Month: August 2021

Reflection Then Jesus said to the Twelve, ‘What about you, do you want to go away too? John 6:67-68 To follow Jesus means being led by the Spirit as he was led at every stage of his journey.  This involves a truly personal discernment but it is never an individualistic one.  The Spirit of God is always the spirit of community, communion with our human sisters and brothers and communion with the…

Reflection Today’s first reading from the Book of Revelation gives us the imagery of a woman clothed with the sun and wailing in pain as she is in labor to give birth. From early tradition, this apocalyptic woman has been identified with Mary and later with the Church itself. Just as Mary gave birth to Christ at one moment in history, the Church is called to birth Christ in today’s…

Reflection To have a contemplative view is to be a unifier, to see creation as integrated, and to reverence all its expressions. A contemplative vision is not naïve. It recognizes the pain and distortions in the world. Yet, while acknowledging what is wrong, it enables one to see through and work toward the wonder of the innately possible. The contemplative is imbued with the presence of the Sacred in all…

Reflection  Faith in the broader sense is not any specific religious belief but rather an awareness that God is present in our lives. It is an attuneness to the sacred and an openness to the possibilities of a relationship with the Holy. The challenge to faith is not so much disbelief as indifference or resistance to God’s movement within. Scripture calls it a “hard heart”. It denotes being closed to…

Reflection Humility is the state of being honest before God and others. We are who we are; we do what we can do; we don’t pretend we are less than we are; we don’t pretend we are more than we are. We use our gifts freely and offer them to others without any ties. Humility is not a pose. It means recognizing our talents and achievements for what they are,…

Reflection Today is the feast of St.Clare of Assisi.  Clare was so devoted and dedicated to Francis and his spirituality that she is often referred to as “alter Franciscus,” another Francis. Clare of Assisi was born as Chiara Offreduccio, the beautiful eldest daughter of Favorino Sciffi, Count of Sasso-Rosso and his wife Ortolana. At 18-years-old, she heard St. Francis of Assisi preach during a Lenten service in the church of…

Reflection They will rebuild the ancient ruins and restore the places long devastated; they will renew the ruined cities that have been devastated for generations. Isaiah 61:4 There comes a time in history of human consciousness when there is a groundswell of understanding. What was a passion of the few becomes a commitment of the many. This can be such a time. We now realize that our beautiful earth which…

Reflection The whole world is my family. Pope John XXIII Although the ancient traditions tell their story, science has discovered that all life had its origins in the same cosmic explosion that occurred approximately 14 billion years ago. We are all made of the same elements; we are all related. We are made from stardust and the whole world is our family. If we could expand our minds to really…

Reflection You are looking for me not because you saw signs but because you ate the loaves and were filled. John 6:24-35 Prayer and certainly the central prayer of the church is for our transformation. This means it is for our appropriating in our lives and embracing the self-giving love of Christ. Eucharist celebrates our response to the totally loving, totally free gift of God’s self in Christ. It is…