God’s Call

Our first reading today begins with Peter standing up with the Eleven. All of the Eleven were called to be Apostles. As God’s calling, this was their vocation in life. Peter is called to be the first among the Apostles. This is his vocation.. Today, the Fourth Sunday of Easter, we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday. …

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The Ministry of Priests

I recently read a new book, Priests in Love with God and Eager to Witness to the Gospel by Archbishop Emeritus Alfred Hughes (San Francisco: Ignatius Press. 2021). He wrote the book with seminarians in mind but also for reflection by priests and bishops. It is important for priests like myself to occasionally reflect on …

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4th Sunday of Easter, Year B – Homily

4th Sunday of Easter, Year BActs 4:8-12Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29 (22)1 John 3:1-2John 10:11-18April 25, 2021 Who is our shepherd? Who is it that we expect to help us?  Do we trust in man, meaning do expect other people to provide what we really need?  Do we trust in princes, do we …

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5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year B – Homily

5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year BJob 7:1-4, 6-8Psalm 147:1-2, 3-4, 5, 6 (3a)1 Corinthians 9:16-19, 22-23Mark 1:29-39February 7, 2021 What is your life like? Do you have a “good life” or would you call your “life on earth a drudgery?”  Job had had a wonderful life with a great family, wealth, and prestige.  Now, …

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Living the Priesthood (2021)

Among the numerous pages on my website, you can find one on “Vocations.” There you will find information about “vocation” in general and how everyone is called to live as priest, prophet, and king from their baptism. You will also find links to articles I have written on life as a lay person, in seminary, …

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The Final Video in My Series on the Sacraments

Last night was the final presentation in my series, Sacraments: Channels of God’s Grace, We covered the Sacraments of Service, Marriage and Holy Orders. We are still under the Coronavirus shutdown so there was no in-person presentation. Instead, we did as a live webinar on Zoom. I am grateful that all went well for the …

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4th Sunday of Easter, Year C – Homily

4th Sunday of Easter, Year CActs 13:14, 43-52Psalm 100:1-2, 3, 5 (3c)Revelation 7:9, 14b-17John 10:27-30May 12, 2019 Our gospel reading is quite short today but there’s still a lot we can talk about today.  The gospel passage I just read is only four verses but it comes from what is known as Jesus’ Good Shepherd …

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4th Sunday of Easter, Year B – Homily

4th Sunday of Easter, Year B Acts 4:8-12 Psalm 118:1, 8-9, 21-23, 26, 28, 29 (22) 1 John 3:1-2 John 10:11-18 April 22, 2018 Peter becomes a bold preacher for Jesus.  He faces questions and persecution but he is no longer afraid.  When Jesus was arrested, Peter denied knowing him out of fear.  Peter’s fear …

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From Too Many Priests to Too Few Priests

Today we celebrate the Memorial of St. John Neumann, the first American to be canonized.  He was born in 1811 in Bohemia in Europe.  He was studying to become a priest there when the bishop there announced there would be no further ordinations as there were too many priests.  Today, this might seem impossible for us to believe but …

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5th Sunday of Easter, Year A – Homily

5th Sunday of Easter, Year A Acts 6:1-7 Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19 (22) 1 Peter 2:4-9 John 14:1-12 Throughout our Easter season our first reading comes from the Acts of the Apostles.  Acts tells the story of the early church.  If you read the whole story, you hear how the early church faced persecution and …

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