Dear sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus, “Whoever honors his father atones for sins, and preserves himself from them. When he prays, he is heard; he stores up riches who reveres his mother.” (Sirach 3:3-4) Jesus, by His obedience to Mary and Joseph in their domestic life, made holy every part of our human life. Jesus sanctified childhood by coming to us as a child; He sanctified family life by living with his Holy Family in Bethlehem, Egypt, and Nazareth. By sharing in Joseph’s work, Jesus sanctified our labors, and by continuing to care for His Blessed Mother after Joseph’s death, Jesus made holy the respect we as adult children show to our aging parents. All stages of human life rece
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus, We are blessed to have God with us! The promise of God through the prophet Isaiah is fulfilled in Jesus: “the Lord himself will give you this sign: the virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall name him Emmanuel.” As St. Matthew translates for us, Emmanuel means “God is with us.” By the joyful “fiat” of the Virgin Mary receiving Jesus’ conception, and the humble faith of Joseph to protect Him, Jesus came into our world as the promised Child. Joseph gave him the name of Jesus, which in Hebrew is literally: “He saves.” God is with us to save us from our sins. God is with us so that we might be with Him for all eternity. In this way the tw
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus, “Do not complain, brothers and sisters, about one another, that you may not be judged…Take as an example of hardship and patience, brothers and sisters, the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.” Saint James advises us to be patient with one another and with God. We cannot dictate the actions of anyone else, human or divine. We can be tempted to want everything to happen how we want it and when we want it, but this only leads us to frustration and anger. We are not in control; God is. Sarcasm and bitterness only drag us down together. Especially in these weeks of Advent, we should strive to grow in patience. We are called to be a people o
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ Jesus, “Produce good fruit as evidence of your repentance.” John the Baptist’s harsh criticism of the Pharisees can serve as a gut-check for us as well. Repentance is not a once-and-done action. We need to live differently after repenting of our sins. We need to not only turn away from sin, but also stay away. Regarding forgiveness, this practical repentance means loving the person we have forgiven. We need to love them again as if they never hurt us. This does not mean forgetting the hurt, but it does mean wishing the best for them despite the hurt they caused. To love is to want the best for our beloved; true forgiveness therefore means restoring t
