Date: Saturday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Luke 1:26-38 In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her, he said, “Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.” But she was greatly troubled at what was said and pondered what sort of greeting this might be. Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afra

Every day, after my morning prayers, writing the blog and checking on the state of the world according to the newscasters, I turn my attention to what’s for dinner. While I was checking on the news, I learned that the weather was going to be a horrible mixture ending with dropping temps. So, I was thinking of something that would warm my husband and I in the evening. I checked the freezer and saw bags of veggies I needed to use as well as several scraps of beef I’d thrown in

Date: Friday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Luke 1:5-25 In the days of Herod, King of Judea, there was a priest named Zechariah of the priestly division of Abijah;his wife was from the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elizabeth. Both were righteous in the eyes of God, observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. But they had no child, because Elizabeth was barren and both were advanced in years. Once when he was serving as priest i

He’s flawed. She’s not perfect. The job stinks. I hear a lot about what isn’t right about everything from life partners to careers to neighborhoods to politics. I always wonder to what the imperfect is being compared. Too often in our modern era the “perfect” is something another has seen on social media or television or in a movie, not “real”. Those “perfects” have been unscathed by reality.   The reality is that none of us is perfect. Reality, real life lived shows us that.

Date: Thursday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 1:18-25 This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found with child through the Holy Spirit. Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man, yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph,

Last evening, my husband and I hosted the neighborhood Holiday gathering. We called it the Christmas Come-Together. We live in a condo association, and annually, we try to gather twice a year: in December and in July. It is wonderful coming together with neighbors we haven’t had a chance to visit lately. And while some would call it a “party,” well, we know it really is a community-builder.   Oh, there was food, lots of food, a spread of all kinds of dishes, brought by the di

Date: Wednesday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 1:1-17 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the fathe

“Consult not your fears but your hopes and your dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what is still possible for you to do.”   St. Pope John XXIII   As I read the inspirational quote for the day from my desktop book The Wisdom of the Saints: 365 Days of Inspiration published by Blue Sparrow, my mind flew back 35 years to a confirmation retreat for high school juniors at

Date: Tuesday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 21:28-32 Jesus said to the chief priests and the elders of the people: “What is your opinion?  A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’  The son said in reply, ‘I will not,’ but afterwards he changed his mind and went.  The man came to the other son and gave the same order.  He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir,’ but did not go.  Which of the two did his father’s

Yesterday afternoon, I checked my email and saw a name I recognized but hadn’t seen for more than a quarter of a century. I thought it must be a different person than the one I remembered, and my curiosity led me to tap the message to see.   “I’m not sure whether you’ll remember me. It’s been a very long time. But I was thinking of you.”  Imagine my amazement. It was the young man I remembered. I was even more amazed that he remembered me. He wrote to thank me for my role in

Date: Monday of the 3 rd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 21:23-27 When Jesus had come into the temple area, the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him as he was teaching and s aid, "By what authority are you doing these things? And who gave you this authority?" Jesus said to them in reply, "I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me, then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things. Where was John's baptism from? Was it of

It only took a few moments outside this morning in the subzero temperatures with wind from the north making it feel like minus 25° for me to mention the less than friendly ambiance of the prayer time outside to the LORD. I might have even mentioned that He may want to check the calendar because it isn’t officially winter yet. Shouldn’t He be saving mornings like this for January or February? Then I heard the great horned owl across the way hoot his “Who?” And I realized, in m

Date: 3 rd  Sunday of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 11:2-11 When John the Baptist heard in prison of the works of the Christ, he sent his disciples to Jesus with this question, "Are you the one who is to come, or should we look for another?" Jesus said to them in reply, "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind regain their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the good news proclaimed to them. And blessed

“Somebody needs to…” I can’t count the number of times in my life that I have heard that intro to a problem that needs to be fixed or a situation that needs to be addressed. When I was little, and heard adults use it, I thought there was a person named Somebody that was sort of like a superhero with wonderful powers, strength, and intellect. In time, I learned that somebody usually meant someone other than the speaker. And eventually, I learned that I am somebody. I can’t do

Date: Memorial of St. Lucy Scripture Text:   Matthew 17:9a, 10-13 As they were coming down from the mountain, the disciples asked Jesus, "Why do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?" He said in reply, "Elijah will indeed come and restore all things; but I tell you that Elijah has already come, and they did not recognize him but did to him whatever they pleased. So also, will the Son of Man suffer at their hands." Then the disciples understood that he was speaking to t

It was the spring of 1987. I was in church for Sunday mass with my family. And the hymn selection was “Here I Am, LORD” by John Michael Talbot. Something amazing happened to me during that song. I found myself crying. The words moved me. And my “I will go, LORD, if You lead me” was my surrender that the LORD had been negotiating for years.   Recently, I shared that at a point in my twenties, when I was reeling from several disappointments in life, I stepped back in my faith,

Date: Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe Scripture Text:   Luke 1:39-47 Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the Holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb. And how does this happen to me, that the mother of

I was at the market getting supplies for a dinner that night for 10, for the family Christmas Cookie baking event the next day, and for a week of meals for my husband and I. To say my cart was full would be like saying the surface of the sun is warm. I made my way to the checkout counter and began unloading my cart when I noticed a man in line with only three items. I caught his attention and asked if he’d want to go ahead of me. He said, “No, thank you. I’m okay.” So, I retu

Date: Thursday of the 2 nd  Week of Advent Scripture Text:   Matthew 11:11-15 Jesus said to the crowds: “Amen, I say to you, among those born of women there has been none greater than John the Baptist; yet the least in the Kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist until now, the Kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent are taking it by force.  All the prophets and the law prophesied up to the time of John. And if you are willing to acc

Recently a disagreement with a friend took a turn it shouldn’t have when I walked away rather than trying to resolve our difference. Within moments, I knew I’d chosen the wrong path, but I wasn’t sure quite how to make a correction. I walked away because I didn’t want to argue, but almost instantly I realized that silence wasn’t the better path. Later in the day, when I had a few minutes, I called to apologize, but that conversation didn’t go so well, either. It took two days