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Thanksgiving DaySirach 50:22-241 Corinthians 6:3-9Luke 17:11-9November 24, 2022 Today we celebrate Thanksgiving Day. It is a national holiday for us. It is a secular holiday but it is a day that we need to celebrate. Why do we need Thanksgiving…
Read MoreLast week I began a series of articles inspired by my present reading of St. Francis De Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life. The first article was “What Does It Mean to be Devout?”. I ended that article with a…
Read MoreOur Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Year C2 Samuel 5:1-3Psalm 122:1-2, 3-4, 4-5 (see 1)Colossians 1:12-20Luke 23:35-53November 20, 2022 Today we celebrate our Lord Jesus Christ as King of the Universe. The Jews had been waiting for a…
Read MoreLast night I offered the third (and final) presentation in my series, Being Church in Today’s World. The video and slides for Part III are now available on my website at https://www.renewaloffaith.org/beingchurch2022part3. If you watch the video in the next…
Read MoreLast month I began reading St. Francis De Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by Ignatius Press (San Francisco) and the Augustine Institute…
Read MoreIn two weeks our current liturgical year will draw to a close. Our gospel comes from a time shortly before Jesus’ Passion. He knows his time on earth will be coming to end soon. He wants to prepare his disciples.…
Read MoreI’ve been hearing in the news lately about anti-Semitic comments. I do not know why there is a rise in these comments. The Jews as a group were stereotyped by Catholics as bad for a long time. In the gospels…
Read More32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C2 Maccabees 7:1-2, 9-14Psalm 17:1, 5-6, 8, 15 (15b)2 Thessalonians 2:16-3-5Luke 20:27-38November 6, 2022 The Sadducees come to Jesus with a question. Given that this passage starts by saying the Sadducees “deny that there…
Read MoreAll Saints DayRevelation 7:2-4, 9-14Psalm 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6 (see 6)1 John 3:1-3Matthew 5:1-12aNovember 1, 2022 There are numerous people who have been canonized as saints in our Catholic Church. Each of them has their own feastday. For example. St. John…
Read MoreOctober is Respect Life Month. Life is a precious gift from God. Life must be cherished from the moment it begins at conception and continues until it ends naturally and at every point in between. Today is October 31st, the…
Read MoreAt times we may feel like no one is listening, that no one cares about us. We might feel like we do not matter. We feel small and insignificant. How can little old me matter to God. After all, “Before…
Read MoreLast night I presented Part II in my new series of presentations, Being Church in Today’s World. The video recording and slides are available at https://www.renewaloffaith.org/beingchurch2022part2 . If you watch the video in the next couple of days, you can complete an online evaluation…
Read MoreWhile I was on retreat last week two things happened that led me to think about some of the saints who inspire me. The first was that we celebrated the feastdays of some of them. Secondly, as I was reading…
Read More30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year CSirach 35:12-14, 16-18Psalm 34:2-3, 17-18, 19, 23 (7a)2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18Luke 18:9-14October 23, 2022 Once again Jesus tells a parable, this time “to those who were convinced of their own righteousness and despised everyone…
Read MoreAs I write this, I am almost done with some time off. When I write “time off” I suspect the word “vacation” probably comes to mind for many of you. What is the purpose of a vacation? When I think…
Read MoreIt is necessary for us “to pray always without become weary.” Today Jesus tells a parable of a woman who persists in her request. She is awaiting a decision from a judge. The judge, “who neither feared God nor respected…
Read MoreOctober 9th is the feastday of Cardinal John Henry Newman. This year it fell on a Sunday. Sundays take precedence over the feastdays of saints (unless it is a solemnity). So, his feast was not celebrated this year. However, I…
Read More28th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C2 Kings 5:14-17Psalm 98:1, 2-3, 3-4 (see 2b)2 Timothy 2:8-13Luke 17:11-19October 9, 2022 Naaman was a great soldier, serving as commander in his king’s army. He was also a leper. He had sought a…
Read MoreI recently read Mark Shea’s By What Authority? An Evangelical Discovers Catholic Tradition Revised and Expanded Edition (San Francisco: Ignatius Press. 2013). Shea began his Christian life in the Evangelical Church. This book tells his story of moving from sola…
Read More“The apostles said to the Lord, “Increase our faith.“ These are the words that begin our gospel reading today. The apostles had seen Jesus do many miracles as He cured people and drove out demons. Through the power Jesus gave…
Read MoreSome people don’t want to hear about money at Mass. That’s okay. I don’t want to talk about money at Mass. Then why did I talk about money in my homily this past weekend? I certainly didn’t do it because…
Read More26th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year CAmos 6:1a, 4-7Psalm 146:7, 8-9, 9-10 (1b)1 Timothy 6:11-16Luke 16:19-31September 25, 2022 Jesus offers us a parable today contrasting two men. The first is “a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine…
Read MoreLast night I began my new series of presentations, Being Church in Today’s World. The video recording and slides are available at https://www.renewaloffaith.org/beingchurch2022part1 . Here is a description of the series – “For centuries western civilization was rooted in Christianity.…
Read MoreWe like to know what the weather will be. Will it be warm and dry, not too hot and not too cold, so that we can enjoy some time outdoors? Predicting the weather is not that simple. It does not…
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