Readings for December 30, 2012: Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph Every year right after Christmas, we celebrate the feast of the Holy Family. There is an important reason for this. It’s easy to think the…
Feast of the Holy Family
The Deeper Meaning of Christmas
Readings for December 25, 2012: Solemnity of the Nativity of the Lord (Christmas, Mass at Dawn) In the days of Caesar Augustus, an era of peace was established in the Mediterranean world after centuries of strife. But this peace was…
The First Believer
Readings for December 23, 2012: Fourth Sunday of Advent The Beatitudes rank high on the list of all-time favorite Bible passages. But what is “beatitude,” anyway? In the bible, a “blessed” person is someone who has received gifts of…
Keeping Christ in Christmas: Our Family’s Approach
“Actions speak louder than words.” “One picture is worth a thousand words.” “Talk is cheap.” There are lots of different sayings in the English language that generally express the same thing–words alone don’t do the necessary job of communicating, especially…
What the Baptist Can Teach Us about Joy
Readings for December 16, 2012: Third Sunday in Advent On the third Sunday of Advent, the penitential purple of the season changes to rose and we celebrate “Gaudete” or “Rejoice!” Sunday. “Shout for joy, daughter of Sion” says Zephaniah. “Draw…
Advent: A Season of Hope
Readings for December 9, 2012: Second Sunday of Advent Faith, hope, and love. St. Paul, in I Corinthians 13:13, say these three are the bottom line. They are called the theological virtues, the qualities that make us most like God….
Advent: The Reason for the Season
Readings for December 2, 2012: First Sunday of Advent “Advent” is simply the Latin word for “coming.” If we can manage to meditate on any “coming” in December besides the comings and goings of Christmas shopping, it would be Christ’s…
Evangelizing Our Kids
One day, the Pharisees tested Jesus with an important question – of all 613 of the Bible’s laws, which is most important? The Lord quickly shot back a response: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart,…
Reflecting on the Feast of Christ the King
Readings for November 25, 2012: Feast of Christ the King From the dawn of civilization, kings have arisen who have dreamed of possessing a world-wide dominion, a universal kingdom that would last forever. Some have come close to conquering much…
Thanksgiving and Eucharist
Readings for November 22, 2012: Thanksgiving Day Mass For Americans, the term “Thanksgiving” conjures up images of turkey and cranberry sauce, parades and bowl games. These “traditions” have come to mark an event made a perpetual institution of American life…