Suffering

Good Friday, the Suffering Servant

By Fr. Jeff | 03/29/2024

Jesus’ death on the Cross was “a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles” (1 Corinthians 1:23).  It was a “stumbling block to Jews” because it was not what they expected or wanted.  Our first reading from Isaiah today…

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Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, Year B

By Fr. Jeff | 03/24/2024

Today we celebrate Palm Sunday of the Passion of the Lord, more simply known to many as “Palm Sunday.”  We hear two gospels today.  We begin Mass with the blessing of palms and a gospel recalling Jesus’ final entry into…

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Our Needs vs. Our Wants

By Fr. Jeff | 03/14/2023

I write this today as the northeast portion of our country is dealing with a major snowstorm. There are parts of eastern New York State that may see 2-3 inches/hour. Today, I am going to begin by talking about the…

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Will Only a Few People be Saved?

By Fr. Jeff | 08/21/2022

Someone asked Jesus, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” What we all really want to know is how hard is it to be saved? Will my family and friends be saved? Will I will saved? Speaking through the…

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How Do You Look at Things?

By Fr. Jeff | 02/03/2022

This will be my fourth article inspired by Sam Guzman’s book, The Catholic Gentleman: Living Authentic Manhood Today (San Francisco: Ignatius Press. 2019). (For the previous articles see “Are You for Real?”, “More from “The Catholic Gentleman”, and “We Need to Stand for…

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Hope, Death, and Suffering

By Fr. Jeff | 01/11/2022

I recently finished reading After Suicide: There’s Hope for Them and For You by Fr. Chris Alar, MIC and Br. Jason Lewis, MIC (Stockbridge, MA: Marian Press. 2019). As indicated by the title, the book is specifically written for those…

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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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It is Not Easy to be Faithful

By Fr. Jeff | 09/19/2021

In today’s first reading we hear, “Let us beset the just one, because he is obnoxious to us; he sets himself against our doings, reproaches us for transgressions of the law and charges us with violations of our training.” This…

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Some Thoughts on Dealing with Difficult People

By Fr. Jeff | 04/16/2021

Difficult people…we probably have all dealt with difficult people in our lives. It isn’t easy or we won’t call them “difficult” people. There is no one single way to deal with all difficult people. It takes patience. It takes understanding.…

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Jesus, Human and Divine

By Fr. Jeff | 10/27/2020

Last week I posted an article, “Do People Understand What Jesus Does for Us?” In that article, I discussed Jesus’ action to save us from our sins. My inspiration for that article came from Clear and Simple: How to Have…

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What Was the Worst Part of Jesus’ Suffering?

By Fr. Jeff | 10/08/2020

Jesus underwent great suffering for us during his Passion. The gospel readings on both Palm (Passion) Sunday and Good Friday tell the story of Jesus’ suffering from his entry into Jerusalem at the start of his final days through his…

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