For all of you old Latins out there this feast used to be called Corpus Christi. Back in the day, when I was growing up, St. Rose of Lima Catholic School had a grand procession on Corpus Christi (which was on a Thursday in those days) where we would honor the Blessed Sacrament at a… Read More »

The only citation of the Epistle of St. Jude in the lectionary occurs today. The epistle is only twenty-five verses long, after all. But the epistle does demonstrate a Trinitarian faith going back to New Testament times. “Build yourselves up in your most holy faith; pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in the love… Read More »

One thing that becomes clear in the gospels is that Jesus was not “sweet.” Always loving, yes, but not sweet. Jesus driving the money changers out of the temple was a loving thing to do — calling people back to authentic worship — but no one would call that a “sweet” action. Any parent can… Read More »

Jesus asked the blind Bartimaeus a question: “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus addresses that same question to us. “What do you want me to do for you?” How do we answer? Bartimaeus asked for a personal healing. “Lord, I want to see.” While there is certainly nothing wrong with seeking… Read More »

St. Mark portrays the apostles as particularly dense. After Jesus talked about his suffering and death, James and John asked for high places in the kingdom. It reminds me of the all to human tendency to look at everything through the lens of “what’s in it for me.” There was a book a few years… Read More »

“Be holy.” How are we to obey that Biblical command? What does it mean to be holy? Does it mean we say more prayers, go to Church more often, obey the commandments more faithfully? While these might be good things to do, they do not make us holy. My favorite definition of holiness: holiness happens… Read More »

Why would Jesus object to being called “good” by the rich, young man in St. Mark’s gospel? (This question occurred to Matthew and Luke since they report the scene somewhat differently.) The answer can be found in the subsequent dialogue. The rich, young man apparently thought that he could achieve goodness, attain godliness by his… Read More »

On Trinity Sunday we can take a step back from the capital campaign, from the parish council, from the elevator that still doesn’t work and remember why we’re really here: it’s all about God. Everything that we do, from the food pantry to attending mass on Sunday, from teaching catechism to Jazzin’ to Feed all… Read More »

Stuff is really important to Catholics — bread, wine, water, oil, incense, medals, crucifix, etc.; and physical gestures as well — processions, laying on of hands, colors of the seasons, blessings. This all flows from a profound respect for the mystery of the Incarnation. Jesus chose to share a human life which means that the… Read More »

If you can’t say anything nice, don’t say anything at all according to folk wisdom. It reminds me of Mrs. Magillicudy who commented on her neighbor who was convicted of being a mass murderer: “Well, he was always nice to his mother.” It is easy to find fault, to criticize, to put down. St. James… Read More »