From the Pastor – June 9, 2024

Summoning them, he began to speak to them in parables, “How can Satan drive out Satan? If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand; that is the end of him.” Mk 3:23-26) Today’s Gospel tells us that the devil is not divided. In the earlier part of Mark’s third chapter, Jesus had been curing people and performing exorcisms, and He had incurred the wrath of the Pharisees by curing the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath. Mark specifically tells us that “[t]he Pharisees went out and immediately took counsel with the Herodians against him to put him to death.” So several of Jesus’ relatives came to … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – June 2, 2024

While they were eating, He took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is my body.” Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, and they all drank from it. He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many.” (Mk 14:22-24) Today’s Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ (“Corpus Christi” in Latin) is a fairly recent addition to the Church calendar, dating from only the 13th century. We know that the Body and Blood of Christ are present at every Mass, but this special feast to honor the Body and Blood of Christ owes its existence to the petitions of a Belgium nun named Juliana of Liège from the 13th century. From a young age, Juliana had a great love for the Blessed Sacrament and longed for a special … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – May 26, 2024

The eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had ordered them. When they all saw him, they worshiped, but they doubted. Then Jesus approached and said to them, “All power in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age.” (Mt 28:16-20) Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity. In the early days of the Church there was no special day to honor the Holy Trinity, but that changed in the 3rd century when the Church was confronted with one of the first great heresies: Arianism. Although this heresy would seem … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – May 19, 2024

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” (John 20:21-23) In the context of the season of Easter, it was only 53 days ago that the apostles were gathered together in the Upper Room for the Last Supper. Jesus instituted the Eucharist, and fed them His Body and Blood. He made them priests by commanding them to “do this in memory of me.” He washed their feet and instructed them about true service. But what happened when they left the Upper Room that first time? They ran away like scattered sheep without a shepherd. Judas sold Him for 30 pieces of silver. Peter denied … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – May 12, 2024

Lord Jesus, after he spoke to them, was taken up into heaven and took his seat at the right hand of God. But they went forth and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the word through accompanying signs. (Mark 16:19-20) Today we celebrate the Feast of the Ascension, which is the elevation of Christ into heaven by His own power in the presence of His disciples. In Sacred Scripture, this occurred on the fortieth day after the Resurrection – which was actually last Thursday, traditionally called “Ascension Thursday.” However, the celebration of the Ascension has been moved to Sunday to encourage a more active participation in the Feast. With all of the new TSA rules, I guess Jesus’ flight got delayed for three days! The Ascension was prophesized by … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – May 5, 2024

Then Peter proceeded to speak and said, “In truth, I see that God shows no partiality. Rather, in every nation whoever fears him and acts uprightly is acceptable to him.” (Acts 10:34-35) One of the most interesting scenes in the Acts of the Apostles involves a vision of St. Peter where he saw Heaven opened and something like a large sheet coming down containing all the earth’s four-legged animals, reptiles and birds of the sky. A voice told Peter to “slaughter and eat.” Since many of the animals were considered “ritually unclean” according to the Levitical law, Peter refused to eat, saying “I have never eaten anything profane and unclean.” The voice responded, “What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.” This vision happened three times. On one hand, this vision is the … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – April 28, 2024

Children, let us love not in word or speech but in deed and truth. Now this is how we shall know that we belong to the truth and reassure our hearts before him in whatever our hearts condemn for God is greater than our hearts and knows everything. (1 Jn 3:18-20) In the Gospel this weekend Jesus speaks of being the vine, our being the branches, and the Father being the vine grower. We are called to be attached to the vine and to bear much fruit. But the Church also gives us the second reading from the First Letter of St. John, which helps us to understand what “bearing fruit” entails. It’s in loving. And loving is something that is more properly done in “deed and truth” rather than in “word or speech.” This isn’t to say that telling people you love them is a bad thing, but love doesn’t … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – April 21, 2024

Jesus said: “I am the good shepherd, and I know mine and mine know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I will lay down my life for the sheep.” (Jn 10:14-15) This week is the Fourth Sunday in Easter, and it is traditionally known as “Good Shepherd Sunday” because of the Gospel reading today in which Jesus describes Himself as the Good Shepherd. We’re all familiar with the images: Jesus standing, staff in hand, with the lamb across his shoulders. We have a beautiful stained-glass image of this in the stairway leading up to the choir loft. In fact, it’s the screensaver on my phone! Or perhaps we think of Jesus sitting under a tree – a little lamb on his lap. These are beautiful images, but they are incomplete. For thousands of years, the Jewish people have used the … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – March 31, 2024

Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory. Col. 3:2-4 One year while I was living in Rome, my parents came to visit me during the last week of Lent. Since my Dad is a permanent deacon, he sat next to me on the altar when we celebrated Mass at the beautiful church of St. Alphonsus near St. Mary Major where the original image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help is enshrined. As it came time to read the Gospel, my Dad came and asked for a blessing, after which then he began to solemnly intone “Al-le-luia! Al-le-luia! Al-le-luia!” I quietly said: “Shhh! We don’t say that now. It’s Lent!” He quickly whispered that since we were celebrating a … [Read more...]

From the Pastor – March 24, 2024

At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three o'clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” which is translated, "My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?" Some of the bystanders who heard it said, “Look, he is calling Elijah.” One of them ran, soaked a sponge with wine, put it on a reed and gave it to him to drink saying, “Wait, let us see if Elijah comes to take him down.” Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.. (Lk. 23:44-46) “Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion” begins Holy Week. If it has been a while since you have experienced all of the services of Holy Week, consider doing so this year. Commemorating the events of the Lord’s Suffering and Death help us to have a greater understanding of the importance of the … [Read more...]