November 16, 2023
I like to tell my wife that my home is wherever she is, wherever my children are, wherever my parents and siblings are, wherever my loved ones are, and wherever I find God among us. Wherever that higher calling of love is, that is home. In the same way that my heart has allegiance to […]
November 15, 2023
Today’s readings focus on two virtues: wisdom and gratitude. Each of these virtues is a necessary component of living a full life in society. Wisdom helps us make right judgments, focus on what is important, and live by a set of values with a positive goal in view. Gratitude is the virtue that acknowledges that […]
November 14, 2023
“We are unprofitable servants. We have done what we were obliged to do.” At first, I found this Gospel of Luke hard to swallow because it somehow twisted my image of God at the back of my head – a God that “should” be delighted with my good works. As I read this passage repeatedly, […]
November 13, 2023
The Book of Wisdom tells us that God “is found by those who test him not, and he manifests himself to those who do not disbelieve him.” Why this double negative? Creation – the cosmos and the earth with myriads of radio waves penetrating the earth, the bowels of the earth with its minerals, seas […]
November 12, 2023
32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time The word “wait” brings different images to our mind – waiting in line, waiting for something to happen, waiting our turn, waiting for someone to come. Frequently waiting carries the connotation of inactivity, of doing nothing until something happens. The waiting presented today appears to be active rather than passive. […]
November 11, 2023
Memorial of Saint Martin of Tours Saint Paul tells us, as he told the Romans, to greet the faithful who professed their faith during the days of old. It’s striking to think of the thousands of saints who have been canonized and so many of our beloved dead who have walked the same path in […]
November 10, 2023
Memorial of Saint Leo the Great, Pope, and Doctor of the Church Saint Paul wrote sometime in the mid-first century to the community he founded in Rome: “. . . You yourselves are full of goodness . . .” Four hundred years later, the Roman aristocrat who had become Pope Leo wrote in a Christmas […]
November 9, 2023
Order and Purpose We live in the present and future; the calendar is the proof. But we need order and balance. Now, a government building, a church, a synagogue, or a temple are all subject to an imbalance, that is, to what purpose the building was designed, its function is interrupted by vandals, madcaps, and […]
November 8, 2023
Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. Some might hear today’s gospel and immediately think, that’s asking a lot! We are told in Luke’s Gospel that we need to carry our own cross and are called to place Jesus before all of our family members, ourselves, and […]
November 7, 2023
So, what’s your excuse? Do you want to hear mine? Today’s point of our gospel is our call, to be honest with God and one another. We should strive to relate and serve each other to the best of our abilities. How do we respond when we receive that question, call, and invitation? God’s invitations […]