This day, as we commemorate the Resurrection of the Christ, we are reminded that life and goodness have the final victory in God’s cosmic design, as well as in every individual soul that places its trust in Him. Carrying our burdens with eyes fixed on Him, feeling the nearness of death yet rejecting its tempting despair, we taste the glory of this present feast in all of its refreshing goodness.
Sunday Scriptures
Palms and Praise Are A Forerunner to the Passion
On this Palm Sunday, as we wave our palm and praise the Son of David, let us welcome Him into the contradictions of our divided hearts, begging Him to heal us and reconcile us with the Father, so that next Sunday we might truly and joyfully celebrate not only His resurrection, but ours as well.
People of the Resurrection Look Forward; They Never Look Back
May He who spoke forgiveness into her heart and ours, the One who takes away the sins of the world, lead us into the heart of the Father anew, that we might sing a song of salvation to a world desperate for good news.
Story of Prodigal Son Welcomes Home the Son Who Was Lost
St. Paul challenges us in the second reading to be ambassadors of Christ “as if God were appealing through us.” He calls people to be reconciled to God. Rather than being like the older son, who scorns the wayward brother, a great way to be an ambassador of Christ this Lent would be to invite people to be embraced by the Father’s love.
The All-Powerful God Will Never Fail His People
One of the ways we can produce good fruit is by calling on the name of the Lord. In my own prayer, my most common way of referring to God is by saying “Lord.” “Lord, I adore you, Lord, I praise you, Lord, I worship you, Lord, I love you.”
Spiritual Life Is About Climbing Mountains
St. Paul tells us in the second reading that “our citizenship is in heaven.” The goal of every Christian must be to get to heaven. It is promised to us, but not assured if we do not listen to Jesus. All of our work on earth – all of our praying, fasting, almsgiving – is preparation to live as citizens of heaven.
The Goal of Lent Is to See Jesus As He Walks Beside Us
During Lent, those of us who pray the breviary, read the story of Israel and the exodus from Egypt. Every year when I read the account, I have the same reaction: “How could they be so stupid?
Removing the Beams from Our Eyes
Have you ever seen anyone walk around with a wooden beam in his eye? When I read this Sunday’s Gospel, I picture someone with a huge piece of wood in his eye. I think the Lord Jesus is using absurd imagery here to make a point.
The Power of the Human Will
The most profound example of forgiveness that many of us New Yorkers had the chance to witness up close and personal has to be that of the late NYPD Detective Steven McDonald forgiving the teenager who in 1986 shot him in Central Park and left him paralyzed from the neck down.
Surrendering to Something More
If anything can be two different things at the same time, the Beatitudes, which we deal with this week in the Gospel from Luke, meet the criteria.
