ASSUMPTION OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY
Today, we will join with the universal Church in celebrating the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of Jesus, into heaven. It is not often that we actually celebrate it on a Sunday. It is the principal feast day of the Blessed Mother, so I would like to offer you some reflections on it. The commemoration of the death of Mary is known as the Assumption because of the tradition that, shortly after her death, Mary was raised up, body and soul, into heaven. In the Eastern Church, it [...]
JESUS, THE BREAD OF LIFE
If you have been paying attention to the Sunday Gospels over the past two weeks, you might have noticed that they were taken from the Gospel of John. If you noticed that, you might have thought it odd since this year, when we are in Year B of the three year Liturgical cycle, the Sunday Gospel is ordinarily taken from the Gospel of Mark. Since Mark’s Gospel is rather short, however, we have more Sundays than we have Marcan pericopes so periodically throughout the year, readings are taken from other [...]
APOSTOLIC VICARIATE OF NEKEMTE
“I am the Bread of Life; whoever comes to me will never hunger, and whoever believes in me will never thirst” (Jn 6:35) we hear Lord teach us in today’s gospel. As more and more of you return to celebrating the Eucharist in person and receiving our Lord in Holy Communion, we know how precious this gift of the Bread of Life is for us. And, we recall that, just as Jesus was sent by his heavenly Father to give us both his life-giving Word and his nourishing Body and [...]
Statement from Archbishop Pérez
This past week, Archbishop Pérez released a statement regarding reinstating the obligation to attend Sunday Mass. Please read the full text below.
Summer Plans for Our Parish
It has been just three weeks since our school has closed for the summer and the parish facilities have quieted down considerably. I miss seeing and hearing our children in the classrooms, corridors and schoolyard – they are so full of life and vitality! We all know how fortunate we are to have such a vibrant school and I want to take this opportunity to thank our principal, Bud Tosti, and the entire school staff for keeping our school open and in-person this past year; both our students and their [...]
UNDERSTANDING TRUE FREEDOM BEFORE GOD
“Where did this man get all this? What kind of wisdom has been given him? What mighty works have been wrought by his hands?” (Mk. 6:2b) As we celebrate Independence Day this weekend, we rejoice in the freedom God has provided all of us in this country as the result of a hard battle against an oppressive and unjust regime. We hear throughout the gospels that God’s love is to be shared equally with all people, especially the abandoned, the forgotten, the neglected and the oppressed. After Jesus removes an [...]