By Kristi B (with a nod to Dr. Seuss) ‘Twas late in ‘19 when the virus began, Bringing chaos and fear to all people, each land. People were sick, hospitals full, Doctors overwhelmed, no one in school. As winter gave way to the promise of spring, The virus raged on, touching peasant and king.
We begin on Sunday the week that we appropriately call Holy Week, when our Lord Jesus, the Holy Son of God, comes to Jerusalem where he is first hailed as the Son of David, and the Prophet and then is tried as a criminal in a sham trial orchestrated by the Jewish leaders, only to be scourged and crucified. For the Jewish leaders of his time, it was just to get rid of a trouble maker. But, as I hope you have come to learn, this was all part of […]
On 24 March, all priests throughout the archdiocese received updated liturgical directives and guidelines in response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. First and foremost, these directives called for churches to remain open and available for the faithful to pray, and especially to visit the Most Blessed Sacrament at a time when they are unable to receive our Lord in Holy Communion. This is to be done in a manner that respects and follows current guidelines from governmental agencies concerning crowd sizes and gatherings. Exposition is also possible during this period. […]
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.
As we race toward Easter – Holy Week is only a week-and-a-half away – we hear all three readings speak of the dead being raised to new life. How exciting it is to live in hope of the Resurrection, especially now as we are bombarded with so much news of suffering and […]
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? […]