General

“Brothers and sisters, whatever was written before was written for our instruction that we might have hope!” That’s what Paul says today.  Then he says, “May the God of endurance…

Today, on this first Sunday of Advent, our readings offer us a vision and a challenge to “wake up!” I am reminded of my days as a student at Bethlehem…

2 Samuel 5:1-3.         Colossians 1:12-20.         Luke 23:35-43 There are many passages in both the Hebrew and the Christian scriptures similar to those…

I recall when I was in fourth or fifth grade saying goodbye to my friends because the world was supposed to end the next day. None of us took it…

That first reading needs to be finished. The fifth and sixth sons refuse to eat pork and are tortured and killed. Then the mother is threatened with torture if she…

Today we find Jesus on the road again and Zacchaeus up a tree.   Jesus has come into Jericho — intending, we’re told, to simply pass through the town and continue…

I had such a mixture of feelings when I first read the readings for today. The first reading says “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds; it does not…

Exodus, 2 Timothy, Luke 18 Pray always, we hear today.  Be patient and constant, don’t get weary, keep at it, don’t give up, don’t lose heart.  These commands or urgings…

2 Kings 5:14-17 2 Timothy 2:8-13 Luke 17:11-19 Today’s Gospel builds on the first reading, taking the story 10 steps further.  Where one man in the Hebrew story is cured…

In 1984, when my brother Joe was diagnosed with Gay Men’s Virus, before it was named AIDS and then identified as HIV, before there was any treatment, I prayed. I…

When I first read this parable I thought “Jesus, this parable is a perfect fit for today’s world!” Let’s take a look at the actors in the parable and at…

Always the question: “As I consider the readings in today’s liturgy, what do they say for me now?”  As you know the Encyclical Letter from Pope Francis, Laudato Si’, has…