The Fifth Sunday of Easter Acts 6:1-7; Psalm 33; I Peter 2:4-9; John 14:1-12 Being waitstaff, can’t be easy. You must be nice to people. All the time. You’re expected to be humorous and entertaining. Remember who ordered what. Put up with surly and demanding customers. Be dependent on tips since the pay is not adequate. And probably have a second or a third job. I can understand why the Twelve complained about serving at table. Serving table isn’t easy. But their attitude

The Fourth Sunday of Easter Acts 2:14a, 36-41; Psalm 23; 1 Peter 2:20b-25; John 10:1-10 Self-proclaimed Influencers. Podcasters. YouTube. Content creators. Tik Tok. Politicians. Advertisers. Late Night talk show hosts. Facebook. Op-Ed pieces. Pundits. Editorial Boards. Popes. TV newscasters. Reddit. Substack. Discord. Instagram. Homilists? So many voices vying for our attention. And let us not forget employers, co-workers, neighbors, in-laws, spouses, children, pets, emai

The Second Sunday of Easter Acts 2:42-47; Psalm 118; 1 Peter 1:3-9; John 20:19-31 Jesus initiates three encounters on that “first day of the week…” Early in the morning, Jesus is present to Mary Magdalene. She is still at the tomb. Mourning. Weeping. Questioning. Late in the afternoon, Jesus saddles up to two disciples, Cleopas and his wife. Their walking home to Emmaus. They’re arguing. What now? Hope is draining through them like a sieve. In the evening, Jesus appea

The Fourth Sunday of Lent 1 Samuel 16:1b, 6-7, 10-13a; Psalm 23; Ephesians 5:8-14; John 9:1-41 War. What is war? How do you understand it? Simply put, war is people killing people. The reason is irrelevant. On the ground are ordinary people like you and me, “whose lives have nothing to do with the calculations of generals or the ambitions of politicians: children asleep in their beds, mothers preparing meals, elderly people who cannot run fast enough to reach a shelter.”

The Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time Sirach 15:15-20; Psalm 119; I Corinthians 2:6-10; Matthew 5:17-37 King Solomon, the son of King David, is celebrated down to our own day for his wisdom. But was Solomon wise? Inquiring minds want to know. According to the First Book of Kings, the Queen of Sheba traveled to see and hear for herself if the stories were true. She tested Solomon with subtle questions on every subject in which she was interested. And, “King Solomon explained e

The Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time Isaiah 58:7-10; Psalm 112; I Corinthians 2:1-5; Matthew 5:13-16 “You are salt…” “You are light…” What does it mean to be light and salt? Do you know? A kaleidoscope of prophecy, parable and poetry does. “Share your food with the hungry. Shelter the oppressed and homeless. Clothe the naked. Do not turn your back on your own.” [Isaiah 58:7ff] “For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you