Bishop Bill Wack, CSC podcast

Today's (Gospel) parable of the Unjust Judge -- or Persistent Widow -- has much to teach us.  For the most part, it teaches us about prayer.  We must be persistent in prayer (as was the widow) in order to come to know God and God's will for us.  While some people think that we are able to wear God down with our prayers, we are really hoping to wear ourselves down.  That is to say, the more we pray...

In both the first reading and the Gospel, we hear stories of miraculous healing.  Elisha the prophet and Jesus Christ cleanse lepers of their disease through word and action.  Two of those who were healed -- Naaman in the first reading and the Samaritan in the Gospel -- return to give thanks to God.  It is clear that all of us, who have been cleansed and healed over and over, are to do the same. ...

"Those who humble themselves will be exalted."  Today's readings clearly call us to humility.  Sirach -- a wise teacher in the Old Testament -- tells us that the more highly we think of ourselves, the more we should humble ourselves. Jesus not only tells us to be humble; he gave examples on how to practice humility, and then he showed us what humility and love look like: he laid down his life for...

(All-school Mass at Pensacola Catholic High.  In the homily I pointed to a banner in the gym that highlights some saints and has the words "The Love of God Makes us do Great Things" over it.) Do Catholics worship Mary?  Of course not.  Worship and adoration belong to God alone.  When we honor Mary and the saints we do what they did: we glorify God.  Mary said herself, "My soul magnifies the Lord;...

What is the Assumption of Mary, and why is it important to us today?  Because of Mary's perfect openness and obedience to God here on earth, she was taken up, body and soul, in the heaven at the end of her life.  Our Holy Father Francis said that every "Yes" to God is a step toward heaven.  Mary's whole life was a "Yes" to God; thus she reigns with Him in eternal life.  May it be so with us.

The readings for today's Mass are very challenging.  We hear what happened to Jeremiah when he spoke the truth in his day, and Jesus tells us, "Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth.  Rather, I have come to bring division..."  Whereas when someone wants to convince us to buy something or to join them in some endeavor, they only tell us the positive things that we can obtain; Jesus...

Today's Gospel reading gives us the beloved story of The Good Samaritan.  Jesus tells this story as an answer to the scholar's question, "And who is my neighbor?"  However, Jesus turns the question around and asks the man, "Which of these was neighbor to the man who was beaten?"  The crux of the matter, then, is not that we should try to figure out which person is our neighbor (and which ones are...

Today's readings -- and the presidential prayers for the Mass -- tell us that we should rejoice.  Isaiah's imagery is a bit shocking as he refers to Jerusalem (the New Jerusalem) as a Mother who delights in her children and plays with them on her lap.  In the Gospel, even as the disciples are reporting to Jesus about their progress following their first missionary activity, Jesus says to them, "Re...

"My sheep know me and I know them."  "There is no snatching them from my hand."  Today as we celebrate Good Shepherd Sunday, we reflect on what it means to be united with our shepherd, Jesus Christ.  Hearing these words in the midst of the Easter Season reminds us that the goal of our lives is -- in the words of the Opening Prayer from today's Mass -- "to follow where our brave shepherd has gone."...

Today we hear about another Resurrection appearance to the disciples.  Like the other accounts, this one is not flashy, not dramatic at all.  Jesus appears to the disciples in very ordinary ways -- in today's case on the shore, eating breakfast with an incredulous group of disciples. In the same way, we experience the Risen Lord today in regular, ordinary ways.  Through prayer, adoration, the cele...

The Lord is Risen!  We have died with the Lord and have been raised with him.  Let us live as people bound for glory.

We have listened to the proclamation of several readings from the Old Testament, as well as the New Testament Epistle and the climactic reading of the Lord's Resurrection in the Gospel.  In light of this Good News, may we live always as people of the Resurrection, people of hope and joy.

Why do we venerate the cross of Christ?  only because we know that this is not the end.  No, we believe that everything -- especially the death of Jesus Christ on the cross -- ends in glory.  Knowing how all of this ends gives us the ability to 'celebrate' the death of Christ for our salvation. Today more than ever, we must keep our eyes fixed on Christ.  As we walk with him the Way of the Cross a...

As we begin the great liturgy of the Paschal Mystery, we hear a lot of detailed instructions from our God.  God commands the Israelites to celebrate the Passover meal in a very specific way.  St. Paul teaches us what was handed on to him -- namely, how Jesus Christ celebrated the Last Supper and commanded us to "do this in memory" of him.  In the Gospel, St. John relates what happened during that...

At this liturgy we ask God to bless the oil that will be used to anoint our brothers and sisters throughout the year.  God uses something so ordinary and commonplace -- the fruit of the olive tree -- to do something extraordinary today.  In the same way, God takes our ordinary lives and makes them extraordinary.  Finally, today we celebrate and honor the priests who serve us; men whom God has set...

The Gospel today gives us the account of the adulterous woman and Jesus.  Whereas some of the religious leaders were using the woman to test Jesus, Jesus used her to show us God's mercy.  Why is this Gospel passage given to us late in Lent?  One reason might be that it points us toward the redemption that is ours in Jesus' passion and death.  In his encounter with the woman who sinned, Jesus 'susp...

The Gospel for the 4th Sunday of Lent this year gives us the parable of the Prodigal Son.  This story, coupled with the words of St. Paul from the second reading: "For our sake God made him to be sin who did not know sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him" (2 Cor 5:21), teach us God's plan for creation.  God wishes that everyone be saved through His son Jesus Christ.  Like th...

In the middle of the season of Lent, the Scriptures for this Sunday remind us that we must turn away from sin and be converted.  What we began on Ash Wednesday now takes an even more serious turn as we are confronted with the final judgement and our conscience.  The disciples ask Jesus (in effect): "Why do bad things happen (to good people)?"  Jesus does not answer the question directly; rather he...

We were created for eternal Beatitude -- that is, eternal life with God.  After spelling out the Beatitudes in the Gospel passage from last week, Jesus tells us how we are to live so as to receive this gift from the Father.  In short, we must become more and more like Christ.  Specifically, we are called to forgive like Christ, love like Christ, and serve like Christ.  Today Jesus calls us to a ra...

In the Gospel passage today we hear about Jesus' rejection in the synagogue at Nazareth.  We may tend to think that it was easy for him to face the anger and consternation of his kinfolk and neighbors, but as a human being I am certain that it affected Jesus.  Any of us who have faced slander or gossip or bullying (in person or online) know how hard it is to stand up to such injustices.  Jesus was...

Midnight Christmas Mass has its own unique characteristics and "feel".  Of course, we rejoice tonight at the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ.  And the "theme" of every Mass is the death and resurrection of Christ.  At the same time, this is a vigil, and thus we gather tonight at this hour of darkness to wait together.  We join our ancestors who waited in the darkness, and we join our brothers an...

Even though we are just days away from celebrating Christmas, we still find ourselves in the beautiful season of Advent -- a time of waiting and preparing for the Lord.  The scene of the Visitation of Mary and Elizabeth in the Gospel is one of great joy and wonder, and we would do well to contemplate and imitate the faith and exuberance of these holy women.  In the second reading -- from the Lette...

During Advent we prepare to receive our Lord.  God comes to us not "once upon a time", or "in a galaxy far, far away", but in a specific moment in history and in a specific place.  St. Luke places his coming within historical events sot that we may know that Jesus Christ really and truly came in the flesh.  Imagine: God loves us so much that He opened the heavens and came down to live among us!  W...

Today we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception.  We proclaim and believe that God, in His goodness and love, preserved Mary from all stain of sin from the moment of her conception -- thus preparing her to be a worthy vessel for God's Son.  In this liturgy we adore our God and thank God for the redemption of the world, wrought by the death and resurrection of His Son.  May we, like Mary,...

Today's Gospel gives us the very familiar story of "The Rich Young Man".  Especially for those present at this Mass who were about to be confirmed, the young man gives a good example -- and then teaches us what else we must do.  First, he runs up to Jesus, does him homage, and asks, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"  Undoubtedly, Jesus approved of this question and the desire of the young...