Discipleship

Spreading the Gospel

By Fr. Jeff | 12/14/2021

I recently posted an article, “Helping Our Children be Disciples,” inspired by my recent reading of An Evangelizing Catechesis: Teaching from Your Encounter with Christ by James C. Pauley (Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing. 2020).  Today I would like to…

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Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Year B – Homily

By Fr. Jeff | 11/21/2021

Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, Year BDaniel 7:13-14Psalm 93:1, 1-2, 5 (1a)Revelation 1:5-8John 18:33b-37November 21, 2021 This is the last Sunday of our liturgical year.  We always celebrate the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of…

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Suffering and Serving

By Fr. Jeff | 10/17/2021

Today’s first reading comes from the fourth of four passages in the Book of Isaiah that speak of a “suffering servant.” People see suffering as something terrible and to be avoided. However, in the first reading, regarding the suffering servant,…

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What is Most Important?

By Fr. Jeff | 09/17/2021

We need to ask ourselves what is most important. Lots of things have importance but what is most important? We need things. We need food, clothing, and shelter to feed our physical bodies. To have these things we need money.…

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Three Ways to Look at Discipleship

By Fr. Jeff | 09/12/2021

In today’s reading for the 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B we hear three different ways of thinking about discipleship. The first comes from the third of four servant servant oracles in the Book of Isaiah. The suffering servant…

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23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B – Homily

By Fr. Jeff | 09/05/2021

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year BIsaiah 35:4-7aPsalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10 (1b)James 2:1-5Mark 7:31-37September 3, 2021 “Thus says the LORD:  Say to those whose hearts are frightened: Be strong, fear not!” Fear can be a powerful thing.  Fear can dictate…

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The Resurgence of COVID

By Fr. Jeff | 08/24/2021

I have not written much on the Coronavirus in recent months (You can see past articles by clicking here). There are two reasons for this. The first is that I didn’t have anything new to say about it. The second…

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Our Relationship With God

By Fr. Jeff | 08/20/2021

Earlier this week I wrote an article, “Is Faith a Matter of Opinion?”, based on F.X. Cronin’s book, The World According to God (Manchester, NH: Sophia Institute Press. 2020). That article reflected on the first fifty pages. Today I would like…

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Is Faith a Matter of Opinion?

By Fr. Jeff | 08/17/2021

Is what one chooses to believe merely a matter of personal preference? Does God exist? These are two of the key questions F.X. Cronin discusses in his new book, The World According to God (Manchester, NH: Sophia Institute Press. 2020).…

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More From Peter Kreeft on Liberty

By Fr. Jeff | 07/23/2021

Earlier this week I posted an article, “Peter J. Kreefts “How to Destroy Western Civilization”, sharing some thoughts from Kreeft’s new book, How to Destroy Western Civilization and Other Ideas From the Cultural Abyss (San Francisco: Ignatius Press. 2021). In that…

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Peter J. Kreeft’s “How to Destroy Western Civilization”

By Fr. Jeff | 07/20/2021

I recently read Peter J. Kreeft’s new book, How to Destroy Western Civilization and Other Ideas From the Cultural Abyss (San Francisco: Ignatius Press. 2021). From the title alone one might think it is a “how-to” book giving ideas on…

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16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B – Homily

By Fr. Jeff | 07/18/2021

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year BJeremiah 23:1-6Psalm 23:1-3, 3-4, 5, 6 (1)Ephesians 2:13-18Mark 6:30-34July 18, 2021 Jeremiah served as a prophet of the Lord in the time leading up to and including the start of the Babylonian Exile.  God…

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Chosen

By Fr. Jeff | 07/11/2021

One of the things that is different for me in my new assignment is that the parish has three deacons. They each have a turn in preaching on Sunday. Currently, I will be preaching every other weekend. They each take…

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Where Do you Go to Find God?

By Fr. Jeff | 07/09/2021

As I settle into a new rectory, I look to shape the space in which I will pray. This rectory has enough rooms that I am able to dedicate a whole room to prayer and God. Many people may not…

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14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B – Homily

By Fr. Jeff | 07/04/2021

14th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year BEzekiel 2:2-5Psalm 123:1-2, 2, 3-4 (2cd)2 Corinthians 12:7-10Mark 5:7-10July 4, 2021 Jesus said, “A prophet is not without honor except in his native place.” Hum…Either God has a sense of humor or I am…

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It’s Not Always Easy

By Fr. Jeff | 06/15/2021

Jesus tells us to love our neighbor. It seems like this should be easy but it is not without its difficulties. In loving and caring for others, we make ourselves vulnerable to feeling pain. It might be from sharing their…

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What is a Missionary Disciple?

By Fr. Jeff | 06/11/2021

Recently, I have been using Fr. James Mallon’s new book, Divine Renovation Beyond the Parish (Frederick, MD: The Word Among Us Press. 2020) for reflection both on change and leadership. Today, I offer my final article using this book. In…

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Being a Disciple of Christ

By Fr. Jeff | 06/30/2020

We call ourselves disciples of Christ but what does this really mean? Let’s start with asking what it means to call ourselves “Christian.” The term is generally applied to anyone who is baptized and/or says they believe in Christ. Yes,…

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