Nov

13

A True American Saint

November 13, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Today the American Church celebrates the life of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini - the first canonized American citizen - and what an incredible life she led.
Born a poor Italian farmgirl in 1850, she went on to found the Missionary Sisters of the Sacred Heart - establishing schools, orphanages, hospitals and similar institutions.  In 1889, she found herself in New [...]

Nov

5

Sleeping in St. Louis

November 5, 2007 | Leave a Comment

I had a few minutes to kill one summer morning when I was in Downtown Cincinnati.  I happen to be passing St. Louis Church and decided on a whim to step in for some quiet reflection.
No one else was in the assembly, except for this man in one of the pews, sitting in front of the sanctuary.  He [...]

Oct

30

The Hope of the Marital Mustard Seed

October 30, 2007 | Leave a Comment

My wife and I are two months away from our 10th Anniversary. 
We love each other - it’s that plain and simple.  We have thankfully never questioned our marital future - we’ve never doubted that we will grow old together. 
But our generation has been conditioned to believe that marriage is antiquated and that marital unions are bound [...]

Oct

25

“Rouse Him at the Name of Crispian”

October 25, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Sometimes, you gotta wonder about the timing of God’s messages - the gospel for today (Luke 12:49-53) has Christ exhorting us that “I have come to set the earth on fire,
and how I wish it were already blazing!” 
In any case, I think it’s best to just leave this gospel alone considering the events of this week.
Instead, I want [...]

Oct

18

It’s Harvest Time

October 18, 2007 | Leave a Comment

What a great week for saints!!
On Monday, we had St. Teresa of Avila, Tuesday was St. Margaret Mary Alacoque, yesterday brought St. Ignatius of Antioch and today is St. Luke, the author of the gospel and the Acts of the Apostles.
In one week, we have celebrated the life of a great spiritualist/reformer, a holy woman who started [...]

Oct

17

What Lions Are in Our Way?

October 17, 2007 | Leave a Comment

There are times when we have to cut through all of the stuff clogging up our lives and just do our job.
St. Paul gives us guidance on this point in today’s first reading (Romans 2) - “God . . . will repay everyone according to his works, eternal life to those who seek glory, honor, and immortality through perseverance in good [...]

Oct

4

St. Francis, Fr. Joe & Our Parish Priests

October 4, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Today the Church commemorates the life of St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the Franciscans.
In thinking about St. Francis, I’m reminded of a priest . . . Fr. Joe . . . who was one of the most influential priests in my life.  Fr. Joe is a Franciscan.  He was my campus minister in college and [...]

Sep

28

The River Runs Red

September 28, 2007 | Leave a Comment

Today is the feast of St. Lawrence Ruiz and his companions.  Who is Lawrence Ruiz and why is he important to the church . . . to us? 
Imagine you are in your home, nestled in for the night with the kids in bed . . . and the police arrive.  They search your home [...]

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