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Earlier this week, a family which has been a close partner in our work for public schools invited me to dinner. The father asked me what it is that keeps me going, given the many demands I encounter daily.
When I conduct leadership seminars, one exercise I sometimes use is to ask what the participants think are the three important things for a leader to do when he/she assumes an office of leadership.
Do you remember the moment you were sure of what you loved the most in your life? What it was you were willing to live for and die for? What it was that gave your life meaning? Or, paraphrasing Rev. Elizabeth Braddon, what it is that makes your soul sing?
The parable of the prodigal son is probably among the top three most quoted parables from the Gospels. Interestingly, it appears in just one Gospel, Luke. I suspect close to 100 percent of Christians in the “age of reason” know this parable.
FOR today’s Gospel, one of the points for prayer that made a lasting impression on me was made by Fr. Howard Gray, SJ, during a retreat.
Today’s readings are framed by a meal or, in the case of the second reading, a communal gathering of praise and thanksgiving. In the religious context of Christ’s time, worship and meal are one act.
When I was a young seminarian, I had a “pastoral trauma” when I asked one of the priests in my community if he could possibly bless the new car of a friend who was passing by. In a very curt way, the priest said, “I have so much work in the office. I can’t be blessing cars upon request.”
Since childhood we were taught that our Christian faith is faith in the Trinity, three persons in one God. Difficult...
One spiritual writer and scripture scholar very aptly described the story of Bartimaeus in this Sunday’s Gospel as a story of a “desperate desire.” Not minding the crowd that accompanied Christ on his way to Jerusalem, his plea for Christ’s mercy rose above everything and everyone else’s efforts to catch Christ’s attention.
The day after Pope Francis left I was listening to the car radio and was struck by the comparison made between the Pop’s visit and a Manny Pacquiao fight. It focused on the zero crime rate during both events.
