Solid Walls and a Door of Mercy
Reflections on the readings for the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C. The entire Israelite community – the people of God – are gathered around Ezra as he opens up and explains the Book of the Law, which, along with the temple, is the heart of Israel’s relationship with the Lord. Likewise, people anxiously […]
The New Wine
Reflections on the readings for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time A shorter version of this reflection originally appeared in the Catholic Post. The first great work of Jesus’ public ministry was the act of the Jewish bridegroom, whose job it is to provide wine for the wedding as Grant Pitre explains in his book, […]
Water, Fire, and Sacrifice
All of us have been reshaped into God’s beloved children in the baptismal waters, but all of us are also in continual need of perfection through God’s purging fire.
You Are Called to Give Light
“Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow,” “And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was. They were overjoyed at seeing the star, and on entering the house they saw the […]
You Are Called to Give Life
Christmas is an attractive time, because it reminds us of the basic hope that comes with the generation of new life. The birth of a child reminds us of the goodness of humanity and gives us hope for its future. The genius of Christmas is that, within this apparently ordinary human experience, the mystery of […]
The Goats, with Christmas, Passed
The Old Law has passed away. Since Christ’s presence is so near, now is the time of grace. Now is the time to do God’s will. “By this ‘will,’ we have been consecrated through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.” Jesus was present to all three people in the Gospel: […]
Nearness of Mercy
Advent… It’s about the nearness of mercy. Whereas, before, the human race was under the old weight of sin, burdened beneath the enmity with God merited by Adam, we can now rejoice at the freshness of this new experience: mercy. Our sins don’t have to dangle over our heads. Our poor choices need not define […]
Christ’s Gift: Mary our Mother
The following is an article written for our bi-monthly newsletter by Taylor Caputo, a seminarian for the Diocese of Peoria in his second year of pre-theology. As Catholics, we are typically brought up in a specific culture that gives Mary special emphasis, be it more or less the case. But, how much attention do or […]
Advent At the Starting Blocks
Grant your faithful, we pray, almighty God, the resolve to run forth to meet your Christ with righteous deeds at his coming, so that, gathered at his right hand, they may be worthy to possess the heavenly kingdom. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of […]
The Invisible Kingdom
Living everyday in a kingdom you can’t see is hard. Some might call it insane. Jesus claimed to be a king, but he stood there alone before Pilate with no one to jump to his defense and fight for him. It’s easy to say “My kingdom is not of this world.” It’s much harder to […]