5th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year AIsaiah 58:7-10Psalm 112:4-5, 607, 8-9 (4a)1 Corinthians 2:1-5Matthew 5:13-16February 8, 2020 Jesus says, “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world.” Who is He speaking to? Who is the “you”? Sometimes we hear Jesus speaking to one specific person. For example, there are times …
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I just uploaded the video and handouts for the second presentation in my series on the Sacraments. This one is on Baptism and Confirmation. It can be found online at www.renewaloffaith.org/sacramentsinitiation1. Please note that with a lot of good questions, it is one of my longest presentations at 1 hour 42 minutes. I hope you …
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While I have written in the past about funerals, as customs seem to be changing regarding funerals, I would like to offer some understanding of what funerals are about and how we do them in our Catholic faith. Ecclesiastes 3:1 tells us, “There is an appointed time for everything…a time to be born and a …
Here’s something I wrote for our parish bulletin 2/9/20 Evangelization: How Can You Share What Our Faith Means to You? I hesitated to use the word “evangelization” in the title of this article. I think when people here the word “evangelization” there is a tendency to think of evangelicals calling out Bible verses or people …
Presentation of the LordMalachi 3:1-4Psalm 24:7, 8, 9, 10 (8)Hebrews 2:14-18Luke 2:22-40February 2, 2020 Our psalm today speaks of the “king of glory.” Of course, the “king of glory” is the Lord. The historical setting for this psalm is the bringing of the Ark of the Covenant to the Temple in Jerusalem. Hence the words, …
The gospel reading for today (January 31, 2020, Friday of the Third Week in Ordinary Time) points to why I think biology points us to the fact that life begins at conception and is to be cherished. In this gospel speaking of the Kingdom of God, we read, “It is like a mustard seed that, …
3rd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year AIsaiah 8:23 – 9:3Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14 (1a)1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17Matthew 4:12-23January 26, 2020 As John is arrested, Jesus begins his public ministry. Hearing of John’s arrest, Jesus “withdrew to Galilee” but we should not take his withdrawing as an act of fear. His withdrawing to “the region of …
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As today’s gospel begins, Jesus enters the synagogue on the Sabbath. “There was a man there who had a withered hand. They watched Jesus closelyto see if he would cure him on the sabbath.” They did not like Jesus so they were looking for a way to trap him. They knew He had already done …
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I just finished reading a book called Inside the Atheist Mind: Unmasking the Religion of Those Who Say There is No God by Anthony DeStefano (Nelson Books, Nashville. 2018). Before I highlight a couple of ideas from the book, I want to first caution anyone who decides to read the book against thinking all atheists …
2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year AIsaiah 49:3, 5-6Psalm 40:2, 4, 7-8, 8-9, 10 (8a, 9a)1 Corinthians 1:1-3John 1:29-34January 19, 2020 To prepare us for Christmas as the First Coming of the Lord, we first celebrated the season of Advent. Who was the one who prepared the way of the Lord just before Jesus started …
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