Today you are making this agreement with the LORD: he is to be your God and you are to walk in his ways … And today the LORD is making this agreement with you: you are to be a people peculiarly his own. A consistent theme in the Hebrew Scriptures is the “agreement,” the covenant,… Read More »

St. Teresa of Avila once said that if she had to choose between a holy spiritual director and a competent one she would choose the competent one every time.  Seminaries and formation programs are geared to give individuals the competence they will need in ministry. However, the Vatican Council reminded us there is a universal… Read More »

Today is the feast of Purim in the Jewish calendar and in the Catholic calendar the reading is taken from the book Esther. Providence suggests we think about the Biblical story. Queen Esther had recourse to the LORD. “As a child I used to hear from the books of my forefathers that you, O LORD,… Read More »

Just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation. Jesus knew the story of his people and drew from that history to help understand the significance of what was occurring during his life. It is the past that informs and shapes the present. That truth must… Read More »

We ordinarily think of the Word of God as something that comes down from God to us. So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; offering us instruction and guidance. We think of prayer as something that comes from us to God bringing to the throne of grace our praise, our hopes, our… Read More »

You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church. We have to be careful in thinking about the image of the “rock.” The faith is not a rock, something solid and unchanging that I received from someone else and then hand on to others. The faith is alive and as such grows… Read More »

Every year the first Sunday of Lent tells the story of the temptation of Jesus.  This year we hear St. Mark’s version. Those of us of a certain age will remember an early TV show, Dragnet Dum-de-dum-dum, where the main character, Sargent Friday, would start an interview with a witness by saying some version of… Read More »

If you remove from your midst oppression, false accusation and malicious speech; If you bestow your bread on the hungry and satisfy the afflicted; Then light shall rise for you in the darkness. The scripture readings for the beginning of Lent set up a steady drum beat for justice. Religion, faith have in our culture… Read More »

This is the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke; Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed and the homeless; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own. This admonition from the prophet… Read More »