Blog & Pastor Letters

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time – January 28, 2024

01-28-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Christopher Trummer

Almost all disagreements in theological matters come down to authority. When something about God or His will for us is unclear, who or what has the final word? In Christianity and Judaism, God has always raised up certain people as His representatives who speak authoritatively on His behalf. He usually gives clear signs that authenticate the authority of these representatives. The most common sign is the working of miracles.

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Third Sunday in Ordinary Time – January 21, 2024

01-21-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Christopher Trummer

Like last Sunday, our readings this Sunday again have a theme of vocation. Today, however, the emphasis is on the urgency of obeying God’s call. In the story of Jonah, God gives Jonah the apparently impossible task of calling the entire large city of Nineveh to repentance. Jonah was both the most reluctant prophet in history and the most successful. No other prophet resisted his calling more, but also, no other prophet saw greater fruit when delivering God’s message.

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Second Sunday in Ordinary Time – January 14, 2024

01-14-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Christopher Trummer

Last Sunday we celebrated the Epiphany, when the infant Jesus was visited by the magi. Today, we have entered Ordinary Time and in the Gospel we are again presented with the adult Jesus. The Sundays and weeks of Ordinary Time lead us through the life of Christ, emphasizing his ministry and teachings so that we can mature as his disciples. With this in mind, it makes sense that we should begin Ordinary Time by returning to the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry and his calling of the first disciples. In fact, our readings this Sunday in general have a theme of vocation, of hearing the call of the Lord and responding properly.

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The Epiphany of the Lord – January 7, 2024

01-07-2024Weekly ReflectionFr. Christopher Trummer

Today’s feast of the Lord’s Epiphany celebrates the fulfillment of God’s original purpose for His chosen people. Recall God’s initial promise to Abraham: “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. [ . . . ] in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Gen 12:2–3). In our first reading from Isaiah, we heard, “Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.” The Lord also said through the prophet Isaiah, “It is too little for you to be my servant, to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and restore the survivors of Israel; I will make you a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth” (Isa 49:6).

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Feast of the Holy Family – December 31, 2023

12-27-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Timothy Eck

Of all the events during Jesus’ life, isn’t it interesting that his presentation in the temple as an infant is preserved, while so many others are not? To make an analogy, if you were writing an autobiography, how many would include a story about your baptism? Sure, a passing reference, but what about a page or two? Even more, not only is Christ’s presentation in the temple preserved, but the Church thinks that it is more important than many other events of Christ’s life. We do not have a set day to remember when Christ raised the widow’s son, or expelled demons, both of which certainly seem like a bigger deal than him being brought to the temple. And yet, the Church raises this celebration above many others and links it to Christmas, where it acts as the bookend to Christmas.

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Fourth Sunday of Advent - December 24, 2023

12-24-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Timothy Eck

What a dramatic opening to the Gospel of Matthew, and a dramatic setting of Christ’s birth. And yes, we did hear the same Gospel. And yes, I am talking about the genealogy. But what makes a list of names so dramatic? The genealogy here acts like a narrator at the beginning of a play. It sets the stage, and both introduces the main character who will be the center of the performance and places the drama within a specific historical setting. Particularly this drama is set as the culmination of a history which finds its climax within this show, which will unfold starting in our first act and culminating in the Paschal Mystery of the Triduum.

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Third Sunday of Advent - December 17, 2023

12-17-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Timothy Eck

This third Sunday in Advent is known as Gaudete Sunday, which is Latin meaning Rejoice! And truly our Mass this day is one of rejoicing. From our entrance antiphon where we sing “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I say, rejoice. Indeed, the Lord is near,” to our opening Collect, we hear of celebrations and rejoicing, and so to this theme continued throughout our readings and psalm.

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Second Sunday of Advent – December 10, 2023

12-10-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Timothy Eck

Our Gospel presents us with the familiar scene of John the Baptist in the desert along the banks of the Jordan. There he is baptizing those seeking to repent of their sins. Mark identifies this action of John as fulling the prophecy from Isaiah that one would prepare the way (that is, a road) of the Lord. Turning back to the original prophecy, why was there a need for the way to be prepared? What was wrong with the existing road? For whom was the way made? Where was it going?

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First Sunday of Advent – December 3, 2023

12-03-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Timothy Eck

“Be watchful! Be alert!”

In Christ’s exhortation today, it can be quite tempting to place ourselves in the shoes of the person traveling abroad. After all, this current life is a journey to our heavenly home. We speak of our current state as a pilgrimage. And this is certainly true; however, in the context of our Gospel today, we are not the ones on a journey, but instead it is Christ who is on the journey, while we are the ones remaining in the home.

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Solemnity of Christ the King – November 26, 2023

11-26-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Ralph D'Elia

Speaking in the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence, Pope Francis highlighted the image of the Last Judgement depicted in the cathedral dome: “At the center is Jesus, our light. At the apex of the fresco reads the inscription: ‘Ecce Homo.’ Looking at this dome we are drawn upward, as we contemplate the transformation of Christ judged by Pilate, into Christ seated on the judge’s throne. An angel brings him a sword yet Jesus does not take on the symbols of judgment, but instead raises his right hand, showing the marks of the passion . . .”1

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Thirty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time – November 19, 2023

11-19-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Ralph D'Elia

Our lives are not our own. This may be a jarring reality, but our difficulty in accepting it makes it no less real. Everything that we have has been given. In other words, everything we have — including our very lives — is a gift. This is the logic the Lord invites us into in the parable of the talents, the logic of the good things the Lord desires to share with us and our response to His gifts.

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Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time – November 12, 2023

11-12-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Ralph D'Elia

As we approach the end of the Liturgical Year culminating in the Solemnity of Christ the King, our readings take on a more urgent tone and our longing for all things to be subject to Christ intensifies. In these days, the Church is encouraging us to be prepared. But how?

Jesus offers us the parable of the wise and foolish virgins. Five went prepared to meet the bridegroom with flasks of oil to keep their lamps burning bright. The other five brought no oil with them, only what was in their lamps. As we have just heard, when the bridegroom comes, the foolish virgins have to go out to purchase oil, and so arrive late to the wedding feast.

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Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time - November 5, 2023

11-05-2023Weekly ReflectionFr. Ralph D'Elia

In you, Lord, I have found my peace. In the world in which we live, perhaps the search for peace can seem like a futile effort. There is so much noise, so many distractions, so much chaos. As ineffectual as it may seem, however, we continue the search. How much money is spent on self-help books, meditation apps, and therapy sessions? Perhaps to some end, these tools may be helpful. But what happens when they fail? How many people today seek to numb themselves with alcohol and drugs, or even by throwing themselves into the alternate reality of social media? In other words, our desire for peace cannot be extinguished.

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