When I reflect on the parable of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15), thankfulness for God’s mercy wells up within me. Perhaps because I’ve been away from my home in Christ in the past, it’s easy to remember what it was like to trust in the world and seek its pleasures instead of trusting in Jesus. I was searching in “a distant country” for happiness. Far from Christ, I was indeed a lost sheep. Reflecting on…
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” – John 20:27 We each have wounds—wounds that have healed, wounds that are still healing, wounds that are still fresh and sore. In a mysterious way, being wounded is part of the human condition (CCC 405). Jesus became man precisely so He could enter into…
Then Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go, and from now on do not sin any more.” – John 8:11 As I watch the Gospel scene of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11) play out in my imagination, I notice the looks on the people’s faces. The Pharisees and scribes who brought the woman look judgmental and disgusted. They “forced her to stand in their midst.” Imagine her trapped there between all these…
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” John 20:21 Happy Divine Mercy Sunday! God the Father sent Jesus on His saving mission. It was a mission of mercy. He came to free us from the captivity of our sins and death, sin’s logical consequence. Jesus’s victory over sin and death was His gift of mercy to us. Mercy is God’s name. God revealed…
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God. – John 3:21 Have you noticed that the sun sets later each evening now? The vernal equinox—the start of spring!—is just a week away on March 20. The light will increase from now until it begins to decrease after the summer solstice on June 20. Interestingly, this is just a few days before we…
There was a time when I could not forgive. I’m not proud of this, but it’s true. I wanted to forgive. I asked many people for advice on how to forgive. But still, forgiveness eluded me. You see, I grew up in a house characterized by addiction, neglect, and abuse. For many years, I carried around the wounds from those years. In fact, I still carry them and probably always will. But the choice to…
Our first reading tells of the apostles in the early days of the Church. It was a time of togetherness, sincerity, and joyful praise. They met in their homes to worship, pray, and eat together. They shared all that they had, and Love—yes Love with a capital “L”—united them. The Holy Spirit had come upon them just before this at Pentecost (Acts 2:1-4). It was this Spirit of peace and unity that gave them the…
Our readings for this Sunday lay out the reason for this penitential season of Lent: sin, repentance, and salvation. Our first reading reminds us of mankind’s first sin: the disobedience of Adam and Eve (Genesis 3: 1-7). In our Psalm, we acknowledge our sinfulness and cry out for God’s mercy: “Be merciful, O Lord, for we have sinned” (cf Psalm 51: 3). In our second reading, St. Paul explains that our plea for mercy has…
A voice proclaims: In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord! Make straight in the wasteland a highway for our God! Every valley shall be lifted up, every mountain and hill made low; The rugged land shall be a plain, the rough country, a broad valley. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. ~Isaiah 40:3-5 Jesus, prepare my heart for Your coming. Show me the…
The story of Zacchaeus climbing the tree to see Jesus reminds me of the story of the men who went around the crowd and opened the roof of a house so their friend could be healed (Mk 2:1-12). Or remember the woman who only touched Jesus’s clothes and was cured of her hemorrhage (Mk 5: 25-35)? What lengths people went to so Jesus might heal them! We might suppose that Zacchaeus subconsciously wanted to see…