Jesus .. spent the night in prayer to God. When day came, he called his disciples to himself, and from them he chose Twelve, whom he also named Apostles. Ours in an apostolic faith, that is, a faith which we inherited from the apostles. The only way we know about Jesus and his essential mission… Read More »

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. We have perhaps become so accustomed to hearing the language “children of God” that its shock value has worn off. Think of going to a wedding or a funeral. Most of those attending are not part of your regular contacts. But… Read More »

A news reporter heard that a woman, Mrs. Jones, was the prophet of a new religion. He interviewed her and asked about the core belief of the new faith. Only those who are members of my religion will get to heaven, she answered. How many members of the new religion are there? The reporter asked.… Read More »

For those who live according to the flesh are concerned with the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit with the things of the spirit. St. Paul describes the Christian life as life in the spirit in contrast with life in the flesh. In another epistle he lists what life… Read More »

For I do not do the good I want, but I do the evil I do not want. Those of us of a certain age will remember Flip Wilson’s character, Geraldine. Whenever she did something wrong the response was: “The devil made me do it.” Geraldine, like St. Paul, is  describing a very common human… Read More »

Jesus said to his disciples: “I have come to set the earth on fire, and how I wish it were already blazing.” These words of Jesus were very important to the founder of my congregation, Fr. Thomas Judge, CM. Their importance is highlighted in their inclusion in our Rule of Life. The message: the gospel… Read More »

“Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.” These words of Jesus remind me of another wisdom figure but of a different sort altogether. Snoopy, of the Peanuts comic strip, is lying on the top of his dog house and says,… Read More »

One of the elderly parishioners asks me often, “Do you think we are at the end times?” When she sees how our times seem to lead to discouragement and despair about the future of the nation, peace in the world and the health of our planet it is easy to think that a reckoning is… Read More »

Have you heard the expression: on their deathbed no one ever says, “I wish I had spent more time in the office.” It is so easy for us to become consumed with getting more and it can skew our sense of values. Jesus warns us: “Take care to guard against all greed.” As the parable… Read More »

Some of the most memorable movies have a surprise ending, a twist that makes us look at everything we’ve seen so far in a new light. Think for example of the original Planet of the Apes, almost sixty years old. Given its age this is not exactly a spoiler alert but the final scene of… Read More »