St. John reminds us in his epistle that not everyone who claims to be acting according to the Spirit of God is doing so. People fly airplanes into buildings in the name of God. Some claim they won’t take the virus because of God. St. John tells us: do not trust every spirit but test… Read More »

Have you ever seen the night sky? Well, of course, you have. But when you live in Chicago the amount of light pollution obscures the awesome beauty of the night. Go out into the Arizona desert, far from any light on a moonless night, with little distorting humidity in the air. While there, you feel… Read More »

When eight days were completed for his circumcision,  he was named Jesus, the name given him by the angel. January 1 is a big deal in the Catholic Church not so much because it begins the new year but becasue it is the octave (eighth day) of Christmas. Jesus, obedient to Jewish law, was circumcized,… Read More »

Remember that in the pre-Vatican II liturgy the “last gospel” was proclaimed at every mass from the Prologue of St. John (John 1:1-18).  Part of the rite was to genuflect at the line “and the Word became flesh.” While it is certainly a good practice to reverence the Incarnation, the prologue as St. John wrote… Read More »

St. John in his epistle addresses “the children,” “the fathers,” and “the young men.”  He does not explicity address “the mothers” or “the young women.” Contrast that with St. Luke who goes out of his way to mention the presence of women in the life and mission of Jesus. Obviously Mary plays a major role… Read More »

The Epistle of St. John which we read in the days after Christmas has been chosen not so much as commentary on the events of Bethlehem themselves but because it reminds us of the effect that having God-with-us should have on the community. Welcoming and loving Jesus as God sharing our humanity implies expanding that… Read More »

Herod ordered the massacre of all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity two years old and under. St. Matthew does not tell us if that order was carried out. He might have just been keeping this horrible action “off screen,” as it were. But perhaps the soldiers — or at least some of them… Read More »

What we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we looked upon and touched with our hands concerns the Word of life. St. John in his epistle tells his readers why they should believe him when he talks about Jesus. He had experiences which convinced him that Jesus was “the Word of… Read More »

What does it mean to be a “holy family?” A theologian, Paul Tillich, once said: “This holiness is not their moral or cognitive or even religious quality but their power of pointing beyond themselves.” To be a holy family means to point beyond oneself, to learn it’s not about me.  Being a holy family does… Read More »

The Bible readings for our Christmas liturgy start off by addressing “the people who walked in darkness.” Hey, that’s us. We’re the people who walk in darkness. We’re in darkness because of a pandemic which just won’t go away. We’re in darkness because of a national unwillingness to deal with endemic racism. We’re in darkness… Read More »