Saturday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s Gospel and the verses preceding it, present Jesus’ parable of the “dishonest steward” and its application. Taken at face value, one might wrongly conclude that Jesus is advocating for dishonest gain. Nothing could be further from the truth! Our Lord instructs us that, just as a “worldly” person might be shrewd and trustworthy in accumulating wealth for his own benefit, a faithful disciple of Jesus must also be prudent and trustworthy, sharing his wealth and exercising godly stewardship of his resources. Today, by God’s grace, may we come to recognize more clearly that true wealth lies not in accumulating and possessing, but in sharing and giving in love.
Friday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
When people have a clear goal, one they really want to achieve, they will discipline themselves to do what it takes to reach their goal We’ve had an example of this these last few months and weeks, culminating this week in the midterm elections.
Thursday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Today Paul writes to his beloved Philippians: “Whatever gains I had, these I have come to consider a loss because of Christ. More than that, I even consider everything as a loss.”
Memorial of Saint Charles Borromeo, Bishop
I am weary of hate. Of attack ads. Of tearing people down. Of bitter comments on social media. Of violent words in our everyday conversations. Of grumbling about “those people” who just need a job to pay their bills (as if it were that easy), who should go ‘back home’ (as if home was safe), or who should…I am weary of hate. I am weary of people who want us to hate one another, of people who benefit from spreading hate and division. Are you?
Tuesday of the Thirty-first Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s reading is a powerful one that speaks of the essence of Jesus’ life and the example he gives us of self-emptying and availability to others. We are invited to take on the mind and attitude of Christ - by humbling ourselves and of being obedient. Let’s explore what the humility and obedience of Christ might look like in our lives? Humility calls us to recognize that we are simply of the earth, like the humus of the soil - the ground from which all growth comes. We are invited to cultivate an attitude of lowliness, rather than focusing on ourselves, and embodying a pride or arrogance that puts us above others with an unwillingness to learn from those who are different. The root meaning of obedience is a deep listening - to how the Spirit speaks to us in our hearts in prayer, through those we are committed to in our families or communities, through Scripture and through the teaching and unfolding of the traditions of our Church. Together, they invite us into embodying an active receptivity and availability to respond to how we are inviting to receive and express God’s love - especially to the lowly and outcast most in need.
The Commemoration of All the Faithful Departed (All Souls)
Today is officially “the commemoration of the faithful departed.” In some cultures it is known as “the day of the dead.” As Catholics, we should always direct our attention to the saints, but especially this time of year.
Saturday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Looks like Jesus has some outstanding practical advice for us today that even I can imagine taking! What a welcome contrast to so many of his other teachings that, honestly, can feel like quite a stretch. When, for instance, Jesus challenges us to give up all our worldly goods to follow him or when he teaches us that obedience to God demands that we love our (supposed) enemy, I am reminded again that following Jesus is really hard. But with Jesus’s advice today, it’s looking pretty easy. So, let’s run through it to make sure we’ve got it right.
Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Fall is at its peak in Dayton, Ohio this week. The trees and their splendid colors are on full display, often against a brilliant blue sky with the sun illuminating the varied leaves. It is for this that today’s Psalm (111) response, “How great are the works of the Lord!” resonates for me, especially this phrase in the second verse about God’s works being “exquisite in all their delights.” Exquisite indeed!
Thursday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Our current times seem filled with many challenges. Whether it is politics, AI, or a general distrust of others, our world feels like it is being in inundated with fear, frustration, and hatred. How are we as Christians called to live out our faith in the midst of these turbulent days? Today’s scripture readings provide the guidance and strength we can rely on when we face the tempests of the world around us.
Feast of Saints Simon and Jude, Apostles
Today, we celebrate the feast of Saints Jude and Simeon. St. Jude is one of my go-to saints when seeking intercession, although I know very little about him. In truth, no one knows much about either of these saints. They are named in Luke’s gospel as two of the twelve apostles. Legend has it that they were martyred together, hence their shared feast day.
Tuesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Recently, I participated in a formation session with the Marianist Sisters about care for creation. As part of the session, the Sisters and I were assigned to care for a plant in our garden. Mine was a shrub.
Monday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Eighteen years. Eighteen long years of being bent over, of seeing only the ground, unable to look people in the eye. Not just physically painful but constantly weighed down, ignored, pitied. She forgot what it felt like to stand tall. And then comes this moment: “Jesus saw her” (Luke 13:12).
Saturday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Our first reading from the Letter of St Paul to the Ephesians paints a beautiful picture of the living, loving Body of Christ as each member fulfills its God-designed function. Today, may we each gratefully celebrate the charisms God has given us, and may we offer them in service to others, seeking to “live the truth in love” as vibrant members of Christ’s Body.
Friday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Like many people, I was taken by surprise when an American-born cardinal, Robert Prevost, was elected Pope. That was certainly something I had never expected to see! And in fact, Pope Leo is claimed just as deeply—and rightly—by the Peruvians as he is by us Americans. Two nations, two peoples, united in one man who is now Pope.
Thursday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Today’s Gospel from Luke seems out of place, given how we generally associate Luke with gentleness. In fact the Jesus we encounter today seems more like Mark’s version. Whether Luke or Mark, being a disciple of Jesus was a costly venture and could involve more than a little danger. It demanded boldness.
Wednesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
In our day, almost no one has personal servants though that was once commonplace, even in middle class America. Many households had at least one maid or a cook or a helper who stopped by a few days a week. These days, we have restaurants, cleaning agencies, daycares, and other institutions, to provide those kinds of services. These days, American workers don’t have “masters” but rather bosses and managers and managerial systems. I mention that because today’s gospel (Luke 12:39-48) definitely requires a bit of reflection and interpretation for our culture.
Tuesday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time
I am writing from Rome, Italy, buoyed by a lovely Saturday spent in Assisi where the natural beauty of the landscapes and passionate simplicity still reverberate with the joyous gospel message nurtured by Sts Francis, Clare and the Franciscan family to this day. Pax et bonum! (in Latin); Pace e bene (in Italian), meaning Peace and all good). This phrase greeted us on prayer cards and mementos in shops lining the narrow cobblestone streets that connected the sacred places of the saints’ baptism, chapels, meeting places and death. These beautiful words of greeting that Clare and Francis used have a fuller meaning of hope for God’s goodness: May you have the fullness of well-being, may you be secure and happy; may you not want; may your dignity be respected; may the goodness in your inmost being flourish; may the world in which we live know this deep peace. This greeting is a blessing, a hope, and a way of acknowledging the sacredness of those encountered.
Memorial of Saints John de Brébeuf and Isaac Jogues, Priests, and Companions, Martyrs
Attitudes towards accumulating “stuff” is a theme in Luke/Acts and front and center in today’s parable. A prosperous man accumulates more and more. He calculates how his plush life will be even more secure. But death befalls this “fool” with appalling swiftness.
Memorial of Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr
Many years ago, I attended a Sunday morning worship service in a plain church (conservative Mennonite) with my then in-laws. The service really stuck with me for the manner in which the minister went at the sermon. He began the sermon by recounting his morning: how he woke up and thought about the day, got dressed and had breakfast, and then gathered his family together to head to church. He hadn’t prepared a sermon in the days prior to that Sunday morning. He said that he chose, instead, to put it on hold until that morning. As he drove his family to church, he thought about scripture and issues facing the congregation, but a sermon just didn’t come to him. He decided, as he pulled into the church parking lot, not to worry too much about that. He would just let the Holy Spirit tell him what to say when he got to the pulpit.
Friday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time
I have become more interested in birds and birdwatching over the past several years. In fact, a favorite gift from my husband last year was a pair of birdwatching binoculars. In addition to keeping our bird feeder full, and maintaining flowering plants that attract hummingbirds in the summer, we are fortunate to have many trees in and near our yard that bring a variety of birds. As you can imagine, it's most exciting when we spot or hear a less common bird. Our gospel reading today, however, refers to a fairly common bird - the sparrow.