Get behind me: In this weekend’s Gospel on the 22nd Sunday of Ordinary Time, Jesus tells Peter to “get behind me Satan.” That’s quite a slap in the face. In fact, Jesus told that to Satan himself during the temptation in the desert. Last weekend we heard how Peter got the answer right, that Jesus […]
“Who do you say that I am?:” That important question, the most important question of our life, is Jesus asking each of us, “Who do you say that I am?” Surely, we can answer that question with our minds—Jesus is God, but Pope Francis reminds us that we can really answer that question by traveling […]
Great is your faith: This weekend in our Gospel we hear of the astounding faith of a non-believing woman. She is in desperate need—her daughter is sick, possessed by a demon. Pope Francis states that, in turning to Jesus, the woman is “brave,” like any “desperate mother” who would do anything “for the health of […]
Do not be Afraid: This weekend’s Gospel is one of my favorites. Jesus “made” the disciples get into a boat to precede him to the other side. During their journey, a violent storm appears and their boat was being tossed about by the waves. What a scary sight! But Jesus appears to calm the storm. […]
A glimpse: This weekend we celebrate the Transfiguration of our Lord, a feast of the Church celebrated on August 6. This is one of my favorite feast days. In the Gospels, Jesus mentions his future death to his disciples. Their reaction is what ours is like. Oh no! But then a week after stating this […]
Treasure: This weekend Jesus continues to tell us of the Kingdom of Heaven. It is like “a treasure buried in a field, which a person finds and hides again and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” It is also like “a merchant searching for fine pearls. When […]
Time for the Harvest: The harvest of the wheat is currently taking place amongst farmers. In today’s Gospel, Jesus discusses the fact that some weeds (tares) grow up with the wheat. Pope Francis reflected on this parable: “The teaching of the parable is twofold. First of all, Jesus says that the evil in the world […]
The Sower and the Seed: This Sunday, the 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we hear of the well-known Gospel of the sower who casts seed onto different parts of the earth—some along the path, some on rocky ground, some among thorns, and finally, some on rich soil. Jesus states that the seed sown on rich […]
Come to Me: On this 14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, we hear Jesus give us some of the most beautiful words found in Scripture: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” Jesus desires to give us inner peace with His presence. I recently read a commentary […]
Westy: This weekend we welcome Fr. Dan Westermann as our new associate pastor. His friends in the seminary liked to call him “Westy.” (So did I). I’ve known Fr. Dan since he was around 14 years old. He is a classmate of Fr. Gary. They were ordained together in 2014. Every time I talk to […]