St. Matthew begins the gospel story with “the book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ.” The family of Jesus were not all stellar characters, It includes murders and rapists, adulterers and prostitutes, the greedy and the gruesome, the power hungry and the craven. In other words, the family of Jesus was remarkably like every other… Read More »

 I will leave as a remnant in your midst a people humble and lowly, Who shall take refuge in the name of the LORD, the remnant of Israel. The idea of a “faithful remnant” was attractive to Pope Benedict XVI. When he saw the situation of the Church in the world today he believed it… Read More »

The lectionary does not have many passages from the Book of Numbers because most of the book is full of numbers. Not very interesting. The story of Balaam was important to the early Church because he spoke of “a star from Jacob” which was associated with the story of the magi. Balaam was not a… Read More »

Americans are not very good at waiting. We eat fast food. We prepare instant oatmeal, instant potatoes and instant coffee. We use I-pass on the toll roads so we can maintain highway speed. We only pick up ten items so we can use the express lines at the grocery store. Have you noticed during a… Read More »

There was a tradition in Jewish thinking that Elijah, who did not die but was taken up to heaven in a firey chariot, would retrun before the coming of the Messiah. When commenting on John the Baptist Jesus said,  I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him. Most of… Read More »

The appearance of Our Lady on Tepayac hill outside of what is now Mexico City in 1531 to an indigenous convert, Juan Diego, changed the entire trajectory of mission in the Americas. Mary spoke the native language, wore customary Aztec dress and was as dark skineed as the indigenous population. The faith in Jesus which… Read More »

There seems to be a contemporary obsession with who is greatest. The sports pages are filled with speculation about the GOAT –  the greatest of all time. Serena in tennis, Michael Phelps in swimming, Michael Jordan in basketball (at least if you’re from Chicago.) Magazines make lists: 100 greatest movies or songs or guitarists. We… Read More »

A young man in the parish has been having many troubles. He has been seeking some kind of interior peace in the midst of all the difficulties. He poured out his soul to his father who told him, “Once you have peace, all will fall into place.” Ah, the wisdom of the elders. We ordinarily… Read More »

Comfort, give comfort to my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem. The prophet is writing after the experience of the destruction the temple, the conquering of the city and the exile of the people. Israel was not having a good day. Up until this moment the prophetic message had been one of chiding… Read More »

Today’s gospel is about the birth of Jesus. Today’s feast is about the birth of Mary. The Feast of the Immaculate Conception was added to the Church’s calendar to celebrate that Mary was “full of grace” from the first moment of her existence. This was a singular gift of God. But as St. Augustine used… Read More »