Photo by Al Hayat, AFP-Getty THE past two weeks, I have taken time, as I said I would, to ponder my ministry, its direction, and my personal journey. I’ve received many letters in that time filled with encouragement and prayer, and I am truly grateful for the love and support of many brothers and […]
THIS past Lent was a blessing for me to journey with tens of thousands of priests and laymen alike all over the world through the daily Mass meditations I wrote. It was exhilarating and exhausting at the same time. As such, I need to take some quiet time to reflect upon many things in my ministry […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Friday of Holy Week, April 3rd, 2015Good Friday of the Lord’s Passion Liturgical texts here YOU are loved. Whoever you are, you are loved. On this day, God declares in one solemn act that you are loved.
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Thursday of Holy Week, April 2nd, 2015Evening Mass of the Last Supper Liturgical texts here JESUS was stripped three times during His Passion. The first time was at the Last Supper; the second when they clothed Him in a military cloak; [1]cf. Matt 27:28 and the third time, […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Monday of the Fifth Week of Lent, March 23rd, 2015 Liturgical texts here ONE of the key harbingers of The Growing Mob today is, rather than engage in a discussion of facts, [1]cf. The Death of Logic they often resort to simply labeling and stigmatizing those with whom they […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Wednesday of the Fourth Week of Lent, March 18th, 2015 Liturgical texts here THE whole of Jesus’ life consisted in this: doing the will of the Heavenly Father. What is remarkable is that, even though Jesus is the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, He still does absolutely […]
With dozens of new subscribers coming on board now each week, old questions are popping up such as this one: Why aren’t the Pope’s speaking about the end times? The answer will surprise many, reassure others, and challenge many more. First published September 21st, 2010, I have updated this writing to the present pontificate.
I could have written this for the past week. First published THE Synod on the family in Rome last autumn was the beginning of a firestorm of attacks, assumptions, judgments, grumbling, and suspicions against Pope Francis. I set everything aside, and for several weeks responded to reader’s concerns, media distortions, and most especially distortions […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Saturday of the Second Week of Lent, March 7th, 2015First Saturday of the Month Liturgical texts here THREE minutes in a pig barn, and your clothes are done for the day. Imagine the prodigal son, hanging out with swine, feeding them day after day, too poor to even […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Tuesday of the Second Week of Lent, March 3rd, 2015 Liturgical texts here WHEN it comes to weeding out sin this Lent, we cannot divorce mercy from the Cross, nor the Cross from mercy. Today’s readings are a powerful blend of both…
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Monday of the Second Week of Lent, March 2nd, 2015 Liturgical texts here THERE is a line from Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings that, among others, jumped out at me when the character Frodo wishes for the death of his adversary, Gollum. The wise wizard Gandalf responds:
A Light to the Gentiles by Greg Olsen WHY did Jesus come to earth as He did—clothing His divine nature in the DNA, chromosomes, and genetic heritage of the woman, Mary? For Jesus could very well have simply materialized in the desert, entered immediately upon forty days of temptation, and then emerged in the Spirit […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Wednesday, February 4th, 2015 Liturgical texts here DISCIPLINE, mortification, fasting, sacrifice… these are words that tend to make us cringe because we associate them with pain. However, Jesus did not. As St. Paul wrote: For the sake of the joy that lay before him, Jesus endured the cross… […]
WARS and rumors of wars… And yet, Jesus said these would only be “the beginning of the birth-pangs.” [1]cf. Matt 24:8 What, then, could possibly be the hard labor? Jesus answers: Then they will deliver you up to tribulation, and put you to death; and you will be hated by all nations for my […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor Friday, January 16th, 2015 Liturgical texts here THERE is so much happening in our world, so quickly, that it can be overwhelming. There is so much suffering, adversity, and busyness in our lives that it can be discouraging. There is so much dysfunction, societal breakdown, and division that […]
First published January 8th, 2015… SEVERAL weeks ago, I wrote that it is time for me ‘to speak directly, boldly, and without apology to the “remnant” who are listening. It is only a remnant of readers now, not because they are special, but chosen; it is a remnant, not because all are not invited, but few respond….’ […]
I believe that the vast majority of the Book of Revelation refers, not to the end of the world, but to the end of this era. Only the last few chapters really look at the very end of the world while everything else before mostly describes a “final confrontation” between the “woman” and the “dragon”, and all the terrible […]
HAVE you ever met someone who is passionate about their subject? A skydiver, horse-back rider, a sports fan, or an anthropologist, scientist, or antique restorer who lives and breathes their hobby or career? While they can inspire us, and even spark an interest in us toward their subject, Christianity is different. For it is […]
“THERE is one terrible truth in Christianity that in our times, even more than in previous centuries, arouses implacable horror in the heart of man. That truth is of the eternal pains of hell. At the mere allusion to this dogma, minds become troubled, hearts tighten up and tremble, passions become rigid and inflamed […]
THE call of the Holy Father for the Church to become more of a “field hospital” to “heal the wounded” is a very beautiful, timely, and perceptive pastoral vision. But what exactly needs healing? What are the wounds? What does it mean to “welcome” sinners aboard the Barque of Peter? Essentially, what is “Church” […]
PART III — FEARS REVEALED SHE fed and clothed the poor with love; she nurtured minds and hearts with the Word. Catherine Doherty, foundress of the Madonna House apostolate, was a woman who took on the “smell of the sheep” without taking on the “stench of sin.” She constantly walked the thin line between […]
SO much has been said this past week on the spirit of fear that has been flooding many souls. I have been blessed that so many of you have entrusted your own vulnerability to me as you have been trying to sift through the confusion that has become a staple of the times. But […]
Getty Images ONCE again, the Mass readings today are blowing over my soul like a trumpet blast. In the Gospel, Jesus warns His listeners to pay attention to the signs of the times.
I have spent the day mostly in prayer, listening, speaking with my spiritual director, praying, going to Mass, listening some more… and these are the thoughts and words which have been coming to me since I wrote The Synod and the Spirit.
AS I wrote in my daily Mass meditation today (see here), there is a certain panic in some quarters of the Church on the heels of the Synod’s somewhat abstract post discussion report (relatio post disceptationem). People are asking, “What are the bishops doing in Rome? What is the Pope doing?” But the […]
BROTHERS and sisters, things are beginning to move very fast in the world with events, one on top of the other… like the winds of a hurricane nearest the eye of the Storm. [1]cf. The Seven Seals of Revolution This is what the Lord showed me would happen several years ago. But who […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor October 16th, 2014Memorial of St. Ignatius of Antioch Liturgical texts here from Brian Jekel’s Consider the Sparrows ‘WHAT is the Pope doing? What are the bishops doing?” Many are asking these questions on the heels of confusing language and abstract statements emerging from the Synod on […]
This was among the first words or “trumpets” that I felt the Lord wanted me to blow, beginning in 2006. Many words were coming to me in prayer this morning that, when I went back and re-read this below, made more sense than ever in light of what is happening with Rome, Islam, and everything […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor October 10th, 2014 Liturgical texts here “EVERY kingdom divided against itself will be laid waste and house will fall against house.” These are Christ’s words in today’s Gospel that must surely reverberate among the Synod of Bishops gathered in Rome. As we listen to the presentations coming […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor October 9th, 2014Opt. Memorial of St. Denis and Companions, Martyrs Liturgical texts here “O stupid Galatians! Who has bewitched you…?” These are the opening words of today’s first reading. And I wonder if St. Paul would repeat them to us as well were he in our midst. […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor October 6th, 2014Opt. Memorial for St. Bruno and Blessed Marie Rose Durocher Liturgical texts here Photo by Les Cunliffe THE readings today could not be more timely for the opening sessions of the Extraordinary Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Family. For they provide the […]
Scene from “Lord of the Flies”, Nelson Entertainment IT is perhaps one of the most augury and revealing movies in recent times. The Lord of the Flies (1989) is the story of a group of boys who are the survivors of a shipwreck. As they settle in to their island surroundings, power struggles ensue […]
WHEN I wrote this last week, I decided to sit on it and pray some more because of the very serious nature of this writing. But nearly every day since, I have been getting clear confirmations that this is a word of warning to all of us. There are many new readers coming […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor September 12th, 2014The Holy Name of Mary Liturgical texts here DON’T look back, my brother! Don’t give up, my sister! We are running the Race of all races. Are you weary? Then stop for a moment with me, here by the oasis of God’s Word, and let […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor September 11th, 2014 Liturgical texts here DO you find yourself agitated when you hear such statements as “detach yourself from possessions” or “renounce the world”, etc.? If so, it’s often because we have a distorted view of what Christianity is all about—that it is the religion […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor September 9th, 2014Memorial of St. Peter Claver Liturgical texts here IF we are to be co-workers with God, this implies much more than simply “working for” God. It means being in communion with Him. As Jesus said, I am the vine, you are the branches. He who […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor September 8th, 2014Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Liturgical texts here I hope you have had a chance to read my meditation on Mary, The Masterwork. Because, really, it reveals a truth about who you are and should be in Christ. After all, what […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor September 1st – September 6th, 2014Ordinary Time Liturgical texts here THE first evangelists—it might surprise you to know—were not the Apostles. They were demons.
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor August 25th – August 30th, 2014Ordinary Time Liturgical texts here JESUS must have been surprised when, standing in the temple, going about his “Father’s business”, his mother told Him it was time to come home. Remarkably, for the next 18 years, all we know from the Gospels […]
ON THE FEAST OF THE ASSUMPTION August 15th, 2014 IT came to me as clear as a bell during Mass: there is one refuge that God is giving us in these times. Just as in the days of Noah there was only one ark, so too today, there is only one Ark being provided […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor August 4th – August 9th, 2014Ordinary Time Liturgical texts here DEAR friends, as you may have read already, a lightning storm took out my computer this week. As such, I’ve been scrambling to get back on track with writing with a backup and getting another computer on […]
THERE is coming a time, and it is already here, when there is going to be great confusion in the world and in the Church. After Pope Benedict resigned, I sensed the Lord warning me about this over and over again. And now we see it unfolding rapidly around us—in the world and […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGSfor June 30th – July 5th, 2014Ordinary Time Liturgical texts here WHY now? I mean, why has the Lord inspired me, after eight years, to begin this new column called “the Now Word”, reflections on the daily Mass readings? I believe it is because the readings are speaking to […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGS for June 23rd – June 28th, 2014Ordinary Time Liturgical texts here “The Two Hearts” by Tommy Christopher Canning IN my recent meditation, The Rising Morning Star, we see through Scripture and Tradition how the Blessed Mother has a significant role in not only the first, but second coming […]
THE NOW WORD ON MASS READINGS for May 26th – 31st, 2014 of the Sixth Week of Easter Liturgical texts here THERE is a perception in the Church that evangelization is for a chosen few. We hold conferences or parish missions and those “chosen few” come and speak to us, evangelize, and teach. […]