September 17, 2023
24th Sunday in Ordinary Time In the gospel passage today, Jesus answered a question Peter asked about the number of times we’re obliged to forgive our neighbor by spinning a lengthy parable about a servant who owed a huge amount of money to his master, the king. After listening to his plea for leniency, the […]
September 16, 2023
“…for from the fullness of the heart the mouth speaks.” (Luke 6:45) How many times have we wished we could take back words hastily spoken? How many words others have said still echo in our hearts? Some of these words lift us up, yet many push us down. I was recently at a restaurant, and […]
September 15, 2023
Memorial of Our Lady of Sorrows When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” Jesus here sees his mother standing at the foot of the cross with the disciple he loved, calling her […]
September 14, 2023
Why? We don’t do well with pain or the common cold. A premonition of an upcoming debilitation sends us into a dizzying spiral; we eventually may make our peace with this disturbance or choose ‘not to go gently into that good night’ (Dylan Thomas) because complacency and mediocrity have no place in our Christian lives. […]
September 13, 2023
Memorial of Saint John Chrysostom, Bishop and Doctor of the Church The physical location is dramatically different when comparing Matthew’s and Luke’s Beatitudes. In Matthew’s account, Jesus overlooks the Sea of Galilee on the Mount of Beatitudes (between Tabgha and Capernaum). While Luke’s Gospel, which may have been written before Matthew, has Jesus with his […]
September 12, 2023
Father Eymard receives the approval of the Servants of the Blessed Sacrament See to it that no one captivates you with an empty, seductive philosophy according to the tradition of men, according to the elemental powers of the world, and not according to Christ. (Colossians 2:6-15) On the 12th of September 1863, the bishop of […]
September 11, 2023
“My sheep hear my voice; they know me and follow me.” Alleluia!! In listening to Jesus, we, curious children, explore many opportunities to experience God’s love. We grew up seeing paintings of glowing halos around Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, “tongues of fire” settling on the Apostles. These images encourage the idea that the Spirit transforms […]
September 10, 2023
23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time In the Scriptures, a watchman guards against possible harm to people or property, often during the night, and may sound an alarm in the face of threatened danger. Ezekiel today is presented to us as the watchman responsible for the Israelite community – being accountable for those who go astray. […]
September 9, 2023
“I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord; no one comes to the Father except through me.” How often have we prayed those words summarizing our faith in Jesus Christ? Today’s readings remind us of our dedication to Jesus, our savior and redeemer. Today we recall how Jesus reconciled humanity’s […]
September 8, 2023
Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Today we celebrate the Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, an important day for any religious family for whom Mary, the mother of Jesus, has a special place in its devotional life — for Saint Peter Julian Eymard believed that Mary’s great mission […]