Discipleship
Last week I wrote about how our lives can be superficial (“We Need to Look Into Our Hearts”). Today I would like to talk about how being superficial relates to problems in the world today. It starts with the question…
Read MoreOur readings today begin with the prophet Zephaniah calling us to “Seek the LORD.” God did not create us and walk away. God wants to be part of our lives everyday. We are called to humble ourselves to follow him.…
Read MoreAre we living lives that are superficial? Do we have relationships that have depth to them or do we keep everyone at a distance, even those we “communicate” with a lot? What do I mean by superficial? When we greet…
Read MoreThis is the tenth and final article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version…
Read MoreOur Christmas season has ended. We have entered Ordinary Time. There can be a tendency from the term “ordinary” to think of it as a time to lay back and relax. One might think that nothing special is going on.…
Read MoreThis is the ninth article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the eighth article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the seventh article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the sixth article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the fifth article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the fourth article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by…
Read MoreThis is the third article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. The first article was “What Does It Mean to be Devout?” followed by “Purification in the…
Read MoreThanksgiving 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 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 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 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 More25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year CAmos 8:4-7Psalm 113:1-2, 4-6, 7-8, (see 1a, 7b)1 Timothy 2:1-8Luke 16:1-13September 18, 2022 The role of a steward is to manage the property and finances of the owner. Thus, in squandering the rich’s man…
Read MoreHow much stuff do you have? How much stuff do you have that you don’t need? Why? Sometimes it is simply that we accumulate stuff over time and, if we aren’t forced to go through it, we forget about it…
Read More“Great crowds were traveling with Jesus.” Maybe they had seen him cure people. Maybe they saw him drive out demons. Maybe they had heard him preach and wanted to hear more. What does it mean to truly follow Jesus? How…
Read MoreWe have Ten Commandments. It isn’t easy to follow all ten. Sometimes we struggle with just one. Imagine what it would be like to follow 613 commandments. Why 613? Because that is how many the Jews were taught in the…
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