Posts by Fr. Rich (Page 20)

The accent on the corporal works of mercy is “mercy.” Feeding the hungry may mean listening to someone to whom no one listens. Giving drink to the thirsty may include offering kind words or praise to those who rarely hear anything positive. Welcoming the stranger often involves countering prejudice with an openness to all God’s children, no matter how different or fearful they may seem. Clothing the naked is also a summons to work for justice so that no one…

What are the talents that Jesus speaks of in the Gospel parable. Maybe those talents are the gifts, graces and abilities that God has given to each of us. One of those abilities is to preach the Word of God. In the Gospel parable, different people received different amounts of talents. As priest and pastor, I am to use my gift of priesthood to preach the word through sermons and my ministry. Maybe your talent of preaching comes in the…

Imagine being given $86,400 for one day. But by the end of the day, the is money is gone. So you have to spend the whole amount each day. What would you do? What would you spend it on? We may not get the money each day, but we do get its equivalent in time. Each day is 86,400 seconds to live. It’s gone at the end of day and at any moment it could all be just taken away.…

Today we celebrate All Saints Day. What is a Saint? How do you become one? The Church has its own process of canonization: looking at the life of the individual, recognizing miracles in their name and other procedures. But in the eyes of God, what is a saint? I can’t speak for God, but I think today’s Gospel puts us on the right tract to sainthood. Jesus gives us the Beatitudes: blessed are the poor in spirit, the pure in…

Whenever you ask a group of little children questions about Jesus or faith, or what does God want us to do, their answers always come down to ‘love.’ Maybe, in their own simple ways, they have the right answer. Because in today’s Gospel when Jesus was asked about the greatest commandment, that was His answer: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and soul and Love your neighbor as yourself. We don’t need to complicate the words of…

Jesus’ response to the Pharisee’s attempted trap was priceless: ‘Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar; but give to God what belongs to God.’ We’re all good at giving to Caesar – pay taxes, cover our bills, fix the property, care for what we own. But how good are we at giving to God? Do we give Him our devotion and thanks: MASS. (In person, life-streamed)? Do we honor HIS WORD: help those in need? Do we show Him RESPECT:…

Today’s Gospel is the third parable speaking about the Kingdom of God and the Lord’s invitation to enter. We are told today that we are invited to the Banquet. Maybe that banquet is the Eucharist; maybe the banquet is the Church. Jesus tells us these three stories making the same point because it is a crucial one. And the Church chooses to recount these three stories in a row each year we’re reading Matthew, it’s because the message is equally…

As we begin the month of October, let us reflect on our Blessed Mother for this is the Month of the Rosary. The world and our ways of living have changed drastically these past few months. We’re in the midst of a pandemic with social distancing and the fear of getting sick. We’re seeing people fighting against each other: racism, rioting, distrust and fear. We hear everyday in the political arena of how to tear others apart rather than work…

How many of us do what the two sons in today’s Gospel did? We say we will do something and then don’t. Or we say no, then have pangs of conscience, and go and fulfill the task. How many times have we done this with our faith? I’m going to get to Mass; I’m going to pray more often; I’m going to be a kinder person. We’ve made these promises and we’ve broken them when something better comes along. We’ve…

Just wanted to say Thank You to the Golf Committee who ran an enjoyable and successful golf tournament last week. It was beautiful day, weatherwise, and a fun day golfing and even winning some prizes. Thank you to the Committee for an outstanding job, the Farda Family for the use of Hideaway Hills Golf Course and the sixty golfers who played.

From “Living with Christ” It’s just not fair! Like children who bemoan being denied something that has been afforded another, we all intermittently rail against God for not getting our just desserts. Why did this faithful, God-loving, and generous person get stuck with cancer, lose a job, or get rear-ended in traffic while another who appears completely arrogant, inconsiderate, and self-absorbed didn’t? Like laborers in the vineyard we challenge God about the perceived inequity of our situation. It’s hard to…

Forgiveness is the topic of the day. A nice word. A great gesture. What we are called to do? But also what can be so overwhelming to truly accomplish. September 11, 2001 is a day we cannot forget. It is a day that congers up feelings of retaliation and hate. It is a day that truly challenges us in forgiveness! How can we forgive? How can we let go? In the human realm, we cannot. But in the spiritual realm…