3 Sunday A: The Light of God: Come and Be the Light

Fr. Bill Grimm:

From The Connections:

‘My Monastery Is a Minivan’

When asked our religion, most of us would describe ourselves as “Catholic” or “Christian.”  But we would tend to back away from daring to call ourselves “disciple” or “follower.”  That description rightly belongs to the great heroes of our faith: the apostles and holy men and women of the Gospel, the saints and martyrs, the Francises of Assisi, the Mother Teresas, the Thomas Mertons, the Dorothy Days, the Albert Schweitzers.  Our lives are too ordinary, our professions too worldly to dare imagine that we are doing the work of the Gospel Jesus.

14 Sunday C: The Kingdom of God is Near: Go

14th Sunday C from Jaimelito Gealan

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Michel de VerteuilGeneral Textual Comments
In order to make a fruitful meditation on this passage, we must set ourselves some guidelines.

11 Sunday B - KOG Tiny Seeds

Michel DeVerteuil
Lectio Divina with the Sunday Gospels
Textual Comments
We see Jesus in this passage searching for the right metaphors to illustrate the concept of the kingdom of God, and we are reminded that today we need to find new images to illustrate our own vision of God’s kingdom.
Verses 26b to 30. A farmer has sown a tiny seed; he now watches and waits for it to bear fruit. Jesus makes a comparison between the small and negligible start and the extraordinary results. The farmer is in no hurry, he simply waits and lets things happen. Whatever happens will take its own time and he must certainly not try to hurry it. He does not try to find out how this happens, but allows things to develop as they will. When the time is ripe the farmer knows that he must get to work. Stay with the slow movement, the first signs of the crop before it is harvest time. Experience the contrast in the last verse when the time comes and everything seems so easy and natural.

30 Sunday A - Foundations of the Kingdom: The 2 Commandments

A QUICK PURVIEW OF MATTHEW'S THEME OF THE KINGDOM OF GOD DURING THESE SUNDAYS: TK

Thomas O’Loughlin
Introduction to the Celebration

Why have we gathered here? One answer is to assemble together to show our love for God and for one another – because the whole of the Christian way can be summed up in these two commandments. But let us pause and recall that we do not always love God with our whole hearts nor our neighbors as ourselves.

28 Sunday A - Wedding Feast and Invitees

Starter Stories:

Post-World War II Banquet:

At the end of World War II, the Russian head-of-state gave an elaborate banquet to honor the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.  The Russians arrived in their best formal wear -- military dress uniforms -- but their honored guest did not.  Churchill arrived wearing his famous zipper coveralls that he had worn during the German bomb attack in London.  He thought it would provide a nostalgic touch the Russians would appreciate.  They didn’t.  They were humiliated and insulted that their prominent guest-of-honor had not considered their banquet worthy of his best clothes.  Wearing the right clothing to a formal dinner honors the host and the occasion; neglecting to wear the right clothing is an insult.  Weddings were such an important occasion in Palestine in Christ’s days that people were expected to wear the proper clothing to show appreciation and respect for the invitation.  In today’s Gospel, Jesus demands the wedding garment of righteousness from his followers. (Fr. Tony Kadavil)

27 Sunday A - Vineyard and Stewardship

Story Starters: From Fr. Tony Kadavil’s Collection 

1) Wild Vines in the Lord’s Vineyard

In his book From Scandal to Hope, Fr. Benedict Groeschel (EWTN), examines the roots of the clergy sex-abuse scandal. He details how disloyalty spread through seminaries, universities, chanceries and parishes. The most notorious case was that of Fr. Paul Shanley who helped found the North American Man-Boy Love Association in 1979. He lectured in seminaries, once with a bishop in attendance, maintaining that “homosexuality is a gift of God and should be celebrated,” and that there was no sexual activity that could cause psychic damage-- “not even incest or bestiality.” No wonder Fr. Charles Curran had little trouble getting seventy-seven theologians to sign a protest against Humanae Vitae, an encyclical which reaffirmed marital chastity! A few years later the Catholic Theological Society (CTS), published Human Sexuality: New Directions in American Catholic Thought, a study which accepted cohabitation, adultery and homosexuality. Now, however, all these chickens have come home to roost. We are paying the price – in lawsuits, public humiliation and loss of credibility. The media gave us a glimpse of the enormous destruction in the Lord’s vineyard done by those wicked tenants. They did so with great relish because the scandals discredit a teaching authority they, by and large, find annoying. But this attention by the media has had consequences the media probably did not intend. It has alerted Catholics to the widespread pillaging of the vineyard, which ultimately means the damnation of souls. Fr. Groeschel asks, “Does all this scandal shake your faith in the Church?” He answers, “I hope so, because ultimately your faith should not be in the Church. Ultimately your faith is in Jesus Christ. It is because of him that we accept and support the Church. We believe in and belong to the Church because Christ established it on his apostles." We see in today’s Gospel that the owner of the vineyard is God. He will care for his Church, not by committees or document, but by raising up saints who will properly tend the vineyard.  

17 Sunday A - Treasure

There is a price for relationship - Treasure Hidden

Rabindra Nath Tagore, the mystic poet of India, tells a memorable story from his own life which illustrates the truth of what Jesus teaches in today’s gospel, namely, that there is a price we have to pay in order to be in his kingdom, to keep a relationship with him.  Tagor’s cook and housekeeper did not come to work on time one morning. Like so many professional men of his mind-set, Tagore was utterly helpless when it came to the routine details of the day, getting his clothes together, making his breakfast, tidying up his place. An hour went by, and Tagore was getting angrier by the minute. He thought of all kinds of punishment. Three hours later he no longer thought of punishment. He would discharge the man without any further consideration, get rid of him, turn him out. Finally the man showed up. It was mid-day. Without a word, the servant proceeded with his duties as though nothing had happened. He picked up Tagore’s clothes and set to making breakfast. Then he started cleaning. Tagore watched all of this with mounting rage. Finally he said, “Drop everything! Get out! I can’t stand the sight of you. You are dismissed…fired!” The man, however, continued sweeping, and after another, few minutes, with quiet dignity he said, “My little girl died last night.” (From Fr. Tony Kadavil's Collection)

16 Sunday A: Wheat and Weeds

Thomas O’Loughlin
Introduction to the Celebration 

Sisters and brothers, today’s gospel reminds us that we, because we are Christians, have to be like a leaven in our society and our world. So let us begin our assembly as the Body of Christ by re-affirming our identity as those who have died in Christ in baptism, and have risen with him to new life and so stand here today. 

15 Sunday A - Sower and the Seeds

Thomas O’Loughlin
Introduction to the Celebration

Today our thoughts during this celebration are guided by the Parable of the Sower: seeds fell along the path, on rocks, among thorns, and into rich soil. Only the seeds which fell into the rich soil bore fruit. Christ is the sower, and while we desire to be good soil, we know there are times when we are pretty shallow like the depth of soil along the path. There are areas of rock in our lives where God’s word has not taken root, and there are areas where God’s word finds difficulty in taking root. So as we prepare to celebrate the mystery of Christ’s love, let us acknowledge our failures and ask the Lord for pardon and strength. 

14 Sunday A: Come to me all who are laboured:

Starters:
“Do you have any idea who I am?" 

The Los Angeles Times published the story of a commercial airline flight cancellation which resulted in a long line of travelers trying to get bookings on another flight. One man in the line grew increasingly impatient with the slow-moving line.  At last, he pushed his way to the front and angrily demanded a first-class ticket on the next available flight. "I’m sorry," said the ticket agent, “First I’ll have to take care of the people who were ahead of you in the line." The irate man then pounded his fist on the ticket counter, saying, "Do you have any idea who I am?" Whereupon, the ticket agent picked up the public address microphone and said, "Attention, please! There is a gentleman at the ticket counter who does not know who he is. If there is anyone in the airport who can identify him, please come to the counter." Hearing this, the man retreated, and the people waiting in line burst into applause.   We are like this man. We have forgotten how to wait patiently. In today’s gospel, Jesus invites us to learn his meekness and humility. (Tony Kadavil)

11 Sunday B - Birth and Growth of KOG

From Fr. Tony Kadavil:

SYNOPSIS OF O.T.XI SUNDAY HOMILY ON MK  4: 26-34 (JUNE 17)

 

Introduction: Today’s readings are about the birth and growth  of the reign or rule of God (Kingdom of God), in human lives and about the gigantic growth of the  Church   from   very   humble   beginnings.   Both  growths   are  slow   and mysterious, guided by the power of the Holy Spirit.

11 Sunday -B

Mark 4:26-34 - "The Kingdom and the Seed"
Mark 4:26-34 - "Celebrate the Small Stuff"

Most of us have planted a garden or lived on or near a farm. In my case, I grew up in Chicago where they have to put cows in zoos because so many city people are shielded from agricultural life and would never otherwise get to see one. But for eleven years I served as the pastor of a church in the agriculturally-oriented community of Davenport, Iowa. Davenport is located in Scott County which is Mississippi River land. It is reported to be some of the richest soil in the world. I learned a lot about farming while living there. I learned about soil and seeds. I learned about the need for cooperation and balance between the various parts of nature - the sun, the soil, and the rain. Having returned recently from a trip to Iowa, I was very mindful of the soil

A Nation Under God-Prayer for our times

Thought you might enjoy this interesting Prayer given in Kansas at the opening session of their Senate. It seems prayer still upsets some People.. When Minister Joe Wright was asked to open the new session of the Kansas Senate, everyone was expecting the usual generalities, but this
is What they heard:
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Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask Your forgiveness and
to seek your direction and Guidance. We know Your Word says, 'Woe to those Who call evil good,' but that is exactly what we have done.

We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We
have exploited the poor and called it The lottery.

We have rewarded laziness and called it Welfare..

We have killed our unborn and called it Choice.

We have shot abortionists and called it Justifiable.

We have neglected to discipline our Children and called it building self esteem....

We have abused power and called it Politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions And called it ambition.

We have polluted the air with profanity and Pornography and called it freedom of expression.

We have ridiculed the time-honored values Of our forefathers and called
it enlightenment.

Search us, Oh, God, and know our hearts Today; cleanse us from every
sin and set us free. Amen!

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The response was immediate. A number of Legislators walked out during the prayer in Protest. In 6 short weeks, Central Christian Church, where Rev. Wright is pastor, logged more than 5,000 phone calls with only 47 of those calls Responding negatively.. The church is now receiving international requests for copies of this prayer from India , Africa and Korea . Commentator Paul Harvey aired this prayer on His radio program, 'The Rest of the Story,'and Received a larger response to this program than any other he has ever aired.

With the Lord's help, may this prayer sweep Over our nation and
wholeheartedly become our Desire so that we again can be called 'one nation Under God.'