32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

This last week we celebrated both All Saints Day and All Souls Day.  On All Saints we rejoice and thank God for those whose souls are fully united to God in heaven; on All Souls day we pray for those people who have died and whose bodies are decomposing yet whose souls live on into eternity.  Why do we pray for them? What need would they have that we can help with?  Why not just celebrate All Saints Day and forget about All Souls Day?  When the word “purgatory” gets brought up in conversation I’m usually met with incredulity, people thinking of it as an outdated or unnecessary idea – if God is love why would there be a purgatory?  But maybe the way we’re thinking about it is all wrong; maybe there’s something incredibly relevant and timely about purgatory, both for us and for all souls, whether living in the body or out of it.

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Michelangelo, one of the greatest artists of all time, loved sculpting most of all.  He could look at a block of marble, see the potential, a vision for what that block of marble was hiding, and then carve away everything that was not that potential.  When we stand in front of the mirror, each one of us is looking at a block of marble called, “The rest of your life.”  Do we have a vision for what we want that block of marble to look like at the end of our life?  Can we see and appreciate its full potential? Because God has a vision for each one of us, He sees so much potential, He tells us in the Gospel today that within each of us is a heart that can love God with everything we’ve got and love our neighbor as ourself.  What do you want to look like at the end of your life: a roughly carved block of untapped potential tromping around heaven, or a true masterpiece of God’s creation?  It’s already inside of you!  How will you let God keep carving you this week?

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The parable which Jesus gives about a king inviting guests to the wedding reception of his son is ultimately a parable about eternal life and heaven (which our 1st reading from Isaiah speaks of as “God’s holy mountain”).  The king in the parable is God, his son is Jesus, and the wedding banquet is eternal salvation.  Some have ignored the invitation (God’s original Chosen People, the Israelites), so the king has sent out his servants (the Apostles) to invite anyone and everyone, the bad and the good alike (the Church), to this wedding reception.  One man, however, is thrown out for not wearing his wedding garment.  While it may seem harsh, the wedding garment symbolizes the garment we were given at baptism when we were asked to put on Christ.  We may say “yes” to God’s original invitation, but Jesus makes it clear that one “yes” is not enough.  After that, we also have to say “yes” to putting on Christ each and every day, to wearing the wedding garment we’ve been given.  And as we learn at the end of the parable, busy-ness, laziness, forgetfulness, whatever made that man not wear his garment, is not a good enough excuse when the final day comes.  What are you wearing today?

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In this Sunday’s Gospel we have a story of change: one son says “no” to his dad’s request but then changes his mind and does it; the other says “yes” to his dad’s request but then changes his mind and doesn’t do it.  We all have the possibility to change, for better or for worse, every single day.  Every day is an opportunity to follow God’s voice again…or to choose to let that voice fade into the background.  A disciple is one who follows the voice of God each and every day; one who has an obedient and faithful heart – not just in word, but especially in action; not just on Sunday, but on Monday through Friday as well.  Which son are you now?  Which son will you decide to be tomorrow?  Change is always possible!

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

This weekend our readings center on forgiveness, especially on how we will NOT be forgiven unless we first forgive others.  While Jesus in the Gospel responds to a question by Peter saying he must forgive seventy-seven times (which seems very magnanimous), Jesus also goes on to give a parable in which a man is punished and condemned because that man does not forgive others and treat them with mercy (which seems quite harsh to our ears).  Jesus ends the parable by saying our Heavenly Father will do the same to us if we don’t forgive others.  The Scriptures make it clear that in order for us to be forgiven, we must forgive others…ALL others.  So what does that have to do with politics?!  Listen to find out, and no matter where you stand on whatever issue, be prepared to feel the Lord challenging you to more!

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Authority is a theme in our readings today – in both our first reading and Gospel “keys” are spoken of, symbolic of a position of authority. This time of Coronavirus has led to a lot of discussion about who has authority: who’s in charge of what, to what extent can a governor proclaim a state of emergency, what rulings and content are under the authority of state Supreme Courts , what authority does the CDC have, how much authority does a governor have to mandate action, who has the authority to enforce those mandates?  For as much as we like to talk about all these things and weigh in with our opinion, the truth is that we individually have almost no authority in changing overall societal response to Covid.  I think that we as humans (me included) really enjoy talking about how others should use their authority and what decisions they should be making, but we really don’t enjoy confronting how we are neglecting to use OUR God-given authority!  So what exactly is the authority that God has given to each of us?  Listen to find out!