Pentecost
The Holy Spirit comes on this Pentecost day to strengthen us in 3 ways:
Every day this week, pray, “Come, Holy Spirit. Come, Holy Spirit. Come, Holy Spirit.” When you’re relationship is faltering, when the Church is being looked down on, when someone needs to hear the good news of Jesus, it is the Holy Spirit who will give your His strength and His words to speak into that situation! Come, Holy Spirit!
Solemnity of the Ascension
After a brief word from Pope Francis ; ) we celebrate how Jesus ascends today into heaven. This ascension is still happening every time a faithful soul passes from this life into the next. Those who are in heaven cheer us on and assist us in our ascension to God. But even when every soul is in the presence of God, heaven will still be waiting: waiting for the resurrection of their bodies, and waiting for God to create a new heavens and a new earth. The ascension happened 2,000 years ago, it’s happening today, and it will be happening until God’s master-plan of salvation is entirely fulfilled.
6th Sunday of Easter
Our 1st reading opens with a controversy: Paul and Barnabas preaching salvation in Jesus one way, another group preaching salvation in Jesus another way. Who’s right? What’s the true faith? The first Christians, with a deep sense that the Holy Spirit would guide the Church to the true faith, brought their dispute to Jerusalem and the apostles. Presently, we bring our disputes to Rome and the successors of the Apostles – the bishops and Pope – confident that it is the Holy Spirit who guides the Church to truth, as Jesus promised.
4th Sunday of Easter
Congratulations to all of our students who received their First Holy Communion this weekend! There is an exhortation for priests that says, “O Priest of Jesus Christ, celebrate this Holy Mass as if it were your First Mass, your Last Mass, your Only Mass.” Whether you’ve been receiving the Eucharist for 1 year or 100 years, whether you’re young or old, I challenge you at every Mass you attend to make that exhortation your own: attend that Mass as if it were your first Mass, your last Mass, your only Mass; and receive Communion as if it were your first Communion, your last Communion, your only Communion.
3rd Sunday of Easter
We are blessed to have an amazing Pope right now – Pope Francis! And in our Gospel we hear one of the great Biblical texts supporting the papacy: Jesus singles out Peter to fee his lambs and tend his sheep. In this we see Jesus’ commissioning of Peter as the first shepherd of His Church, the first Pope. Passed down through the centuries, this office of head shepherd has kept the Catholic Church united as one, even in the midst of seemingly insurmountable struggles and difficulties. Thanks be to God for giving us the gift of the papacy, that we may all stand together to praise and worship our God with one voice throughout the world!
2nd Sunday of Easter
To ask God questions, to seek to understand the “Why?” behind our beliefs or events in our life, is not a lack of faith. Rather, it’s an indication of faith. We are a people of faith seeking understanding – it’s precisely our faith that drives us to want to understand where and how God fits into these events and beliefs. In the resurrection story from our Gospel today, I think Thomas generally gets a bad rap. Jesus doesn’t punish him for questioning, wondering, doubting – Jesus answers him! So we shouldn’t be afraid to ask questions, to be discerning, to be skeptical; if we do these things honestly and sincerely, the Lord will answer and our faith will be deepened.
Happy Easter!
What the Father did in raising Jesus from the dead, He also wants to do in us: God wants to raise us up – literally, at the end of life, but also right now, figuratively, in our present life. God wants to raise us up to a rich life filled with purpose, meaning, deep happiness and joy! Jesus came that we might have Life (with a capital “L”). What’s weighing you down? What’s holding you back? What things keep you from rising? Jesus rose today so that He could walk with you, carry your load, and give you Life! Invite Him now to be a part of your life again; give Him permission to enter; ask Him again to raise you up – that’s all He wants!
We enter now into the holiest week of the year as we walk with Jesus through His final days, culminating with His death and resurrection. We heard today the reading of the passion narrative and we are invited to personally enter into this Holy Week so that we might die with Jesus and rise with Him on Easter. For us, this week will be as holy as we make it – so let’s make it a good one!
5th Sunday of Lent
What if you were alive when Jesus was preaching and teaching? What if you were a part of the stories in Scripture? What if you heard Jesus speak to you? God’s Word is living and active, and the same God who was at work then is still at work now. Lectio Divina (‘Divine Reading’) is a way of reading the Scriptures by inserting yourself into the story – the sights, the smells, the sounds, the feelings – you read through a passage slowly, place yourself in the story and experience what God has to say to you through His living Word. Try it! It’ll change your life.
4th Sunday of Lent
Pain in our body warns us that something is wrong – physically. Pain in our interior life warns us that something is wrong – spiritually. Both the younger son and the older son in today’s Gospel experience pain. It’s pain that leads the younger son home. It’s pain that keeps the older son from going back inside his home. Pain, as a warning, is also an invitation: an invitation from our merciful Father to come home, to come back inside, so that we can experience the feast that God is preparing for us!