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To function as a society we need to be able to trust one another. Otherwise, we would always live in fear of what others might do. What do we need to be able to trust others to do? Here I…
Read More7th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 1:12-14Psalm 27:1, 4, 7-8) (13)1 Peter 4:13-16John 17:1-11May 24, 2020 On Thursday we celebrated the Ascension of Jesus. The apostles witnessed Jesus ascend to Heaven. Today we hear that they then “returned to Jerusalem”…
Read MoreWhy are we faced with this Coronavirus pandemic? We believe God to be all-powerful and all-knowing. So, why doesn’t He end the Coronavirus? This question involves what is referred to as the “the problem of evil.” Carried to the extreme,…
Read More6th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 8:5-8, 11-17Psalm 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20 (1)1 Peter 3:15-18John 14:15-21May 17, 2020 Jesus calls us to proclaim the gospel message. Just before his Ascension, Jesus tells his disciples to go out and baptize…
Read MoreWho wrote the Bible? The answer to this question depends on what one means by “wrote”. Are you referring to the person who physically wrote the stories? Or are you referring the source of the content? If the latter, do…
Read MoreIn my last article, “Are All Bibles the Same?”, I began to talk about connections between the Old Testament and the New Testament. We need one to understand the other. Here, I think of the story of the two disciples…
Read MoreLast week I shared some thoughts on why it is important for us to read the Bible (see “Have You Read From the Bible Lately?”). Today I would like to offer some thoughts about which Bible we use. Which Bible?…
Read More5th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 6:1-7Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19 (22)1 Peter 2:4-9John 14:1-12May 10, 2020 Today’s gospel is a familiar one to many, at least the first half. The first six verses are often chosen as the gospel reading…
Read MoreAs we find ourselves in isolation from the Coronavirus, how are you doing with your faith? Are you struggling? That’s understandable since we can’t gather together for the Eucharist. Some are finding their faith stronger (see article – “Polls Show…
Read MoreLast night was the final presentation in my series, Sacraments: Channels of God’s Grace, We covered the Sacraments of Service, Marriage and Holy Orders. We are still under the Coronavirus shutdown so there was no in-person presentation. Instead, we did…
Read MoreYou may have heard the term “Cafeteria Catholic” (Protestants would say Cafeteria Christian) and wondered what it means. We go to a restaurant and order what we want. If we don’t like something, we don’t have it. The strongest example…
Read MoreAs Catholics we have many rites for how we do things. For instance, we have specific rubrics as to how we celebrate Mass (see “The Roman Catholic Mass Explained”). We have particular rites for every Sacrament. It is important for…
Read More4th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 2:14a, 36-41Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6, (1)1 Peter 2:20b-25John 10:1-10May 3, 2020 Today is the Fourth Sunday of Easter. Every year on the Fourth Sunday of Easter we read from the Good Shepherd discourse…
Read MoreEarlier this week I wrote a blog article, “Silence, How Much and When” where I talked about silence in private prayer as well as silence at Mass. Now, I would like to discuss how silence at Mass needs to be…
Read MoreThe Coronavirus shutdown continues. Some states are beginning to lift restrictions. New York State, where I live, continues under shutdown. We are now around the six week mark. Of course, the challenges caused by the pandemic started before we actually…
Read MoreI just finished making a 20 minute video giving a tour of the church. We may know what the names of items in the church are but how often do we think about why we have them in church. Together…
Read MoreIn the midst of the Coronavirus you may find yourself alone or in small groups of just your family far more often than normal. Does that necessarily mean we have more “silence”? That depends on what you do with your…
Read More3rd Sunday of Easter Year AActs 2:14, 22-33Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11 (11a)1 Peter 1:17-21Luke 24:13-35 With the gift of the Holy Spirit, Peter spoke boldly to the Israelites. He spoke of how they saw Jesus’ “mighty deeds, wonders,…
Read MoreDuring the Coronavirus shutdown I have been reading books that have been sitting on my shelf for a while. This week I read Rev. Evan Pilkington’s Paths to Personal Prayer (Twenty-Third Publications: Mystic, Connecticut. 1988. The edition I read is…
Read MoreAs we began to implement precautions against the Coronavirus before the suspension of public Masses, one of the precautions was to cease exchanging the Sign of Peace. It is ingrained in us to shake hands and to say “peace be…
Read MoreDuring this time of the Coronavirus I have been posting articles here on the blog every two to three days. I have very much enjoyed being able to do this. I started this blog about ten years ago (see “Why…
Read More2nd Sunday of Easter – Divine Mercy SundayActs 2:42-47Psalm 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24 (1)1 Peter 1:3-9John 20:19-31 The disciples are in distress. A lot has happened in the last few days for them. They had come to believe that Jesus was…
Read MoreIn late February through early March, I wrote a series of blog articles on the question, “How do you evangelize a culture that used to be Christian?”. (Here’s a link to the final article in the series that in turn…
Read MoreI just created a new video for my website called “The Liturgical Books for Mass.” It’s about eleven minutes long but it has been a longtime coming. Three years ago I created a seven minute video, “So What’s on the…
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