Mercy (which God desires more than sacrifice) is not about turning a blind eye to sin and glossing over transgressions. Rather, it’s about the door to God’s heart never being closed to those who approach him in repentance and sorrow—no matter the gravity of the sin. And since this mercy is integral to God’s holiness—a […]

In these “dog-days” of summer, dehydration is something that we have to constantly guard against. Paradoxically, the more dehydrated we become the less capable our bodies are of absorbing life-sustaining fluids even when we do drink water. There is a similar spiritual dehydration that occurs when we fail to imbibe the life-giving waters of God’s […]

The disaffection of many Americans with the Catholic Church includes many of its own members whose faith in the church seems to be repeatedly assailed by scandals and the less than noble behavior on the part of some of its leaders. Despite the corrective emphases of the Second Vatican council with concepts like the church […]

The fall of Jerusalem and exile into Babylon of all but the poor and seemingly useless is not unlike what happens within our own spiritual lives. We too have to be freed from all arrogance, pride, and self-sufficiency and left poor, spiritually destitute, and needy. In this humbled state, all that we might have prided […]

Christ’s admonition that we not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will take care of itself seems, perhaps, a little irresponsible if not impossible to carry out. However, I believe that Jesus is impressing upon us the fact that anxiety about tomorrow and the days thereafter can obscure God’s presence and grace given in the present […]

Treading that fine line between a false humility that hides God’s gifts and boastfully parading one’s good works before others is something that Elijah seems to have been able to do. Seemingly aware of his imminent ascent into the heavens and humbly not wanting Elisha to witness this amazing spectacle he requests that Elisha remain […]

The anger that brings one to murder a fellow human being is on the far end of that spectrum that has mild irritation at its opposite end. And although mild irritation is very unlikely to bring us to commit murder, unexamined irritation has the potential to eventually become blind and murderous rage. But even if […]

The increasingly popular notion of various religions being merely different paths to the same reality and truth, is something that Elijah would have taken issue with. For this great prophet it was either Baal or the Lord, with no straddling of the issue. Although there is some appeal and even some validity to “the all […]

In the opening greeting of his Second Letter to Timothy, we have heard Paul wish grace, mercy, and peace for this beloved disciple and fellow worker. And this order is neither incidental nor unintentional; for mercy stands as a bridge between grace and peace. For the grace whereby we are redeemed and saved in Christ […]

Doing no more than is asked or required of you can sometimes be the virtuous thing to do. However, at other times it can betray a fundamentally selfish attitude ever on guard against being taken advantage of and thus refusing to go the extra mile. This self-protective stance that curbs generosity is perhaps well represented […]