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Deacon Dan 4-18-21

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Since His Resurrection, Jesus has indeed been a traveling man. But he is a travelling man with a purpose, a message. He first appeared to Mary Magdalene as he was exiting the area of the tomb. To her he said, “Nolo me tangere.” That of course is Latin for “Touch me not.” When later he appeared to the disciples for the second time, he instructs Thomas specifically, to not only touch him but to place his hands in His wounds, to touch Him, feel him deeply. The response to the Magdala is of course received in the light of his Ascension. It is less a prohibition than it is a request from Jesus to allow Faith to fill the void of his soon departure. The same can be said of the follow up to Thomas’ profession of faith we heard last week, when Jesus proclaims, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” Today He says the same “touch me” adding “see me” This invitation to intimacy is proffered not to the singular Thomas but to the whole assembly of his disciples. An assembly t
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Deacon Kevin 3-28-21

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Palm Sunday, Year B, Sunday 28 Mar 2021, Reflection on the Lord’s Passion. There is much I could say about today’s Gospel, the Passion of our Lord. Mark’s version provides a very compelling account, full of many details including the anointing, the Last Supper, Peter’s three-fold denial, the agony in the garden, the betrayal of Judas, the trial before the Sanhedrin and later before Pilate, His rejection by the Jews, the scourging by the soldiers, the Way of the Cross, and finally His crucifixion and death. All of these are worthy of a lengthy discourse, but what I have done instead, is pick just one to help us prepare for Holy Week. Recently, I took the opportunity to visit the Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament down in Hanceville. It is a beautiful site, truly remarkable. I spent some time in Adoration and wandered about the Shrine admiring the various artworks on display. One especially caught my eye. Just outside the Shrine, there hung a wooden sculpture of the crucifixion. It was
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Deacon Dan 3-14-21

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4 Lent B (A) Amongst our scriptures today is the most quoted, most studied, and most beloved Psalm. Psalm 23 is heard uttered in every cinema scene that has a scene of impending death or the burial of one of the movie characters. The Lord is my shepherd is spoken anxiously or piously. This morning, our response is because David, the ultimate starring character whose identity from our first reading taken from the book of Samuel, is believed to have been written. Samuel was given a two-fold task: Go to Jesse's home and anoint that one YHWH chooses. His mission is difficult because YHWH did not tell Samuel who that person was to be. Eliab, the oldest son, is the one Samuel attempts to anoint him, but YHWH stops him. In fact, YHWH rejects all the sons of Jesse in order until the youngest is fetched. There stands the "ruddy youth, handsome to behold." YHWH commands, "There anoint him," and finally, we are told his name is David. During the story, we hear YHWH give t
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Deacon Kevin 3-14-21

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4th Sunday of Lent, Year A, Sunday, 14 Mar 2021, ‘a Man Born Blind’ Today’s Gospel, like that of last week’s, the story of the Samaritan woman at the well, gives us a progression of who Jesus is. When first questioned, the ‘Man Born Blind’ refers to Him as “the man called Jesus.” Later, he refers to him as “a prophet,” and finally after encountering Jesus again, he calls Him “LORD,” and worships Him. For many of us, myself included, our encounter with Jesus takes a similar progression, before we too, finally ‘see the light.’ I was baptized as an infant, and brought up in a Catholic home, where I learned about this ‘man called Jesus.’ I learned about His miraculous healings, such as the one we have in today’s Gospel. I learned about his compassion for others, even the least ones: the fishermen, shepherds, tax collectors, and sinners. And as I grew up, this learning was made more personal through the Sacraments, especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Sacrament of the Eucharis
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Deacon Kevin 2-21-21

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1st Sunday of Lent, Cycle B – “One Ark, One Church” Good evening, and welcome to the season of Lent. There are many parallels in today’s readings, starting with the story of Noah’s Ark and ending with Jesus’ time in the desert. Since the time of the early Church, Noah’s Ark has been seen as a type of the Church. Just as the ark was the means by which Noah and his relatives were spared destruction, so also the Church is the vessel by which Christians are saved. In the Second Reading, Saint Peter writes that the flood itself anticipated the Sacrament of Baptism, the gateway to life in the Church. Inspired by Saint Peter and the Genesis account, the early Church Fathers elaborated on a number of ways in which the ark prefigures the Church; and there are many lessons we can learn from these similarities that may help deepen our faith and understanding during Lent. Saint Augustine argues that wood and water represent the primary means of salvation in both the Old and New Testame
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Deacon Dan 2-21-21

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1 Lent B 2021 -  In the ordinary the lectionary is arranged so that the first reading is connected thematically to the Gospel. Such is not the case today. Today there is a direct correlation between what we hear from the Book of Genesis and Peter's letter. The Genesis account, our first reading, is the conclusion of the Noah story, which began three chapters back. Recall, if you can, that The Noah story starts with a notice of the depravity and the people's iniquity. "When the Lord saw how great man's wickedness on earth was, and how no desire that his heart (man’s) conceived was ever anything but evil, he [God] regretted that he [God]had made man on the earth, and his [God’s] heart was grieved." Some translations use this phrase, "God was sickened by the sins of man." Even still, the goodness of one man, Noah, kept God from destroying the enotrety of humankind. He protected Noah, Noah's family, and his[God’s] creature's from the flood. They, No
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Deacon Dan 1-17-21

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2 OT B 2021 Remember that on the First Sunday of Advent we began the new liturgical year. A year that liturgist call Year B of a three-year cycle. That means it is a year focused on the Gospel of Mark (year A focuses on Mt, Year C, Luke). Something unusual happens today on this Second Sunday of OT- Each year We read from the Gospel of John. One does not have to be a scholar of Scripture to glean that the focus of today’s reading is the theme of being “called.” Our first reading speaks of the call of Samuel. Three time he is called, the first two times he does not understand. The third time, with the help of Eli, Samuel comes to the realization that it is God who is calling him. Today’s Gospel we hear one of the stories that the Church understands is a story of the calling of the first Apostles. Their response come in stages. They have already been introduced to Him by John. In fact, this is the third time that John has pointed his disciples to Jesus. It is the second time John uses th
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