Divine Mercy Sunday Nine years ago on Divine Mercy Sunday 2016 and I was praying in my chapel in Williams very early in the morning , quietly preparing for Divine Mercy Sunday Masses.

It is such a special day in the Easter season, and I wanted more to give to the people. Praying in front of the tabernacle I asked Jesus:
“Could You help me out a little here, Lord?

We Are Also Coming Back To Life

We are God’s people, the people of life, through Jesus coming back to Life.

Easter is the Great Feast of Life:
The famous Italian Catechist and Author, Sofia Cavalletti, wrote back in 1993:
“The Christian faith is an obstinate faith; each time confronted by death, it proclaims that death does not have the last word. And this is what we believe, what we affirm, and what we want to announce to the world, because we know that there has already been a first, great victory of life over death in the resurrection of Jesus Christ.”

Hosanna: “God, Save Us!”

Welcome to Jerusalem and Holy Week. We have travelled together to Jerusalem on our yearly pilgrimage to the Holy City.

Today, Jesus triumphantly enters Jerusalem through the Golden Gate, and today we spiritually enter with Him into the Holy City.

Palm Sunday is the portal, the gate through which we pass through into the most special week of the year and of our salvation.

“Neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on do not sin any more” (John 8:11)

To be dragged out through the busy streets in front of a huge crowd and publicly humiliated in the worst possible way in the society of that time must’ve been as bad as it could get. But then to have the death sentence by stoning to follow, well, that is just unimaginable.

Thank God we know the rest of the story…. This is the great dramatic scene we hear in today’s gospel reading. Jesus says: “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

Laetare means Rejoice. Why do we rejoice?

“Now we must Celebrate and Rejoice, because your brother was dead and has come to life again; he was lost and has been found.”

Laetare Sunday; Rose is the color of Love. Grace is simply the Love of God overflowing into the world. It is Jesus Who Is This Love.

The Parable of The Fig Tree: The season of Lent is a perfect time to reflect on how we spend our time. Do we give first priority to God, tending to our spiritual growth and sacramental life with diligence?

Do we give next priority to our loved ones, focusing intentionally on them each day without distractions from phones, screens, or thoughts of work? If not, now is the moment to repent of our waste of time or of misplaced priorities on our use of time. God is merciful but just. Let’s turn to Him and ask Him to make our lives fruitful while we still have time to do so.

The Mystery of the Transfiguration

“This is my chosen Son; listen to him.”

In last week’s Gospel, we followed Jesus into the desert where He fasted and prayed. This week, He leads us up a mountain to witness His Transfiguration. Why do we hear both of these experiences in Lent?

The Transfiguration was the most astounding, amazing and mind-blowing experience for Peter, James and John, revealing Jesus as truly the Son of God. What glorious Light shone from the face of Christ as He foretaste of Heaven and a vision of His hidden glory.

A Jubilee Season of Hope

In this 2025 Jubilee Year of Hope, we ask: Lord, in these difficult times, we enter into the desert of Lent this year on our annual Journey to Jerusalem with much grief in our hearts for those lost to us…

the bullets and missiles in Gaza & Ukraine; the rhetoric and spin of governments; those still living in fear of the pandemic; Yet we turn to these words of Hope:

Calling Out Hypocrisy

Remember from last week, the key to loving your enemy is in action, not emotion: showing kindness: in thought, in word and in action. So, if someone curses us, we are to bless them.

“A blessing is not just to do good towards somebody, but to speak good to somebody. So you bless with your mouth, you act (obviously) with your actions through all kinds of different ways. If someone curses me, they speak evil against me. You’re verbalizing that they would wish harm upon you (that’s what a curse is).

“To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.”

We all have enemies and that is a sad thing, Who is your greatest enemy? Who hates you? We all have enemies. Yes, it’s a sad thing, but unfortunately it’s true for most of us, if not for all of us. How do we react to this situation?

We Are Blessed Sacrament: It’s a different world in today’s Gospel. Jesus turns all our notions of what is good and desired and makes it upside down in St. Luke’s version of The Sermon on the Mount. Now that his twelve apostles have been selected, Jesus teaches and prepares them for their mission. “Get used to ‘different’ from now on.”

“They beckoned to their partners in the other boat to come and help them” (Lk 5:7).

First we see that Jesus is preaching to a crowd who is pressing in on Him to listen. What an amazing, inspiring image! Do we “press in” as we listen to the readings proclaimed in Mass with this same sense of wonder and urgency?