5th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 6:1-7Psalm 33:1-2, 4-5, 18-19 (22)1 Peter 2:4-9John 14:1-12May 10, 2020 Today’s gospel is a familiar one to many, at least the first half. The first six verses are often chosen as the gospel reading at funerals. In that setting, our hearts are troubled because we have lost a loved …
As we find ourselves in isolation from the Coronavirus, how are you doing with your faith? Are you struggling? That’s understandable since we can’t gather together for the Eucharist. Some are finding their faith stronger (see article – “Polls Show Faith is Getting Americans Through the Coronavirus”). As we look for ways to strengthen our …
You may have heard the term “Cafeteria Catholic” (Protestants would say Cafeteria Christian) and wondered what it means. We go to a restaurant and order what we want. If we don’t like something, we don’t have it. The strongest example of this might be a buffet. You can pick and choose everything you eat. It’s …
As Catholics we have many rites for how we do things. For instance, we have specific rubrics as to how we celebrate Mass (see “The Roman Catholic Mass Explained”). We have particular rites for every Sacrament. It is important for us to know how we do our rites. The same is true for devotions like …
4th Sunday of Easter, Year AActs 2:14a, 36-41Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6, (1)1 Peter 2:20b-25John 10:1-10May 3, 2020 Today is the Fourth Sunday of Easter. Every year on the Fourth Sunday of Easter we read from the Good Shepherd discourse in chapter 10 of John’s Gospel. Thus, today is also called Good Shepherd Sunday. In …
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Earlier this week I wrote a blog article, “Silence, How Much and When” where I talked about silence in private prayer as well as silence at Mass. Now, I would like to discuss how silence at Mass needs to be balanced against other considerations. Specifically, today I am writing about silence before Mass. I like …
The Coronavirus shutdown continues. Some states are beginning to lift restrictions. New York State, where I live, continues under shutdown. We are now around the six week mark. Of course, the challenges caused by the pandemic started before we actually shutdown. We had started social distancing and the shelves in the grocery stores went bare …
In the midst of the Coronavirus you may find yourself alone or in small groups of just your family far more often than normal. Does that necessarily mean we have more “silence”? That depends on what you do with your time and what you mean by silence? Obviously, if you have the TV, radio, or …
3rd Sunday of Easter Year AActs 2:14, 22-33Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11 (11a)1 Peter 1:17-21Luke 24:13-35 With the gift of the Holy Spirit, Peter spoke boldly to the Israelites. He spoke of how they saw Jesus’ “mighty deeds, wonders, and signs” that God worked through Jesus in their midst. Yet, they refused to believe. …
During the Coronavirus shutdown I have been reading books that have been sitting on my shelf for a while. This week I read Rev. Evan Pilkington’s Paths to Personal Prayer (Twenty-Third Publications: Mystic, Connecticut. 1988. The edition I read is from the third printing in 1991.) I got it secondhand someplace over the years – …
