Cuando las  dificultades y cruces de la vida se hacen insoportables, muchos se alejan de Dios.  Consciente o inconscientemente, culpan a Dios por su desgracia, o culpan su inacción al remediar la situación.  Luego de la muerte de un ser querido, la pareja u otros parientes dejan de asistir a Misa.  Luego de que una oración no es respondida por Dios, o una sanación esperada nunca llega, algunos rechazan la oración como palabras en vano.  Cuando algunos no pueden casarse... Read more

When the trials and crosses of life become overwhelming, many turn away from God.  Consciously or unconsciously, they blame God for their misfortune, or blame His inaction to remedy it.  After the death of a loved one, spouses and other family members may stop going to Mass.  After experiencing an unanswered prayer or not receiving a desired healing, some dismiss prayer as wishful thinking.  Due to the inability to marry in the Church, some distance themselves completely from God. The... Read more

Tonight at my parish we celebrated Candlemass in Spanish.  In Mexico, it is traditional to bring a baby Jesus statue dressed in baby clothes to be presented at the church and be blessed, calling to mind how Mary and Joseph took Jesus to be presented at the Temple forty days after his birth.  Also, it is traditional in Mexico that the person who got the baby in the King Cake on Epiphany provides the tamales for today’s celebration. The turnout was... Read more

  The bishop’s miter gently swayed from left to right in front of me as he intoned the Salve Regina. The unexpected yet familiar tune and the tightening of my mother’s grip on my arm awakened me… mater misericordiae. The procession progressed slowly down the path as the hope for a better tomorrow was condemned and as the joy of life was lost.  After emerging from a slumber of unbelief, my eyes were opened to the reality of death by... Read more

A través del sacramento de la Confirmación, recibimos la plenitud de la gracia recibida en el sacramento del bautismo.  Este sacramento nos une más íntimamente a la Iglesia y nos enriquece con una fortaleza especial del Espíritu Santo.  Al recibir este sacramento, uno se compromete mucho más, como autentico testigo de Cristo, a extender y defender la fe a través de obras y palabras. Leemos en el libro de los Hechos de los Apóstoles 1, 3-5 que Jesús promete a... Read more

Throughout the Gospels, oftentimes the evangelists describe for us how people react to the words of Jesus.  At times, we learn, people felt challenged and flat out rejected Jesus’ teachings, such as when he preached his disciples had to eat his body and drink his blood to have eternal life. At least once people thought Jesus was crazy, saying, as Saint Mark tells us, “he must be out of his mind!”  Others became furious at Jesus’ words and actions to... Read more

Today we remember one of the greatest minds who ever lived, Saint Thomas Aquinas.  Despite all his intellectual work and writing, towards the end of his life Saint Thomas had a mystical experience which led him to say, “All that I have written seems like straw compared to what has now been revealed to me.” Born in Roccasecca Italy, he was the nephew of the Count of Aquino.  His father envisioned him becoming the abbot of the nearby prestigious Benedictine... Read more

Letter from Bishop Gregory J. HartmayerTo Be Read at all Masses in Parishes in the Diocese of SavannahDuring the Weekend of January 28 – 29, 2012 My dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ, I am writing to you on a matter of grave moral concern — freedom of religion and freedom of conscience. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced last week that almost all employers, including Catholic employers, will be forced to offer their employees health coverage... Read more

Archbishop Dolan of New York City continues to express disappointment and dismay at the recent HHC decision not to grant a conscience exemption for churches when it comes to insurance programs covering contraceptives. The decision is based on the belief that contraceptives are a moral alternative to reduce the number of abortions.  It assumes there is nothing wrong with contraceptives. Yet the issue at hand is not whether contraceptives are moral or immoral, or whether people think contraceptives are OK or not.  The... Read more

Hoy 25 de enero, la Iglesia universal celebra la Fiesta de la conversión de San Pablo.  Siempre he sentido cercanía hacia San Pablo, quizás sea porque somos tocayos, pero creo que la razón principal es que la historia de la vida de San Pablo da gran esperanza.  Un encuentro con Jesús resucitado le cambio la vida a este hombre que se llamaba Saulo, convirtiéndose de alguien que perseguía y apedreaba cristianos en uno de los más grandes apóstoles y autor... Read more