Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Matthew 28:19 And he said to them: Go ye into the whole world, and preach the gospel…
When Is It Finished?
I have shown your glory on earth; I have finished the work you gave me to do. John 17: 4 Why did Jesus say he’d finished the work the Father had given him at the Last Supper? His suffering, crucifixion,…
Learning from Jesus’ Conversations
How often do we have conversations in ministry and wonder, was I imitating Christ? Yes, it’s an impossible standard. But, by examining the way we converse with others through the lens of “customer service” can help us relate to others and…
The Canaanite Woman
Sunday Readings for August 20, 2017, the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time The apostles thought she was a nuisance and asked Jesus to get rid of her. Jesus had gone to the region of Tyre and Sidon, modern-day Lebanon, and…
How Deep is Your Dirt?
It’s summer and baseball season and that brings to mind a metaphor that we could apply to a lot of things. In this case I think it can be used to bring home a point about our faith: “Catholicism is…
God answers prayers
“But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to Holiness, and the result is eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the Gift of God is eternal Life in Christ Jesus Our…
Crafty Virtue: Lessons from the Dishonest Steward
One of Jesus’ most challenging parables is the one about the Dishonest Steward in Luke 16. In that story, a wealthy man is about to dismiss one of his stewards for being dishonest. The steward, wanting to ingratiate himself with…
Keeping ‘Son’days Holy
Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days you shall labor, and do all your work; but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God; in it you shall not do any work. …
Neither Condemn nor Acquit: Do Not Judge
“Do not judge, so that you may not be judged.” (Matthew 7:1) Jesus’ words about judgment are strong and straightforward, yet they are so often misunderstood. To understand them rightly, note two things. First, he does not say “Judge wisely!”,…
Customer Service as Evangelizers
As evangelizers, we’re all in customer service. Now this is strictly a metaphor, because as Christians we’ve got nothing to sell (in fact, we’re sharing the free gift of God in Jesus Christ) and aim to foster, not consumers, but…