A Reflection Before Departure, July 31st, 2014. I am sitting at Dulles as I begin to write this reflection. This will be my seventh trip to Ghana in the last seven years; I missed last year, so it is my first trip in two years. Our parishioners and friends of the parish have made thirteen…
…whose advice to me was to have “empathy” for one’s parishioners. I failed. I failed miserably because I cry. I was to learn, only by being told by a parishioner, that I had compassion. What is the difference? – Empathy is a term of psychology: The ability to understand and appreciate another person’s feelings, experience,…
Tenth, religion. No single explanation exists for why the War for the Greater Middle East began and why it persists. But religion figures as a central element. Secularized American elites either cannot grasp or are unwilling to accept this. So they contrive alternative explanations such as “terrorism,” a justification that impedes understanding. Our leaders can…
We, I pray, have listened to a couple of readings today from the Letter of St. James and the Gospel of Matthew – beautiful and complementary treasures of our faith. Within St. James we should have heard the following: “take as an example of suffering and patience the prophets who spoke in the name of…
. . . the walk was a long 150+ feet; it took time; it had many stops; it was painful; her heart pounded within her chest; her lungs labored to sustain her; but she was determined and held up by a greater force and love than can come from man. Jennifer is a courageous 29…
…on the Jesus Prayer In the First Epistle to the Thessalonians the Apostle Paul says: “Pray without ceasing.” How then, is one to pray unceasingly? By often repeating the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.” By becoming accustomed to this appeal, great consolation and the need to continually make…
…”welcoming” – this is an attribute equally descriptive of hell …”positive” and “entertaining” – this is an anti-intellectualism defining ‘the primacy of fun’ in the parish …”profitable” – this is a materialistic notion that defines and restrains the church mission If a church must be anything, it must be truthful to God, its creed, and…
On this Sunday we read of the centurion coming before the Christ to ask for help – the healing of his servant. That the centurion, a Roman soldier – a member of a suppressive and occupying force, would come before a Jew is simply astonishing. You see the centurion is the leader of a company…
Salve Regina Hail to you, O Queen, mother of loving kindness, our life, our happiness, our hope. Hear us cry out to you, children of Eve in our exile. Hear as we sigh, with groaning and weeping in this life, in this valley of tears. Come then, our Advocate, turn towards us the gaze of…
…you may be too late – the trajectory of your life prior to your judgment will be the trajectory of your soul at your judgment – God will merely ratify the decision you have already made. “It is given unto man once to die, then comes judgment.” (Hebrews)