesday, 17 March, all parishes throughout the Archdiocese of Philadelphia received the following two announcements:
ARCHBISHOP NELSON J. PÉREZ ANNOUNCES THE SUSPENSION OF ALL PUBLIC MASSES IN THE ARCHDIOCESE OF PHILADELPHIA EFFECTIVE AT NOON MARCH 18
Statements from Abp Perez and the Office of Divine Worship
FOURTH SUNDAY LENT (Year A)
1 Samuel 16:1b, 6 – 7, 10 – 13a
Welcome to my annotated commentary of Sunday’s readings. The purpose of my commentary is to give you the background for each reading, a little better understanding of its message and the message that the Sunday readings provide us. This Sunday, we hear the very interesting account of the selection of David to replace Saul as king of Israel. First of all, we remember that 1 Samuel is part of the Historical Books of the Bible, presented in its […]
Dear parishioner,
I have a very important two-part announcement; please read my entire message. First, all parishes have just received the following announcement from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia:
“Effective immediately, and until further notice, Archbishop Pérez, in union with the Bishops of Pennsylvania, has dispensed the faithful of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia from the obligation to attend Sunday Mass. Despite the suspension of the obligation to attend Sunday Mass, all regularly scheduled Masses will remain open to the public for those who wish to attend.”
Second, although I have not received any further […]
Have you ever noticed that we human beings have a seemingly infinite capacity to complicate things? It’s like we have a built-in aversion to the simple. We often take the simplest situation and we make it a complicated affair. As they say, we make mountains out of molehills. And, when we do, we often miss the real point. But, when you get the heart of it, often the greatest experiences of life, and the greatest insights, have a way of turning out to be very simple. Take Christmas, for example. […]
Let me wish all of you, once again, a very blessed Christmas! We gather this evening to celebrate the most blessed event of all time: the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We hear, once again in today’s Gospel, the story of his birth. It is the story of Joseph and Mary putting their trust in God and cooperating in his plan of salvation for all of us.
So, let me ask you, have you finished wrapping all your gifts – or maybe you’re putting them in gift bags? […]
We are blessed to have approximately 2,600 religious sisters, brothers and priests, in 74 religious congregations serving in our Archdiocese. They have dedicated their lives to serve in a wide variety of ministries, teaching in our numerous elementary schools, high schools, colleges and universities, caring for the sick and marginalized, and serving our parishes in countless ways. These consecrated men and women have brought the person of Christ to us through their loving care. Both in active ministry and in contemplative life, we recognize the fruits of their labor. Currently, […]
“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 […]
FEAST OF CHRIST THE KING
24 November 2019
We have only one, very short, document written about Jesus during his own lifetime: the inscription explaining the reason for his execution, nailed to the cross above his head at the order of Pontius Pilate. As we hear in today’s gospel, Luke quotes it as saying: “This is the King of the Jews.” Short as it was, it had the power to condemn Jesus to a cruel, painful death as a criminal, in fact, as an insurrectionist. The accusation, which the Gospel of John […]
On 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, […]