Anchored In The Lord

2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time In this week's Gospel Jesus performs his first known miracle: turning water into wine at a wedding reception.  Jewish wedding receptions lasted 5-7 days; it was the third day of this wedding reception and they're already running out of wine - it would have been a complete humiliation for the newlyweds. For this miracle, however, Jesus didn't magically become aware of th...

The Baptism of the Lord Today Jesus is baptized, not to be washed by the water but to wash the water; not to be cleansed by the waters but to cleanse the waters.  Today Jesus isn't baptized by water - water is baptized by Jesus.  So when we go down into the water in baptism, we no longer just get wet, we get Jesus Christ!  At our baptism we were set free from the hold of sin, worry and anxiety in...

Epiphany Today three wise men/three kings/three magi arrive at the place where Jesus was born after following the sign of a star.  The presence of these three non-Jewish kings shows that God is calling not only the Jewish people but ALL people of the world to believe in and follow His Son Jesus.  God's sign was a star; everyone can see the stars.  So why is it only these three wise men who followe...

Feast of the Holy Family Jesus was born into a human family, with everything that entails.  He learned to live with an immediate and extended family (and based on the lineage we hear in other Bible passages, his relations were far from perfect).  In an imperfect world, with imperfect people and imperfect families, today's readings give us some very practical advice on how we can live more fulfilli...

Merry Christmas! What child is this, who, laid to rest, On Mary's lap is sleeping? Whom angels greet with anthems sweet, While shepherds watch are keeping?

4th Sunday of Advent We've looked at the light of Christ in our thoughts and actions.   Now, in this final week of Advent, we look at the light of Christ in our words.   In my experience, people WANT to talk about God and faith in their lives…they're just afraid of what others will think and uncertain where others stand on the issue — so they don't say anything.   Our words have the power to give...

3rd Sunday of Advent Last week it was spending time at the manger, allowing the Light of Christ to settle in our thoughts and minds.  This week it's allowing the Light of Christ into our actions.  Little kids are so good at giving presents: at first glance their artwork  might not be a Van Gogh or Monet, but their intention in making these various works as gifts turns them into masterpieces!  Inte...

2nd Sunday of Advent Have you ever put yourself in the manger scene?  Have you ever experienced the birth of Jesus or the time after His birth, with Mary and Joseph, or the shepherds, or the wise men?  Lectio Divina (Latin for "Divine Reading") is a form of Christian prayer where we read a passage of Scripture and then use our imagination to place ourselves in the scene: then we see, hear, touch,...

Feast of Christ the King We as Americans don't always like the idea of authority, a king, a ruler.  We pride ourselves on democracy, equality, independence and standing on our own two feet.  But as Christians we claim that God is God and we are not, as Christians we claim to submit ourselves to Jesus Christ, as Christians we claim to bring about the reign of God's kingdom on earth - beginning with...

33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time What do you see when you look in the mirror?  The problem is that we can only see the external; a mirror can't show us what we look like internally: how our souls look, how our thoughts, words and actions are changing us, for better or for worse.  Our first reading and Gospel are apocalyptic readings that refer, in part, to the end of time.  "Apocalypse" doesn't mean "...

32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time This weekend I joined almost 60 high schoolers from around our diocese for the winter High School Discipleship Weekend.  These are young men and women serious about living out their Catholic faith: they want to continue growing in a deep and genuine relationship with Jesus Christ, they are learning to be active leaders in the faith, they are growing in intentional serv...

31st Sunday in Ordinary Time In our Gospel this weekend Jesus sums up the entirety of the Scriptures with the simple teaching to "love God and love neighbor."  Christianity IS that simple...but it's not that easy!  Growing in love of God and others is painful: like the pain and frustration you see go across a child's face when they have to learn how to share with someone else, we experience that s...

30th Sunday in Ordinary Time When I was young, I didn't like doing the dishes - it was an obligation, a duty, something I HAD to do.  When my parents came up to visit me the other week, I cooked them a nice meal, and then miracle of miracles...I wanted to do the dishes!  Out of thankfulness for all they've done for me, I WANTED to do that service for them.  In our Gospel today Jesus heals a blind...

Diocesan Youth Rally When I was little I loved playing basketball.  As I grew I moved from a little foam basketball to a little heavy basketball to a women's basketball to a men's basketball, from granny shots to real shots; then, one day, I finally realized what it felt like to make the perfect shot - you may as well turn around and start heading down the court because as soon as it leaves your h...

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time It's a natural human tendency to make sense of things.  We ask the question "Why?" and we come up with an answer to appease our minds.  Our brains will even make up answers (even wrong ones, and totally believe them) just to satisfy this impulse to make sense of things.  When it comes to suffering, pain, difficulty, and even death, however, coming up with an answer for...

28th Sunday in Ordinary Time An enthusiastic young man comes to Jesus in our Gospel asking what he must do to inherit eternal life.  Having followed all the commandments from his youth, Jesus invites the young man to take a step in faith...but this young man is very wealthy.  At Jesus' challenge to sell what he owns and follow Jesus alone, this good young man walks away - he isn't willing to put s...

I think the title speaks for itself...you'll want to listen to this!

26th Sunday in Ordinary Time How do we evaluate a day, a week, a month, a season in our life?  Is it by how little we've done wrong or sinned?  In the Gospel today Jesus comes down hard on sin: "If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off!  If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out!"  While we may become complacent with our sins, Jesus never does.  And yet, if our goal is never to sin, that neith...

23rd Sunday in Ordinary Time In our Gospel today a deaf man with a speech impediment is brought to Jesus.  Jesus takes him away from the crowd, touches his ears and tongue, prays, and cures both his deafness and speech impediment.  In our society it seems that many of us Catholics, like the man in our Gospel, have experienced what it feels like to be tongue-tied: we don't always how to respond to...

21st Sunday in Ordinary Time Fr. Benedict Groeschel once told me, "The Church will get much smaller before it gets bigger."  In our Gospel, Jesus' teaching that his followers must eat his flesh and drink his blood (the Eucharist) to find eternal life turned many people away.  But the Church has to get smaller, and more genuine, before it can grow through authentic and powerful witness.  People get...

20th Sunday in Ordinary Time In our Gospel this weekend, Jesus says that one must eat his flesh and drink his blood to have eternal life.  The people of his day and age are scandalized by that - "How can we possibly eat his flesh and drink his blood!  That's preposterous!"  Does Jesus apologize?  Or soften his words?  Or say that he's just speaking figuratively?  No.  In fact, he ups the ante.  We...

19th Sunday in Ordinary Time In the spiritual life, it's often the case that when you want to go up, you'll first "feel" like you're going down (emphasis on "feel").  God grows us through struggle and perseverance, and it's in those times when we "feel" like we're going down that God is giving us the opportunity to grow in exactly that place where we feel weak.  So the next time you are struggling...

18th Sunday in Ordinary Time It seems to be a natural human tendency to begin something new with energy and enthusiasm...then the path begins to get long and difficult...our energy and excitement seem to dry up...we begin to doubt our initial commitment and wonder whether or not the change is really worth it...then we slowly fall back into the way things used to be - not because the old way was be...

17th Sunday in Ordinary Time In the Gospel today Jesus goes up a mountain to preach.  This sixth chapter of John's Gospel, surprisingly enough, is all about the Mass and the Eucharist.  People come and gather around Jesus, sitting at His feet and listening to His words - exactly what we do as we gather at Mass.  Jesus then miraculously feeds thousands - at Mass we are fed with bread and wine mirac...

16th Sunday in Ordinary Time In our first reading from Jeremiah, in the midst of very challenging times - the nation's leaders were not following the Lord and Jerusalem was on the path to destruction - God promises that one day He will come and shepherd His people rightly.  That promise is fulfilled 500 years later in Jesus, Who comes to us, His people, as the true Shepherd in the line of King Dav...