Aflame for Christ

Many great stories feature the hero receiving a mystical gift with special powers, enabling him to overcome all obstacles. We, too, have received the mystical gift of the Holy Spirit, to aid us in our choices and in our needs - if only we employ this Divine Helper!

From the beginning of time until now, the blood of the innocent cries out - when will You bring your justice? When will You right the wrongs? The whole Church, then, longs for the day when Christ returns in glory to bring about an end to the persecution, oppression, and evil that mankind has fallen into - let us be prepared to love Him!

So often, we focus on what we do - our activities, our achievements. But the deeper question is - who are we becoming? All of our work in the world is merely the work of hollow men if not joined to a rich interior life of love. Only if we become holy, allowing Christ to live and work through us, will this world find the salvation it desperately yearns for.

Is your life filled with peace? If not, perhaps it's because we are not anchored in the unchanging love of God. Only His love for us, and our love for Him expressed in prayer and obedience to His commands, gives the peace that the world cannot give. Stop striving for pleasure, convenience, success, and the good things of the world...and start experiencing peace in Him.

God promised that He would always be with us...but where is He? He is right where He promised - truly present in the Eucharist. But how can we feel Him or sense His presence at Mass? Tune in for five extremely practical suggestions of how to experience the presence of God in a deeper way at every Mass!

On the occasion of the election of Pope Leo XIV, and for Good Shepherd Sunday, we look at the role of the Papacy: what it is not, and what it is - as a father and shepherd, preacher of truth, and sign of unity. Ad multos annos!

Jesus calls Peter and the Apostles "little children" in today's Gospel. This demeaning term is meant to show that they are still struggling with spiritual immaturity. What can we learn from the immaturity of these Apostles and how can we grow into the mature friends of Christ that He desires for us?

This year, Fr. Joseph had the privilege of administering the Sacrament of Confirmation to the young people at his parish.

They stood to receive it...but for whom were they standing? What does it mean to "stand" for something? And what is the cost of standing for Jesus Christ? Confirmation means taking a stand when it's difficult, but only when we know what we would die for will we truly begin to live!

Christ's Resurrection is a historical event, but it is more than historical - it reverberates through history as the actualization of life's triumph over death. Now, for believers, it colors everything we do - rather than life being about "wasting time" until our own demise, it's a journey to an everlasting Kingdom where we, too, shall never die.

Two trees dwelt in a garden - one of which led to death, while one led to life. The Tree of Life had been sealed since that fateful day in the beginning, but on Good Friday it is unsealed for us - obedience unto death becoming our life!

If you want to see the depths of God's love for you, the ultimate meaning of life, the key to understanding human history, the fulfillment of all your desires - look upon the Cross and see the Answer!

Jesus' mercy saves a woman caught in adultery - but why was adultery punishable by death? Because all sin is punished by death - Jesus' death on the Cross, which not only cleanses the blot of our sin but gives us the grace to "go and sin no more".

This prodigal young man saw the world in terms of hedonism and economics – everything was for sale. But this only led to the chora makra – the great emptiness. He was rescued, then, by the free and lavish grace of a Father who restored him to relationship in the house of love. Isn’t that our story, too?

It would be so easy to be a dog! Nothing much to worry about. But as human beings, we know we are made for something more. God honors us in the Scriptures by inviting us into a relationship with Him and then equipping us for works of holiness. What a great dignity this displays!

Most Catholics are not good at saying "no". We believe that, as Americans, pleasure and self-indulgence is our birthright. But paradoxically, saying "no" is actually saying a generous "yes" to a greater good, to interior freedom, and to love. Christ teaches us that fasting is one of the keys to spiritual strength - why should we do it, and how should it best be done?

If one were to need a heart transplant, taking a painkiller would only mask the underlying problem. In the same way, putting on ashes is a useless mask without the underlying repentance that changes our lives. Yes, it is difficult and costly - but it is the only thing that will save us.

"The power of life and death are in the tongue," says the book of Proverbs. Indeed, our words have the power to give life or take it away, to build up or tear down. Let's look at some characteristics that should be found in the words of every Christian!