One of the things my mother told me repeatedly when I was growing up was, “just because I compliment your sister, does not mean I am criticizing you!” It is not surprising that a seven-year-old with a really cute younger sister might need to be told this, but as a parent of three adult children, I should no longer need to hear these words. Yet, not long ago I caught myself feeling slighted when I was told that a colleague ...
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On this last day of the Christmas Season two questions concerning Jesus’ baptism arise in me: 1) What is Jesus, the sinless one, doing in the waters reserved for sinners? And 2) Why is this story proclaimed in the Christmas Season, given the fact that Jesus is about 30 years old? Beyond satisfying our curiosity around those questions, we should always ask—with every gospel story–what is this gospel story inviting us to, here and now? I think those first two ...
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Throughout my life I have had many friends and acquaintances who have been loyal members of evangelical churches. These people are faith filled and extremely committed to the teachings of their individual churches. We have had many conversations over the years on the “taboo” topic of religion, and I have been blessed and enriched to learn of the faith principles that guide their lives.
One question that would often be posed to me, and to be honest, would frequently intimidate me, was: “are you ...
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Of the four gospel writers, Matthew is the only one who tells the story of the wise men. I can see why the other three may have shied away for telling this story; it would have been a bit risky to do so. Many Jewish people then, like many Catholics now, thought they were the only ones who mattered and the only people that God loved. They believed that they were the only people that had the one true religion ...
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You may know the name Victor Frankl. This Austrian was a neurologist, a psychiatrist, a philosopher, and a writer—one of Europe’s brightest minds. But he may be best known as a Holocaust survivor. He survived various Nazi concentration camps during the Second World War and shared that experience in his best-selling book Man’s Search for Meaning. After his miraculous survival, he went on to give talks all over the world. When in front of American audiences, he was fond of ...
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Talk about a jampacked weekend. Saturday we are celebrating the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, and then right back to church on Sunday to celebrate the Epiphany of the Lord. I would like to use this reflection to focus on Mary, and what a model of faith she is for all of us.
The Solemnity of Mary, from the church in Canada’s point of view, carries a great deal of importance as it is one of only two holy days ...
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A wife once said, “My husband would climb mountains, swim lakes, and crawl through deserts to show his love for me, but I divorced him…because he was never home!” I know that was a joke, but the first part of the joke paints a picture of a very committed, faithful, and dedicated husband who would go to any lengths for his wife. These Scripture readings given to us today, on the Feast of the Holy Family are also about commitment, ...
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The scripture passages the Church gives us on Christmas morning are very different than the passages we hear on Christmas Eve. As you noticed in this morning’s gospel reading, there is no journey to Bethlehem, no descending of angels from the heavenly realm, no shepherds, no Joseph, no Mary, and no baby Jesus.
The four gospel writers all have different starting points in their attempt to tell us the Jesus story. The Gospel according to Mark starts us off with an ...
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These familiar Christmas scripture stories are the same ones we hear year after year after year. Yet, there is always something new—usually a new meaning—that emerges and makes me wonder, “How come I never thought of that before?” I suppose it has something to do with our changing perspective as we age. We see differently at 50 than we did at 30. It only makes sense. Imagine the scriptures as being a diamond. With each passing year, you move one step clockwise ...
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When I was studying theology at Fordham in 1964, a professor told us an anecdote from the diary of a
19th Century missionary to the Far North. The professor said that it is a principle of anthropology that the more remote a society is from the centres of civilization, the farther back in time it can lead us. When the missionary priest explained to the people the connection between sex and babies they laughed. How ridiculous, they said. Look at how often ...