October 4th is the feast day for St. Francis of Assisi. He is one of the most popular saints and is known as the patron saint of animals. So, it is a custom for some parishes to offer a pet blessing at this time of year. We concluded our pet blessing this year by reciting …
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Recently I was watching the news about the wildfires on the West Coast. They say that over 4 million acres have burned this year. California has already passed their record for the number of acres burned in a single year with fires still burning. Oregon has passed it average and fires burn in Washington state. …
One of the topics I have covered a few times during the Coronavirus is prayer (see https://blog.renewaloffaith.org/blog/?cat=12 for those articles & homilies). Today I would like to cover a particular form of prayer required of clergy and religious but an option for all, the Liturgy of the Hours, also known as the Divine Office. We …
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year AIsaiah 56:1, 6-7Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8 (4)Romans 11:13-15, 29-32Matthew 15:21-28August 16, 2020 A Canaanite woman came to Jesus seeking help for her daughter who was “tormented by a demon.” Many people came to Jesus for healing and exorcising demons. What’s one more? What was Jesus’ response? “Jesus did …
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19th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A1 Kings 19:9a, 11-13aPsalm 85:9, 10, 11-12, 13-14, (8)Romans 9:1-5Matthew 14:22-33August 9, 2020 After sending his disciples on their way, Jesus “went up on the mountain by himself to pray.” There He encountered God his Father. As much as Jesus needed to do this in prayer, we need to …
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When we celebrate Mass we are praying together. What do you pray for on your own? How often do you pray? Today, I would like to talk about two of my daily prayer intentions. If you have come to daily Mass when I am presiding, you have likely also heard me include them in the …
I offer this article in response to a comment posted by Brennan to my article, “Is God Angry With Us?”. I thank Brennan for his comment, which follows: “Well said! Like you have said in previous posts, you would think now would be a good time to try and LISTEN to God? I know on …
Amen. How many times do we say “amen” when we pray? How many times do you say it on your own? How many times do we say “amen” together at Mass? I don’t know how many times you say “amen” on your own but I can tell you that at every Sunday Mass we say …
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 …
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 …
