​Today’s Thoughts: “Before all else, the Gospel invites us to respond to the God of love who saves us, to see God in others and to go forth from ourselves to seek the good of others.” (Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium: The Joy of the Gospel)
 
Pope Francis’ words touch on the very gift of our Gospel (John 9: 1-41) today. The blind man experiences God’s love, a love that gives him the ability to see, physically and spiritually the good in himself and others. He accepts Jesus’ invitation to believe, to have faith and to bring the joy of God to the world. It is too bad that the others who make up the story miss their encounter with God.
 
The other scriptures today (1Samuel 16: 1b, 6-7, 10-13a – Ephesians 5:8-14) along with the Gospel touch on the themes of seeing things differently. Whether it is seeing God’s choice for the next king differently as Samuel is challenged to do or seeing the community differently because of their faith as the Ephesians are asked to do or seeing the reason for your life differently as the blind man is asked to do. 
 
The scriptures become a lens for us to look through in order to see life differently. They ask us to see life through the eyes of faith. If we do so we have the chance to encounter the presence of God. We have chance to be surprised by the presence of God. We have a chance to be touched by the presence of God.
 
Our Gospel also shows us what happens when we fail to look at life through the lens of faith, we miss the gift of God’s presence. We fail to see beyond our faults and failings. We are stuck in the joylessness of the world.
 
Pope Francis always points to the joy of the Gospel, to the joy of life. Our scriptures today challenge us to see so that we do not miss the joy of God as it is present in ourselves and others around us.
 
Have a holy and blessed Sunday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts: In today's Gospel (Luke 18:9-14) we are reminded that it is not the quantity or style of our prayer. It is not the position we hold or all the things we can point to that we do. It is the quality of our prayer and how we live our life that counts.
 
The Pharisee had all the right words, all the right actions but not the right intention. He knew the law but the not the spirit. The tax collector on the other hand certainly struggled in his life but when it came to prayer, when it came to speaking with God he was right on.
 
Humility is a valuable gift yet one that not many people have. We grow up trying to develop our self-confidence; we try to be independent, self-assured and self-reliant. We are often told that we must promote ourselves in order to get anywhere. Yet, humility can help us recognize God, in ourselves and others. Humility can help us recognize the presence of God in the living of life.
 
The response to the responsorial psalm today is "It is mercy I desire, and not sacrifice." As merciful people we are called to be humble. We must realize that we are not perfect we are human, with faults and failings just like everyone else. If we are willing enough and humble enough to seek God's mercy, then we will be able to offer mercy and compassion to others.
 
As St. John Chrysostom put it, "We cannot be saved by seeking just our own individual salvation. We need to look first to the good of others."
 
Have a holy and blessed Saturday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts: Before I wonder into our scripture readings for today, I would like to reflect on something that struck me during morning prayer. As I was praying the Psalms and Canticles of morning prayer I was touched by the progression on my prayer, our prayer as a Church. The opening Psalm was Psalm 51, the Psalm we pray every Friday morning. It is the famous Psalm seeking God’s mercy. “Have mercy on me, O God…”
 
Then I moved on to the Canticle of Jeremiah which is a lament of the people in the midst of war and famine. As I prayed it I thought this could easily be us in the midst of our current situation. “Let my eyes stream with tears…the great destruction which overwhelms…Have you cast us off completely…We wait for peace but to no avail…For your name sake spurn us not…remember your covenant with us, and break it not.” It is a canticle reflecting the struggles of people in the midst of a human and imperfect world. People trying to make sense of everything happening to them. People wondering where God is.
 
Then, I prayed Psalm 100, the joyful song of those entering God’s temple. “Cry out with joy to the Lord, all the earth, serve the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing for joy.”
 
You might be saying to yourself, “Ok father, what are you trying to say?” Well. it was just interesting to me, and helpful to my prayer this morning to first ask God to forgive me and us as a world. Then to telling God of our struggles, difficulties and challenges, but then finally to trust in God’s presence, action and love by singing for joy. It just felt like a very hope filled morning prayer! Perhaps that is just what we need.
 
Now on to our morning scripture…
 
I have always been a bit jealous of the scribe in today's Gospel because Jesus says at the end of the exchange that the scribe is not far from the Kingdom of God. For me it would be a great comfort to know that I was not far from the Kingdom. It is one of my greatest worries. I try to live a good and faithful life but there are times when I look around and wonder if I have missed the boat! I listen to people talk about their faith, I see their actions, I am aware of what they think is important and valuable in terms of faith, church, belief and religion and I wonder if I have taken the wrong path.
 
Sometimes I wonder if what I believe brings me close to the Kingdom? The Church as it stands today seems a far cry from the Church that Jesus seems to be putting together as we read the Gospel. Our religious leaders often, not always, seem to be closer to the scribes and Pharisees than to the disciples of Jesus. The institution we call Church often seems closer to the institution that Jesus often challenged and confronted during his ministry.
 
We seem to take some words in the scriptures at face value, but others are glossed over and interpreted in ways other than what they say. We seem to be absolutely sure of what Jesus said, meant or wanted in certain situations and yet we discount or ignore other things because they don't seem to fit into the institution.
 
I pray. I try to love whomever I meet. I truly value my relationship with God. I care about people no matter who they are and what they have done. I try to find God in all people. I value life in all forms. I want to be of help to people who struggle. I want to be a welcoming, forgiving person, religious and priest. I want to help people know and believe in God. Yet at times I am not sure whether I am on the right path. I don't always pray in traditional ways. I am more willing to accept a person where they are even if they don't fit into the laws of the institution. I want to dialog. I want to find a way for all to be close to the Kingdom. I don't want to judge. I don't want to be self-righteous and I certainly don't have all the answers.
 
I want to live Hosea's words today, I want to return to the Lord, but I am not always sure the institution takes me in that direction. I live to be a man of faith, I live to be a man of hope and I live to be a man of love. I pray that like the scribe I am a man close to the Kingdom of God!
 
Have a blessed and holy Friday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts:  "If today you hear [God's] voice, harden not your hearts." The response for the psalm today seems to say it all. In the first reading the faith community has hardened their hearts toward God. They are not listening or responding to the word or presence of God. In the Gospel there are some who have hardened their hearts for they cannot recognize God in their midst.
 
In the opening talk of my parish missions, I reflect on how we at times harden perhaps not our whole heart but pieces or areas of our hearts. The primary reason is because we have been hurt and we harden ourselves so that we cannot be hurt again. Sometimes the hurt comes from another person, or a group of people, or an institution or from someone or something outside of us. Yet often we think the hurt comes from God and we harden our hearts to the grace, the word, and the presence of God. In doing this we very often miss the opportunity to experience the presence and the gift of God in our life.
 
Jesus reminds the people today that bad things do not come from God. God only wants good for us. God loves us, created us and desires a relationship with us. It is the world around us that can hurt. It is often the world within us that can hurt.
 
We don't want to harden our hearts like those talked about in our first reading from Jeremiah today. We don't want to harden our hearts like those who question where Jesus is from in today's Gospel. We want to open our hearts, make our hearts places of nothing but good soil so that when we encounter God, when we hear God's voice the grace, word, strength, blessing and presence of God will be planted within us and grow producing a faith filled life.
 
As we journey through this day let us not harden our hearts but be open to hear God's voice and encounter God's presence in our journey of life today and always!
 
Have a blessed and holy Thursday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts: Sometimes we see laws, rules and commands as unnecessary. Sometimes we think they are burdensome. At times we look for ways around them or think, what is the least we need to do to follow them. Take going to Sunday Mass as an example, people have at times asked me; “What parts of the mass do they need to be there for in order to fulfill their obligation?” Well, as I was growing up it was often said you had to be there before the Gospel started and stay until Communion was given out. Certainly, if you go to church on Sunday, you can see the people who observe the law, the rule of going to mass in this way, they show up sometime after mass starts but before the Gospel and they are out the door at Communion. We might say they observe the letter of the law! (This rule is no where to be found in written documents!)
 
However, I do not think that is what Moses and Jesus are speaking about today. They are talking about living a life of faith, living a relationship with God that does not seek to do the minimum. It seeks to live the maximum. Moses tells the people to live their relationship with God and pass that living on. Jesus tells the people he has come to live his relationship with God, to be an example to the fullest extent of this relationship.
 
Often people ask what they can do to get their adult children and grandchildren to return to their faith. How can they get them to live a life of faith? My answer to them is always to pray for and love their children and grandchildren, but most importantly to live their faith. The best way to make God present to people is by living out our relationship with God as authentically as we can, no short cuts! If we are fully invested, if we live out our relationship with God each day, we become an example; we pass on the gift sometimes not even knowing that we do.
 
In the Book of Deuteronomy from which our first reading comes today, Moses and later Jesus who often quoted Deuteronomy use the word “today.” The law is not about something given or established long ago. Moses and Jesus are saying it is about today, this moment. It is today, it is this moment of life that we live our relationship with God to the fullest!
 
Yes, rules, laws, regulations, commands are important, they can also be bothersome, they can place us in opposition to culture and society. They can seem hard to live out. They can frustrate us. But in living by the rules, in being faithful to our relationship with God we keep the story alive. We enhance the community of faith. We bring the gift of God's presence to all we meet. We pass on our faith - today!
 
Have a blessed and holy Wednesday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts: First off, this morning I was struck by Azariah’s words, “We have in our day no prince, prophet or leader, no holocaust, sacrifice, oblation or incense, no place to offer first fruits, to find favor with you.” While our situation these days is not Daniel’s situation after all he utter these words from a fiery furnace, they do echo some of our struggles these days. I thought to myself, is it time for us to be totally honest with God? Is it time for us to seek God’s mercy and forgiveness? Just a thought!
 
My second thought comes from our responsorial psalm today. "Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior." This is the opening line of today's psalm and perhaps words that sum up our readings for us.
 
In the first reading from the Book of Daniel, Azariah prays for God's forgiveness not just for himself but for the community. He reflects on the social sin of his time. Not just something an individual has done but what the community had done or failed to do. Azariah seeks God's forgiveness. Often, we do not think this way we worry more about individual sin rather than looking at ourselves as a community of faith who at times sin together by our action or our lack of action. We rarely take into consideration social sin and yet we, as a community, are responsible for what we do or don't do.
 
We might think the Gospel turns us back to individual forgiveness but in a way, it carries through with our first reading's theme. The other servants see the injustice of the one servant and look to correct the problem. We might say it is the community that deals with the injustice.
 
Forgiveness and being a forgiving person, a forgiving community, was a constant theme in the life of Jesus. It is not an easy way to live. We would rather seek revenge than be forgiving. We would rather hold the hurt in our heart than be forgiving. It takes hard work and a heart of compassion. Jesus taught us how to have such a heart. He taught us how to be forgiving people and he also taught us how to take responsibility for our sinfulness. He showed us how to be people of faith. He showed us how to take responsibility and how to be compassionate and forgiving. He taught us that forgiveness is an ongoing process.
 
Jesus taught us the ways of God. He showed us the path to walk. The question is; are we willing to learn and walk down the path that Jesus has set before us?
 
Have a blessed and holy Tuesday everyone.

​Today’s Thought: Our readings today talk about expectations. We all have expectations for our life, for experiences we enter into, for our relationships, for our jobs and ministries, for the world around us. Sometimes our expectations are met even exceeded, however sometimes we are disappointed. At times our expectations can be unrealistic and there is no way they can be met. At other times our expectations cloud our ability to enter into a situation and get the best out of it. Our expectations of people, place, things and experiences can at times hold us back from realizing the graces or blessings of a particular experience or moment.
 
This is the case in our readings today. Naaman seeks healing for his leprosy from Elisha the prophet. When told to go to the Jordan River and wash seven times he becomes indignant. He thinks Elisha should do something spectacular, that there should be a great event that brings about his healing. Naaman is finally convinced to let go of his expectations and healing comes.
 
The people of Nazareth have certain expectations for Jesus. They think they know him. They think they know what to expect from him. Thus, they make it difficult for Jesus to be the healing, loving forgiving person he is everywhere else. The people of Nazareth cannot let go of their expectations and Jesus must move on.
 
Our scriptures remind us today that God works in mysterious ways. If we have expectations for God, for Jesus, for the Holy Spirit, then we might be disappointed, however if like Naaman we can put aside our expectations, if we can let go and let God, then great things can happen. Most importantly we will be able to recognize God's presence in our life when we most need it.
 
Let us also have the faith of Naaman’s servant girl that God will provide healing for all of us!
 
Have a blessed and holy Monday everyone.

​Today’s Thoughts: Our readings today give us much to think about! There is the grumbling of the Israelites because they are angry with God. There is a reminder from St. Paul that even though we are sinners Jesus was willing to lay his life down for us. What a gift! And finally, in our Gospel we have the wonderful story of Jesus and the Samaritan woman, a story of Jesus’ unrelenting search for us until we are found. Jesus never gives up on us and like the Samaritan women if we are open, truthful and willing to listen we too can become a proclaimer of God’s Word of Life!
 
One of the reflections that I was reading this past week presented the idea of Jesus thrusting. It is Jesus who asks for a drink of water first. Water is very significant in our story of faith. As we hear it plays a role in the Israelites struggle in the desert. They grumble because they are thirsty. They doubt God’s presence.
 
Jesus is thirsty perhaps not for ordinary water but for the Samaritan woman’s faith. He sees her potential, the gift that she is. Our Gospel today reminds us that Jesus is thirsty for all of us, our faith is important to Jesus, and he is always looking for the opportunity to engage us in conversation.
 
Jesus joyfully engages the Samaritan woman at the well. He moves her from isolation into the community. Jesus considers her struggles, her situation and her relationship to the community and invites her to be part of a faith community. She becomes a proclaimer of the word, an evangelizer.
 
The readings today also talk about change and the struggle we as human beings have with change. The Israelites (Exodus 17:3-7) are struggling with the changes in their life. Suddenly the slavery of Egypt doesn’t look so bad compared to a journey through the desert. They are struggling with life outside their comfort zone, with life that calls them to trust in their relationship with God.
 
The Samaritan woman is struggling in her life, yet she is truthful about it and open to a conversation with God about it. She is challenged to change, to see things differently. Actually, all the characters in our Gospel story are challenged to change and see things differently, the woman, the disciples and people of Sychar. This encounter with Jesus will leave them all changed in the end.
 
Jesus asks them to see water, food, life and God differently, especially God. God is not a person relegated to one place or another, to one mountain, one city, one group of people. God is there for everyone! Yes, sinners are included, thankfully as St. Paul tells us (Romans 5: 1-2, 5-8).
 
We are challenged to hear the word of God today and be hopeful. Because God is amongst us, all of us and God loves us, all of us!
 
Have a blessed and holy Sunday everyone!

​Today’s Thoughts: The story of the Forgiving Father is what we are asked to reflect on today. I have used this parable many times, often when I am preparing young people for the Sacrament of Reconciliation. For me the first half of the story about the younger son and his return home is a great image for the sacrament. All the elements of the sacrament are there, recognition of sinfulness, the journey to the sacrament, saying we are sorry and forgiveness.
 
The second half of the story about the older brother reflects another side of sinfulness. We often only think of sinfulness as bad things that we do. We think of the Ten Commandments. However, sin can be what we don't do. Sin can be standing in judgment, self-righteousness, pride, envy, jealousy and anger especially when we think we are right. Sin can be refusing to be part of the family, part of the faith community. Sin can be thinking only of ourselves and playing the victim card.
 
I have always felt this story presented the two sides of sin and often for many of us the older brother is where we usually find ourselves. The hopeful sign in the story is that the father is in the whole story. He is wherever we are. Always willing to forgive, always willing to welcome us home, always willing to come out and welcome us back into the family, into the celebration. All we need to do is let go of what we have done or failed to do and accept his forgiveness, his love!
 
Perhaps each morning, each day of our lives is an opportunity to return home to our loving Father. God is always waiting for us to recognize our sinfulness and return home to his loving mercy.
 
Have a holy and blessed Saturday everyone.

Today’s Thoughts: Our scriptures for today present us with two issues that we often face in life. They are jealousy and holding on to what we think is best and not what God thinks is best.
 
Certainly, the familiar story of Joseph and his brothers reminds us of what jealousy, what envy can do to us. How they can make us think and act toward others, even people we love. Perhaps like the religious leaders of Jesus' time Joseph's brothers reflect only on the narrowness of their life rather than seeing the bigger picture. Rather than trusting in their father's love.
 
I think it is only human to want to be recognized, to want to be valued, to want to be loved. The story tells us that Israel loved his sons but that he had a special affection for Joseph because he was the last and the son of Israel's old age. How often do we hear the saying, "Mon and dad liked you best!" It happens, or it seems to happen. Mothers and fathers often have a special feeling for one of their children, but it never means that they do not love the others. Yet, that human emotion of wanting attention, of wanting a special love can overwhelm us and make us do stupid things.
 
Thinking we know best is equally as troublesome. The religious leaders get a lesson in what they have done wrong from Jesus today. How they have ignored God's ways and walked down their own path. How they have ignored the presence of God in their life in order to hold on to their own power, authority and way of life. God is in their midst, yet they fail to see. They fail to respond. They fail to grow!
 
What can we take away from our readings today perhaps that they are an opportunity to reflect on our own lives? How often do we look around and feel sorry for ourselves because God seems to love others more than us? How often does the presence of others make us uncomfortable even jealous because we think they have something we do not? Yet, we are all blessed by God; we are all created in the image and likeness of God. We all have a place, a purpose and meaning here in this world. God loves us all. The question is can we recognized, accept and live out that love. Can we believe and trust in God's love for us?
 
Finally, are we willing to accept and buy into God's way or does it always have to be our way. In the midst of living life are we willing to see God's presence and grow in the presence? Can we recognize God standing in our midst or do we have a better idea?
 
Have a holy and blessed Friday everyone.