December 10. 2023
2nd Sunday of Advent Comfort my people. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem and proclaim to her …her guilt is expiated. Isaiah encourages the people in exile to quiet their cries of personal and collective guilt and shame. Their hearts were filled with failure and fear, preventing them from hearing words of comfort: Here is your God! […]
December 9, 2023
61st Anniversary of the Canonization of Peter Julian Eymard On this first Saturday of Advent, we receive the promise of hope. As we approach the shortest day of light, we rely on Isaiah’s message from God of the promise of light – hope amid today’s chaos and suffering throughout our world! Can we look to […]
December 8, 2023
Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary It is curious how many Catholics are confused about the meaning of this feast. Is it the “immaculate conception” of Jesus or the “immaculate conception” of Mary? The traditional Gospel that appears on this solemnity celebration can mislead us. So, in fact, it is the […]
December 7, 2023
“Everyone who listens to these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.” (Matthew 7:24) It is not the one who listens and not the one who acts, but the one who listens and acts. The wise man discerns and acts upon discernment. Many […]
December 6, 2023
We have just entered the Season of Advent, which leads us toward the celebration of the Incarnation, the mystery of God taking on human nature to reveal the great love that the Creator has for all his creation and announce and usher in the Kingdom of God. Today’s readings give us a clearer vision of […]
December 5, 2023
On our third day of Advent, we celebrate a new birth, a new dawn, hope, and God’s promise. Isaiah paints a picture for Israel of the new life that will come from them when they, like that tree stump, grow toward God’s vision. God reverses and gives great promise to each of us, even when […]
December 4, 2023
Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith. I say to you, many will come from the East and the West and will recline…at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven. There are times of doubt when I question whether I am one of God’s chosen people worthy […]
December 3, 2023
1st Sunday of Advent Be watchful! Be alert! You do not know the time will come. (Mark 13:33) Jesus is speaking about the second coming, when he will return in victory as promised, with angels and saints. It is described in the Revelation and Saint Mark’s Gospel. The day’s liturgy calls us to prepare not […]
December 2, 2023
Last year, between August and May, I set aside the time to make a directed Ignatian Retreat in Daily Life, the 19th annotation of the Spiritual Exercises. This was a time of change in my life; after homeschooling my children for over 20 years, my youngest had graduated high school. This was a time to […]
December 1, 2023
As the visions during the night continued, I saw One like a son of man coming on the clouds of heaven… As we hurtle to the end of the liturgical year, the readings are both about the end times. The reading from Daniel is incredibly graphic and enough to scare almost everyone into reforming their […]