Adult Initiation & Sacrament Preparation

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 Matthew 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 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 applications) of how this new Covenant with God i...

With Pentecost behind us, the Easter Season comes to a close as the Church welcomes a long stretch of Ordinary time.  But as is typical for the Church, she’s not yet ready to leave the party behind, so for these next two weeks we continue the celebration by looking at the Church’s most sacred mysteries:  The doctrine of the Trinity with this Sunday’s Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity (Trinity Sunday), and next week with doctrine of the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist with the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ (also remembered as Corpus Christi). It is most fitting to celebrate these solemnities at this time of year because the theologies they represent are what we as a Church have come to realize through the Easter Season, and gives us the spiritual food we need to sustain us through the remainder of the Liturgical Year. Both solemnities, though firmly grounded in the Scriptures and the teachings of the Church Fathers (the two pillars of the Church),...

We are now deep into our Lenten season reflection, and from now through to the Triduum our readings not only continue our journey through Salvation History, they begin a cycle of readings that are some of the most powerful in all of scripture.  In fact, the Church finds these readings of such importance that she has chosen them to be used specifically for the RCIA in the Scrutiny Rites.  It is fortunate for all of us that these readings fall within our regular cycle of readings this year so we can all give them due contemplation during this Lenten season. The Word for the 3rd Sunday of Lent Exodus 17:3-7 Psalm 95:1-2, 6-7, 8-9 Romans 5:1-2, 5-8 John 4:5-42 We open a reading from the book of Exodus.  At this point the Israelites have escaped Pharaoh and his army having crossed the Red Sea.  They are now free, but have yet to reach Mount Sinai.  They are traveling through the “wilderness,”  A barren stretch of land between the sea and the Sinai. ...

As for this week’s readings... we  continue our theme of prayer.  Last week we focused on prayer of thanksgiving.  This week we focus on petition and intersession… in other words, making requests of God, either for our benefit, or the benefit of others.  There are actually two types of intercessory prayer:  One is praying directly to other souls to intercede on our behalf to God, such as in a prayer to Mary or one of the saints.  The other is us praying on behalf of others, such as what the lector or the priest does at Mass during the “prayers of the faithful”.  In this second case, we are the soul interceding on behalf of someone else.  So as you can see, we can serve both as the intercessor, and the intercessee in this type of prayer. The Word for the 29th Sunday of Ordinary Time:         Exodus 17:8-13         Psalm 121:1-2, 3-4, 5-6, 7-8       ...

For many of us our busy Fall schedules are in full swing, making it harder for us to pause for a moment of prayer and reflection... to give thanks to God... to ask God for assistance... or to just be in his presence for a moment.  It is in these busy days and weeks that we need to make that time... to attend Mass, to have a moment of daily prayer... even if that moment is the walk from the parking lot to your office or classroom.  Not only does this allow us to reconnect with God, but it provides us a moment of self-reflection (the basis of the Jesuit tradition of the Examen of Conscience) to make sure we're still on the right path and still moving forward. The Word for the 24th Sunday of Ordinary Time:         Exodus 32:7-11, 13-14         Psalm 51:3-4, 12-13, 17, 19         1 Timothy 1:12-17         Luke 15:1-32 (or 15:1-10) All ...

Thursday marks the final day in office for our Holy Father, Benedict XVI, after which the papacy will be a sede vacante... a vacant seat.  This term is used universally in the church for when a bishop's seat (his cathedra) is vacant.  Normally when a bishop's seat is becomes vacant (through death, retirement, resignation, or reassignment), the Pope through the Holy See seeks to fill that vacancy.  But when the "seat of Peter" is vacant, the College of Cardinals gather in Conclave to elect a new pope.  This is most certainly a busy and interesting time in our Church. It is also a very busy time for those going through the RCIA process.  This coming Sunday we enter the period of the Scurtinies.  For the next three weeks, our Elect and Candidates will listen to specially selected readings during Mass and go through special Rites as they discern or "scrutinize" their calling to full initiation.  For those attending the 1st Scrutiny this Sunday, our reading...