Our presence at this Eucharist is a witness to the communal dimension of our Christian faith—a reminder of our oneness in Christ and our fundamental incompleteness apart and separated from one another. Nevertheless, Mary Magdalene, alone and weeping outside the empty tomb expresses that other and personal dimension to our faith in Christ. Although we […]

The incident in which Thomas gains faith by actually touching the risen body of Christ, is one that also raises questions, questions about the nature of the resurrected body—that body we are promised in baptism. For, although Thomas is able to touch the sacred wounds of Christ’s resurrected body, it is also a body which […]

According to Jesus’ dictum, we can best discover just what our treasures are by examining where our heart is. And in this world where moth and decay constantly threaten any of our earthly treasures we have a convenient method for determining just where our heart is by becoming aware of the many things that upset […]

Although Christianity is often construed as a new religion quite distinct from Judaism, today’s gospel is a reminder that the Christian faith is actually not a new religion, but rather the culmination of a millennia-long process begun in Eden. After our First Parents’ act of disobedience (and in what is sometimes referred to as the […]

Today’s first-reading-account of the safe return of Tobiah with his wife Sarah, and the subsequent curing of Tobit’s blindness, overflows with great joy, celebration, gratitude, and consolation. As such it represents a foretaste of heaven, mirroring the joy and celebration that will be ours when we pass from this life into that Eternal Home prepared […]

Virtue and leading a holy life are not things that we are permitted to vacation from, every now and again. Unlike that unfortunate fig tree, there can be no off-season—never a time when we aren’t working at bearing the fruits of holiness. For the true disciple of Christ, the failure to continuously bear some fruit […]

Some of us are, by nature, “big picture” people, while some of us tend to focus on details and short-term issues. Saint Paul was, clearly, a “big picture” person and thus able to proceed to Jerusalem with equanimity of heart, even though the Holy Spirit had been warning [him] that imprisonment and hardship awaited [him]. […]

The selection of Saint Matthias to replace Judas reminds us that no one is indispensable for the ultimate carrying out of God’s saving plan—a little like David being selected to replace Saul when the latter proved unsuitable to the task. Nevertheless, although none of us indispensable, as John Henry Newman affirmed, God has assigned a […]

As we grow towards spiritual and psychological maturity we need to steer a middle course between a self-conscious preoccupation with what others think of us, on the one hand, and a total disregard and indifference to the opinions that others have of us, on the other. In the former we allow ourselves to be determined […]

Our readings present us with two of the primary reasons for seeking Christ. The first is represented by the crowds who seek Christ because they saw the signs he was performing on the sick. Later, after the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus would tell them, bluntly, I say to you, you are looking for me […]