Monday 23rd Week of Ordinary Time

 

One Bad Apple. 1 Cor. 5:1-8

St. Paul encourages the Corinthians to get rid of the old yeast of malice and wickedness,

So as to receive the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Because just even a little yeast can leaven all the dough!

In other words, even a little sin is like yeast.

It can ruin a soul as it leavens one’s spiritual life with malice and wickedness.

We must strive to remove ALL yeast, even the smallest sin in our soul so that it does not grow and infect and affect our hearts and souls.

Friday 22nd Week of Ordinary Time

 

What God sees. 1 Cor. 4:1-5

The red carpet in Hollywood is a time when people strut like peacocks.

Showing off the latest styles.

Other people show off by driving fancy cars, wearing expensive jewelry or living in mansions.

None of this however impresses God.

He sees right past it into the human heart.

And one day God will bring to light what is hidden in darkness

And manifest the motives of each human heart.

Thursday 22nd week of Ordinary Time

 

They left everything! Lk. 5:1-11

When Jesus called the disciples they left everything.

Family, livelihood, home.

Because Jesus filled not only their nets,

But every longing of their heart.

What have we left to follow Jesus?

If our hearts are empty,

Maybe it is because we have been fishing all our lives in the sea of this world and caught nothing.

Only when we are willing to leave everything behind and follow Jesus,

With our hearts be filled to overflowing.

Wednesday 22nd Week of Ordinary Time

 

St. Paul wanted to feed the Corinthians Spiritual Food,

but they desired the Food of the Flesh which was jealousy and rivalry.

The food of the Flesh is Jealousy, rivalry, anger or division,

While food of the Spirit is Peace, Harmony, and Unity.

We will become what we eat!

Eat therefore the Body of Christ,

And let His Spirit live and move and have its being in you.

And leave no room in your hearts for the appetites of the Flesh.

Tuesday 22nd Week of Ordinary Time

 

No one knows what pertains to God except the Spirit of God. I Cor. 2:10

This is why those who live according to the Flesh,

do not know the mind of God for God is Spirit.

The way of the Flesh is eventual decay,

While the way of the Spirit leads to Eternal Life.

The flesh will decay in the grave,

While the Spirit will soar to the heights of Heaven.

Those who follow the way of the Flesh with its Passions and desires,

Will go the way of the Flesh.

While those who follow the Spirit with its Freedom

Will go the way of the Spirit.

Monday 22nd Week of Ordinary Time

 

The Martyrdom of Saint John the Baptist

Herod was attracted to John,

Much like a moth to a flame.

But at the same time he rejected John,

Because he did not want to hear the Truth;

The Truth that he cannot marry his brother’s wife.

And eventually Herod silenced the Truth,

By having John beheaded.

Or so he thought.

The life and message of St. John the Baptist lives on,

While Herod fades away.

This is how it is with Truth.

People are attracted to it.

But often reject it because it convicts them of the falsehood of their opinions and desires.

Jesus was crucified by public opinion as the crowd cried crucify him crucify him.

Truth is Always being crucified on the altar of public opinion.

If the polls say it’s true then it must be true.

Public opinion and polls change like the weather.

Truth is Eternal and Unchangeable.

We may be Put on trial in the court of public opinion as was Jesus and Saint John the Baptist.

And Like Jesus and Saint John the Baptist,

We too may be crucified in one form or another, for holding onto the Truth.

But it is better to die a martyr for the Truth live than live as a slave to Public opinion.

22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time

 

Draw Near Heb. 12:18-24

When the Hebrews gathered at Mount Sinai,

The Lord told Moses that He was coming.

The people were to wash their garments and be ready.

No one was to even touch the mountain,

If they did they were to be put to death.

The next day there was thunder and lightning

And it sounded like a trumpet blast.

the ground shook

And The people trembled.

And when Moses went up the Mountain

A dark cloud came down and covered the mountain top.

And fire came shooting out of the smoke that covered the mountain.

This was no video game;

This was God coming to talk to His people;

And he made sure He got their attention.

Maybe God needs to do this again,

To get our attention!

But in the letter to the Hebrews

God does not choose to come to us like this.

Instead of approaching the dark and terrifying Mount Sinai

We are approaching the Heavenly Jerusalem.

God the Just Judge is coming;

And the thought of it should make us tremble.

All the angels have gathered singing Holy, Holy, Holy.

The Cherubim and Seraphim are bowing down in worship.

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are here.

The Prophets who prophesied;

The Apostles who preached and

The martyrs who shed their blood;

Have all gathered around this altar.

And we have been invited.

But we need to wash not our garments but our souls.

Jesus the Mediator between God and Man however

Has shed His blood on the cross, to wash us clean.

instead of being afraid of touching the mountain

For fear we will die,

We are going to touch the Body of the Lord and live forever.

Nowhere else does this happen,

Then here,

At the Supper of the Lamb!

21st Saturday of Ordinary Time

 

St. Monica

St. Monica had a wayward child.

He left the church in which he was baptized

And went off to a life of pleasure

Following one cult after another.

And what did she do?

She did not preach or scold or admonish her son.

Rather she wept tears for him.

Tears that God saw

And tears that eventually touched the heart of her son.

And through those tears

Her son came back to the Church and became

St. Augustine.

Perhaps the greatest theologian in the history of the Church.

So never underestimate the power of tears.

21st Friday of Ordinary Time

 

The foolishness of the Cross

Life is a mystery.

There are some things we will never figure out.

The Cross is one of those mysteries.

For Jews the Cross is a stumbling block,

Because they look not for a Crucified Messiah,

But for one that will restore the glory and power of Israel.

For the Pagans the Cross is foolishness,

Because suffering does not bring life.

But for us who believe

The Cross is the Wisdom of God which puts the foolishness of Man to shame,

And the Cross shows that the weakness of God is stronger than Men.

In other words, God uses the cross to show the world that it is not as smart or as strong as it think it is.

21st. Thursday of ordinary time

 

When you pray, what do you pray for?

Do you ever pray to hold firm to the end.

To keep the Faith until the Day of the Lord?

To lose our Faith is to lose everything.

To lose our Salvation and Eternal Life.

Faith is how the Lord will recognize us as His sheep on the Last Day, when He separates the sheep from the goats.

As St. Paul prayed that the Corinthians keep the Faith until the Day of the Lord.

So I pray for all the parishioners that each one may Keep the Faith as well and that the Lord will find us all irreproachable when He comes.

Wednesday St. Bartholomew

 

Bartholmew was also known as Nathaniel.

Before Nathaniel met Jesus, he had his doubts,

As he asked if “anything good can come from Nazareth.”

Bartholmew was from Cana, so obviously there was competition

Between Cana and Nazareth.

And this blinded Bartholmew from seeing Jesus for Who He was,

The Son of God.

Does our competition or stereotypes of neighboring cities and states;

Ever Blind us from seeing Jesus in those people and places?

Tuesday 21st Week of Ordinary Time

Hypocrisy

A hypocrite is someone who pretends to be what they are not.

Jesus accused the Pharisees of being hypocrites.

Because they cleansed the outside but not the inside.

Outside they fasted and appeared to be praying.

But inside their hearts had no mercy or love.

We may fool our neighbor with our outward acts of piety;

But God sees what is in our hearts.

And unless there is forgiveness and mercy and love in our hearts

We are no different than the Pharisees.

Monday 21st Week of Ordinary Time

 

Monday

The Queenship of Mary

How does one become a Queen?

Usually one is born into the royalty.

But not when it comes to Jesus.

One becomes brother, sister and mother to the Lord,

Not by blood but by doing the Will of God.

No one was more obedient to the Will of God

Than Mary whose motto was,

“Fiat!”

“Let it be done to me according to your word.”

If we follow her example and always seek to do God’s Will

Rather than our own,

Then we too will reign with her forever

In the Kingdom of Heaven.

21st Sunday of Ordinary Time

 

Some people think of God as a Santa Claus who is supposed to give them whatever they ask for.

Other people think of God as a Judge just waiting to catch them when they do something wrong.

But God is neither.

Jesus tells us that God is a Father.

Does a Father give his children everything they ask for?

Does a Parent let their children do whatever they want?

Of course not.

because children do not always know what is best for themselves.

Children want to stay up late;

Children want to eat donuts instead of vegetables.

Children would rather play video games than study.

And while no child likes to hear the word “No”

every parent has to say it or their child will be spoiled instead of becoming the best they can be.

And so sometimes our Heavenly Father does not give us everything we want

And sometimes says NO to us,

For the same reasons.

And when we know how to make a planet or a galaxy;

When we can see every atom without a microscope

And can count every single kernel of corn in the field..

Then maybe we can question Our Heavenly Father’s decisions.

But until then, Father knows Best.

And every parent has to discipline their children.

Even coaches discipline their players

And sergeants their troops.

And teachers their students.

Discipline is an important part of life and maturity;

Growth and character.

The letter to the Hebrews tells us that those whom the Lord loves He too disciplines.

“For what ‘son’ is there whom his father does not discipline?

Discipline can come to us in the form of trials, temptations, or crosses.

“At the time, all discipline seems a cause not for joy but for pain.”

But for those who accept them, as coming from the loving hand of their Heavenly Father;

They will mature and grow in self confidence, trust in God and an unshakable Peace,

Friday 20th Week of Ordinary Time

 

I will bring you back from your graves Ez. 37:1-14

Israel was dead and gone.

The Temple was destroyed;

Jerusalem was razed to the ground;

And the people had all been carried off to Babylon.

They were as good as dead.

And Ezekiel told them

That God would breath His Spirit

Over their dead, dry bones and bring them back to life

And restore them to the Promised Land.

When we die;

The Temple of our body will be destroyed

And everything we have will be turned to dust and ashes

As we are carried off to our grave.

But God will breath His Spirit in us

And our dead, dry bones will come back to life

On the Last Day

And God will restore us to the Land He Promised our Fathers,

The Kingdom of Heaven.

Thursday 20th Week of Ordinary Time

 

Spiritual Cleansing Ez. 36:23-28

After a long hard day working or playing in the summer heat

The one thing most people want to do is take a good shower and get all cleaned up.

It just makes one feel better.

After a long hard week or month or even years,

Of working or playing in the grime of this world,

The one thing most people need is a good confession.

In Confession one receives an Absolution.

Where God sprinkles clean water upon us;

Cleanses us of all our impurities

And gives us a new heart and a new spirit.

It just makes one feel so much better,

To get spiritually cleaned up.

Wednesday 20th Week of Ordinary Time

 

Are you envious because I am generous? Mt. 20:1-16

The definition of Generosity is the willingness to give to others.

No one is more generous than God.

For in the parable God gives generously to every worker no matter when they came;

At morning, noon, afternoon, even the last hour.

Do we limit our generosity?

Do we give only to those deserving and not to the undeserving?

Yet who of us deserves God’s Mercy and Grace.

But God gives it to us anyway.

When we give to to the Undeserving,

Is when we most imitate the Generosity of God!

Tuesday 20th Week of Ordinary Time

 

Easier to Pass through the Eye of a needle! Mt. 19:23-30

Jesus warns us that it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle

than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.

It is not so much the riches that are the problem as clinging to them.

The eye of a needle is very small,

And if we want to enter the Kingdom of heaven,

Then we must rid ourselves of our possessions.

For the only thing that will fit through the eye of the needle that we can take with us into the Kingdom of Heaven is,

LOVE!

The Assumption

 The Assumption. 2014

Why was Mary Assumed into Heaven?

Because She said Yes!

It sounds easy enough.

But It is much easier to say No to God.

People say no to God everyday.

No, I am too tired.

No, I am too busy.

No, I do not feel like it.

No, it is not my job.

No, let someone else do it.

Yes is far more difficult.

Yes, I will conceive God's Son.

Sounds easy enough.

Now go tell Joseph and your parents that you are pregnant by someone else.

And it was not by a man!

Yes, I will give birth to God's Son.

Sounds easy enough.

Try it in a stable surrounded by farm animals.

Yes, I will nurture God's Son.

Sounds easy enough until you have to flee to a foreign country as an unwanted immigrant.

Yes, I will raise God's Son.

Sounds easy enough.

He should be no problem until He takes off without telling you and goes back to Jerusalem and makes you look for Him for three days.

Yes, I will watch over God's Son.

Sounds easy enough

Until you have to watch Him stripped naked and scourged and blood flowing down His Face into His eyes from the crown of thorns.

Yes, I will stand by God's Son

Sounds easy enough.

Until you have to stand at the foot of His cross and watch Him die in agony and take His last breath.

Yes, I will lay God's Son down to sleep.

Sounds easy enough.

Until you have to lay Him to sleep not in His manger but in a stranger's tomb.

Mary was assumed into heaven precisely because she always said "Yes"

Not just once;

But Every moment and every circumstance of her life.

Never counting the cost or asking why.

And so God said "Yes" to her

"Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world." Mt. 25:34

If we too want to follow her into Heaven,

Then we too must say “yes” to God

When He asks something of us.