Adult Initiation & Sacrament Preparation

Since the beginning of the Church her people have always recognized those who were models of holiness and piety.  They were given the title “saint,” and what began as a local custom developed into a more structured practice under the Holy See beginning in the 10th century.  In recognition of the Solemnity of All Saints falling on a Sunday, we forego our usual readings in favor of these chosen specifically for this special holiday: The Word for the Solemnity of All Saints Revelation 7:2-4, 9-14 Psalm 24:1bc-2, 3-4ab, 5-6 1 John 3:1-3 Matthew 5:1-12a Our first reading comes from the Book of Revelation – probably one of the most misunderstood, misinterpreted, and confusing books of the Bible – and it’s no wonder, with its apocalyptic style thick with symbolic images and numerology it can be very hard to follow.  So let’s try to unpack our passage for this week.  The passage opens with John seeing an angel, speaking with God’s authority, to the four other angels charged ...

What is the measure of a person?  From a Biblical perspective, it’s how you treat others.  In fact, the Scriptures are quite consistent on this point.  From the Mosaic Law Code in Exodus, to the teachings of the prophets, to the parables of Jesus, to the teachings of Paul and the Apostles, we are constantly reminded about how a God-loving people are expected to act toward one another.  Our readings for this coming Sunday provide us the best examples of this most important teaching: The Word for the 30th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Exodus 22:20-26 Psalm 18:2-3, 3-4, 47, 51 1 Thessalonians 1:5c-10 Mathew 22:34-40 We open with a reading from the book of Exodus.  When we think of the Exodus, we always remember the Ten Commandments, but we tend to forget that these Ten are just the beginning of the extensive Law code.  Just as with the preamble to the Constitution for the US, there’s a whole lot more that follows, providing the nuts-and-bolts (the context and appli...

Who is God and what do we owe him?  The answer to both questions is “everything.”  This question has its origins in the 1st Commandment, “I am the Lord your God… there is no other.”  But what does that mean to us on a practical level?  In short, it is God whom we thank for everything we have, and because of this it is only God to whom we owe our allegiance. The Word for the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Isaiah 45:1, 4-6 Psalm 96:1, 3, 4-5, 7-8, 9-10 1 Thessalonians 1:1-5b Mathew 22:15-21 We open with a reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah, in this case “Deutero” or Second Isaiah.  The Exile is coming to an end.  The Babylonian Empire has fallen to the Persians and now the Persian king, Cyrus, whom we know as Cyrus the Great, has been, according to Isaiah, anointed by God.  Wait, Cyrus?  A pagan?  A foreign king?  Yes.  How could this be?  Simple – God can choose whomever he wishes.  The hand God chose to free Israel...

Invitation.   This is the theme that resonates through our readings for this 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time.  And not just any invitation, an invitation to the Lord’s house.  Who wouldn’t want to go?  Who would turn down this invitation?  Let’s explore our readings to see what we might be missing… The Word for the 28th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Isaiah 25:6-10a Psalm 23:1-3a, 3b-4, 5, 6 Philippians 4:12-14, 19-20 Mathew 22:1-14 We open with a reading from Isaiah at a point where he sees great hope for Israel (for a brief time as King Hezekiah begins his reign).  In this poem of praise for God, he describes what it is like to live on the mountain of the Lord - a paradise with rich food and choice wines, a place where God’s people rejoice under the umbrella of his protection.  Our Psalm echoes this joy with its chorus “I shall live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life.”  Who would want to leave? Our Gospel from Matthew continues where we lef...

This week we continue with our study of Christian morality.  While our readings give us examples of what could be considered “bad behavior,” the focus is not so much on the behavior but the consequences of that behavior.  Bad consequences for bad behavior is indeed a motivation for right behavior, but it is not, and should not, be the only motivator for taking the right path.  God wants us to see the right path, but we sometimes miss the opportunities that are right in front of us... The Word for the 27th Sunday of Ordinary Time: Isaiah 5:1-78 Psalm 80:9, 12, 13-14, 16-16, 19-20 Philippians 4:6-9 Matthew 21:33-43 We open with a lament from early Isaiah.  Remember that Isaiah is known as one of the greatest prophets and is the most quoted prophet in the New Testament.  His prophetic book, by at least three different authors, takes us from a time before the Assyrian uprising, through the Babylonian uprising, through the great Babylonian Exile, and all the way to t...

How do we know what is right or wrong?  Even when we think we have a firm hand on morality, how then do we turn that into a consistent life ethic? – A way of living each and every day in a manner that reflects our beliefs?  These are difficult questions but as Christians we turn to our scriptures for some answers: The Word for the 26th Sunday of Ordinary Time Ezekiel 18:25-28 Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14 Philippians 2:1-11 Matthew 21:28-32 This Sunday we open with a passage from Ezekiel.  You may recall that we heard a passage from this same prophet a couple weeks ago.  This week Ezekiel, our great priest/prophet from the Babylonian Exile, has a stern warning for us in a passage from just before the fall of Jerusalem.  Ezekiel “sees the writing on the wall” and is urging the people of Israel to reconsider what is fair in the eyes of the Lord, and to do what is right and just.  While Ezekiel’s message didn’t help the Israelites at that time it does provide us w...