Jan 28, 2012 05:09PM

Bishop's Letter about Healthcare

Dear friends, as you might have heard, our bishop has recently released a statement regarding the new health care policies being put into place by the government.  These are changes that significantly affect all of us Christians and rob us of our religious freedom.  Click here to read the bishop's statement, which contains an additional link to more information for the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.  Please keep our country and our politicians in your prayers.

Jan 27, 2012 05:39AM

small tO BIG

God loves to do BIG things through small circumstances!  This is probably why Jesus used the image of a mustard seed to describe the Kingdom of God (Mark 4:30-31).  A mustard seed is very tiny, yet becomes a significant bush.  Similarly, while the Kingdom of God started small (a few Jews in Israel), it is growing into a universal Kingdom!  Such growth, like the spreading of the Good News throughout the world, glorifies God.

In what ways have you and I seen God bring BIG blessings out of small circumstances?  Here are a few examples that come to my mind--the small boy whose faith got his parents to start going to church again, the handicapped woman whose courage inspired thousands to hope for greater things, and the small church that dared to dream of bringing Christian and encouraging movies to Hollywood.  These are all examples of the Kingdom of God growing in our midst!

Jan 27, 2012 05:27AM

Institute for Priestly Formation

For those of you who don't know about the Institute for Priestly Formation (IPF), here is the link to a short youtube video that describes the awesome ministry that they do.  I am honored to be an adjunct spiritual director for their summer seminarian program, having had my own priesthood saved and transformed by their ministry.  Please keep IPF in your prayers.  And, if you're looking for a worthwhile ministry to financially support, this is definitely a great one!

Jan 26, 2012 06:19AM

Friendship

What is a friend?  For me, the answer to that question changes with each passing year.  Today's feast day gives us an opportunity to deepen our understanding and appreciation of the gift of friendship.  Saints Timothy and Titus were friends of Saint Paul.  His letters to them in Sacred Scripture offer us a wonderful glimpse into the beauty of a friendship rooted in Christ.

For example, in Paul's second letter to Timothy, he indirectly teaches us that authentic friendship entails gratitude for the gift of our friends, intercession for them, a desire to see them often, joy in knowing them, and a shared faith in Jesus Christ.  Saint Paul wrote to Timothy--  

I am grateful to God, whom I worship with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly in my prayers, night and day.  I yearn to see you again, recalling your tears, so that I may be filled with joy, as I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and that I am confident lives also in you.  (2 Timothy 1:3-5)

Jan 25, 2012 05:08AM

Whose at the Center?

Undoubtedly, the conversion of Saint Paul is one of the most spectacular conversions in the history of the Church!  We read about it in the Book of Acts (9:1-5)--

Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, that, if he should find any men or women who belonged to the Way, he might bring them back to Jerusalem in chains.  On his journey, as he was nearing Damascus,
a light from the sky suddenly flashed around him.  He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him,
"Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"  He said, "Who are you, sir?"  The reply came, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting."