Reflections

This time of year there are many special television programs, movies, and stories about Christmas—and particularly, about how some obstacle had to be overcome or some change of heart effected so that Christmas might truly be understood and celebrated. We have the song about Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, who makes it possible for Santa Claus to leave the North Pole in spite of terrible weather. Dr. Seuss’ story on “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” describes how a villain became the…

I wish to place before you an image of goalposts. And now, with this image embedded in your imagination, let us twist it and imagine these earthly goalposts as divine. Now regarding divine goalposts, I would wager that certain images come to mind; say: the Ten Commandments, Beatitudes, or Jesus’ words regarding earthly riches in Matthew’s Gospel (Chapter 19), that “…it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to…

Today is known as Gaudete Sunday. The word gaudete means “rejoice.” We gather to rejoice because we are half-way to Christmas. In the ancient Church, Advent was celebrated as a penitential season like Lent, although to a lesser extent. People were expected to keep a rigorous discipline of fasting, prayer and almsgiving. The priest and deacon wore violet vestments (although the vestments were of a bluer shade of purple rather than a reddish purple). The Gloria was omitted, yet the…

The most common word we hear during the Advent Season is “the coming of the Lord.” For example: And they will see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. (Matthew 24:30) This phrase needs clarification. Since Jesus, the Son of Man, is God, we cannot speak of him as leaving point A (heaven) to get to point B (wherever we happen to be). As God, he is everywhere at the same time, in heaven, in the…

Many years ago, a colleague sat me down for a “wisdom” conversation. For more than an hour, he shared the story of his family and career. Then in his late fifties, he was filled with regret because of foolish choices, incomplete relationships, and precious time lost. Perhaps the nineteenth century American poet, Henry David Thoreau, best summed up his feelings when he wrote: Most men lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in…

Let me paraphrase the gospel passage for the First Sunday of Advent: This world has ominous sings in the sun, the moon and the stars. There are many nations in dismay, perplexed by the roaring of the elements. People are dying of fright in anticipation of what is coming upon the world. Our world is indeed crisscrossed by heart-wrenching tragedies, by devastating calamities, by deadly, age-long feuds, barbaric, unspeakable acts of violence, deep divisions and prolonged wars. There might even be signs indicating…

I don’t know who first uttered these words but they set forth a truly important bit of wisdom: If there is nothing above us we will be consumed by all that is around us. Our nation’s Founding Fathers recognized its truth when they wrote: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. Our human dignity,…

Jesus said to his disciples:“In those days after that tribulationthe sun will be darkened,and the moon will not give its light,and the stars will be falling from the sky,and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. “And then they will see ‘the Son of Man coming in the clouds’with great power and glory,and then he will send out the angelsand gather his elect from the four winds,from the end of the earth to the end of the sky. “Learn…

Looking back at my priestly ministry spanning over more than 52 years, I lost count of the many people who came and keep coming to me with a very heavy heart. Invariably, they want me, as one of God’s ministers, to assure them that he has been monitoring all their sighs, accompanying them through their tragedies and collecting their tears in his divine bowl: My wanderings you have noted; are my tears not stored in your vial, recorded in your book? (Psalm…

The great mystic and visionary, St. Catherine of Siena, “Sometimes saw the holy angels serving around the altar at which the Mass was celebrated, holding in their hands a golden veil, or in company with the saints, praising and blessing God. Sometimes she saw three Faces in one substance, or the altar and the priest wrapt in a flame of fire. At other times a great and marvelous splendour seemed to shine forth from the altar; or again, when the priest…

Today’s reflection for the 31st Sunday in Ordinary Time is all about the law that must guide our every thought, choice, action and reaction. Today’s reflection is about the “rail” on which our life, in all its facets, is supposed to run. The expert of the law double-checked with Jesus about it by asking: “Which is the first of all the commandments?” (cf. Mark 12:28-34) It is called “Shema” because its first word is “hear,” “shema” in Hebrew. It is like saying: “Forget…

In Matthew’s Gospel (7:7-8), Jesus reminds: “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Years ago, when my wife was expecting our fourth child, she and I were active in our local crisis pregnancy center. The largest fundraiser conducted by the clinic was a…