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  Friday - 16 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 13:18-23 Attention Please! The Streets of Jerusalem I remember going home to visit my parents quite a few years ago.   While I was there, as usual, I had a few chores to complete, one of which was trimming the hedges.   Not an easy job and not one that I had done before. The hedges are 4 feet tall and run the entire northern edge of the property.   My dad went to a great deal of explanation on how to manage the electric trimmer, how much to trim, how to trim and, most especially, how to avoid cutting through the extension cord.   I kept nodding my head in agreement but I kept telling myself I don’t need any instructions.   I know how to do this!   Wrong, so wrong! In a short amount of time, I did exactly what he cautioned me not to do – cut the cord!   I did!   So I then had to drive to the hardware store and buy another 50 foot cord.   And then, guess what!   I did it again!   I cut the electric cord twice!   I gue
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  Thursday – Feast of St. Mary Magdalene Gospel – John 20:1-2, 11-18 A Rollercoaster of Emotions Mary Magdalene, at Magdala I am recalling a quote from Bishop Barron I’ve cited before– every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.   There is no better example than Mary Magdalene whose feast we celebrate today.   Tradition holds her to be a former prostitute, probably the one who washed Jesus’ feet with her hair and whom Jesus forgave and told to sin no more.   She was a faithful disciple of Jesus. And today’s Gospel portrays her at the tomb on Easter Sunday morning.   Consider this – she is the first witness to Jesus’ Resurrection – not Peter, not John, not even Mary His Mother.   She is the first Evangelist – she is the first to proclaim the Good News that Jesus is risen from the dead! Consider also the all too painful range of emotions she experiences.   The utter grief and despair as she finds the stone rolled away and the tomb completely empty.   Who sto
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  Wednesday - 16 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 13:1-9                    (revisited) Spread the Word Fields of Galilee Most of you know I have been a high school religion teacher for 40 years.   So it’s not unusual for me to cross paths with some of my former students.   And it’s always a special treat to reconnect with them.   About a year ago, right in the middle of the pandemic I crossed paths with one of my former students.   We spent almost an hour sitting on my front porch and catching up - what’s new with her, what I’m up to, and how our respective families have grown over the years.   But what struck me the most was that moment when she got out of her car and our eyes met.   She was crying!   And I’m like, what’s wrong – nothing at all, just so glad to see you and to thank you for all you’ve done for me.   Sheesh!   Throughout our conversation she constantly talked about what an influence I had on her not just in high school but through the ensuing years.
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  Tuesday - 16 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 12:46-50 They Aint’t Heavy, They’re My Brothers (Sisters) Deacon Ordination, 2015 For the past 6 years, a group of my deacon classmates and I have gathered together monthly to share a meal, to take stock of our journey and to catch up on our respective ministries.   At least, that was the case until Covid hit!   So for over a year and a half, those gatherings have been put on hold.   And that has been a great loss!   We affectionately call them our ‘amigo’ dinners and for all the right reasons.   We spent four years together in formation, studying, praying, testing and stressing!   We supported each other, propped each other up when someone was struggling, and comforted each other in times of loss and pain.   And not just in formation but throughout our life as deacons! They have become not only my friends, but my brothers.   I have one brother, George, and two sisters, Mary and Theresa.   By blood,   these are my
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  Monday - 16 th Week in Ordinary Time Gospel – Matthew 12:38-42 What’s Your Sign? Sign, Upper Galilee In case you haven’t noticed, we live in a world of signs!   Not just traffic signs and price tags, for sale signs and animal crossings!   And consider how much more dependent we were on signs just in the past 16 months.   Shops only had one entrance and one exit door.   There were one-way arrows on the aisle floors in grocery stores and 6-feet-apart signs for us to keep our distance in banks.   Arrows to direct us which way to go to communion in church and signs to warn us about wearing masks! Remember what it felt like when restrictions were lifted and so many of those signs disappeared?   Yes, there was a great feeling of relief but there was also a sense of unease!   What do I do now?   Is it ok to stand closer in line? What door do I go in?   Does the store still require a mask?     Signs!   They protect us, provide us with information, they give us direction.   A
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