In today’s Gospel we hear Jesus’ most difficult and challenging teaching: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.” Jesus has...
Love your Enemies
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Friar Reflection
What Mary Has to Teach Us
Recently the administration of our Franciscan Province has initiated a “virtual wake service” for our deceased friars, where we friars can offer a reflection on the deceased friar’s life. This is...
Principles of Conduct
Our first reading is a letter from St. Paul to the community of believers in Colassae. It was a community begun by a compatriot of Paul’s; a man named Epaphras who visited Paul in prison to give him...
Is it lawful?
What is lawful? This question is asked today in both our civil and religious society. What does the law require and even demand? We see this same debate between Jesus and the Pharisees in today’s...
St. Gregory the Great
Today is the memorial of St. Gregory the Great. The gospel reading, particular to the memorial is Luke 22:24-30 which recounts when “argument broke out among the Apostles about which of them should...
Into Deeper Waters
Just as if it were yesterday, Jesus calls us to cast our “nets” into a sea that seems empty but is full of “fish” to be “caught.” Jesus said to Peter, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets...
Revealing the Good We Can Do
Pope Francis has done a TV commercial. The Pope recorded the public service announcement for the “It’s Up to You” campaign launched by the U.S.-based nonpartisan, nonprofit Ad Council to increase...
Dealing with Demons
The story from the Gospel tells us that the people of that time believed in Evil Spirits. They also believed that in some way illness, physical or mental was caused by an evil spirit. In either...
The Power of the Word and Human Need
On January 1st 1863 the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in the midst of the Civil War. Slaves who lived within the borders of the Confederacy remained in bondage. Most never heard about the...
Bringing Enough Oil
Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Monica. She is known to be the patron saint for married women, difficult marriages, disappointing children, victims of adultery or unfaithfulness, victims of...
Let us be someone to others.
“Blessed is that servant whom his master on his arrival finds doing so.” Saint Theresa of Calcutta said once that: “God walks away when we distance ourselves from the brother. Sometimes we have the...
Compassion and Peace
The American historian Howard Zinn offers this insight on what we can learn from the study of history: “To be hopeful in bad times is not just foolishly romantic. It is based on the fact that human...