Teach What You Believe: Recent Episodes
Deacon Jim Knipper
The Synoptic Gospel writes all give us the story of the institution of the Eucharist – the story of Jesus gathering his disciples at table: blessing, breaking and giving them bread and asking them to do the same thing over and over again and…to remember him. But some 20 or so years later, when John takes pen to paper, he doesn’t write anything about the Last Supper, rather he gives us this Bread of Life Discourse which we have listened to these past few weeks. So why did John make this substitution of stories? After all, what could be more important than Eucharist? Check it out…
Countless volumes have been written trying to explain the mystery of three persons in one true God, leaving us to resort to metaphors such as the three-leaf clover to try to comprehend the Divinity. Many of us grew up with the quintessential pyramidal Trinity structure of God at the top and Son and Spirit in opposite corners. But what if we looked at this ‘mystery’ from a different perspective? What if we shifted our language of God as a being towards the concept of God as love? What if we focused more on the relationship within the Trinity versus the persons of the Trinity? What if stopped looking at God as a noun…and instead considered God as a verb? Check it out…
This weekend we heard the famous biblical story of Abraham and his son Isaac, and the angel who stopped Abraham at the last minute from sacrificing his son as God had ordered. While this passage demonstrates Abraham’s unbelievable faith in God – it is a story whose ending is often missed. An ending which turns this story upside down and changes how that culture – and we – need to see God so differently. What is this surprise twist? And how does it impact our spiritual journey? Check it out…
For the past 12 days we have heard the stories of the birth of Jesus Christ as God incarnate indeed good news of great joy all people. So, on this Feast of the Epiphany of the Lord we celebrate Jesus revealed as the Christ Child to the magi, who arrive by the light of the star. Every year we listen to this well-known Gospel story of the journey of the magi who pay homage to the Christ Child. But today I invite you to just focus on two lines that appear in the Gospel. What are they? Check it out because…as you will you see, any interaction with this Jesus the Christ, no matter where or how it happens, will change your own journey.
Today we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family…and tomorrow the Solemnity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. And I like the fact that this Feast comes hours before the Solemnity for it allows us to really look at how this God incarnate, born of the Blessed Virgin Mary…this Christ Child…this God who came into the world in a family that had its heart and its doors open to love – connects to our daily life and our families. It was Pope Francis who reminded us that, “The family is important, as it is necessary for the survival of humanity. Without the family, the cultural survival of the human race would be at risk. The family. Whether we like it or not, is the foundation.”
In a society where all too often we can easily fall prey to the notion of separating the secular and the sacred, and we close our eyes to what is sacramental, what does it take to build that foundation?
Check it out…
With the calendar only providing us 3 full weeks of Advent, how have you been spending your time? What, perhaps have you been seeing…or feeling or doing differently? For Advent calls us to be conscious, awake, alert. Advent calls us to be open to how Christ comes to us every day. Advent calls for our participation by opening our eyes to our own brokenness and that of humanity. For Christ is there…just waiting and wanting our active participation. This week’s Gospel provides us three points which may lead us to a better understanding of what we are called to do moving from this briefest 4th week of Advent into Christmas and the New Year. What are they? Check it out….
As we each walk through this season of Advent, we may just find ourselves in some form of wilderness, thirsting for peace, reconciliation and healing – and thus it’s a time we need to be alert, awake, watchful and vigilant to God’s presence. So, perhaps we take the lead from Isaiah where we spend time seeking how we can better “Prepare the way of the Lord”…of how we can look at the valleys, at the crookedness, and the rough places not just in the outside world, but also in our own hearts. What does that look like? Check it out…
Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe: to some degree I think the title of today’s feast day could miss the mark of its original purpose and design. For did you ever notice, nowhere in the Gospels does Jesus say to worship him, much less as a king – he simply said to follow him and to do as he does. The best description of all of this, across all the Gospels, appears in today’s reading of Matthew’s recording of Jesus’ last discourse which indicates kinship seems to be more important that kingship. What does that look like? Check it out…
Biblical scholars tell us that this Parable of the Ten Virgins was likely cobbled together from a few sources meant to drive home the message of always being prepared – a Gospel theme we will hear often between now and Christmas. But was does that mean to you and me? What does being prepared look like? And tapping into one of today’s Gospel metaphors, what is the oil that we need to be placing in our lamps? Check it out…
For the past few weeks, we have been listening to Jesus telling parables to the Chief Priests and Pharisees. For Jesus is attempting to get their attention to think differently, choose differently and to open their eyes to his teachings of the Kingdom of God. But they show no interest in listening to his teachings about love and compassion, much less inclusion. Thus, they look to corner Jesus into committing a crime of sedition and thus be crucified, by putting the question to Jesus if taxes should be paid to Caesar or not.
Perhaps a way to phrase this question in the present time would be: is our allegiance with the spiritual or the worldly? Where is our focus today? Since this story appears in all three Synoptic Gospels, this story carries a deeper and more significant message than a Gospel about just paying taxes. What is that hidden meaning? Check it out…
This Sunday we heard the conclusion of the Gospel story that began last week when Jesus said he would build his Church upon the rock of Peter. But a few lines later Jesus calls Peter, ‘Satan’ and he is told to get behind Christ and follow him. So how did Peter get it so right to the point where Jesus will use Peter as the foundation of his Church and then in the next moment Peter gets it so wrong as to be called Satan? The answer and, indeed our lesson, is rooted in the two types of thinking that we face every day. What are they? How do we distinguish them? Check it out…
The Surgeon General of the US, Dr. Vivek Murthy, just announced the ending of COVID-19 as a global emergency. But at the same time declared a new number one epidemic in our country today – one that affects 50 % of our population, and even higher for our kids. What is it? And how does that tie into the Gospel reading from John this Sunday? Check it out…
During these past weeks of Lent, our Gospels have focused on the quintessential theme of life, death and rebirth – or what some call order, disorder, and reorder. However you look at this universal pattern, one thing is for sure – there is no skipping the process. So, on this Good Friday, instead of just focusing on the cross that Christ died on – a death that was for us…what if we spent some time on the deaths that happen to us…to focus on our crosses and on our dying that needs to occur each day? What does that look like? Check it out…
This Sunday we heard the gospel that provides the longest dialogue recorded between Jesus and a woman. By breaking with social ‘norms’ Jesus reaches out with acceptance, self-worth and compassion to one who was socially outcast. For this is a Gospel story that teaches us, reminds us, encourages us that in the Kingdom of God there are no outcasts, there are no strangers, there are no us versus them, rather it is a kingdom of only repentant and welcomed sinners – people like you and me. But the core message of this gospel is hidden – and one that opens our eyes to what we already have. What is that? Check it out….
This weekend we hear in Matthew’s Gospel of John the Baptist sitting in a jail cell and wondering if he placed his bets on the wrong guy…questioning if the Lord is anywhere near to him. Then again, when we are faced with adversity, doubt, and loss how often have we questioned “Where is God?” and “Is the Lord anywhere near?” See how a street corner in Louisville and the wisdom of Thomas Merton may just open our eyes to see in a new way so that we can join in the chorus of Gaudete! Rejoice! on this 3rd Sunday of Advent.
This weekend we hear the parable of the widow and the judge. The Gospel writer begins with a summation that the parable talks “about the necessity for them to pray always without becoming weary.” But if we just left it there, we would miss the secondary and deeper meaning behind the story. What is it? Check it out…
The Gospel this weekend begins with the question that is asked a number of times across the gospels – and one that each of us may have asked in our own spiritual journey: “Lord, will only a few be saved? Or better said – who is going to heaven and who is going to hell?! To which Jesus answers: “Strive to enter through the narrow gate.” In those days the narrow gates were the side doors of the walled city where you could enter. They were less exposed and less visible allowing occupants to come and go inconspicuously.
So, what does the ‘narrow gate’ look like for you and me today? Once we figure that out, how does that begin to tell us who wins the ticket to heaven and who doesn’t? This complicated Gospel sounds more like a message of exclusion rather than inclusion. So, which is it and what does it mean for each of us? Check it out…
Luke speaks about prayer more than any of the other Evangelists…and in this weekend’s gospel we hear the disciples, asking Jesus to teach them how to pray and he responds with a simple version of the Lord’s Prayer. With prayer being so foundation to who we are, how do you pray? But the bigger question may have to do with how we view prayer. In other words, do we come to prayer as a transactional or a relational activity? Do we spend our time in prayer looking for something from God…or are we desiring a connection with God?
Leave it to my grandson Oliver to open my eyes to what prayer is really all about. Check it out and see what I mean…
Hindered by our language many have resorted to using metaphors to describe the Trinity such as a 3-leaf clover or a harmonic cord. But what if we stopped looking at God as a noun and considered God as a verb? Early Christians described the Trinity as a dance, where God is not the dancer – rather God is the dance itself. See what I mean…
As we gather on this Feast of Pentecost our Scripture focuses on the “what’s next” in our call to discipleship. What does “being sent” & discipleship look like for each of us? What are we called to do and not to do? So how can an African parable, a saintly doorkeeper, a foot massager, and college basketball player help point us to the way, the truth and the light? See what I mean…
If we look at the scripture that addresses the Ascension, it is no surprise that we find several conflicts across the Synoptic writers. But I believe it is John who gives us the line that opens up for us the best way to get to the deeper meaning of the Ascension, when Christ says, “it is good for you that I am going away. For unless I go away the Spirit cannot come to you.” In essence, Jesus seems to be making a connection between absence and presence - that it is necessary for absence to take place before we can be opened to presence. For this Feast Day really teaches us so much more about our life and about our loving God. What is it really all about? Check it out…
In this Sunday’s readings we heard that John saw a “new heaven and a new earth…for the old order has passed away…and He makes all things new.” This sense of ‘making all things’ new appears over twenty times throughout the Bible, with a reminder of our need to let go of our past, to allow room for the new – but what is this ‘’new thing”? And why is it so important that Jesus commands it?! Check it out and see how Ronald Rolheiser, Desmond Tutu and my grandchildren come at this from different angles to shed light on what we are called to do – which will allow us to transfigure the world!
I invite you to just focus on the God encounter that takes place in the Gospel story of the Transfiguration. It is when God appears in the form of a cloud which casts a shadow over those gathered – a cloud that, although frightens them, they still entered. What about the darkness and clouds that we face in our lives? For it these types of God encounters where lives are changed - encounters that break you open and rearrange what you think you knew and wanted.
So, take a few minutes to enjoy a few stories that have nothing to do with answers - but more so with encounters. Stories about hiker Trevor Thomas, Franciscan Richard Rohr and my recently departed brother-in-law Vincent – all which, like this Gospel, just may bring light into the darkness you face. Check it out…
If I go back some twenty or so years, I remember our family and friends gathering back in my wife’s hometown for many weddings, baptisms, and other sacraments. But as time has moved on and age begins to creep up on our generation, it seems that recently we have gathered all too often to mourn the death of one of our loved ones.
And so, this afternoon we remember the life and the love of Vincent. And while Vincent was physically and emotionally dis-abled – when it came to love he had the capacity to be very ‘able’ indeed. Being in the season of Lent while writing this homily gave me reason to pause and to believe that in some respect I think Vincent had an advantage over most, if not all of us.
What was that advantage…and how did he impact the lives around him? Check it out…
On this Thanksgiving Day, as our country and our world continue to climb out of this pandemic, which has gone on far too long, what does “giving thanks” look like? St. Paul gave us all a model called the paradox of gratitude. Why a paradox? And how can a true and personal story of the actions of a small Mennonite Community, post Hurricane Agnes, shed some light on how we are called to actively live a life of gratitude? Check it out…
This Sunday we brought to a close Ordinary Time of our Liturgical season and through the year we have walked through the Gospel of Mark, using the Sunday gospels learning how to see as God sees. But the question remains whether we have allowed the words to help us see any better? In his latest book release, Fr. Greg Boyle, SJ reminds us that we need to see as a Mystic sees. Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner said, “The Christian of the future will either be a mystic – or (s)he will cease to be anything at all.” We are all called to be mystics? What does that even mean or look like today? Check it out…
We hear this Sunday the story of Jesus healing the blind man Bartimaeus. On the surface this seems to be just an extraordinary story that attests to the divinity of Christ. But the Bible gives us so many stories of Jesus opening the eyes of those who are blind, there must be more – and there is. To see the deeper meaning of this Gospel will require us to have our eyes opened in a whole new way. What does that look like? Check it out…
This Sunday we hear the Gospel of the rich young man, who has followed all of the rules and regulations of his faith, asking Jesus what more does he need to do in order to gain Eternal Life. After all isn’t that what we are all seeking? But it is the wrong question any of us should be asking! What is the right question? And what is the one key word in the response that Jesus gives, that provides us guidance for our own lives? Check it out!
This weekend we hear the Gospel passage recounting Jesus’ journey with his disciples on a 25-mile hike to the region of Caesarea Philippi just so he could put forth one question to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?” And Peter gets it so right…and then gets it so wrong as Jesus calls him Satan. So why the hike to that area? And what is so telling about the dialogue between Jesus and Peter that it just may change the inner voice we currently listen to and therefore greatly alter how we act in the everyday situations of our lives. Check it out…
This weekend’s Gospel brings to a close a 3-part story that we have been listening to these past weeks focused on discipleship, evangelization...and rest. But when Jesus takes his disciples off to a deserted place, he finds that many of the followers have taken a short cut on land and have arrived at his destination before him. So, what to do? How to respond? And what does this Gospel show us about the importance of downtime? Maybe some wisdom from Ron Rolheiser, John of the Cross and my dad may bring some light to all of this! Check it out…
The Gospel this weekend has the 12 disciples being sent out to spread the Good News. So, imagine how these disciples were feeling – for they just witnessed Christ being rejected by those who knew him best. So, other than witnessing the words and actions of Christ, they had no real ministerial religious training – and it was certainly long before any dogma and doctrines were ever thought of. For the most part they were simple fishermen – but all called by Christ to be his chosen ones to spread the Good News – and do this by having encounters with others. For true encounters allow us to go directly to the heart of humanity. But the question remains, “How can we better reach this “heart” today?” Check it out…
We all have some degree of fear – what does yours look like? A recent poll shows that our top current fears are rooted in COVID, gun violence, health and politics. This weekend’s Gospel of Jesus calming the waters is all about Jesus confronting his disciples about their fear. Why? Because fear has a way of controlling our emotions and leading us to actions that are unloving. For the opposite of fear is not bravery. The opposite of fear is love. Check it out and see what I mean…
This weekend we heard from Mark’s Gospel two parables of what the Kingdom of God is like. The challenge many Christians have is that we mistakenly think that the Kingdom of God is “eternal life”, or it is where we go when we die. But actually, the Kingdom of God is here and at hand…and it must continue through us, with us, in us and frankly despite us. How? By planting Gospel-based seeds. What does that mean? Check it out…
The Feast of the Ascension brings to mind all the historic art that shows Jesus ascending upward on a cloud, with the disciples looking towards heaven. It makes for great art and reflects the cosmology of those times, but if we stop there, we totally miss the whole concept of what the Ascension means to you and me today. So what is that? Check it all out…
The Gospel tells us that the disciples had no idea what ‘risen from the dead’ even meant. Do we? Wisdom from Pope Francis…and from children in an African tribe may just open our eyes in a new way so that we can better see how we are connected in our call to make all things new. And that Easter tells us that through the life, death and resurrection of Christ, love wins out over death every time and therefore nothing dies forever and that all that has died in love will be reborn into an even larger love – into the Body of Christ. Check it out…
During this time of the pandemic, instead of focusing just on the cross that Christ died on – a death that was for us…what if we spent some time on the deaths that happen to us…to focus on our crosses and on our dying that needs to occur each day? In other words of the need to die to our egos, our strategies, our politics, and our prejudices. If not, then are we missing the point Christ was making when he called for us to carry our crosses? Check it out…
I was blessed to have just returned from spending three weeks with my nineteen-month-old granddaughter, Bloom. During our time together she retaught me one of the core lessons we need to be reminded of this Palm Sunday as we move into Holy Week. What did she do and what did she teach me? Check it out…
So, when there is so much turmoil, so much fear, so much uncertainty, so much unrest in our world and in our lives, it is easy to ask, “Where is this epiphany, this manifestation of the Lord?” I think the answer lies within two key lines of today’s Gospel. What are those lines? And why should we carry those lines with us each day? Check it out…
As a father and grandfather I really enjoy the celebration of the Feast of the Holy Family which allows us to look at how this God incarnate…this Christ Child…this God among us has a direct connection to our daily life and our family. Which raises questions like: How do we as a community of believers share the blessings from this table onto others? How can we help others see God in themselves? How do we bring the gift and graces from the altar table onto the table of our homes? Perhaps a story about a father, his daughter and Mr. Rodgers will shed some light... Check it out…
Luke, who wrote this Christmas narrative we hear every year, mentions twice that this baby was wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manager – and that this was a sign. And it is this sign that gives us a powerful message this night – a sign that breaks open the meaning of Christmas!
What is this sign? And what is Christmas really all about?
Check it out….
Over the past three weeks of Advent we have called to stay awake, to be alert, all the while listening and waiting and making straight our paths. So, what has your Advent been like during these times of the pandemic? Outside of marking the time by lighting the Advent candles each week, what, perhaps have you been seeing, feeling or doing differently this year?
Faced with all the challenges that have been brought upon us this past year, today’s Gospel gives us three points which may lead us to a better understanding of what we are called to do in our final days of Advent…and beyond.
Check it out…
This weekend we celebrate the First Sunday of Advent and the beginning of a new liturgical year. Once again, we hear from Mark’s Gospel and the need to be awake, alert and always watching? But what are we watching for…and whatever it is, could it be where we least expect to find it? And how can the story of two boys who run Cross Country Track – one of who is blind, help us to see in a new way?
Check it out...
“Many are invited, but few are chosen” is unfortunately one of the most misread, misunderstood and misused phrases in the Bible. Then again, so is the parable of the Wedding Banquet where the King acts with anger and vengeance on those who refuse his invitation to come to the wedding.
So what is the meaning hidden within this parable and how can we really look at what seems to be a line of exclusion at the end of the Gospel? Check it all out…
This weekend’s Gospel of the vineyard landowner paying a full day’s wages to those who worked all day as well as those who worked for only an hour has us often crying out, unfair…echoing all those times in our lives when we feel the same way – that life is just unfair.
While I still mourn the recent tragic death of my 3 year old grandson, it is he and my other three grandchildren who give me a continuing gift that allows me to better understand this Gospel…and how to better recognize God in our lives. What is that gift and what is the real meaning of this Gospel? Check it out!
In last week’s Gospel Peter got it so right to the point where Jesus will use Peter as the foundation of his Church and then in the next moment, we hear this week, Peter gets it so wrong as to be called Satan? Peter goes from a foundational rock – to a stumbling block.
So why the big swing with Peter? There seems to be competing voices going on in Peter’s head. So what does this mean to us and the voice we need to be listening to each and every day? Check it out…
This weekend Jesus tells us through parables that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a sower who leaves weeds in his wheat…is like a mustard seed…and like yeast. So, what do these three parables have in common and, after all, what and where is the Kingdom of Heaven? And how does all this point to what we each need to be doing right now in our lives? Check it all out…
This Sunday we return to "Ordinary Time" but for the past 3 months, clearly nothing has been ordinary - forcing us to revisit what discipleship needs to look like. So, taking scripture and current events - what may we be missing in our lives that prevents us from living the Gospel?
It is every year during the first Sunday of Lent that we hear the familiar Gospel story of angels leading Jesus into desert to be tempted by Satan. What is interesting, is that the line immediately preceding this passage speaks of God’s love for his Son. It doesn’t seem like the way you would treat your son or daughter. So there must be a reason why the Gospel writer crafted this story of the three quintessential temptations of pride, privilege and power, to immediately follow the initiation of Jesus to his ministry. What point was Matthew trying to make and how does it relate to our Lenten journey?
Perhaps a true story of a dying college grad and his former college professor will shed light on all of this for us. Click and see what I mean…
Most if not all of us have likely been spending some time choosing some form of prayer, fasting and almsgiving that we will exercise this Lent. But maybe – just maybe – this might be the year we stretch ourselves so to choose to live, to see and to act differently in such a way that these 40 days of Lent may move us in a different direction than years past. A direction that has us living the marrow of the Gospel. But to do so, just may require us to revisit our image of God – the true image that we are created in. To really open our eyes as to who is this God that we so much believe in? So what does that all look like? Check it out…
On December 23, 2019, just after turning 93 years old, my father-in-law Peter Poloney died…joining with the Communion of Saints, with his beloved wife, Patricia, who died just months ago. It is not uncommon for a couple who spent so many years together to die within months of one another…as it was with Peter. So yesterday we laid Peter to rest – back at “home” with Patricia…together again to spend an eternity fishing, laughing and loving.
Their favorite past time of fishing reminded me of the passage from John, where Peter and his friends spend a day and evening fishing and catching nothing. With that, they received ‘fishing advice’ from the risen Jesus, who was on shore - advice which is actually key to all of us who continue to mourn the death of this beloved couple. See what I mean…
As we light our fourth Advent candle, this season of waiting and hoping and preparation comes quickly to close with Christmas just a few days away. All Advent we have sung Maranatha – which is Aramaic for – Our Lord has come. So how does living a life woven in the fabric of this season allow us to be aware of the Christ who in our lives right now? Perhaps John the Baptist, Joseph of Nazareth and Greta Thunberg can shed light on that answer. See what I mean…
This evening we bring our Liturgical Year to a close as we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King. But this feast day is really more about kinship than it is about kingship. Just look at the Gospels we have been given this past year. For Jesus was always eating with wrong people, at the wrong time, on the wrong day with non-Jews, and sinners, and ignoring all the purity codes that his religion required at that time. So if we are to follow Christ the King how do we practice kinship over kingship? Perhaps actor Mandy Patinkin sharing his favorite line from his 1987 classic movie, The Princess Bride, can shed some light on how we can best be like Christ the King. Check it out….
Certainly listening to today’s readings of apocalyptic literature, dealing with end times as well as the destruction of the temple may make some of us squirm a bit in our seats. But if you look carefully at when and why it was written you realize that this scripture is not about future events rather it is about imminent reality – the here and now. So where does our focus need to be? And what insight can theologian N.T. Wright provide which just may open our eyes to where God is present? Check it out…
This past weekend I had the honor to officiate the wedding of a longtime friend, Carole Moore, who has directed the Children’s Choir at our parish of St. Paul Church in Princeton for over 30 years. Having lost her husband and my dear friend to cancer some 10 years ago – it was one of the first funerals I served as a Deacon.
Allowing God to open her eyes, Carole met a wonderful man, John Wagner, whose 40 year marriage ended with the death of his wife from cancer a few years ago. With a combined 65 years of marriage to their former spouses, they came to this new union as people who have learned that marriage requires you to bear all things, believe all things, hope all things and endure all things in good times and bad…and certainly in sickness and in health. Their earlier marriages gave them knowledge and insight as well as a broken and mended heart. So walking alongside John and Carole this past year has been a blessing for me as I have had a front seat to witnessing their “seasoned love.” So let me tell you a bit of what that looks like…
I think one of hardest lessons we learn is that life and death always coexist. As was witnessed this past Friday when my mother-in-law’s 6th great-grandchild was born and by the end of the day her life in this world ended. Today, family and friends came together as we mourned her death and celebrated her life in the Mass of the Resurrection. I was Privileged to preach at her funeral...so listen to how in her final weeks she was able to open our eyes to what the Irish call the ‘thin places’ in life and the spiritual wisdom she left us to live by...
This weekend we are cautioned to, “Be prepared for at an hour you do not expect the Son of Man will come.” But if our only concern in life is all about just focusing on what we need to do in order to get into heaven, we are missing the whole point of the entire Gospel.
For the Divine Knock on the door just doesn’t happen before we take our last breath, rather it happens all the time – in unexpected ways with unexpected people. So if we cannot recognize the face of God here and now…how we will recognize that Presence when we die?
Check it out…
This week we hear that all-too-familiar gospel of Martha and Mary. The one with Martha running around and doing all the work while Mary remains seated at the foot of our Lord…and is told that Mary has chosen the better way. But this gospel is not one that was written necessarily to show that a contemplative life is superior to one that is filled with action….or that Jesus necessarily prefers prayer over the preparation of a meal. So what is the deeper meaning of this story? Check it out…
This weekend we celebrate the Feast of Corpus Christi and the Gospel provides us one of the six accounts of the multiplication of loaves and fishes – the only miracle recorded by all four Gospel writers. Maybe you have noticed the one line in the Gospel, which I have missed all these years. What is that line and why is it so important in yielding the key to unlock the meaning of this well told story – and thus of this Feast Day?
Check it out!
This weekend’s Gospel from John drops us in at the end of the Last Supper as Jesus gives his disciples a new commandment on how to live and love. The old directive was to ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ Jesus takes this up a few notches and says we are to love another as Christ loved us. So, what does that kind of love – depth of love – Christ centered love - look like?
Perhaps the easiest way to understand this is through stories by Parker Palmer, Jean Vanier and Greg Boyle. Take a listen to the invitation that is before us each and every day – of how we are called to “ventilate the world” with love, tenderness, compassion, forgiveness and mercy.
This weekend’s Gospel is the story of the adulterous woman who is about to be stoned with the scribes and the Pharisees having Jesus caught between a rock and a hard place (bad pun). We all know how the story ends – but what was Jesus really teaching those gathered in the Temple? Take a second look and you will find the deeper lesson of this Gospel – one that is so often missed…because it just may be hitting too close to home. Check it out…
Every year on the second Sunday of Lent we hear the Gospel story of the Transfiguration. A story that speaks of the brilliant LIGHT of Christ shining on all gathered – but juxtaposed with the dark Cloud of God which casts shadows and frightens. I think we could all find it easy to associate the Divine with the Light of Christ…but with darkness?
See how the story of a starving 10 year old Ecuadorian girl can possibly shed light onto your darkness…
This past Wednesday Christians came together to be marked on the forehead with ashes, beginning the 40 day journey of Lent. Most have figured out some favorite food or activity to give up, which is all well and good. But what about looking at the way we pray. Sure we come to church…we say our prayers at home…but do we pray as Jesus taught us how to pray?
The Gospel passage is of Jesus teaching his disciples on how to pray: stop babbling words for God already knows what you need; instead, go to your inner room, close the door and to pray in secret. What is Jesus talking about? What does that look like? What does that get me? How does that transform me…and others?
Check it all out….
This weekend we heard how blessed are those who are poor and hungry and woe to those who are rich and well-fed. Once again Jesus is turning our thinking upside down. The Beatitudes always seem to perplex many as to what kind of lives are we being called to.
Using some insight from the soon-to-be-released book by world renowned liturgical music composer David Haas, along with wisdom from Lutheran minister Nadia Bolz-Weber who provides current context for a sermon we have heard so many times may just open all of our eyes to seeing how we can all bring forth the reign of God. Check it out and see what I mean…
The birth of Christ is God’s deepest intention to love. Jesus is the ‘yes’ to God’s love – reminding us that God is already here and now…always ready to be with us in our becoming something new. Christmas is a time for us to move out of darkness...by beginning to see with a new set of eyes the glory of the God that shines around us. See what I mean...
Holidays have a way of often bringing to the surface darkness from the past…darkness from hardships and losses…darkness from broken relationships…even darkness coming forth from our own Church…leaving us, at times, blinded to God’s presence, asking, “Where is God in all this?” Allow this Sunday’s Gospel to shed new light on that age old question...
This weekend we celebrated the 33rd and final Sunday in Ordinary Time and over the past year Mark’s Gospel has given us the necessary waypoints for our spiritual journey. And it is these signposts which tell us how we need to see differently and thus leading us to change the way we live.
But what does that new sight look like for us? What changes are being asked of us? And where do we begin? Perhaps another look at the story of Bartimaeus together with the wisdom from Fr. Greg Boyle may lift the blinders that we wear and open our eyes to seeing in a whole new way!
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Isn’t part of life all about gaining wealth – about one’s net worth – being successful and living the dream? Matter of fact this is so ingrained into our psyche that we can easily and erroneously transfer this ideal to our spirituality – just as the rich young man did in the Gospel story this weekend when he asked, “What do I need to do to inherit eternal life?”
The challenge we all face is that two millennia later, like the rich young man, this Gospel reminds us that that is the wrong question!
What is the right question and how do we answer it? Click below and check it out…
Today’s Gospel may be one of the earliest instances recorded in the Bible of clericalism, for we hear the disciples arguing as to who, among themselves, is the greatest. The second reading warns - “where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every foul practice.
Interesting timing for these readings as the Church continues to deal with the fallout from the recent report from the Attorney’s General’s office in Pennsylvania...as well as the public uncovering of some 40 years of abuse by Cardinal McCarrick, known for decades within the Church leadership and left unchecked.
What can we do? The answer Jesus gives us today is focused around – a child. Why a child and what are we called to do?
Check it all out….
This weekend we will hear the Gospel of two women, who represent the entire spectrum of society, from impoverished to privileged, who are healed through faith. Jesus says, “It was faith that saved you.” What does it look like? What does it feel like? How do we show it? For the faith that this Gospel points to is likely not what you may think.
So what is it? Check it out.
In this Sunday’s Gospel we hear the three most important words given to us in the Bible. By far, it is the greatest and hardest thing Christ asked us to do...but truly…it is all that really, really matters.
What are those words…and why do we find it so hard to follow them?
Check it out….
How does this Easter Season call us to change in order to gain focus and direction within our lives and our faith? It would seem the release of Pope Francis’ latest exhortation, Rejoice and Be Glad! lends perfect timing to help answer that question. What suggestions does the Pope make to you and me on how to answer the “call to holiness in a practical way for our own time, with all its risks, challenges and opportunities?” The answer partly lies with one word echoed throughout Lent and in today’s readings…but it doesn’t mean what you think it does! So what is it and what did the Pope have to say? Well better check it all out!
This Sunday we celebrated the gift of love and marriage during the World Day of Marriage. So how does the gift of love and marriage tie into the Gospel of Jesus healing the Leper? Leave it to the wisdom of a group of 4 – 8 year olds to shed light on all of this! How do they do it? And what does that mean to you? Check it out….
Advent quickly comes to a close tonight, but do not allow the Christmas celebration to overshadow the message given to us in this Sunday’s Gospel. For it is Mary’s ‘yes’ which allows the incarnation to take place...but how should that change the way we live? Perhaps a story from Fr. Greg Boyle about a former gang member coming back from visiting the White House just may open our eyes to how kinship is more important than kingship. A message we need to hear before we celebrate the birth of Christ!
It would seem at first glance, the Parable of the Talents seems fairly clear about our need to use and multiply our “talents” to our fullest ability – unlike the third servant who buried his. But of course, this being a parable, it is never that simple. For if you look at this first century story, using insight from current scripture scholars, with a sympathetic eye towards the third slave and recognize the master for what he is, a very different and surprising story unfolds.
What is that story and how could it change the way you live?
Check it out….
The Parable of the Ten Virgins is enriched with a number of metaphorical images designed to drive home the message of always being prepared. But was does that mean to you and me? What does that look like? And tapping into one of today’s Gospel metaphors, what is the oil that we need to be placing in our lamps?
Rather than focusing on End Time what would happen with our lives if we spent that energy living in Now Time, This Time, Present and Presence? See what I mean and check it out….
“Many are invited, but few are chosen” may be one of the most misinterpreted and misused scripture passages ever written. Used by many to divide and exclude, actually when you understand the context of this parable you will see that it is all about how to include and be open to an invitation that is always present for all people.
Same pay for those who work a full day versus those who work only an hour? What was Jesus thinking? This is “Good News”?
Like many other parables, on the surface they seem to make no sense. But dig down a bit, and try to think more like my grandsons and you will begin to see and feel the point that Jesus was making…as he describes God’s generous love for all of us.
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The following is the proclamation of the Gospel story by Luke of the two who are travel the Road to Emmaus, It was read at the funeral mass of Fr. Don Pantle, SJ in Scranton PA, September 2, 2017
Yesterday, we gathered at the same church where our friend and mentor, Fr. Don Pantle was baptized, received first communion, was confirmed, said his first mass as a newly ordained priest and this weekend was laid to rest.
He touched the lives of thousands of students at the University of Scranton over some 30 years through his unique ministry of food, cards and Eucharist which was brilliant, was Jesuit, and was incarnational.
A few years ago Don asked that I would preach the homily at his funeral and was honored and humbled to have fulfilled my commitment to him. So take a few minutes and listen to why I feel Don made such a difference – and still does – in so many lives.
This week we hear that Jesus took his disciples on a 25 mile hike to ask them one question: Who do you say that I am? His reason for the hike was to bring them to a geo-political sight to make his point.
My guess is if Jesus was here today he may have brought us all to Charlottesville to ask us the same question. What would he have said to us and what do we need to be doing?
Check it out...
This weekend our Sunday readings may have provided some confusion. For Jesus tells us to carry his yoke in order to find rest and Paul talks about not loving our flesh and yet it really has nothing to do with our bodies. This is the challenge when we put 21st Century connotations on first century scripture.
So what is the real meaning behind these readings? And what impact does it have on the way you live your life? Check it out!
The Sunday’s Gospel gives us a partial look at Matthew’s job description for discipleship. But leave it to my 13 month old grandson to teach me the rest. How did he do that? Check it out!
This Sunday we heard a continuation of John’s Last Supper Discourse where there is no mention of bread or wine – rather he speaks of being in relationship – about being part of the Trinity. To understand what this means I invite you to look at God – not as a noun – but as a verb. If you do, you just may understand that going to mass each Sunday is not about “going to” communion – but rather “being in” communion. This shift in your viewpoint may just allow you to see Christ everywhere and in everybody!
Check it out…
We hear the story of the Transfiguration every 2nd Sunday of Lent, which is filled with layers of meaning. But what if we took the time to just focus on the God encounter which occurs at the end of the story? For God appears in the form of a cloud which casts a shadow. Have you ever noticed how many of the God encounters in the Bible involves a cloud that overshadows and obscures the light?
What about the God encounters in your life? Encounters that break you open and have a way of destroying all the certitudes you’ve built up in your life - in order to make room for new Divine encounters?
Listen to a different way for you to consider spending the balance of your Lenten time – it just may give you an encounter where you least expect God’s love and mercy…
Check it out…
“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” Really? We have to love those that we fear? Those who are different from us? The ones who are strangers? In the past few weeks there has been much written about the plight of the refugees. Politics aside, as Christians, we are called to live the Gospel…which is much harder than reading or preaching about it. So what does Jesus say in the Beatitudes? And how can Pope Francis, Brian McLaren and Leonardo DaVinci add some light on this hotly debated subject? Check it out…
On December 25, 2016 our Step-mother, Margie Gilbert Knipper, at the age of 86, died after a short illness. She joined both of my parents in the arms of the risen Lord. Today, friends and family gathered together as we celebrated her life with a Mass of Resurrection at St. Paul Church in Princeton NJ.
Margie had an incredible life as a religious sister, author, playwright, artist, poet, minister, Religious Education Director, and wife.
Her life was filled with many blessings and no surprise that she was called home to the Lord on Christmas night. Why do I say that? Listen to the words I shared with all those who came together today – and more about our dear Margie…
During Advent we are called to celebrate that the Kingdom of God is here and now and at the same time still to come - that the Lord is truly near. But often we do not feel that way. Instead we can be more like John the Baptist, in today’s Gospel, wondering where God is in our lives. But there is reason to Rejoice on this Gaudete Sunday – and for Thomas Merton the reason was found on the corner of 4th and Walnut in Louisville, Kentucky. What did he realize that day? And how can that change that way you look at those in your life? How can his epiphany give you reason to Rejoice? Check it out…
This weekend we bring our Liturgical Year as well as our Jubilee Year of Mercy to a close as we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King – a time for us to refocus on who or what is “King” in our lives.
There is no shortage of alternative “Kings”, but lately it would seem, politics has been a dominating “King” in all of our lives. If you are like me, maybe you are exhausted from being barraged for the past 18 months with divisive rhetoric from both sides of the isle filled with anger, fear and hatred and then seeing it repeated and amplified through social media – language and actions devoid of love and mercy…and now we are wondering why hate crimes are on the rise?
So what sets the priorities in your life? Who or what is your King? Perhaps a bit of wisdom from Elie Wiesel, Pope Francis and Lukan Gospels will point us in the right direction. Click and check it out.
This weekend’s Gospel is the familiar story of Jesus healing ten lepers and only one comes back to give thanks. But there is another reason that Luke records this story, for while the gift of gratitude is important – the returning, grateful leper has much more to teach us about how to live our lives. Check it out….
Based on this Sunday’s Gospel, it would seem that Jesus is encouraging us to be like the Steward who was dishonest in handling the affairs for his Master. Seems there may be good reason that the Pharisees and scribes are complaining about his teachings. But like most parables, there is something hidden deep inside this story that is often missed. And what is hidden may just impact the way you see God.
Jesus says that he did not come to establish peace, but rather division...and that he came to set the earth on fire, and how he wishes it were already blazing! Was he just having a bad day with his disciples…or hitting home a point that we often miss? Take a minute and check it out and see what Jesus was really talking to you and me about!
This weekend we hear the familiar story of the Good Samaritan. But if you followed the news this past week it would seem the question asked by the lawyer in this week’s Gospel regarding “Who is my neighbor” takes on many meanings. But did you ever notice that Jesus really never answers that question and what he does do is often missed.
So perhaps a recent true story of a plane full of people and their flight crew can open your eyes to a deeper meaning of this Gospel…and point you in the direction of the face of God.
Listen how the insight from a professional golfer on how he lived his life sheds new light on this weeks Gospel of the Sinful Women in the house of Simon the Pharisee.
What next?! That is the question as we bring our Easter season to a close. For as we gather on this Feast of Pentecost our Scripture focuses on the “what next” in our call to discipleship. So what does that “what’s next?” look like for you? More importantly what doesn’t it look like? Perhaps a bit of wisdom from a monkey, a fish, and a doorkeeper will shine new light on how to respond to the call to go forth and to be sent as the Father sent his Son…and it just may be easier than you think….
It seems the Pharisees keep asking Christ, “Who are you?!” But they are unwilling to even listen because of their focus on the Temple and the laws of Leviticus. Instead, the followers of Christ know his voice and follow him.
Whose voice do you listen to? What stops us from listening? When do we even pause long enough to hear what is being said? It takes wisdom from a Park Ranger from New Mexico in order to open up the message of today’s Gospel.
This Sunday we hear the familiar Gospel of the woman who was caught in adultery and about to be stoned. Meanwhile the Scribes and the Pharisees, keepers of the Jewish Law, are not very happy with all the attention Jesus is getting, so they a lay trap for him.
Sin or shame? See how a Jesuit working with the gangs in LA sheds light on what is this Gospel is really all about.
Instead of focusing on the meaning of this Sunday’s Gospel of the Transfiguration, what happens when you take the time to just focus on the God encounter which occurs at the end of the story? Have you ever noticed how many of the God encounters in the Bible involves a cloud that overshadows and obscures the light?
So take a few minutes to listen to stories of a newborn baby, a blind hiker and wise Franciscan visiting the 9/11 memorial. Three vignettes which may just help you to have the courage to step into the darkness in your life and allow an encounter with the mercy and grace of God.
Today we celebrate the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles in the presence of the Magi. But where is Christ for you? God cannot be found 'out there' until God is found 'in here', within yourself. So are you in a place where change is needed? Is what was once working, not feeling comfortable any longer? Perhaps you are ready to start your New Year in a different fashion?
This week’s Gospel may break open more questions than answers….but questions that just may make a difference in your 2016.
I love how the lectionary uses the story of two parents who lost track of their son during a Passover Festival as the Gospel for this Feast of the Holy Family. It does reminds us never to equate ‘holy’ parents with ‘perfect’ parents! I also like the fact this feast day is celebrated so close to Christmas for it allows us to really look at how this God Emmanuel who is with and among us – has a direct connection to our daily life and our family.
What does that look like for you and your family? And how does a story of what took place on a battlefield some 100 years ago shed like on what should be happening at your table…in your home…within your ‘family church’?
This past Sunday we celebrated the 3rd Sunday of Advent which is also known as Gaudete Sunday. The name is taken from the Latin word, guadete, which means – rejoice! And we are told to rejoice! Rejoice always!
Really? But just turn on the news and listen for ten minutes and you could walk away wondering what is there to rejoice about. But, indeed, all three readings given us reason to proclaim, Rejoice! And what better way to make that point – then to have the congregation participate in this homily!
Take a listen…
This morning we come to the end of our Liturgical Year with the celebration of the Feast of Christ the King as the Church reminds us that Christ is King of all things. But we cannot forget that we, too, are baptized into Christ’s kingship.
But with all this talk about ‘kings,’ when Pilate asked Jesus if he was the 'King of the Jews,' Jesus sidesteps that question and says that he came to testify to the ‘truth.’ But what does that ‘truth’ look like? (Funny, Pilate asked the same thing!)
Looking for clarity on all this? Perhaps Pope Francis, as well as the parable of the Old Turtle can shed light on the “Truth” and better explain what we are called to do with this Feast of Christ the King?
Check it out!
Today is the 33rd and final Sunday in Ordinary Time. We call these Sunday’s “ordinary,” because they are simply numbered – or, ordinal. But by calling them ordinary, I think we may have tendency to sweep them aside in deference to the other liturgical seasons and thus forget that each of these numbered Sunday’s provide us a critical piece of the road map for our spiritual journey. So how does one sum up the entire year of Ordinary Time and extract exactly what is the Good News that Christ has to share? Check it out…
In October 1974 I was a freshman at Oratory Prep in Summit, NJ and my Dad accompanied me to my first Father and Son Breakfast mass. Fast forward 41 years later and today I was honored to have preached at the same annual breakfast!
Today’s Gospel story gives us Jesus trying, once again to initiate his disciples so that they gain insight about the paradox of life. What is that paradox? Why is initiation even needed? And how can Pope Francis and Carl Jung shed light on all of this?
Check it out what I had to say to 200 sons with their fathers…
Over the past few weeks our Sunday Gospels have given us this ongoing dialogue of Christ with his disciples and his patient efforts in trying to teach them what it means to be fully alive. This past week, as he travelled through our country, Pope Francis was actually doing the same thing. So what does it look like when the Gospels and Francis come together to teach us how to live?
Check it out….
In reviewing the readings for the weekend I had wondered why, beginning three weeks ago, that our Sunday lectionary interrupted the Gospel of Mark, in order to insert the 6th chapter of John – a sermon often called: “The Bread of Life Discourse.” Instead of following the earlier Gospel writers and recollecting the Last Supper, John talks about Eucharist in a different way. Why did John make this substitution of stories? After all, what could be more important than Eucharist? It would seem that John’s Gospel goes to great lengths to remind us there is more than just coming to the table to receive the real presence of Christ. So how can the insight of three Jesuits, a game of pinochle and potato pancakes shed light on this Gospel? Click and check it out…
This past Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that it is legal for all Americans, no matter their gender or sexual orientation, to marry the people they love. The controversial decision is a historic victory for the LGBT Community who have fought for years in the lower courts. Thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia already recognize marriage equality. The remaining 13 states ban these unions, even as public support has reached record levels nationwide. This Sunday we hear a story a well-to-do synagogue official, Jairus, who begs Jesus to spare the life of his daughter. And sandwiched in that story is another story of a poor, outcast woman who has been hemorrhaging for years and who seeks to be healed. Both show incredible levels of faith….both shed some light on how we as Christians should respond to this recent Court decision.
You may be surprised at the answer. Check it out.
For six weeks we have listened to post resurrection Gospel stories, which when woven together give us great insight into Christ’s explanation of what it is like to be in relationship with him - to be fed by him, to be in communion with him.
Two thousand years later, our problem is that I think we make it more complicated, more ego-centered, and more difficult than it really is.
So what do you have to do? Check it out….
So we moved from Lent into Easter, singing our alleluias, with the church bells pealing, rejoicing that Jesus Christ is risen indeed – but what do we do now? How does this Easter Season change us? How do we live differently than we did before? In this week’s readings we hear a word repeated twice which leading linguistics experts say is a, “linguistic and theological tragedy and the worst translation in the New Testament.” What is the word? And once you understand what it really means – how can it answer the questions raised? How can it change your life?
As we come into the final weeks of our Lenten journey– the question on my mind is: How well do we see? Has Christ vanished from our sight? Unfortunately I think many people miss the opening line in this week’s Gospel which starts out saying some Greeks came to worship at the Passover Feast and they asked to see Jesus - and their query seems to be more than just star-crazed gentiles looking to get a glimpse of Jesus. But I would guess the answer Jesus gives them was more than they were looking for.
So how can Tim Shriver, Special Olympics and Kodak help us make sense of this week’s Gospel?
Based on today’s Gospel it would seem that before Christ could begin his ministry, a time of desert wilderness was necessary. This 1st Sunday of Lent reminds us of the need for time in our own desert experience…but one which is deeper than just pledging renewed New Year’s resolutions. What does that looks like? The answer is brought to light by what the Mayan Indians did 1,000 years ago on an island off the Florida Keys. What was it? And how does it help open our eyes to what we need to do to deepen our Lenten experience? Check it out….
In yesterday’s Gospel, Jesus is baptized in the Jordan by John and when he comes out of the waters he hears the words that should echo in each of our hearts and souls every day. It is core to our baptisms – core to our life. The problem is that we have forgotten the sounds of those words…and thus can be headed in the wrong direction when it comes to our own spirituality. What are those words? And why do we need to listen for them…but more importantly, why do we need to then repeat them to those in our lives? Check out what I have to say on this.
Here in the metro New York area we woke this morning to find that two NYPD officers were executed last night by a crazed man who, before he killed himself, made statements on social media suggesting that he planned to kill police officers and was angered about the Eric Garner and Michael Brown cases.
This Advent has been filled with stories of school shootings, racial unrest, the violation of women on campuses and the jarring details of our country’s treatment of prisoners of war. Many are quick to measure the situation with who is right and who is wrong, which is neither my place nor intent. But the Gospel story calls us to name the names and begin dialogue…as painful as that may be.
For Luke’s telling of a pregnant, unwed, teenager named Mary who will give birth to the Son of God actually sheds light on how we can better live in Advent amidst all that is happening. For during this season of watching and waiting….it is really God who is doing the waiting for us. And what is God waiting for? Well, click and see what my thoughts are….
This morning I was invited to be a guest homilist at the Princeton Ecumenical Thanksgiving Prayer Service at the Princeton University Chapel.
Here is the reflection I gave on the paradox of gratitude.
Check it out.
Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe. That is some title for the Feast Day which we celebrate on this last Sunday of the Liturgical Year. But was Christ all about kingship and ruling and thrones and laws?
Or was it really something else?
Is this really what the Franciscans had in mind, in the early 20th century, when they asked Rome for a Feast day to honor the Cosmic Christ?
So what is this Feast Day all about? And what does the Gospel tell us about how we will be judged?
More importantly what direction does it give us to live a better life?
Click and check it out
This Sunday’s Gospel ends on a wrenching note. “Many are invited, but few are chosen” That doesn’t sound too Christ-like to me. And unfortunately it is one of those lines in the Bible that is often misread, misunderstood and misused. So how is this Good News? Is it true that only a few are “chosen?” And what is meaning behind this parable that calls us to make a choice in our lives? Check it out!
Catechetical Sunday….Parable of the Vineyard Laborers….Alicia Keys and Richard Rohr. How do they all come together in order to shed light on your salvation and a new found focus on your life?
Well, check it out!
After the disciples have spent so much time with Jesus watching him heal and teach and forgive it seems that Jesus feels it is time to give his disciples a ‘midterm test.’ He wants to see what they have learned after spending so much time watching him minister to others. But before he asks them the one and only question on the test he has them hike 25 miles to the region of Caesarea Philippi.
Why the long hike? What is the one question he asks them….and asks us? And how would you answer?
This weekend we hear a gospel from Matthew which is broken into three basic parts: the parable of the sower…Jesus’s reasoning for using parables… and then lastly, the explanation Jesus gave his 1st century followers of what this parable was all about. But there is something so obvious to see in this story that even Jesus omitted it from his explanation.
What did Jesus leave out of his elucidation of this gospel? And how can that missing piece of the puzzle change your life? Click and listen to how the answer to these questions is found….in the soil.
Through the centuries countless volumes have been written on this doctrine of three beings in one God. But due to the limits of our own language we have been forced to use metaphors when trying to describe the Trinity. But what if we took some time and stopped looking at God as a noun…and considered God as a verb? Could the mystery of the Trinity make more sense if we considered God more like some sort of dance or movement? Take a few minutes and check out my take on this concept which is really rooted in our faith – for it may just change the way you live your life!
But why are we still celebrating Easter? Fifty days seems like a long time to be singing Alleluia - and we are only half way through the season. And so, it is at this midway point, that we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday – a title taken from the today’s famous gospel passage.So why do we call Christ the Good Shepherd? And how can insight from a New Mexico shepherd help us to use all of our senses in order to uncover the Gospel message and of how we can find Christ today? Check it out.
God’s love is often described as a Divine flow of love and grace - movement that is never restricted. Nothing we say or do changes the love that is poured out upon us by God. It is unmerited in every sense – freely given to all. The only thing we have to do is be willing to accept and trust and share in the flow of that love.So during Lent we have been examining our lives to see what blocks that flow - in other words, to examine our personal garbage. Thus shifting through our hurts and wounds and addictions so that we can be present and aware and participating in that ever present flow. And today's gospel gives deeper insight on the fully human and fully divine side of Jesus Christ and his relationship to the community and the importance of our active participation. What does that look like? And what is the ending of this story that is often missed, but key in bringing forth the good news?
Doesn’t it seem strange that God would declare his only son beloved and on whom his favor rests and then send him off into the desert to be tempted by the devil? A heck of a way to treat your only child!So how does Matthew craft this story? And why would angels lead Christ into the desert to meet with Satan? And how does a true story of a dying college grad shine light on all of this? Light critical for our Lenten Journey.Check it out. It may just give you a whole new meaning to this season we call Lent!
So why do we gather today to receive ashes? It is not a Holy Day of Obligation and yet today our liturgies will be filled with those looking to receive ashes.Ashes – is it just a tradition that we follow?Or…are we looking to make an outward of our Christianity?Or…are we remembering our own mortality and/or that of our loved one?It is for my friend, artist, writer and minister, Jan Richardson, who lost her husband this past December. As I was preparing my homily for this Ash Wednesday her blog post dealing with this loss…and the ashes came to light. And it hit me.Her story…your story…the ashes…and God. It is all there.
This Sunday we hear a continuation of the Sermon on the Mount, where Jesus continues teaching about a new way to live and love. Author Krista Tippett in her recent book reminds us that law and politics are unable to really tell us what matters in life, what matters in a death, how to love, and how we can be of service to each other. “These are the kinds of questions religion arose to address.”But it would seem many egocentric people (many who even call themselves religious) are still focused on using the laws to determine who they feel is in and who is not. Yet Christ reminds us that we are called to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us, so that we may be in right relationship with God.Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you?! Really? Isn’t that a bit over the top?
Water. It is such a strong symbol and sacramental sign. It is used through the Church and its sacraments. Many will come and go through the doors of the church, dipping their fingers in the holy water fonts, blessing themselves. But on this Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, we need to take a moment to pause and remind ourselves of the meaning and obligations that this carries for each and everyone one of us. What does that look like for you?And so we end this season as it began – with John the Baptist, at the River Jordan – this time, reluctantly baptising his cousin Jesus as he begins his public ministry. What does your ministry look like? And how does a cello player, among the rubble of Sarajevo, provide insight to what we are called to do?
Unlike most parables, this time the Gospel writer leads off telling us what the story is all about. By having us assume the role of the widow and God the role of the judge we are told of the need to be persistent with our prayer to God. So safe to say, the vast majority of churchgoers this weekend are hearing a homily about the need to pray always. And while prayer is important to us, that is not the homily you will be hearing today.Because there is more. And to see what is hidden under the surface of this parable, it requires you to turn the story upside down. Only then will you find the second meaning that may just have you rethinking your life.
Jesus gives us the parable of the rich man who hoarded all his possessions. But is that all there is to the story, or does it call us to do something more? See how Eunice Shriver Kennedy and Pope Francis shed light on our true calling to make – noise!!
This weekend every year two things happen: we celebrate Father’s Day…and the US Golf Open is played. One of the greatest golfing legends of all times is Billy Casper. This past year he wrote his autobiography called, The Big Three And Me, filled with great insight and wisdom about what impacted his life the most.On this 11th Sunday of Ordinary Time we hear the famous story of the sinful woman who washes the feet of Jesus and anoints his body with perfume. I found it interesting to see the similarities of how Billy Casper has lead his life….and how Jesus deals with the situation he finds himself in between the woman and the Pharisee. Click and see what I mean…
Today’s gospel, John describes the appearance of the risen Christ to his disciples who are hiding in the Upper Room. In doing so he reveals three basic skills or spiritual practices to follow in order to strengthen your soul, your well-being and your connection with God and with each other. If you find yourself stuck in your own ‘Upper Room’ you may want to check out what you may be missing.
Today’s Gospel comes from the tenth chapter of John reminding us that there will be one flock, one shepherd. Meanwhile we hear from Acts that there is disagreement between the Jews and Gentiles as to who God is for. I think it is easy for us to forget that we all belong to God – even those who feel that they may be the ‘black sheep’ of society.This season we are reminded that we are all called to be an Easter People. And who better than Pope Francis to show us what this looks like.See what I mean…
This Sunday we will hear the familiar Gospel of the woman who was caught in adultery and about to be stoned. All the while it is a trap being laid for Christ. So how does the work of Fr. Greg Boyle S.J. dealing with gangs in LA shed light on what is this Gospel is all about? Check it out
It seems that before Christ was ready to begin his ministry it required barren time in the desert – a place of solitude without distractions. It is there that needed to wrestle with the same temptations we still face today: power, possessions and prestige.And on this first Sunday of Lent we journey into our personal deserts where we are called to ‘repent’ or in other words, ‘to turn around.’ It seems only in that type of liminal space can we find true transformation. Why? And, what does that type of transformation sound like? Click the link below and see what I mean!
A great deal of focus this week has been paid to Lance Armstrong and his interview with Oprah and the years of lying about his doping. Most of the media coverage has been discussing whether or not society will forgive him. I think the better question is why now? Perhaps as he began a New Year he felt a need to empty himself so that he could begin to be filled with something else. And just maybe he got that idea from today’s gospel about the Wedding Feast at Cana? See what I mean.
We gather this week, maybe holding onto our children a bit tighter than usual and praying for each other and our families as we prepare to celebrate the birth of Christ. But as the events of these past ten days fall into the background of the season, many find themselves still holding onto the key question: What can we do?We know we can’t wave a magic wand and make guns go away. We can’t snap our fingers and eliminate violence and evil. We can’t keep thinking that this stuff only happens someplace else, to other people in other places. What can we do? So on this fourth Sunday of Advent, days before Christmas, we find ourselves praying for a town and its people that are steeped in deep darkness as they look to regain a spark of that same light. And we gather around the light of four Advent candles seeking the answer to the same question:What can we do?And maybe, just maybe this Sunday’s gospel sheds some needed light on that nagging question.
This is a homiliy for the 3rd Sunday in Advent, also called Gaudete Sunday, taken from the Latin word which means Rejoice! We rejoice for the celebration of the birth of Jesus nears. But it is much more than that. Even with all the trials and tribulations we have in our lives there is so much more to rejoice for. Check it out.