In 1938 when the Nazis took over Austria, a young Catholic policeman – feared that he would loose his job; so to save his job and get security for himself, he decided to claim that he had been a secret Nazi for years. Forty years later he said: “I wasRead More →

There was a time when the best compliment you could pay to someone was to call him or her a very gentle person.  Today, however, violence is more popular then gentleness. Television, the movies, the communication media, in general, has given violence a top rating because violence is what peopleRead More →

In the Gospel today, we are brought into a conversation which Jesus is having with His Apostles. They are away from the crowds, and Jesus opens up a conversation about relationships – our relationship with God and our relationship with one another. In the conversation, there is a series ofRead More →

Many people in our nation claim to believe in God. Many would classify themselves as Christians. Before the virus, attendance at weekly church worship is better in America than in many other countries of the world. Yet our religious values do not seem to affect the life of our society.Read More →

How quickly those days with Jesus after he rose from the dead must have passed for his disciples. How amazed the apostles were, and yet how painful it must have been for the apostles when he summoned them to the mountain and told them that he was leaving them andRead More →

On the eve of His execution, during His Last Supper with His disciples, Jesus prepared His Apostles for the work they would do after His Passion, Death and Resurrection. He assured them, “I will not leave you orphans.” The word “orphan” brings up images of pain and sorrow as weRead More →

Today, as the Gospel of the Good Shepherd is proclaimed, Jesus reminds the Church that the voice we need to hear, above all the other voices in society – is the voice of the Good Shepherd. Jesus tells us today: “I am the Good Shepherd: I am the sheep gate.”Read More →

Today, we hear the account of two disciples walking along, not in a hurry, not noticing other travelers that passed them by as they made their way along the road to Emmaus. It was the late afternoon of Easter Sunday. The two disciples with heads bowed were deeply engrossed inRead More →

SECOND SUNDAY OF EASTER The reading from the Acts of the Apostles today describes the power of the Holy Spirit in the life of the Apostolic Church as thousands of people became converts. Through belief in the name of Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit, manyRead More →

Tonight, as we celebrate this Easter vigil, by word and song and light and water. The church comes to life. Sixteen centuries ago, Saint Augustine called the Easter Vigil the “Mother of all vigils,” the most beautiful liturgy in the entire church year. This was a night of vigil forRead More →