Showing posts with label priest. Show all posts
Showing posts with label priest. Show all posts
Sunday, December 2, 2012
First Sunday of Advent
The day is coming when all around us will cease as it is now, when Christ will return and offer it all to His Father. We ought not be afraid of the end, but rather to stand erect and raise our heads. We can do that if we have done what the Lord asks of us.
Sunday, November 25, 2012
The Solemnity of Christ the King
Jesus Christ is King, but not in the way in which we so often reduce kings. He is King, but not of a political or geographical kingdom. Rather, He is King of those who hail Him as Lord of their lives and hearts, and the time is coming when He will be made king of all creation, subjecting everything to Himself and offering it to His Father for all eternity. We are already subjects of that good King, and we are invited to proclaim Him for all to hear. Viva Christa Rey!
Sunday, November 18, 2012
Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
We do not know when, but we do know that this world will end. It will be a day beyond all comprehension, awesome and terrifying. But for the faithful, of those that do the will of God, it will be a day that does not bring horror, but of confidence. We need to live our lives in conformity to that day, that when it comes, we can stand before the Son of Man with hearts free from sin and attachment to sin.
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
The widow, with so little means, gives freely of her want. She gives as an act of love of God, and does not do so for show our out of pride. Whatever we give, whether our time, talent, or treasure, we should give out of love of God ourselves. We should not look for accolades or any other reason.
Sunday, November 4, 2012
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
The love of God is always first, and requires all of us, but once we love God above all else, we inevitably learn to love our neighbor with a pure and holy love, a love that seeks their true good, always tempered by morality. Love of neighbor is meaningless without love of God, just as love of God with love of neighbor is vain. Let us love God first and foremost, and with that love, serve our fellowman.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Bartimaeus, a man born blind, has the courage to call out to Jesus for help, calling him the son of David. Despite his blindness, he sees more clearly than the rest. Jesus calls him, and asks him what he wants. Bartimaeus answers immediately - I want to see. May we be as ready to ask Jesus we want to see our vocations as this man.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
New Edition of Vocations View Newsletter
I have posted the newest volume of the Vocations View Newsletter. Click to go to the page, or Right click to download!
Sunday, October 21, 2012
Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Following Christ is not about power, but service, following the example of Christ who comes to ransom us. May we serve well!
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Entry into the Kingdom of God is not a matter of buying or selling or who you know. It is letting it all go and following Christ. It is following the commandments, yes, but being willing to step out in faith, reaching out to God.
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
The readings this weekend help us to reflect on the reality of marriage. Marriage is a natural institution created by God in the very beginning. He created humanity as male and female, and the complementarity of the sexes is for the continuation of the human race. The institution of marriage is given to assure the raising of children in an ideal environment. In the Gospel, Jesus is questioned about the nature of divorce, and He responds that the Law allows divorce because of the hardness of heart - because of sin. But Jesus reminds them that this is not the way it was meant to be. Throughout the Gospel, Jesus raises the institution of marriage to a sacrament. Marriage is to have five traits, and as a sacrament, those traits are strengthened by grace: Free, total, Fruitful, faithful, and permanent. The fact that we have to add that Marriage is between one man, one woman, is proof that we have fallen further away from God and His will. May we have the strength and courage to proclaim the beauty of marriage as a reflection of original justice and God's plan for the propagation and education of children.
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
St. John asks about what to do about those that do not follow Christ and the Apostles ("us"). Jesus instructs that they are not to prevent the man, as he what he is doing is proof of his support of Jesus, at least implicitly. We can act with jealousy, too, and when we respond to Christ, we must see that we are to work together. That is the beauty of our Church and her vocations: We are not all ordained, or religious, or married, yet we are all to work together.
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
To enter the Kingdom of God, we must become like children. As children, we would need to admit our dependance on God, our own limitations, and our need. We come to Christ on His terms, not on our own.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Jesus Christ is the savior of the world, but in order to save us, He had to die on the cross. A savior without the cross leads to a world without redemption! Sacrifice is a necessary element of Christ's saving work, and so it must be for us as we accept the salvation He has won. We sacrifice, and work with humility and faith, to know more fully who Jesus Christ truly is.
Sunday, September 9, 2012
Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time
Be Strong! Fear Not! Be Opened! The Lord opens the ears of the deaf, the eyes of the blind, and strengthens the legs of the cripples. If He can do that, can He not cast away every shadow of fear, wipe away every stain of sin, calm every sting of death? We come to worship Him, because He does all things well. But do we allow Him to do it in our lives?
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Be doers of the word, not just hearers. Jesus takes the scribes and Pharisees to task for setting aside the law for traditions, failing to worship the Lord, but holding fast to temporal things. We, too, might find it easier to hold to temporal things, instead of listening to the Lord who speaks to us in the silence of our hearts. We must be willing to listen and to obey Him, allowing Him to purify us and our hearts.
Sunday, August 26, 2012
Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
"Are you, too, going to leave?" There is a sadness in the question of Jesus.
Peter responds, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life?” You speak the truth to us, and we long to hear it.
Jesus has just completed the Bread of Life discourse, in which He declares that to have eternal life, they must eat His flesh, and drink His blood, and that it is true food and drink.
The Jews are repulsed, and perhaps rightfully so. After all, there is a law against eating blood, much less human blood and flesh… But Jesus does not back down, in fact, each time they balk at His teaching, He gets stronger.
So they just walk away. And Jesus allows them. He does not back down, explain it away, or compromise.
He gives us the same choice.
Peter responds, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life?” You speak the truth to us, and we long to hear it.
Jesus has just completed the Bread of Life discourse, in which He declares that to have eternal life, they must eat His flesh, and drink His blood, and that it is true food and drink.
The Jews are repulsed, and perhaps rightfully so. After all, there is a law against eating blood, much less human blood and flesh… But Jesus does not back down, in fact, each time they balk at His teaching, He gets stronger.
So they just walk away. And Jesus allows them. He does not back down, explain it away, or compromise.
He gives us the same choice.
Thursday, August 23, 2012
New Prayer Calendar
I have posted the new prayer calendar for September through February. I also posted the full-page calendars, too.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
In the Eucharist, Jesus gives us his very body and blood, which we must eat to have eternal life. The Jews quarreled about what this meant, but Jesus is clear - We must eat His Flesh and Drink His Blood to have eternal life. We receive His Body and Blood in the Eucharist, through the ministry of the priest, which enable us to live in Christ.
Sunday, August 12, 2012
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Jesus Christ is the Bread of Life that has come from the Father, and He gives life to the world. But the crowds take offense at Him. They think that they know Him, because they know His human history. They cannot see that Jesus is God, and that He is providing for their needs.
Sunday, August 5, 2012
Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Give us this bread always! The crowds cry to Jesus, but it seems that they are only interested in their own stomachs than in the food that Jesus is going to provide. He tells them that He is the "Bread of Life". He is the food that meets more than a biological need - it meets the need for a higher way of living. Jesus is the bread that gives it. In the next weeks, we will continue to hear this message - and Jesus gets stronger. For now, we must ask ourselves, "Are we willing to accept as a gift what the Lord has provided for us, or are we going to grumble, ignoring aha the Lord is truly doing in our lives to lead us to true and lasting freedom?"
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)