Today, we celebrate the dedication of the first Christian church which is also the pope’s cathedral and, as the inscription over its doorway reads, “Omnium urbis et orbis ecclesiarum mater et caput,” that is, “Mother and head of all the churches of the city and of the world.”  This great basilica, now dedicated to both Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist, is also called “the Lateran” because it stands on the site of the palace of the ancient Roman Laterani family.  We celebrate this church today around […]

We have certainly experienced a real change in season over these past few days, haven’t we?  We’re clearly into fall now and, with all of the beautiful trees in our neighborhood losing their leaves, we experience, once again, nature shutting down for winter; it’s the natural cycle of life here on earth.  That seems to be the way of this world: life, death and life and death once again.  For us Christians, however – we who believe in an eternal and all-loving God – there is an important break in […]

THIRTIETH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

What is truth?  We hear Pontius Pilate ask Jesus that question as Jesus stands before him in judgment.  And Jesus answers by dying on the cross, demonstrating a very dramatic and fundamental truth of our faith: God loves us so much that he would send his Son to die for us. 

In today’s gospel, we hear a Pharisee and a tax collector both stand before God, each expressing his own truth.  On one level, the Pharisee is correct in his self-analysis.  By all the […]

As we look around our world today – whether it is the ongoing war in Ukraine, the fragile peace that has already been shattered in the Middle East or the increasing tension between our nation and so many others over tariffs or the political tension in our own country over a wide variety of issues, we see so much violence and injustice that plagues the world around us.  And, there is no earthly reason to believe that it can change.  If you examine human history, you will find that it’s […]

“Please let me, your servant, have two mule-loads of earth, for I will no longer offer holocaust or sacrifice to any other god except to the Lord.”  Did you catch that last line in today’s first reading?  What a curious request: two mule-loads of earth.  Why would Naaman, who had just been miraculously cured of leprosy, want this pile of dirt?  The explanation is really very interesting.  Many of the people at that time believed in local gods.  They believed that local gods ruled over particular lands.  That’s why we […]

As our parish staff met last Wednesday, I got their attention when I reminded them that we were only three months away from Christmas Eve.  Can you imagine!?!   Three months from today, we’ll be in the middle of Christmas week.  In the meantime, we will soon be getting involved in our annual Adopt-a-Family and Christmas Food Baskets.  One of the many aspects of our parish that I have found so inspirational and edifying over the 14 years that I have been here is your tremendously generous response to all of […]

“You cannot serve both God and mammon.”  We all know who God is and how we are to serve him: by loving him and our neighbor.  But, what does it mean to serve mammon?  We first have to understand what mammon is.  If you look it up in the dictionary, you will see that it is simply riches or material wealth.  There is nothing wrong with material possessions.  But, striving for wealth above serving God leads us to the position where we hear Amos condemn some of his wealthy countrymen […]

THE EXALTATION OF THE HOLY CROSS

You may wonder why we’re celebrating this feast – the Exaltation of the Holy Cross – on a Sunday in the middle of September.  Since it falls on a Sunday only every so many years – the last time was in 2014 – you may have forgotten that this is an ancient feast day, marking the discovery of the True Cross by St. Helena and the dedication of the basilica that Emperor Constantine, her son, built in Jerusalem over the spot of our Lord’s crucifixion.  […]

You’re all familiar with Psalm 23, I’m sure.  It starts out with “The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.  In green pastures he makes me repose; he refreshes my soul.”  How comforting those words are.

They are a far cry from the words we hear in today’s Gospel, aren’t they?  Here, we hear Jesus declare: “If anyone comes to me without hating his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.”  That sounds really harsh, doesn’t […]

TWENTY-SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

 31 August 2025

Those who know me know that one of my favorite forms of entertainment is getting together for dinner with my family or a few friends at someone’s home or at a fine restaurant.  My sister knows this well so when we got together for vacation last week in Myrtle Beach she took me out to Greg Norman’s Australian Grille.  One of their specials was one of my favorite meats:  venison.  And, it wasn’t a venison steak but a venison chop.  It was prepared in […]