Lenten Resources

Where Are We Going? So, I was telling you the story of how we got to Ephesus. Well, today, we are in Miletus, just thirty miles south of Ephesus. But we got here after a long journey around the Aegean Sea. And we won’t be here for long. Paul is heading for Jerusalem. “Compelled by…

Where Are We? This week, we conclude our journey through the Acts of the Apostles. Literally, throughout Easter, we have worked our way through this Spirit-driven testament of the early church. So, where are we now? Today, we are in Ephesus, a city and port on the western coast of Asia Minor. Sounds nice. But…

Where is Jesus? In these last days of the Easter season, the Church celebrates the Ascension of the Lord. After all his pain and suffering on the Cross, the Lord Jesus ascends to his Throne to rule over heaven and earth. So, where is Jesus? He is in heaven. But how did he get there?…

  The first reading continues our progress through the Acts of the Apostles. In these last verses of chapter 18, three new individuals are mentioned. They are the somewhat mysterious Apollos and the couple Priscilla and Aquila. Apollos is Jewish, but he was born in Alexandria, Egypt. This city was a lot like Athens, with…

  On this Friday of the sixth week of the Easter Season, we make a slight break in our routine, by celebrating the Feast of St. Matthias. He is another interesting individual in the life of the early Christians. In the very first chapter of Acts, the early Christians are gathering in the Upper Room.…

  We continue the readings from the Acts of the Apostles. St Paul left the cultured city of Athens, with its well-educated audience, and proceeded to the seaport of Corinth, notorious as a rough but busy town. As a missionary apostle, Paul is developing a pattern. When he enters a city, he first seeks out…

We continue our readings from the Acts of the Apostles. We are now in the 17th chapter. St. Paul had proceeded further into Europe. He arrives in Athens, the leading city in the country of Greece. We can picture St. Paul walking through the streets of this famous city, with its beautiful buildings, many magnificent…

  The first reading for today’s Mass is taken from chapter 16 of the Acts of the Apostles. The early Christians are at another critical turning point. Up to now, the Gospel had been preached only in Asia. But the Holy Spirit invites Paul and Silas to enter Europe. They are welcomed in Philippi but…

  Today is a special day at Conception Abbey. We celebrate a significant solemnity. It is the anniversary of the dedication of our church, the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception. On May 10, 1891, Bishop John Hogan traveled to Conception to dedicate the nearly finished new church. Abbot Frown and the early monks had decided…

  During these Sundays after Easter, the readings at Mass often describe the early days of Christianity. We hear how those first disciples of Jesus struggled to understand what it meant that he had been raised from the dead. As one reads the first chapters of the Acts of the Apostles, one gets a picture…

  Today Jesus tells His disciples, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first.” We should have confidence because Jesus also says in Matthew’s gospel “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for…

  Today’s Gospel message means so much to me that I even had it on my solemn profession souvenir card. “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” Of course, the one person who I can think of is St. Maximilian Kolbe but also so many others. For…

  Today in the Gospel, the Lord Jesus says “As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.” How do we remain in his love? I…

  In today’s responsorial psalm, we hear “Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.” I love to research the Titanic, and there were a couple of priests who died on board. One is Fr. Thomas Byles who is also depicted in James Cameron’s 1997 film “Titanic” on the stern of the ship,…

  I remember one day, a couple of months ago, after checking in the gifts we received from our donors I was getting ready to put Abbot Benedict’s stationery paper into our copier so he could sign them. The first batch came out of the printer and they were accidentally printed on stationery that said…

  In the first reading today, St. Paul quotes one of my favorite verses and something that I have been pondering within my own heart, “[After Jesus had been raised from the dead and visited all the disciples] Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me.” What St. Paul is saying…

  “Jesus said to his disciples ‘whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit because without me you can do nothing.’” This is one of my favorite passages in scripture because it has a missionary calling to it. St. John the Baptist says, “I must decrease, so that he may increase…

  We all like to have clear directions. When Paul and Barnabas were rejected by their first Jewish audiences they recalled the words of Jesus: “I have made you a light to the Gentiles, that you may be an instrument of salvation to the ends of the earth.” This became their marching orders, and they…

  The late Paul Harvey, a popular radio newscaster, would often add a final surprising piece of information to his program. He would then end by saying: “And there you have the rest of the story.” This saying comes to mind in reflecting on our liturgical readings today. In the first reading, St. Paul is…

  Today is the feast of St. Catherine of Sienna, 1347-1880. Hers was one of those voices from the Middle Ages which continues to bring wisdom and virtue to our modern times. She was declared a doctor of the Church in 1970. She became a Dominican tertiary and was a mystic known for her writings…

  Have you ever thought about the importance of passports? They provide your basic personal identification but also the origin of the passport and a record of the countries you’ve visited. The passport speaks for you in a foreign land. Imagine if there were passports in the time in the time of the early Church.…

  As we approach the two liturgical readings for today it feels like two seasons of the year, namely spring and winter. Spring speaks of new life and color with great hopes for the future, while winter sends a very different message of shutting down and the final conclusions for the long haul. The first…

  Growing up as a kid on an Iowa farm, we always hated hearing those dreaded words: “The cows are out!” It meant the cows and calves found a break in a fence or an open gate, and we had to find them all and then get them back in. Raising livestock can be a…

To whom shall we go? You have the words of everlasting life. We have come to believe; we are convinced that you are the holy one of God. Some who were with him were puzzled by everything they were hearing from Jesus. “Whoever eats the flesh of the Son of Man and drinks His blood…

  Today we hear the dramatic story of the Conversion of St. Paul. Paul was lucky. His conversion came quickly in a dramatic fashion leaving him with few doubts as to what he should do. It would have been hard for him to miss what the Lord Jesus was trying to tell him. “Why are…

  “No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him; I will raise him up on the last day.” We hear similar words frequently in the Scripture and especially during Lent and at Easter time. A traditional Lenten antiphon: Draw near O Lord and show us your mercy. At the…

  Reading today’s Gospel passage reminds us of other words of Jesus and of prophets of old. In short, Jesus is saying that He is the one who satisfies all their longings. “That everyone who sees the Son and believes in him may have eternal life, and I shall raise him on the last day.”…

  Stephen’s bold witness continues today. He had worked signs and wonders of his own which attracted the crowds, but they could not bring themselves to believe or to understand his words. He had explained the unfolding of God’s plan, identifying Jesus as the Righteous One, the awaited Messiah. When Stephen concluded his strong sermon…

  Today we encounter Stephen and his bold presentation. Totally taken up with the way of the Lord and filled with grace, Stephen could not contain himself. He preached and worked wonders in the name of Jesus. His hearers only heard what seemed to be the condemnation of their old way. He spoke against their…

50 Days of Joy? Some years ago, I saw an article with a question as its title – “50 days of Joy?” It talked about Easter and our experience of it. The writer stated the view that ”A whole season of joy seemed excessive.” The author confessed that he was more comfortable, and more at…

  A great deal can be said about work and labor in life. Work is indeed essential to living a good life and giving of our best selves to the World. There is one caveat to working. It’s not everything. We work to live. We don’t live to work. How often you see people who…

  This story from Acts is always an inspiration to me. Gamaliel declares that if the Apostles’ endeavor is from God, it will succeed. If it was simply a human endeavor, it would fail. This is a great reminder that whatever we do God is the one who has the final say. God decides what…

The saga continues in Acts. The chief priests and Temple authorities continue to pressure the Apostles. They hoped to intimidate them into silence. St. Peter wouldn’t be denied. He declared that they must “obey God” rather than any human authority. This angered those in the Temple. The Apostles persevered in telling the truth nonetheless. In…

  If you ever needed a “get out of jail free card,” look no further than today’s first reading. The Apostles were apprehended and thrown into the public jail at the order of the high priest and Temple authorities. Prison life is hard today. I can only imagine how bad prisons were in the time…

  We hear the same reading today from the Acts of the Apostles that we heard on Sunday, except with an additional detail. Joseph, called Barnabas, sold a piece of his property and gave the proceeds to the Apostles. This act of generosity can be encouraging for us as well. Churches often ask a great…

  We continue to hear the story of the Apostles in Acts. They were stuck in a hard situation that they didn’t deserve. When I was growing up, I loved to watch the Red Green Show, a comedy show produced out of Canada. One segment showed a few characters playing hockey on a street. (You…

Forward: I don’t know about you, but I am often caught off guard by the Easter Season. I walk through Lent with resolutions, and then when Easter comes, I fall right back into my old habits. Easter is indeed a time of celebration. It also is a time to keep at what you have been…

  Peter and John replied to the leaders, elders, and scribes: “It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” The boldness of Peter and James comes out most powerfully in their encounter. For them, their faith in Jesus Christ was not something confined to one day a week,…

  In the work of seminary formation (in which I am engaged), we are trying to help prepare these men for the priesthood by transforming their minds and hearts. The work involves the cooperation with God’s grace and the hard work and efforts of many religious and lay men and women who contribute to the…