December 30, 2018: Feast of the Holy Family

Jesus came to be born among us to reveal the heart of the Father’s Love for us in very humanly relatable ways, such as in a family.

We put faith and love into action in the ways we live in families and relationships.

And God has brought new vibrancy to our relationships by helping us know Love in the intimate ways that we experience in the family setting.   Indeed, everything has changed by His coming as the Word Made Flesh, because He is now abiding with us forever in such a close way, especially in how we experience love ever new.

December 25, 2018: Feast of the Lord's Nativity

How glorious it is that a mighty and seemingly distant God now comes so close to us in the baby Jesus Christ.

This baby is the very essence of the Father fully revealed to us, in contrast to the "partial and various" ways God spoke through prophets in the time before His Son was born.

We now rejoice in the Light that has come to our world, which reconciles us back into right relationship with God, the purity of Creation at the beginning, as Father Bob so marvelously noted in his homily.

Now that we are reconciled, we become bearers of Good News to a world, announcing that God continues to dwell among us, working to make everything right again.

December 23, 2018: Fourth Sunday of Advent

As the celebration of the Lord's Nativity nears, we're reminded of the glorious purpose for His coming.

He came from a small town to serve a large role in God's plan of salvation, to shepherd His people toward God.  In the spirit of the reading from Hebrews, He offered His very self as a sacrifice to God to serve His purposes.

So we can count on Christ to lead us to salvation, rejoicing that He brings God into our midst, just as St. John the Baptist leaped in the womb of his mother Elizabeth at the sound of Mary's greeting.

Even as we await the joy of Nativity Day, we rejoice in recognizing how God is present, and how He draws us into His purposes, opening ourselves up to His purposes as Christ was devoted to the Father's purpose, and so was Mary in becoming the Mother of God.

Let us rejoice that God is at work so wondrously in our midst.

December 16, 2018: Third Sunday of Advent/Gaudete Sunday

I couldn't say it better myself than St. Paul on this Gaudete Sunday, as he proclaims in his letter to the Philippians that the people of God should rejoice always, repeating it again for emphasis.

God is near, and like the prophet Zephaniah proclaims, He rejoices over us.

This is a reality that is greater than any of our circumstances.  (I think about how we heard these readings proclaimed 6 years ago on Sunday, December 16, 2012, after the tragic shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School.)  No matter what we face, God is present, entering into our hearts to work something marvelous, and He is our joy.

So we give ourselves over to Him, which is what St. John the Baptist proclaims when various people come to ask Him what they should do.  He calls them to change their lives around, because God is near, and is coming into our lives.  So we change our lives to be open to the transformation that comes when God arrives.

I furthermore rejoice that I mark 5 years since I started this blog, joyfully reflecting on God's revelations in the words proclaimed on Sundays and Holy Days.

December 12, 2018: Feast of La Virgen de Guadalupe (Te Quatlaxupe)

We rejoice at the abundance of graces God bestows on His people, and furthermore upon the world, so that all may be saved.

From Mary, God brought forth a Son into the world Who would rule all.

We rejoice that God has a part for each of us to play in the unfolding of His plan of salvation.  And so we go forth to proclaim the Good News, as Mary magnified the Lord, and San Juan Diego helped propagate the Christian faith to the people of Mexico in a way that touched the natives more closely.

December 9, 2018: Second Sunday of Advent

A major theme in Advent is the breaking of God into our world, as is described in today's Gospel reading.

The individuals listed in the opening verses of the passage wielded incredible power at the time but what's more powerful than any of them is St. John the Baptist who comes to proclaim the message of God's coming.

And like Father Hurlbert stated masterfully in his homily at Ascension Parish this weekend, those seemingly mighty people have become footnotes in history while the message St. John the Baptist proclaimed persists.

Indeed, God is still at work in our world, doing something mighty in us, making us righteous in His sight so we may be ready to welcome Him into our world.  He is removing all the reproach of sin and everything that weighs us down and joyfully bringing us into something new.  We will be filled with God's splendor as He makes a straight way for us back to Himself, Who loves us so greatly.  We will be fully in His presence, and all the world will see Him for Who He is, in all His glory.  This is the joy of the Nativity, even as we know it now.

December 8, 2018: Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary

While sin entered through the falling of our ancestors Adam and Eve, God has demonstrated His mighty power over sin by His Grace.

Mary was filled with His Grace, and He chose her to be part of the great work of salvation.  She consented to the plan of God presented to her, and so God entered the world through Jesus Christ, Who triumphed over the curse of sin.

Oh what a marvelous work God has set out to accomplish in all the disciples who follow in the way after Mary, for He bestows His Grace on us, as we consent to His plan for our lives, so that His Grace flows forth.

December 2, 2018: First Sunday of Advent

It's clear that Christ is coming again in great power to wield judgment on the world, as surely as He came as a baby to bring us salvation by dying and rising.

For those of us who are in Him, His coming is our time to stand tall to welcome Him, even as we spend this time of waiting now in holy and righteous living.

He has promised to establish anew a Reign of Justice in this world.  We can count on His promise, and so we long for Him, opening our hearts and our lives to living in such a way so that He may enter in now, as surely as He shall come at the End of Time.

November 25, 2018: Feast of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the King of the Universe

The 1st and 2nd readings, along with the Psalm response, picture Christ as a King in Great Glory.

He earned this Glory because of how He stood up for the values of Truth and righteousness, in the face of all the world's unrighteousness, described eloquently in an exchange between Jesus and Pilate right before His Crucifixion, which reveals an epic struggle occurring on a higher level between Truth and unrighteousness.

It is clear that the power of Christ's Kingdom lies in the reality that it is not a Kingdom of this world.  It transcends this world, and stands for Truth, Justice, Peace, Righteousness, and Love.  As a King, Christ embraced great humility to free humanity from sin and restore us to a righteous relationship with God.  His Throne was the Cross.

Just like St. Paul writes in Philippians, Christ humbled Himself, and now is greatly exalted, because we recognize our salvation's Source is this Great King Who gave Himself for us, so we could reign with Him forever, acclaiming His Glory.  We do so even now as we stand for the Truth of those values of His Kingdom, as they work in our hearts, so we impact our world.

November 18, 2018: 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

With the end of the liturgical year, the readings focus us toward the End of Time.  It is then that God will pronounce His judgment on the Earth and unleash His power to vanquish all evil and restore everything to the order He intended for it in His righteousness, bringing His people back to Himself in His loving embrace.

He has already begun this work in Christ, Who offered Himself as the one perfect sacrifice that makes us right before Him.  In Him, we now dwell securely.  And so when signs described in Daniel and Mark--our final reading from St. Mark's Gospel this liturgical year--appear that Christ will return to usher in the end of the ages when God judges evil, we will shine brightly as the ones who have been purified because we hold to His ways of love and justice.

November 11, 2018: 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

How appropriate that on the Feast Day of St. Martin of Tours, the readings in the lectionary feature impoverished people.  Despite their lack of material goods, they entrust themselves to God and offer all that they have, counting on God to provide.

The widow entrusts the word of God as proclaimed through Elijah that even in offering the little she has to him, there will still be enough for her and her son.  The widow in the Gospel reading offers the little she has for providing for her needs and entrusts that God will provide for her, even though we don't see how that turns out.  But we know, like in the words of Psalm 146, that God provides for those who are in need, and is forever praised.

We know He has provided for all of us who are in great need because of our sin:  We can truly trust the God Who offered Himself fully to us in Christ to save.  And in that same spirit, we give of ourselves, entrusting that God will provide abundantly from our act of giving, which makes God real as we commit ourselves in trust to Him.

November 4, 2018: 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

As Jesus will later dictate at the Last Supper, so He indicates in today's Gospel reading that we should love God and neighbor with all we are as the most important commandments.

The Law as a whole, with all its commandments, is not so much about following rules and procedures, but about putting us into right relationship with God, reflected in right relationship with each other.

In love, Jesus offered Himself as a perfect sacrifice to free us from sin, and lives forever so that we may always stand in this salvation, as we draw from His strength and abiding in His love, to the point that we are completely drawn into living it out, as we are fully drawn into relationship with Him.

November 2, 2018: All Souls' Day

It is a moving and solemn occasion today, certainly more meaningful to me than what Halloween has come to be.

On this All Souls' Day, we remember all the faithful departed, commending them to the grace of God, as we affirm our belief in Christ Who died and rose again.  We rejoice that we will one day experience the fullness of His New Life that He won for us by the Paschal Mystery.

November 1, 2018: All Saints' Day

We celebrate the lives of the saints on this special Feast Day, those who lived lives of faith like we do, and now in glory shine before God.

We furthermore celebrate because God has called us to holiness and purity, made possible by the Paschal Mystery of His Son Jesus Christ.  The saints, canonized and obscure, who lived before us give us great examples as we keep striving toward Heaven, glorifying God all along.

October 28, 2018: 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God came with the great news that He has the power to heal us as the faith He grants us works in us.

Bartimaeus showed great faith when Jesus passed by and he called out to Him.  Jesus acknowledged that faith as the means of His salvation, which brought him sight.  And it was that same faith that urged Him on to follow Jesus in a new way of life.  He threw aside his cloak, which represented much of everything he had, to embrace the God Who loves all of us so much, and to fixate His life on a relationship with Him.

So while we were once dead in sins, we have been brought alive so gloriously through the great work of our High Priest, Jesus Christ, Who restores us fully.  It is by faith that we embrace a relationship with, recognizing that being in His life-giving presence is enough for us.

October 21, 2018: 29th Sunday in Ordinary Time

James and John request that Jesus grant them privileged positions in glory.  But Jesus set the record straight with them, and then the rest of the disciples, indicating that it's not so much about glory as it is about accomplishing God's purposes.  Jesus sets an example as One Who gives His Life in service to others, by which He effects so great and glorious a salvation for us, as stated so powerfully in the final sentence in the Gospel reading.

And in following this way, we give ourselves in service to others, because in Christ, that is now our purpose.

It was notable that Confirmation Masses were held this weekend at Ascension on the Feast of St. Paul of the Cross, who was devoted to the Passion of Christ.  The Confirmation candidates were called upon to live out their faith in the power of the Holy Spirit that comes as a result of the Paschal Mystery, in which Christ sets us an example for giving of ourselves, which we do as we live out faith.

October 14, 2018: 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Word of God truly pierces into us, revealing what's in our hearts, and what we prioritize, just as Jesus does when talking with the rich man.  Indeed, He presents great demands for being a disciple.  It's not enough to follow the Law, but to have a heart that's willing to give everything for His sake.  Yet in doing so, we recognize what is most valuable.

When we turn our focus away from earthly goods, we can embrace the great gifts that come from above, especially the wisdom that outlasts everything and allows us be in right relationship with God.  Once we have that secure, everything else falls into place, and we truly have peace no matter what kinds of difficulties we face, and no matter how short life is, because we will have lived it righteously.

October 7, 2018: 27th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God wants to bring wholeness to our relationships, as we see in the scene from Genesis 2:  God creates a special companion for Adam, a woman.

That is the wholeness God still desires for us, because He brought man and woman to be together in a special relationship in marriage, that we may share it with others, especially children we raise up.  In these relationships, we continue to abound in the love God desires for us to experience, and fulfill His purposes, as we live out the relationship with Him, the closeness that makes us His brothers.  His sufferings redeemed everything about our lives, so that we can live holy for Him, especially in our relationships, so they lead us to Heaven.

September 30, 2018: 26th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God issues a universal call for people to follow Him, pouring forth His graces through His Spirit abundantly.  We strive toward Him in a great company of people.  We are not to stop others for doing good works in His Name, but open ourselves up to the various ways God is at work.  And we open our hearts so He can fully work in us as we leave behind wrongful desires to accumulate wealth that can lead us astray, and instead abound in virtue that allows us to live fully in righteousness.

September 23, 2018: 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time

As we mature in our relationship with Christ, we realize how much we depend on God, because of forces within and without that seek to distract us from following in God's ways.

So let us commit ourselves to abiding in God's ways, because having a relationship with Him gives us the assurance we need to stand against those who oppose us because we abide with God.  He is the One Who upholds us, as the Psalmist says.

And we can live peaceably with others as this relationship bears fruit so that we focus not on ourselves but on humbly serving others.  That's why St. James calls us to embrace the wisdom that is from above, so we don't end up in conflict, but experience righteousness in ourselves and with one another that is exhibited when we embrace this wisdom.

And that's why we need child-like humility, so we can be open to embracing this relationship and the effects it is meant to have in us, so we can be assured of God's goodness no matter what.

September 16, 2018: 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Coming just two days after the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, we are reminded in this day's liturgy once again of the role of the Cross:  It was through His suffering that Jesus fulfilled God's purposes in winning for us so great a salvation.

He shows us that our sufferings can be redeemed, as we look to God to accomplish His purposes in them.

This is true faith, which is demonstrated by action:  Indeed, James says it is not enough to have faith--we must have faith that is demonstrated through works, seeing the needs of the world, just as our faith helps us see Jesus for Who He is.

This attitude is certainly something that informed the mind of St. Cornelius as he dealt with addressing Christians who apostatized in the face of persecution.

It's an attitude we as catechists embrace in our working of teaching the faith and handing it on to others, a role for which we are recognized on Catechetical Sunday this weekend.

September 9, 2018: 23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

God wants to do wondrous things in our world, to bring a healing touch that will deliver us from evil, and bring us healing and wholeness, not only in body, but also in spirit.  For example, not only does he want us to see physically, but to have eyes of faith open to His presence.

He most especially wants us to be open to the ways in which He is present in the poor and lowly, so that we take Christ-like action to serve their needs.  He want us to be aware of their needs and respond appropriately.

Indeed, God calls us to be open, because His Living, real presence is at work to make us anew.

September 2, 2018: 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

God has given us the great gift of His Law, to make us a Holy People.  But in following the rules, we must not lose sight of the purpose behind the rules, that we should live in a way that brings out inner purity and leads to meaningful relationships with Christ-like love toward others.

True religion must be acted out in caring for others, just as God has done for us, showing lovingkindness from the heart that builds upon the rules.  This is how we live in right relationship with others, and ultimately, God

August 26, 2018: 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time

This set of readings holds particularly special meaning for me because they were proclaimed at the first Mass I ever attended at St. Teresa's, and participating in that community through my four years of college had an enormously transformative effect.  There, I experienced a community that was passionate about living out faith by supporting college students in the walk of faith.

Joshua makes clear to the people of Israel what God has done.  Jesus has spoken the truth about Who He is as the Bread of Life.  And St. Paul writes about how God has shown us sacrificial love through Jesus Christ Who handed Himself over for the Church.

Standing before these realities calls us to respond and choose whether or not we will commit and entrust ourselves to the God Who has given us so much, and to be willing day in and day out to abide in Him, even when it's tough.

Like the people of Israel, and St. Peter, may we respond as we recognize that God is the One Who has done so much for us, and Who alone is the Holy One that makes the way for us to Eternal Life.

August 19, 2018: 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God has provided the way for us to Eternal Life.  As in the spirit of the words offered at Mass at St. Joseph in Springfield, which I attended this morning, let us live in the wisdom that embraces Jesus Christ as the One Who alone provides for us, because in partaking of His flesh and blood, we are truly nourished and experience Eternal Life even now.  Indeed, God provides for us physically, but even more so, He provides spiritual nourishment that enhances our life even now.

Certainly I've been enhanced reflecting on the words proclaimed at Mass, and have been delighted to share my reflections from the start until now, in this 300th post on this blog.

August 15, 2018: Feast of the Assumption of Mary

Christ has given us hope by His Resurrection.  By faith, we know that by joining Him in dying and rising to new Life, we will one day experience the fullness of Life Eternal with Him, both body and soul.

Christ is the firstfruits from the dead, and we will follow as His disciples, after Mary, the first disciple.

Indeed, this occasion is reason for us to rejoice in the reality of the Resurrection becoming ours.

August 12, 2018: 19th Sunday in Ordinary Time

I was at Mass at St. Teresa's to celebrate the Golden Wedding Anniversary of Dan and Ann Ruggaber.

Father Chris said something astounding in his homily:  We were made by God for not just a personal relationship with Him, but, more so, for intimacy with Him.

That is why God came to us in flesh through Christ. And He continues to be present with us in the Eucharist, so that can experience great intimacy with Him.

It is this intimacy that nourishes and strengthens us for the work He grants us as His people, to share faith with one another, to bring one another alive, as we come to truly know God's love through the ways that other people reveal that Love to us.

And so truly Jesus is the Bread of Life given in Love to bring us alive.

August 6, 2018: The Feast of the Transfiguration of the Lord

God has granted us a vision of His very Glory.  Because of this vision, we know we can count on God, because He is real, and He is mighty.  May this reality strengthen us in our lives.

August 5, 2018: 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The people of the Hebrews, and crowds that follow after Jesus, are hungry for something to satisfy them physically.  But Moses, and Jesus, point them toward a greater reality: food from Heaven that satisfies them deep down inside.

This Heavenly food is about growing in relationship with Jesus Christ, living as anew in holiness and righteouness, as St. Paul speaks of in Ephesians.  We live for what really counts, because we are fed with food from Heaven, the very Presence of God, and that is enough to satisfy us, and to draw us closer to God, even as we bring what satisfies to others as part of living out that relationship.

July 29, 2018: 17th Sunday in Ordinary Time

God provides for us always, in overwhelming abundance.  He takes care of everything.  It is for us to respond in kind, opening ourselves to the marvelous ways His abundance is all around us, not only in the Eucharistic meal, but in the ways we experience His graces day by day.  And may we spread the goodness of those graces to others, living worthily of the abundance we have received, so we may be bound as the people of God.

July 22, 2018: 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time

In the midst of the variety of troubles we face in this world, God has come to us in Jesus so that we are able to experience rest in Him.  He is a God Who is moved with deep compassion and greatly desires to guide us gentle in the right way to rest in Him.  This compassion contrasts with the terrible leadership in Israel as described in Jeremiah who did not do right in shepherding the people. 

(The final two verses from the Jeremiah reading actually appear in the words that appear on the screen at the beginning of The Nativity Story as a prophecy about Jesus.  Talk about a contrast between the ruthless King Herod and the gentle, humble Jesus born as a baby.)

We rejoice that God has sent us Jesus to be our Good Shepherd, which is a metaphorical image that is described so richly in Psalm 23.

And we see this theme again in the Gospel reading as Jesus gently guides His disciples to rest after their labors in missionary work, and is moved with deep compassion when He sees the crowd and recognizes they need guidance toward rest.

We indeed find rest in God because Jesus has reconciled us to God so that we can be at peace by having and growing in relationship with Him.

July 15, 2018: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time

St. Paul is filled with elation as he describes in the 2nd reading from Ephesians 1 how we were chosen by Him to be part of His great plan.

We hear from Amos how he was chosen from working in the countryside to proclaiming a prophetic message before the King of Israel.  The king's response demonstrates the opposition faced by those who proclaim God's message.

But what matters for us is that we're faithful to doing what God has called us to do.  He has chosen us, and sealed us with the Holy Spirit, which points the way toward entering His presence in Heaven, and we're making Heaven present now as we do His work, as justice, peace, and truth flourish in the land.

I think about how I started teaching RE, with little educational training, and I've built up so much momentum with it as I connect with my students.  And in spite of the struggles I face to help these youths encounter God's presence, I remind myself to be faithful to the call God has given me to do His work, knowing I have been chosen, and, like on the day of my Confirmation, have been sealed with the power of the Holy Spirit so I have the ability to do His work no matter what as part of this great plan He has.

July 8, 2018: 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Ever since humans first appeared and then disobeyed God, He has passionately sought after His people, proclaiming His messages through various prophets.  And throughout all that time, some people have not heeded the words of the prophets because they are hard of heart.

Yet God's message still stands, even when we don't open ourselves up to embracing it.  It will stand until we summon forth faith to realize He alone is the One Who we can count to be present for us at all times.  When we respond by acting out our faith and do our in part in the proclamation of His message, He will make Himself known through us, even if others don't respond righteously.

In all circumstances, we can count on God.  He even helps us in our weaknesses when He magnifies His power by aiding us.  So we rejoice that we can lean on God, Who is always strong, and manifests Himself in our humble obedience to Him.

July 1, 2018: 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time

The reading from Wisdom speaks to the reality that God intended for His Creation to be abundant in Life from His Living Presence.  He never intended death to be part of it, but that happened through people's disobedience and cooperation with the devil's connivings.

So Christ came to free us from death and all the ill effects of sin.  He poured out Himself, so that we might experience the riches of His life-giving grace.  Now, no longer does anything have to lead to death because Christ is present to us, so long as we reach out in faith to embrace that life-giving presence.  And in living out that faith in this world, we offer that Life-giving presence to others.  It's just like St. Junipero Serra, whose feast day is on July 1, who strove tirelessly to proclaim the Gospel to people in present-day California.

June 29, 2018: Feast of Saints Peter and Paul

Christ established a firm foundation for His Church on Earth, doing so through Saints Peter and Paul, who both led the Church and proclaimed the Gospel boldly.

May their example inspire us to stand firm in the foundation Christ has laid us, holding fast to the confession of faith that keeps Christ ever before us as we journey to the place where He has promised to bring us, as we open ourselves up to the power of God in us.

June 24, 2018: Nativity of St. John the Baptist

Nearly six months from the last celebration of the Lord's Nativity, and 6 months until the coming celebration, we have the opportunity this day to celebrate the birth of St. John the Baptist, who heralded the coming of Christ.

Even from before birth, God announced that John would be set apart for a special purpose, and at his birth, those present recognized this child was special, especially his father Zechariah whose tongue was loosed from muteness to proclaim God's praises.

Indeed, God has been working in us even before birth, wondrously fashioning us.  (I think about how my brother was able to part of history before he was born, as he attended the first night game at Wrigley Field 30 years ago this summer.)

And like St. John the Baptist, we are specially chosen by God to fulfill a purpose, living lives that proclaim that God is present in the world to save people, even as we rejoice in our own encounter with God's salvation.

June 17, 2018: 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Something I am aware of as a Religious Education catechist, and what I seek to emphasize to my students, is that growing in faith is a process.

In His own time, God does marvelous deeds.  It's just like a tiny mustard seed that becomes a huge plant.  And just as seed is planted in a field and then becomes a bountiful harvest, God does His work, producing in us abundant fruit of faith, though we may not quite understand how, nor be able to detect the slow process of how a plant grows from a seed to bearing fruit.  Yet, over time, we see the process of work, as we view growth from a different kind of perspective.  Even the transformation of what was devastated to being restored reminds us how great God's power is that works in us.

So we remain faithful, walking by faith even if we can't see nor understand how it happens, as we wait upon God for His timing of the harvest when the work of growing in faith bears fruit.  As we remain faithful, we notice that we flourish like an abundance of crops as we do our part and let God do His.  We do it to be faithful to the God to Whom we will give an account for our deeds in this life.  And ultimately, by our faithfulness, we recognize that God alone is the One Who has the power to do the extraordinary work of making us the people He desires for us to be.

June 10, 2018: 10th Sunday in Ordinary Time

When I looked over the Gospel reading for this Sunday, I immediately thought of something that happened on June 16, 1858:  Abraham Lincoln referred to this quotation of Jesus when he talked about the division between slave and free states in the United States.

When Jesus came, he underscored the division that exists within us of striving toward God, yet being held back by original Sin that has been present since our ancestors turned away from God in disobedience.  Indeed, the Gospel messages starts with the reality of how sin has totally wrecked us and our relationship with God.  Only in Jesus do we have hope, for He is the One Who has tied up the strong man and plundered the house, which one commentary on the Gospel reading in Mark I read indicated is Jesus's tying up Satan so that He can set everything right.

And so we have hope that although our bodies and our world are decaying due to the effects of sin, our life-giving relationship with Jesus sustains us for Eternity, even as we abound in graces now, so that we strive to live in the way Jesus has taught, and truly enter into the relationship of being His family.

June 8, 2018: Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

How wonderful to encounter once again an image on this day that Father Hurlbert used as a driving force in his homily on Ash Wednesday, as this Feast comes toward the end of a collection of feasts whose dates are determined by when Resurrection Sunday falls.

As we pondered throughout Lent, so this day we marvel at the immense love God shows us in Christ, Who bestows on us immense mercy that flows forth from His wounds at the Crucifixion.  Although His love is so great and almost unfathomable, the marvel is that He brings us into a relationship with Him so we can better comprehend His powerful love that passionately pursues us, so that we draw toward Him just as passionately.

June 3, 2018: Feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ

As I scaled up to Charles Mound, the highest point of elevation in the state of Illinois, yesterday, I thought about how the Eucharist is the source and the summit of Christian Life, as we are drawn to God, and sent forth from God in this feast at Mass.

The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ gives us reason to rejoice, because they are signs of the covenant by which we enter into relationship with God.

As Father Hurlbert so insightfully shared in his homily, God established this covenant first with Abraham, then put into laws in the time of Moses, and then made it Eternal and brought it into flesh in Jesus.

God has come so close to us.  And we so rejoice and give thanks to God, walking with Him, like the Psalmist, all our days.

What a beautiful scene it was to join a group of people processing with the Body of Christ in a canopy-covered monstrance walking around the blocks near St. Odilo Parish in Berwyn this afternoon.  It shows us how we encounter Christ in the Eucharist and are transformed to be His Body, and then we carry His Presence into the world by living holy.

May 31, 2018: Feast of the Visitation of Mary

Recently, on Pentecost, we celebrated how God is ever present with us in the Holy Spirit Who dwells in us.

On this feast of the Visitation, we continue to celebrate and rejoice because like the prophet Zephaniah declares, "...the Holy One of Israel is in your midst".  And like Isaiah says, "He has become my salvation".

Truly John the Baptist has great reason to rejoice because he recognizes the Holy Presence of God in Jesus in the womb of Mary, and so John leaps.  Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and rejoices at the presence of Mary, in whom God works because she opened herself to God.  And Mary rejoices in God in the wondrous words of the Magnificat because of the marvelous wonders He does through the lowly.

Let us always be aware of God's presence among us, so that we may continue rejoicing.

It's just like I told my students on the first day of the month in my remarks sending them off.  I told them their 8th grade graduation on May 31 is the Feast of the Visitation, and how I leap for joy seeing God's presence at work in them.  Truly I rejoiced over them as I watched them walk across the stage at graduation.  And I encouraged them to open themselves up to God's presence among them, so that no matter what, in recognizing Him, we rejoice.

May 27, 2018: Feast of the Most Holy Trinity

We experience the effects of the Trinity in our relationship with God and others.

He is the One Who chose a people for Himself, creating us, redeeming us in Christ, and sanctifying us continually through the Holy Spirit.

And so we call God our Father, as Christ joins us to Him, so that we become heirs of the promises, sharing in the hardships of relationship with Him and the responsibility to work out the salvation He grants us through living holy lives, as we hope to share in His Glory.

May 21, 2018: Feast of Mary, Mother of the Church

I was part of history in the making today:  I attended Mass at St. Leonard's Parish in Berwyn, IL, where this feast was celebrated for the first time since Pope Francis recently decreed it would be annually celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost.

Indeed, the celebration of the Risen Lord continues as we partake of this new way to engage with our faith through this newly-established feast.

Something Father Alex said in his homily at Mass I think speaks to the heart of this feast:  Mary is the Mother of Jesus Christ.  Christ is the Head of the Body, which is the Church.  Mary is the Mother of the Church because she can't just be the mother of the head, but the entire Body.

Indeed, the scene at the Cross is so moving in which Christ designates Mary as John's mother, which speaks to the special role Mary has a special role for those of us Who are in Christ:  She offers her intercession for us to her Son, as we strive in our journey to grow closer to God through Christ by living faithfully as members of His body, the Church, which was brought to Life through the Holy Spirit, the continued presence of the Risen and Living Christ.

May 20, 2018: Pentecost Sunday

Following in the spirit of Paschal Joy we experienced on Resurrection Sunday, when we celebrated Christ Alive and Risen, we now rejoice in the Life we have been given through the power of the Holy Spirit, the promise of the Risen Christ and the evidence of His continued Presence among us.

The Life of the Risen Jesus becomes manifest in ordinary people when the Holy Spirit descends upon the disciples and births the Church.  The Spirit is manifest in many different gifts in different people, but they all are empowered by the Spirit with certain gifts to proclaim the reality of God alive among us, for His Glory.

No longer are we weak, scared, and cut off.  As is described in the account in John 20, God truly brings His people alive by breathing into them the breath that enables the gifts in them, and sustains them in the peace of the Risen Christ.

This weekend marks my 5-year anniversary of graduating with my Bachelor's degree.  Throughout my four years of college, I grew so much in faith.  It was fitting I marked my graduation on Pentecost weekend that year, just as I do this year.  On that weekend in 2013, just as I did this year, I proclaimed the passage from Acts 2.  I think about this even as I celebrate how the Holy Spirit has worked in my life and brought me alive.

May 13, 2018: Ascension Sunday

We continue the spirit of Paschal Joy as we celebrate another aspect of Christ's glorification, when He ascended to Heaven to the throne at the right hand of God the Father, another sign of His triumphant Glory.

And we rejoice that we, too, will follow Him, experiencing glorification with Him, which we have even now.  He is with us always, working with us to display great signs of His goodness in the world as we are empowered by the gifts He gives us, especially His living, real presence, as we proclaim the Good News to all the world.

Father Bob talked about this day's occasion so well in his homily.  In fact, there was such a strong celebratory spirit pervading Mass today, reminding me of the exuberance of Resurrection Sunday.  While celebrating that joyful day, I had this yearning to put forth that joy into other days, as it cannot be contained in one day.  The celebration of the Ascension helped me see how the joy of the Resurrection continues on.  And when I mentioned this to Father Bob after Mass, he remarked this joy and glory is the reason for our celebration throughout the whole year.  Indeed, we can celebrate the glory of Christ joyfully each day, because His Glory is present with us always.

May 6, 2018: Sixth Sunday of Easter

God shows His love for in sending His Son to cleanse us from sin and to experience Eternal Life.

He chose us to experience this Life now, appointing us to the task of bearing fruit as we live out the Love He first showed us.

It is a Love that encompasses all people as God sends His Spirit through all people, doing marvelous works to draw us to Him, as He does astoundingly by anointing Cornelius and his household with the Holy Spirit.  (It was just like the scene I saw 9 years ago today when my cousin Josh was confirmed along with a large number of others at his parish, which happened after I heard this passage from Acts proclaimed by one the Confirmation students.)

Let us rejoice in these Easter days and beyond that God chose us to be part of this work of bearing fruit, and sharing this mission with those all over the world.

April 29, 2018: Fifth Sunday of Easter

Jesus is the True Vine, providing His abundant Life, which is the sole means for us to bear fruit that will last for His Glory.

We remain in Him so that we will bear fruit and glorify Him, through His Spirit Who empowers us to show the Love He has first shown us.  We show Love in action and truth, as God's Life, through the Spirit, flows forth into us.

As we bear fruit and show His Love, we boldly proclaim Him before all the world, just like Saul did after his radical transformation, demonstrating the true power of God.

27 years ago on the Fifth Sunday of Easter, April 28, I experienced the Paschal Mystery in dying and rising to Christ's Life in the waters of baptism.  I celebrate that occasion throughout this weekend, which is special not only for what happened that day, but for what has happened on the journey that has taken place since that day, as I have grown as a disciple and born fruit for His Glory.

April 22, 2018: Fourth Sunday of Easter/Good Shepherd Sunday

Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd Who willingly lays down His life for us, His Sheep.  Though He was the stone rejected by the builders, He has become the cornerstone of the Church, for in laying down His life and taking it up again, He becomes the guide for us into Eternal Life.

By dying and rising again for us, He has named us His own, His children, who encompass a wide variety of people, each of us compelled to share the power of the Good Shepherd's love for others.  He draws us to Himself, and we radiate His glory as we proclaim by our lives Who He is as our Godo Shepherd.

April 15, 2018: Third Sunday of Easter

The prophets foretold that Jesus would die, and then rise again from death.  It is through His Death and Resurrection that we experience forgiveness of sins, and can repent of wrong ways to live righteously, as His living presence in us, the Holy Spirit, perfects His love in us.

God truly shines a glorious Light on humanity, bringing us fully alive:  Indeed, Christ Resurrected in the fullest sense, in both spirit and body.  Now the whole of our beings is destined for Heaven, which allows us to be alive more fully even now, motivated in love to care for ourselves, and all in Creation, because of the new Life that pervades us.

April 9, 2018: Feast of the Annunciation

How fitting to have snow falling on this Monday morning in Chicagoland, as we celebrate when the angel Gabriel came to announce she would be the one to give birth to Jesus, the Son of God.

We see in Mary a great example of trust, giving her yes to God, in spite of the challenges.  But her yes was the way by which God advanced His victory in conquering sin, and making mercy possible for us through the Savior she bore.  Just as is spoken of in the Second Reading from 1 John the day before this feast, as we offer a yes to God, we bring forth the faith that conquers the world, as we open ourselves to how God will unfold His plan in our lives.

April 8, 2018: Second Sunday of Easter/Divine Mercy Sunday

In the Gospel reading, Jesus, now alive and risen from the dead, breathes new Life into the disciples, drawing them out of fear and filling them with His peace.  Mercy is an important theme we encountered in Lent, and we encounter it again this day in the presence of our Living Savior.

For Thomas, the news of the Risen Jesus stirs Him to express His doubt, rather than passively assenting to some idea.  And Jesus's appearance to him summons forth an amazing declaration of faith.

In the first reading from Acts, we see the continued effect of the Risen Jesus in a community of people who experience unity in Him, and share His love with one another by meeting each other's needs.

The Risen Jesus is truly alive and active in our midst, summoning forth great faith.  As we take the steps to acclaim true faith, we experience the victory of the Resurrection in our lives, because we are living the commandments Jesus gave us to show Love and mercy to one another, based on the reality of His death and resurrection.

April 1, 2018: Resurrection Sunday

We've made it:  Our Lenten journey has culminated in this great feast of joy as we celebrate Christ, Who once was dead, now raised from death and living victoriously.  We share in this victory because we are now free from the curse of Sin and Death.

Indeed, the world has totally been changed by the Resurrection.  Even the beloved disciple sensed something had happened when he saw the empty tomb and the burial clothes, which led him to believe.

We now focus our gaze upward, because by the Resurrection, Heaven is our destiny.  But we don't have to wait for Heaven to experience the fullness of new Life:  Christ has transformed us so we live it now, evidenced in how we proclaim the Paschal Mystery of His death and Resurrection.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

March 31, 2018: Holy Saturday Easter Vigil

As we progress through the Vigil Mass to the Gospel of Gospels, we see that God has created us to be very special.  That is why He went to such great lengths to save us from sins so that we could be brought back into a full relationship with Him.

We are now in the newness of Life brought to us by the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.

March 30, 2018: Friday of the Cross

We adore Christ and honor Him for His death upon the Cross:  He was obedient to the Father, not turning back from the purpose for which He came, that He would testify to the Truth, and die because of Love for us.  Through His obedience unto suffering, He became the source of salvation for all who believe in Him.

March 29, 2018: Maundy Thursday

God established a covenant with His people as He freed them from slavery in Egypt.

In Jesus Christ, God establishes a New Covenant to free us from sin through the offering of the Son, Who gives of Himself to us as an expression of the Love of God, which He now commands us to show to one another.

We constantly remember His love as we partake of the Eucharist, doing it in memory of Him, and going forth to share that love always with others, as we give of ourselves like Christ did.

March 25, 2018: Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion

The crowds lining the way into Jerusalem acclaim Jesus.

And St. Paul writes that Jesus has been exalted by God, because He offered Himself, suffering and dying in the most awful way, that we would be saved from sin.

So while Christ agonized over His coming suffering and death in the Garden of Gethsemane, He entrusted Himself to God, in the spirit of the suffering servant in Isaiah 50.

And so we join with Christ in entrusting ourselves to God in the face of all suffering, because we recognize how God can bring redemption out of it.  And we move beyond the acclamations that the crowd offered to expressing true faith like the centurion at the crucifixion, noting that before us on the Cross is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, Who, by suffering and dying, has brought us back into relationship with God.  We obediently open ourselves to God, like Mary did on the day of the Annunciation by Gabriel, and let God work marvelously.

March 18, 2018: Fifth Sunday of Lent

The Gospel passage from St. John this Sunday is a scene in the days leading up to Jesus's Crucifixion.  Although Jesus is troubled, He knows that His Crucifixion is the purpose for which God sent Him, and by which God will be glorified.  He suffered greatly, as Hebrews writes, and became the source of salvation who also submit themselves to the will of God for them. 

We submit ourselves to God, know that in this New Covenant, established by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, God cleanses our hearts from sin, and puts His law within us, on our hearts, as we truly hear Him speak.  Indeed, we experience such closeness with Him, and with purified hearts, follow in His way, paying whatever price we must, so that we may accomplish His purposes for us, and glorify Him.

March 11, 2018: Fourth Sunday of Lent/Laetare Sunday

Though we have sinned and turned away from God, the Good News is that He still, full of compassion, seeks after us, just as He did for His people Israel in ancient days, that they would be restored.  He is not out to condemn us.

God so loves us, that He sent Jesus Christ to save us.  We are not saved by what we do, but by entrusting ourselves to His grace, and so we are poised to do great works in Him.

So, now by this grace, the Light is here.  Let's not face condemnation by continuing in ways of darkness.  Let's head into the light, embracing the ways of God, and be so transformed in that Light, that we carry that light and grace to a world so in need of it.

March 4, 2018: Third Sunday of Lent

In presenting the Ten Commandments, God showed His people how to be in right relationship with Him and others.  In fact, He offers so much commentary in the first three commandments that describe Who God is.

In our new covenant now, we strive for right relationship with God because of Christ, Who by His Paschal Mystery, in dying and rising, provided us the sign of God's presence among us.  He is the One to Whom we should turn, because His death by crucifixion is the power of God to cleanse us of unrighteousness and save us, above all human efforts to do so.

We turn from simply following rules to be inwardly righteous in our hearts before God as He purifies us to be temples of His presence in our world.

February 25, 2018: Second Sunday of Lent

God shows the measure of His Love for us in giving of His Son, so that we might have Life in Him.

This giving of the Son is prefigured in the story of when God called Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, but then stopped him right as the knife was to go down, because He saw how devoted he was to God, to the point of not even withholding his son.  And so Abraham became the Father of the people of God.  All the nations of the Earth find blessing in Abraham's descendents, which included Jesus.

We have hope because this man Jesus was the Son of God.  We see in Him that God is truly for us, because He did not spare even His own Son.  God gave a glimpse of the glory of His Son in the Transfiguration, so we could see Jesus as God does, and acknowledge Him as the One.  As His people, we find our identity in Him, and see ourselves as God sees us.  We turn from our own ways, mired in sin, toward God, listening to Him as He directs our ways to Eternal Life in Him.

February 18, 2018: First Sunday of Lent

In the early days of the Church, someone desiring to join would go through a lengthy process of preparation, which would intensify in a 40-day period before Easter, at which the initiation sacraments would happen.

This 40-day period of time has since become the liturgical season of Lent, and the reading and symbols often speak to baptism and what it means to be in relationship with God.

We see baptism as a major theme in the readings.  After flooding the Earth, God establishes a covenant between Himself and all living beings and even the Earth itself, promising never to destroy the Earth again.  St. Peter in the 2nd reading writes about how the flood prefigures baptism, which is not removing dirt from the body physically, "but an appeal to God for a clear conscience."

Lent is our opportunity in the desert space, where we come to understand who we are, to turn away from what is wrong and toward what is right, and what brings us closer to relationship with the God Who loves us.  Even Jesus gives us an example in the temptations He faces in the desert to turn away from sin and toward a right relationship with God.  It's fitting that His first proclamation after finishing His time in the wilderness is a call to turn toward God and grow closer in a relationship to which He invites us with Himself.

February 14, 2018: Ash Wednesday

There have been many news stories this week about death, leading much credence to the statement, "Remember you are dust, and to dust you will return."

In faith, though, we know that God allows us to live life abundantly, so we don't have to resign ourselves to a meaningless existence and simply becoming dust.

As Ash Wednesday coincides with St. Valentine's Day, we remember how God poured out His Love for us in Jesus Christ, Who died, so we could live that abundant life.

Lent is our opportunity to respond to that Love from our hearts, turning toward Him, and seeking to grow in relationship with Him.

Now is our chance, now is our time, because God is here before us, inviting us into the way of salvation and new life.

February 11, 2018: 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time

Jesus shows a new way by reaching out to heal a leper, who was otherwise cast out of society as one unclean, according to stipulations laid out in the Mosaic law, which we hear in the 1st reading.  Lepers also were under a cloud that somehow their conditions was a sign of punishment by God.

Jesus cleanses all of us from sin and what holds us down so that we can live life vibrantly and abundantly.  And He extends to us a share in His mission, being imitators of Him as we reach out to include others, too, and allow them to experience His vibrant healing touch.

February 4, 2018: 5th Sunday of Ordinary Time

Job expresses a reality that we all encounter at one time or another, that life is full of drudgery, miserable and restless.

But God has stepped into that reality in Jesus Christ, showing us that God has come to heal the brokenhearted, as He heals many people in the Gospel reading.  One commentary I read noted that He was not afraid to touch Simon's mother-in-law, even though she was sick, and once He helped her up, the fever left her and she served them.  God raises us up from what holds us down, and gives us purpose in life, to serve others in His Name.  St. Paul speaks of living out this purpose, being devoted to proclaiming the Gospel as a means of service to others.

I couldn't help but think about this as I watched the latest episode of the Masterpiece program Victoria, entitled "Faith, Hope, and Charity".  The Irish people suffered greatly because of the famine that overtook the land due to the potato crop failure, and many people wanted them to languish and die in this miserable existence, largely because they were Roman Catholic.  But many, including Dr. Traill and Queen Victoria herself, showed great courage in wanting to look past denominational divides and help them.  This is truly our call, to show love in service to one another, regardless of who they are, as God has so loved us.

February 2, 2018: Candlemas

This Feast hearkens back to 40 days ago when we celebrated the Nativity of the Lord.

At the Temple, Mary was purified and Jesus was presented as her firstborn son, dedicated to the Lord--just as He was dedicated to the Lord as the Messiah.

Simeon praises God for allowing him to see the Messiah, and lauds this child as the One Who shall be Light and Glory for Israel and all the world, since, as Messiah, He is the One chosen to be the sacrifice to bring salvation.

He is the One we look to for salvation, the One Who brings the Light of God's presence to our world and our hearts.

January 28, 2018: 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time

When God came to His people at Mount Sinai, His arrival was so terrifying the people couldn't stand to face Him, seeking someone to speak for Him instead.

And so Moses announces that God would send a prophet to speak His words to His people--and we see that prophet in Jesus Christ.  He came as fully God and fully man, so that He could approach people and engage with them.

And as the Gospel reading from Mark mentions multiple times, He came with authority in teaching and even commanding unclean spirits, so that they would come out of people, rather than those people's being forced to withdraw from the synagogue community.  This authority came because He is the Word of God Himself.

Now that God is here, it's time for us to take note of the words He speaks to us, not hardening our hearts, but focusing on being devoted to God in the lives we live.  By opening ourselves to Him, we experience the healing that leads to the fullness of Life, because the Word Jesus speaks by His authority transforms us fully through and through, even to transforming the whole world.

January 21, 2018: 3rd Sunday of Ordinary Time

There is an urgency in recognizing the presence of God among us, an urgency to act by turning toward Him.

We see this urgency in the reading from Jonah, as he proclaims the message that God will punish them for their sins.  We sense it in Jesus's proclamation that the Kingdom of God is at hand.  And it's in St. Paul's words to act in a different way because the world as we know it is passing away, with a new world coming.

Certainly, the disciples must have sensed something powerful in this new world that is coming, as they left their work to follow Jesus.  I can't help but notice how the text says John and James left their father Zebedee in the boat with the "hired men".  It makes me think about the story of the prodigal son, who, upon coming to his senses after falling into a dire state, decided to go to his father and have him treat him like a hired servant.

Here we see the first disciples following in the way of God, embracing the call to be in a relationship with the Father.

Let us take after their example, and act upon the presence of God that is coming to us, and follow after Him, like the disciples did, embracing this new way of life.

January 14, 2018: 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

What a powerful image there is in the 1st reading:  After Samuel's confusion is put to rest by Eli, the text of 1 Sameul says "God revealed His presence".

In our recent celebrations of the Christmas Season, we remember how God revealed His presence to us in Christ.  Now with that Presence here, He calls us to enter into a new way of Life, to "come and see" Who He is.  And then we offer ourselves to Him, dedicating our lives to abiding in His way, and extending His invitation.

During the recent Christmas Season was the Feast of the Holy Family, in which we recall how God entered into our world into a family, demonstrating the importance of relationships, which bring us to new Life, just as Andrew invited Simon to encounter the Messiah, and have a relationship with Jesus.

In this encounter, God transforms us, as He gave Simon a new name, and so sends us forth to a life of offering ourselves to Him.

January 8, 2018: Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

The reading from the prophet Isaiah speaks about how God's Word goes forth and accomplishes His purposes.

Since Jesus is the Word Made Flesh, we see that He goes forth resolutely to accomplish God's will, even going so far as to undergo a baptism of repentance to identify Himself with sinners, to bring God close to us, so we could come close to Him, becoming His children.

Jesus pleased the Father by fulfilling His will through baptism.  So as baptized people, we are called to fulfill God's will for us, as we come together as His Body.

January 7, 2018: Epiphany Sunday

God has come to reveal His presen in our world through Jesus Christ, His Only Begotten Son.

The Magi demonstrate the kind of response that this revelation compels of us, namely to seek Him out, following the light of the revelations, or Epiphany/Epiphanies, God offers to us.  And then we enter His presence to offer our gifts, most especially ourselves, as we dedicate ourselves to living for Him, and spreading the Good  News of the reality that He is present with us always in the difficulties of the world.

Indeed, Christ was born to save all people throughout the world, as the Gentile Magi show by their coming to adore Christ, just as the Isaiah reading and the Psalm 72 response picture nations streaming toward Israel because of the Light granted her.

So may we rise up to embrace the Light God brings us, hold it in our hearts, and offer ourselves back to Him as we shine that Light.

January 1, 2018: Feast of Mary, Mother of God

We spend this Christmas Season beholding the great miracle of the Incarnation, by which God has come to be present to us in Jesus, born of a woman, and so redeemed us--as says His name, "Yahweh saves", given to Him by the angel, who declared His purpose before birth.  Indeed, in Jesus, God's face shines upon us, and we know the blessing of God, because we come face to face with God in Jesus, Who forever makes Him present to us, and invites us to grow in relationship with Him.

That is why we join with the Shepherds to encounter His presence and rejoice in those encounters.  We also follow in the example of Mary, who, as Father Hurlbert insightfully indicated in his homily this morning at Mass, reflected on this mystery in her heart as she pondered the child she held in her arms.