La misión de Jesús en la tierra se puede resumir diciendo que Jesús vino a enseñar, a curar enfermos y a perdonar pecadores. Fácilmente reconocemos que Jesús es el maestro más grande que ha vivido, pues nos reveló a su Padre, nos enseñó quien es Dios. También rápidamente recordamos historias Bíblicas donde Jesús curó enfermos como los diez leprosos, el siego desde nacimiento y varios paralíticos. Cuando hablamos del tercer elemento de la misión de Jesús, el perdonar pecadores, siempre... Read more

  Repentance is the word that weaves together today’s readings.  “Repent, and believe in the Gospel.” It is God’s providence that these readings coincide with today’s unfortunate 39th anniversary of the Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion in our country, Roe v. Wade. If we are unsure or have any doubt over what we must repent from as a people, as a nation, God makes it clear today.  We can, as a nation, repent from the dark deeds that happen... Read more

I came across these quotes from a newspaper clipping I cut out in 1996.  My dad used to say that once he saw a man walk on the moon, he knew for certain that anything was possible. “This telephone has too much shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication.  The device is inherently of no value to us” – Western Union internal memo, 1876 “Everything that can be invented has been invented.” – Charles Duell, commissioner, US... Read more

A few weeks ago I did my first baptism by submersion at the request of the parents of the girl being baptized.  I was excited, but I never expected it would be such a powerful experience for me and for all those present.  The godmother was in tears by the end of the ceremony. I can’t wait to do it again!     In submersion, the symbolism of water becomes much more pronounced, showing in a more dramatic way what... Read more

“Look, look!  Looks like we got a rev in here.” “Nuh huh, he’s a priest,” said the other girl while pointing to her neck. “Good morning ladies, have a good day,” I said to the two middle school students at a local public school while their eyes were about to pop out from their sockets out of disbelief.  This was probably the first time in their lives they had seen a priest in person.  They must have thought I was... Read more

Today is the anniversary of my native city, Lima the City of Kings.  Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro founded Lima 477 years ago a few miles inland from the Pacific Ocean on the banks of the Rimac River close to an Indian village.  Lima was fully named “Lima the City of Kings” due to the closeness of its founding to the Feast of the Epiphany and also in honor of the Catholic kings of recently unified Spain, Ferdinand of Aragon and... Read more

El sacramento del bautismo es el primer sacramento que recibimos y el más importante.  El Código de Derecho Canónico de la Iglesia Católica nos recuerda que el bautismo es la puerta de los sacramentos, cuya recepción de hecho o al menos de deseo es necesaria para la salvación, por el cual los hombres son liberados de los pecados, reengendrados como hijos de Dios e incorporados a la Iglesia (Canon 849). Jesús habla claramente sobre este sacramento en momentos de su... Read more

Walking down the quiet and beautiful streets of Selma, Alabama, it is very difficult to imagine the events they witnessed on March 7, 1965.  Approximately 600 marchers set out from Brown Chapel AME Church (pictured below) to Montgomery, to protest the hostility towards blacks who wished to register to vote which had led to the death of one young man. Governor Wallace ordered the march stopped.  The streets of peaceful Selma turned into mayhem as state troopers and local sheriff... Read more

Cuando hablamos del evangelio, hablamos primeramente del mensaje predicado por Jesús cuando el habitó la tierra.  Jesús nunca escribió libros ni mando escribir libros, solo predicó.  Su mensaje fue completamente oral y la intención de la Iglesia primitiva era transmitir el evangelio, la buena nueva, a cuantas personas posibles y a futuras generaciones. Imagínese ser uno de aquellos que escucho predicar a San Pedro el día de Pentecostés.  Sabemos por el libro de los Hechos de los Apóstoles que tres... Read more

Last night I came across pictures of my early stomping grounds and want to share them with you.  The picture above is of where I lived for the first nine years of my life, the Lurin River Valley, approximately thirty kilometers south of Lima on the Pan-American highway and on the shores of the Pacific Ocean. This second picture is taken from the same location as the picture above, the ancient ruins of Pachacamac, but facing the Pacific Ocean.  The River... Read more