Durante la tercera década del siglo XX, Jesús se apareció a una hermana religiosa polaca llamada Faustina en Cracovia, Polonia y le dijo, “la humanidad no obtendrá la paz verdadera hasta el día que regrese con confianza a mi misericordia.” Dios existe deseoso de otorgarnos el perdón de nuestros pecados para vivir libres de las cadenas del pecado y vivir en la libertad de los hijos de Dios.  El vivir reconciliado con Dios y el prójimo es encontrar la paz... Read more

In the 1930s, Jesus appeared to a Polish religious sister named Faustina in Krakow, Poland and said to her, “mankind will not have real peace until it turns with trust to my mercy.”  His words teach us that our peace is intimately tied to God’s mercy. God desperately wants to forgive our sins so we may live free from the chains of sin and live in the freedom of the children of God.  Living reconciled with God and neighbor is... Read more

Only recently did I learn three priests lost their lives when the RMS Titanic sunk one hundred years ago.  Fathers Juozas Montvila, Joseph Benedikt Peruschitz and Thomas Roussel Davids Byles perished on the maiden voyage of the “unsinkable” floating marvel. Below is a link to an informative article by Our Sunday Visitor about these three men. “Most people know at least the basic story of what happened to the Titanic on her maiden voyage from Southampton, England to New York,... Read more

On April 10th in Boston, Massachusetts, the Bishop Emeritus of Savannah, Bishop Boland, blessed wreaths and rose petals which will be taken tomorrow by the US Coast Guard to the site where over 1,500 people perished on a cold night one hundred years ago when the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg and sunk. Below is Bishop Boland’s beautiful prayer and tribute to all those who perished on that fateful night. ———- As her name proclaimed she was Titanic, the greatest... Read more

On Good Friday after the Veneration of the Cross, a live presentation of the Passion of Christ was done by members of the community.  Every year I am deeply moved by it as one becomes part of the crowd accompanying Jesus to Calvary.   Pilate washes his hands as he condemns Jesus Jesus carrying the cross Jesus meets his sorrowful mother     Jesus falls   Leading the prayers Jesus is crucified Jesus dies   Easter Vigil Blessing the Paschal... Read more

These are excerpts from my homily for a funeral Mass I celebrated this morning. We live in a world that praises what is efficient, what is practical, and what gives immediate results.  Yet, there is nothing more inefficient, impractical or delayed in providing results than love. True love asks for sacrifice. True love asks for patience. True love asks for time. Sacrifice, patience and time, all things practiced by a reduced number of folks in our modern times, yet all... Read more

Attempt for a few seconds to imagine the despair, the disappointment and the sadness Mary Magdalene experienced when she did not find Jesus’ body in the tomb. “Who could have done this?  Where have they taken him?”  She was probably condemning and judging Jesus’ enemies, blaming them and cursing them for stealing the body.  Her already deteriorated spirit from the events of the preceding days weakened even more.  “I cannot take it much longer,” she must have thought.  “When will... Read more

For generations throughout the centuries Jewish families have gathered to commemorate the night when God freed them from slavery under pharaoh in Egypt and led them into freedom. They were freed by the blood of the lamb they sacrificed and whose blood they sprinkled on their doorposts. God ordered the Israelites to keep this memorial feast and they have kept it as we heard in the first reading, as a perpetual institution, eating unleavened bread and a roasted lamb. On... Read more

As one drives or walks in a city, there are so many things to read.  Advertisements, billboards, road signs, warnings, inscriptions, posters, historical markers, graffiti etc.  Most of these do not evoke a deep emotional response, they simply want us to purchase an item, vote for a candidate or stay out of a construction zone. I read the inscription above while walking down a busy road in Jerusalem while participating in the Stations of the Cross.  Not only did it evoke a... Read more

This upcoming Sunday we join the whole Church greeting Jesus as he descended into Jerusalem down the Mount of Olives to celebrate the Passover.  With raised palms and singing “Hosanna to the Son of David,” we joyfully go out to meet our Savior who approaches sitting on a donkey. Donkeys are not among the most beautiful of God’s creatures.  To be called a donkey is not a flattering thing.  Yet a poor, lowly donkey became the throne of Jesus as... Read more