Daily Reflections
When I was recently at my home parish, the priest asked me if I could recommend a book explaining some basic Catholic art because he feared people did not understand what was in the church. Unfortunately today we have access to much information yet are illiterate when it comes to Christian symbols. A consequence…
Continue ReadingI know these days during the pandemic, many of us are tired of being in our houses. Yet this reality of sheltering in a safe place speaks to the power of the personal domicile. A house, a home, is a powerful thing. Even if you are a world traveler and revel in seeing new…
Continue ReadingNot many people in our society really give a second thought about a married couple, even one advanced in years, who are without children. But, during Elizabeth’s time, her experience of barrenness was a disgrace before others. She shouldered a great personal burden characteristic of all women who desire to have a child, but…
Continue ReadingJoseph receives God’s message from the angel in a dream. The Lord’s promise to Ahaz will be fulfilled through the Virgin Mary: “The Virgin will conceive and bear a son, and they shall name him Emmanuel.” About seven hundred years after Isaiah’s prophecy, God’s salvation is brought forth in the person of Jesus Christ.…
Continue ReadingSome priests are scared about having to proclaim the varied and difficult names that appear in the genealogy Gospel. Though there has been a resurgence in family lineage in recent years, most people today do not find Matthew’s introduction all that captivating. While the text isn’t in the style of a narrative that we…
Continue ReadingThe Prophet Isaiah emphasizes the greatness of the Lord God and the foolishness of placing our trust in any other gods— “I am the LORD, there is no other.” Throughout salvation history, God performed powerful signs and wonders and saved His people, yet they turned from Him again and again. God’s presence is readily…
Continue ReadingWhen I was in high school, my Mom would leave us a short to-do list, with some simple chores to do while she was away running errands. It was nothing complicated, but just some basic tasks with which my brothers and I agreed to help out. I remember how we would put it off,…
Continue ReadingGod surely couldn’t work through me, could He? Many of us have uttered, or at least thought of, some version of the statement above. It’s an admission of how we feel inadequate, insignificant, and altogether fallible. Two things can be true at the same time: We can readily acknowledge our human weakness, and God…
Continue ReadingRecently someone who was mourning the loss of a loved one came to me and asked: “Father, several months have gone by and I am still grieving and hurting—is this revealing that my faith is weak and that I’m not entrusting my loved one to God?” Our liturgy for the Third Sunday of…
Continue ReadingBook of revelation A great sign appeared – a woman clothed with the sun. and the moon was under her feet…. on her head a crown of twelve stars. The prophet Zechariah states that many nations shall join themselves to the Lord. They shall be his people. And God will dwell among you. Mary…
Continue ReadingLet’s make a quick return to that opening collect from Sunday, where we ask God to “remove the things that hinder us from receiving Christ with joy.” I have always thought of this as a wonderful expression of our Advent longings, that we ask God to remove those things that keep us from receiving…
Continue Reading“I will” – “I do” – “I am” – “I am, with the help of God” Three responses we hear from the lips of those exchanging marriage vows and making the promises that come in the rites of ordination or religious profession. Today it is God making the promise – I WILL Fear not I…
Continue ReadingAlmost from the beginning of Advent, we begin to hear again and again of the promises to Israel for deliverance. The prophecies of Isaiah speak eloquently to the promise of redemption: give comfort to my people; speak tenderly to Jerusalem, proclaim that her service is at an end; fear not, your God comes to…
Continue ReadingIn 1854 Pope Pius IX declared the Immaculate Conception to be a dogma of our faith, long-held sacred and celebrated over the centuries. Mary, the Immaculate Conception is Patroness of the Church in the United States, of our own diocese and the name of the Cathedral in Kansas City. The naming of two local…
Continue Reading“A highway will be there, called the holy way… and on it, the redeemed will walk.” After Jesus cured the paralytic, the man picked up his mat and went home, praising God. During Advent, we focus on our journey to and with the Lord. We await Jesus’ journeying to us, the Lord’s coming. We…
Continue ReadingIn the collect for today’s Mass, we pray: “Almighty and merciful God, may no earthly undertaking hinder those who set out in haste to meet your Son.” An earlier version put it this way asking God to “remove the things that hinder us from receiving Christ with joy.” Both versions get at something basic…
Continue ReadingToday’s Gospel accumulates what I have been saying all week. It says, “Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus, ‘Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. As you go, make this proclamation: ‘The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.’ Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, drive out…
Continue ReadingToday our theme of being missionaries and having faith continues. Today we see the miracle of Jesus curing the blind men. Jesus asks them, “Do you believe that I can do this? ‘Yes, Lord,’ they said to him. Then he touched their eyes and said, ‘Let it be done for you according to your…
Continue ReadingToday is the feast of St. Francis Xavier, patron saint of missionaries. On Monday I said that we are called this Advent Season to be missionaries, and as St. Francis Xavier says “When trying to evangelize, no tool is more effective than that of personal witness…People can argue with points of doctrine but no…
Continue ReadingToday in the Gospel, we hear about the story of the loaves and the fish. Jesus took seven loaves and a few fish and multiplied them to a crowd of about 4,000, and the disciples picked up seven baskets full left over. If you noticed in the Gospel, they were in a deserted place.…
Continue ReadingI remember my mom telling me her “annunciation” story. Mom was pregnant with my sister Lauren. My crazy, fun-loving sister is high-functioning autistic. The doctor asked my mom if she wanted to do a special sonogram that could detect any abnormalities that the baby could have, and my mom said to the doctor, straightforward,…
Continue ReadingProbably two of my favorite passages are referenced on this feast of St. Andrew. The first from our first reading, “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring the good news!” and Jesus telling Andrew and Peter (Simon), “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” I see an equation…
Continue ReadingThank you for joining us for the Advent edition of the Online Spiritual Journey. Over the next few weeks, we will prepare our hearts for the birth of our Savior. We invite you to join us, as we offer daily reflections and Sunday videos. In the secular world, Advent may seem to mean we…
Continue ReadingIt is the custom at Conception Abbey to celebrate a Commemoration of the Blessed Virgin Mary on Saturdays during Ordinary Time. The antiphons on this day are taken from the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary, I. In Ordinary Time, Set 2. The readings are of the weekday. The Eucharist today commences with the antiphon:…
Continue ReadingPreface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains, and the gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique perspective on the scripture passages of each day and…
Continue ReadingSpecific readings used at Conception Abbey on this day. Preface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains, and the gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique…
Continue ReadingPreface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains and the gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique perspective on the scripture passages of each day and…
Continue ReadingPreface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains, and the gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique perspective on the scripture passages of each day and often…
Continue ReadingPreface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains, and the gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique perspective on the scripture passages of each day and…
Continue ReadingPreface: Throughout this coming week, we will ponder the daily Mass readings from the perspective of the liturgical texts given to us in the Roman Missal and the Lectionary—the entrance and communion antiphons, the responsorial refrains, and the Gospel acclamations. These texts provide a unique perspective on the scripture passages of each day and…
Continue ReadingToday we celebrate the Presentation of the Virgin Mary. It was the custom for Jewish youth to be presented in the Temple in Jerusalem. Mary was presented before God. Mary isn’t just the Mother of God. She is Our Lady of Victory. She is resplendent in her prefiguration of the glory God gives to…
Continue ReadingJesus finally arrives at the Temple in Jerusalem. Here, He drives out those who were selling things. Jesus accuses these merchants of turning the Temple into a “den of thieves,” when it was meant to be a “house of prayer.” (Leave it to Jesus not to be subtle.) Jesus then starts to teach in…
Continue ReadingDuring this time of division and uncertainty, it’s important to reflect on the importance of peace in our lives and how we stand for truth. There are many problems we see in the world. There are many battles and debates raging around us. Where is our place? What is our duty? How are we…
Continue ReadingHoly, holy, holy. These words echo through the first reading and through the responsorial psalm. The four living creatures that stand before the throne, which resemble a lion, a calf, a man, and an eagle, all recite these words continuously before God. In today’s Gospel, we hear Luke’s take on the story of the…
Continue Reading“I will set the victor beside me on my throne.” (Rev. 3:21). Jesus promises a victory to those who follow Him. This isn’t false hope. Jesus will not leave us disappointed. We also have to understand that this isn’t a victory of the World. If we only focus on achieving, we will lose sight…
Continue ReadingThe Book of Revelation is our point of entry into the scriptures this week. This mystical volume speaks volumes of God’s ways to us. How do we interpret it? How can we approach it? The first thing to say about Revelation, and the Bible in general, is that it is not to be taken…
Continue ReadingThese readings for the 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time call us to a healthy sense of vigilance. This is the second-to-last Sunday before the Advent Season. The liturgical year of the Catholic Church will begin again, and we will count down the days to the celebration of our Lord Jesus Christ coming in the…
Continue ReadingIn the Gospel today, Jesus offers a strange story, the story of the unjust judge. The judge is unwilling to hear this women’s case, and she becomes dangerously persistent in her demand for change. Unwilling to put himself in danger, the judge rules in her favor. Jesus goes on to say that God is…
Continue Reading“Anyone who is so “progressive” as not to remain in the teaching of the Christ does not have God; whoever remains in the teaching has the Father and the Son.” The New Testament is not meant to keep us complacent, rather, it is there to shake us into faith; rattle us into making a…
Continue ReadingWe like things to be clear, understandable, and obvious. Unnecessary confusion or hiddenness is not appreciated, we live in a scientific society. The naked truth—in the news, in our classrooms, in our churches, in our politics, in our society—is important and desired. However, when it comes to Christ, that’s not always the case. Not…
Continue Reading