Today begins a series of readings from First Thessalonians. The earliest of Saint Paul’s writings, First Thessalonians was addressed to a community eagerly awaiting the triumphant return of the risen Christ, but whose faith was wavering in the meantime. In today’s Second Reading, Saint Paul speaks of their “endurance”; 2000…

With October and the last Sundays of Ordinary Time comes a turn in the liturgy toward the end of days, when Christ will return to gather the faithful into the heavenly harvest. Isaiah is the great prophet of the fullness of God’s reign, and his vision in the First Reading…

The Second Vatican Council, in its Dogmatic Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium 1964), spoke beautifully of the community of Christ’s disciples as God’s vineyard, with Christ as the true vine. Such imagery is rooted in biblical passages such as those we read today: the prophetic writing about God’s vineyard…

Today’s passage from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians, which we began reading last week and will read for the next two weeks, puts an exclamation point on the liturgies of the last couple of Sundays. Rather than seek fairness – whether in forgiveness or work – we…

Our spiritual family rejoices this weekend as we celebrate the 50th Anniversary of St. Cecilia’s Parish. The Lord God in his goodness has indeed blessed us during these fifty years of mission and ministry. We are a remembering people, and it is good that we remember that God has chosen…

Although the title of today’ s feast refers to the cross, today is not a repeat of Good Friday. In the First Reading, God punishes the people with poisonous serpents; it is rarely heard in the Sunday assembly. Its purpose is to prefigure the salvation found when the Son of…

Today’s readings suggest something about the difficulties of building and sustaining community. We all belong to various communities – our family, our classroom or workplace, our parish, our neighbourhood – and we know how easily conflicts can arise. Within the life of a community, there are frequently disagreements or resentment….

Today we celebrate the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul: the two mighty pillars of the Church; St. Peter, the Apostle to the Jewish Nation, and St. Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles. We often see Peter and Paul embracing one another (brotherly) love. They both certainly were very different people…

I am the living bread from heaven, says the Lord; whoever eats this bread will live forever!” It seems to be an ancient human custom to collect treasures and display them for others to see. We have art galleries, precious stones set in gold or silver jewels, or we have…

Dear Friends: The 50th day of Easter, Pentecost, the feast of the Holy Spirit. It is not an end; it is a beginning! Pentecost is the fulfillment of Christ’s promises, the Spirit is with us. We are not left orphans. Only those who understand what Christianity is all about can…