Friar Daily Reflection
Fighting Against God
In today’s first reading from Acts we hear the Jewish Pharisee Gamaliel give wise and sage advice. He advises restraint in their dealings with the early Jewish Christian Community. He refers to two other Jewish “revolutionary” leaders, Theudas and Judas the...
False Righteousness vs Witnessing
The apostles and first disciples were completely transformed by the experience of the risen Lord in their lives. Their joy was so explosive that they felt impelled to announce and share their experience. Joy, trust, witness, service, and hope became a way of life for...
Living in Love Beyond Reason
The Old Testament is a description of God’s continuous fidelity to his people and the people’s almost constant disobedience and their willful wandering away from him. God sent the prophets and holy leaders to guide the people, but they continued to organize their...
Being Born Again
One of the questions we priest occasionally receive is about our ability to prepare people for marriage - since we were never married, or to speak to families about dynamics that arise in families - although we came from families, we were not yet adults - or similar...
Born Again
In today’s Gospel we hear the story of Nicodemus. The Evangelist tells us that he is a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews. Like many others in this Gospel, Nicodemus comes to Jesus searching and seeking: “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God,...
Goin’ Fishing
Has Peter given up! Today’s Gospel is the story of Jesus’ appearance to seven disciples at the Sea of Tiberias in Galilee. The seven disciples are Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, Nathanael, Zebedee’s two sons, and two other disciples. Peter seems ready to...
Christ is Risen – He is Truly Risen
The first reaction of the disciples who saw the risen Christ in today’s Gospel was being startled and terrified. Even with the announcement from the disciples who encountered the risen Lord on the road to Emmaus, they still thought they were seeing a ghost. Jesus...
The Breaking of the Bread
In today’s Gospel we have the well-known story of Jesus’ appearance on the road to Emmaus. Luke tells us that the disciples came to recognize Jesus “in the breaking of the bread.” This phrase was the way the early church referred to the Eucharist or the mass. Two...
Grief and New Life
Mary Magdalene went to the tomb of Jesus expecting only death. She went full of overpowering grief and sadness. All of her hopes about a savior and messiah were destroyed by death. She arrives at the tomb and finds it empty. Everything in her life experience leads her...
Resurrection Faith
Today’s gospel from St. Matthew is familiar to all readers: Jesus has been crucified, died, and laid within a tomb guarded by soldiers and watched by Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary.” The Sabbath has passed and dawn approaches on the first day of a new week. The...