Last Sunday, I began my homily around two points: the reality of gratitude and the sense of mission. A deep spiritual and psychological emotion and faith consolation is filling my heart when I look back at my short years of pastorship at St. James-St. Leo parish. For five years you have welcomed me despite my…
It is no accident that the words “disciple” and “discipline” come from the same root: Latin disciplina, meaning “teaching.” As disciples of the Lord, we are taught through discipline. We need that discipline when we are tempted to compromise our ethics or ignore our conscience and do something we shouldn’t or fail to do something…
We like to think of Jesus bringing peace and joy, healing and inspiration as he traveled from village to village with his disciples. But at this point in Luke’s Gospel he is making his way to Jerusalem, where he knows what he will face, and his message has become sobering. The road to redemption is…
Fr. Gerard Lecomte, CJM The Holy Spirit draws us here today to listen to God’s living word, to receive the Lord in the Eucharist, and to give praise and thanks to God. During the week, many of us work hard to make our lives comfortable, aiming for a promotion or raise, earning enough to afford…
“Follow me,” Jesus calls out in this weekend’s Gospel. He summons us as well, and his call is challenging. Being a disciple means putting aside one’s own personal concerns. It also means following Jesus no matter how difficult. Up until now, Jesus spent his time preaching, teaching, and healing around Galilee. But now Jesus has…
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Three persons in one God. Easy to say, but difficult to understand, for it is a mystery beyond our comprehension. In the Gospel, Jesus tells the disciples that everything the Father has is his and that the Holy Spirit will take from all that they have. Their relationship to each…
Reflection on the Sunday readings: It could be said that the climax of the readings we will hear comes in the very first paragraph of the first reading. A strong driving wind…tongues of fire…speaking in tongues. The Holy Spirit made quite the entrance! But the special effects are only the beginning. With the Holy Spirit,…
This weekend we celebrate that day when Jesus Christ, having risen from the dead and appeared to his disciples with his gift of peace and his command to preach to all the nations, ascended to heaven to be with the Father forever. The portion of his mission which necessitated his physical presence here on earth…
We continue to celebrate the Easter season, this fifty-day celebration of the Risen Lord’s victory over the grave. It stretches from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday, when we mark the day when the Holy Spirit came down upon the first apostles. At the Last Supper Jesus told his disciples that he and the Father would…
“Love one another,” Jesus tells his disciples. No, Jesus commands his disciples. This is how everyone will know that they are his disciples. As we gather, we ask ourselves if we can be recognized by our love. Do we show the love we have for one another in what we do and say? Do we…