Jesus warned them sternly, “See that no one knows about this.”  But they went out and spread word of him through all that land. As my mother used to say, it’s hard to get adults to obey. You would think after Jesus had done so much for the blind men, curing them of their illness,… Read More »

The prophet Isaiah, writing in 721BC assures the people in the face of the Assyrian army. “A strong city have we; he sets up walls and ramparts to protect us.” The threat was averted and Jerusalem was saved. Several generations later the prophet Jeremiah warns the people about the approaching Babylonian army. He doesn’t get… Read More »

During Advent the readings are chosen to complement one another. Today’s reading from Isaiah speaking of the mountain of the Lord where there will be “rich foods and choice wines” serves as a counterpoint to the gospel of Luke which reports the story of the multiplication of the loaves and fish. Both passages suggest the… Read More »

There is something sad about a stump, particularly a large stump. When you think of the decades it took for the tree to grow — leaning over the stump you can count the rings — that the life of the tree was snuffed out in an instant by a chain saw seems wrong, somehow. But,… Read More »

The season of Advent begins with a reminder that everyone belongs in the kingdom of God. The prophet Isaiah has a vision: The mountain of the LORD’s house shall be established as the highest mountain … All nations shall stream toward it. Jesus observes that “many will come from the east and the west, and… Read More »

There are times when the ugliness of the world, the cruelty of people, the violence pervading society seems too much. It’s enough to make you want to crawl into a cave and become a hermit. (Which actually has been the responce of many Christians over the ages!) On the other hand we have the promise… Read More »

The founder of my religious congregation, Fr. Thomas Judge, CM, had has his (and hence, our) motto “Every Catholic is called to be an apostle.” In our day and age with the rise of the “nones,” those without any religious belief, the apostolic vocation that we all share is more important than ever. The reading… Read More »

In one sense God is beyond time  and all that we can do is be in awe at the presence of the divine. On the other hand, since God shares human life with us in the person of Jesus we are given access into the divine nature and how God is present in the world.… Read More »

Once upon a time there was a farmer who thought the price of feed was getting too high.  He decided to do something about it.  One of his neighbors asked him how it was going.  “Well,” the farmer said, “I just about had trained my horse not to eat anything when he up and died… Read More »

One of the most heinous of crimes for a Christian is anti-semitism. Hatred of Jews is hatred of Jesus, Mary, Peter and Paul. St. John (himself Jewish) has been accused of anti-semitism because of lines in the fourth gospel like “Jesus was delivered up to the Jews.” Obviously, in context, John meant delivered up to… Read More »