New Video – Why Go to Confession?

Last night I offered a new presentation, Why Should I Go to Confession?. The recording of the video and the slides are now available on my website at http://www.renewaloffaith.org/whyconfession. If you view the video in the next few days, you can complete an online evaluation at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfbK1iUzZZyaWRclzdeu_ocoU0Lowo9aBvbusvStjLLdDQ2yA/viewform?usp=sf_link. My next presentation Why Should I Go to …

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What Does It Mean to be Saved?

Some Christians will ask, “when were you saved?”.  Generally, the people who ask this question have experienced a time in their lives when they felt a profound conversion in their lives and gave their lives over to Christ.  This is when they believe they were saved. The terminology of “being saved” has solid roots in …

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24th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A – Homily

24th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year ASirach 27:30-28:7Psalm 103:1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12 (8)Romans 14:7-9Matthew 18:21-35September 17, 2023 Last week we heard Jesus give us instructions on what to do when our brother sins against us.  Deacon Tom talked about our need to forgive others.  Our readings today continue on the theme of forgiveness. Why is …

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16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A – Homily

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year AWisdom 12:13, 16-19Psalm 86:5-6, 9-10, 15-16 (5a)Romans 8:26-27Matthew 13:24-43July 23, 2023 “Where have the weeds come from?” The man had sowed only good seed.  Why were weeds growing in the field? His enemy had come during the night when everyone was asleep and sowed the weeds. There is evil …

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Maybe You Heard (or Maybe Not)

You may have heard there are changes coming to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The changes will be mandatory as of Divine Mercy Sunday, which falls on April 16th this year (2023). (The changes were optional as of Ash Wednesday this year so some of you may have already experienced the changes). When one hears of …

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St. Francis De Sales on the Battle Against Temptation

This is the tenth and final article in my series based on my reading of the Introduction to the Devout Life by St. Francis De Sales. Written 400 years ago, it is available in various translations. I am reading the 2015 version published by Ignatius Press (San Francisco) and the Augustine Institute (Greenwood Village, CO) The first …

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2nd Sunday of Advent, Year A – Homily

2nd Sunday of Advent, Year AIsaiah 11:1-10Psalm 72:1-2, 7-8, 12-13, 17 (7)Romans 15:4-9Matthew 3:1-12December 4, 2022 Our gospel passage today comes from the time just before Jesus began his public ministry during his first coming.  It speaks of preparation.  We can use this passage to reflect on our readiness for the Second Coming. John the …

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Purification in the Devout Life

Last week I began a series of articles inspired by my present reading of St. Francis De Sales, Introduction to the Devout Life. The first article was “What Does It Mean to be Devout?”. I ended that article with a brief mention of “pruning and cutting” by St. Francis De Sales (8). Jesus says, “I …

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Our Loving God

Many people tend to see the portrayal of God in the Old Testament as of a God is punishing, bestowing his wrath upon all who break his commandments. Our first reading today from Exodus begins with a God who is anger and punishing. He had been speaking with Moses on the mountain. What do the …

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Living Simply as Instruments of God’s Mercy

This is my fifth article offering reflections based on my reading of Judith Valente’s book, How to Live: What the Rule of St. Benedict Teaches Us About Happiness, Meaning, and Community (Charlottesville, VA: Hampton Roads Publishing. 2018). You can see the four previous articles as follows: “Being Spiritual in the World Today”, “Striving to be Disciples of Christ.”, “Overcoming …

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