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  Thursday – 12 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 7:21-29 Walking the Walk Pilgrim House, Jerusalem Time for a short trip in the Way Back Machine with Sherman and Mr. Peabody! (for those who understand the reference) Did you clean your room?   Did you do your homework?   Did you put your dirty dishes in the sink?   Did you take out the garbage?   Shall I go on?   We all know the answer to those questions and we all know it’s the same – YES!   Yes, of course I did.   Or at least that was the answer until we got caught. And then we had to actually DO the work. That is what Jesus is talking about in today’s Gospel.   It’s not enough to say the words.   It’s not enough to make grand speeches or to proclaim what a wonderful person or Christian we are.   We are called to ACTION!   Don’t just say the words; act on them!   Don’t just call yourself a Christian; live a Christian life! It’s not enough to talk the tal...
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  Wednesday – Nativity of St. John the Baptist Gospel – Luke 1:57-66, 80 Diminishing Returns Church of John the Baptist, Ein Karem, Israel For anyone who may have missed it, this past Sunday, June 21, was the summer solstice, the longest day of the year.   Here in Tennessee, sunrise was at 6:19am, and sunset at 8:59pm; that’s over 14 hours and 36 minutes of sunlight.   And from that moment on, daylight slowly diminishes until we reach winter solstice, the shortest day of the year on Deeember 21, when we will have only 9 hours and 42 minutes of sunlight.    From that moment on, daylight will then increase! So what?? We celebrate today the Birth of John the Baptist.   It is his mother Elizabeth who insists that he will be called John, not Zechariah like his father.   He will be called John even though no one else in the family has that name.   He will be unique.   He came to testify to the light, to prepare a people fit for the Lord. Al...
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  Tuesday – 12 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 7:6, 12-14 It Ain’t Easy Being…….Christian Door of Humility, Bethlehem I consider myself a half-way decent handyman, not great but I manage.   I try to get things done, get things fixed.   And during this time of isolation, I certainly have had the time to tackle my honey-do list.   But on occasion, I try to cut corners, to do a quick patch job, and then I pay for it farther down the line.   I slap some paint on a window sill but neglect to scrape and prime the area first.   And then months later, that same sill needs painting again after my quick job flakes away.   I step down from the ladder and drop my foot directly into the paint can!   I hang a picture on the wall but, in the process, I need to spackle a number of nail holes that didn’t work out!   Measure twice, cut once?   Yeah, well, sometimes! We all wish life was easy, manageable, predictable, but that just isn’t...