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  Wednesday 4 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel - Mark 6:1-6 Homecoming! Nazareth Synagogue Years ago, when I graduated from High School at the seminary, it was a weekend full of celebration and accomplishments; there was an outdoor party down by the lake and, of course, our graduation Mass and commencement for our little class of 13!   And then I went home for the summer.   But after I got home, I decided to attend the high school graduation ceremony of my former grade school classmates and friends.   BIG MISTAKE!   It did not go well. What little greetings I got were short and not so sweet.   What little conversations there were tended to feel like I was back in 8 th grade.   It was as if the last 4 years never happened and that I was still that naïve, nerdy little kid from grade school.    Not exactly the sort of homecoming I was expecting! Ever had that experience of running into an old relative, someone who hasn’t seen you since ...
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  Tuesday 4 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Mark 5:21-43 Touchy!   Touchy! Raising of Jairus’ Daughter, Magdala Sitting in one corner of our home is a simple little wooden stool, the kind that you can spin the seat to raise its height.   I don’t think I have ever actually sat on it.   That’s not why it’s there.   It was handmade by a good parish friend of mine.   6 years ago, that friend and fellow parishioner passed away from cancer and, a few days after his funeral, his son gifted me with that stool at the bequest of his dad.   He was an all-around handyman and volunteer at St. Roberts.   You could always count on him to jump in and help out, especially when it came to anything related to woodworking or carpentry.   Frank always reminded me a lot of my grandfather who was a master carpenter.   There was one thing you could always expect from Frank – a big smile and a warm handshake.   I don’t mean a simple perfunctory a...
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  Monday – Feast of the Presentation Gospel – Luke 2:22-40 Home Sweet Home    Dakin Street, Chicago Almost exactly one year ago today, we sold our Chicago home, a house filled with over 42 years of memories!   Over the years, we celebrated Christmases, Easter and Thanksgiving dinners with family and friends.   So many cookouts and pool parties, so many Halloween visitors and neighborly chats over the fence.   Jaime was barely 6 when we moved in but it was the place where she grew into a young woman, from a toddler to a college grad, from playing with her toy doctor kit to working with compassion and expertise as an oncology nurse practitioner.   Such memories!   Such growth! We celebrate today the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple!   Luke’s Gospel ends with a curious line.    “The child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom; and the favor of God was upon him”.   And that’s it!   Except for one other sto...
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