Jesus sat in the middle of the crowd on the hillside. Some of them had been with him for a few days as he began his public ministry, but many of them were new today. They had all come to hear his teaching. Rumors were running wild about what he was going to say. Most of the rumors were about this new kingdom he had announced was at hand. Everyone was interested in a new kingdom. They weren’t at all happy about the one that the Romans had imposed on […]
It’s been an unusually cold winter, hasn’t it? I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait for spring! Liturgically, Lent – which means “spring” – is almost here; it starts this week with Ash Wednesday. Just as the natural world is reawakened and renewed every spring, each year, the Church, in her wisdom, offers us this liturgical Season of Lent, a season for reconciliation and renewal in preparation for Easter, when we celebrate the new life Jesus offers through his death and Resurrection.
On Ash Wednesday, we will again be […]
Every Eucharistic celebration draws us into communion with Jesus Christ, our hope and our strength. His life, death and Resurrection demonstrate so clearly God’s care for all of us. While he was in our midst, Jesus showed God’s love so clearly by healing the sick, feeding the hungry and teaching us how to love one another as God loves us. As his disciples, we are called to do the same and the Catholic Charities Appeal is one of the best ways we can be most effective in doing this throughout […]
Farewell and God Bless to Deacon David
For almost three years, we’ve been privileged to have Deacon Wei Wang – whom we have come to know as Deacon David – with us as he pursued a graduate degree in theology at Villanova University. Deacon David received his master’s degree in theology there last May. He was eager to be ordained a priest and serve here in the Archdiocese of Philadelphia before possibly returning to his home Diocese of Zhaoxian in China. Due to the challenging situation in the Church […]
As we do every January, we begin today our celebration of National Catholic Schools Week, an annual celebration of Catholic education in our parish and, indeed, throughout the United States. It is an opportunity for us to recognize the importance of Catholic education and formation and to celebrate our school that has instructed and formed our children for 110 years! Our school has enjoyed a strong reputation as an outstanding Catholic elementary school ever since it opened in 1916. It was originally founded to ensure that the Catholic children in […]
As Christmas came to an end with the feast of the Baptism of the Lord – which we celebrated this past Sunday – we begin what the Church calls Ordinary Time. It is called “ordinary” because the weeks are numbered in order – 2nd, 3rd, 4th, etc. It is time – usually 33 weeks – ordered by God’s grace in between the sacred seasons of Advent and Christmas, Lent and Easter. The priest wears green vestments. Our church’s Christmas decorations have come down and we all have returned to a […]
Feast of the Baptism of the Lord
“After Jesus was baptized, he came up from the water and behold, the heavens were opened for him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, saying, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased’” (Mt 3:15-17). On this, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, we hear God the Father declare that Jesus, the son of Mary is, indeed, His Son as well. […]
“They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gold, frankincense, and myrrh.” (Mt 2:11). As we continue our celebration of the Christmas season with the celebration of the Epiphany of the Lord, we all remember the wise men who came seeking the “newborn king.” When they found him, they showed him great reverence and offered their gifts: gold to recognize his kingship, frankincense to acknowledge him as God and myrrh in preparation for his death. During this most holy season, we do well […]
As we continue in this Octave of Christmas, allow me to wish you a very blessed Christmas! I hope all of your Christmas preparations were successful and your celebrations have been joyful! I also hope that you were able to take a moment to sit back and reflect on the meaning of this great Feast – the birth of God’s only son for our salvation! All around you – even in the secular Christmas decorations and events around you – you will find symbols of this pivotal moment in Salvation […]
All of this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: Behold, the virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel, which means “God is with us.” (Mt. 1:22-23)
On this, the Fourth Sunday of Advent, we all realize that Christmas is just a few days away! As we hear proclaimed in both our first reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah and our gospel from Matthew, Jesus, the son of Mary, is also truly God: Emmanuel – that is God-with-us. […]
