GregCast Diakonia

Today’s first reading from Isaiah begins with a promise… “On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.” What is this stump? It is the House of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob… What is this shoot that comes from the stump, and the bud that shall blossom? It is the House of David! After many kings, and many failed attempts along the way, consider the imagery that all the kingdoms were laid low or had fallen; and all the stumps were dead, except for one… The Stump of Jesse, the father of David, the King whose house shall bring forth our Lord, and Christ gives us this House, The Church, who calls on you to bring it all to YOUR House and to your family, so that together, we have been, are now, and will always be of the House of the Lord GOD, OUR FATHER. Isaiah promises that our Lord JESUS CHRIST will come from this house, and that “justice shall be the band around his waist, and faithfulness a belt upon his hips, [allowing the] wolf [to] be a g

Today is the Feast of Christ the King, the end of another Liturgical Year. In the past year, we’ve walked this Sunday-to-Sunday journey with the Gospel of Luke. A year ago, on the first Sunday of Advent, our walk began with this advice from our Lord as witnessed in Luke’s 21st chapter: “Be vigilant at all times and pray that you have the strength to escape the tribulations that are imminent and stand before the Son of Man (Luke 21: 35) Today, on this last step of our journey this year, we hear from the Good Thief, St. Dismas, who did indeed stand before the Lord, the Son of Man, as he hung on his own cross next to him, simply asking Jesus to remember him. Our bookends of this past year are simple… Be strong, be close to the Lord in prayer, and be ready to stand before the Lord with the faith of a converted heart. For Luke, the Son of Man is “The King,” as is evident in Pilate’s referring to him as King on the sign that hung over Jesus’ head as he hung upon the Cross, and in the Good T

I think it is very important for me today to begin with the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” Now I’m not just quoting a prayer, I’m praying this prayer in front of all of you today, on my own behalf, because my friends, Deacon Greg Thompson is a sinner! But as we heard in today’s First Reading from Wisdom, “before the LORD the whole universe is as a grain from a balance or a drop of morning dew come down upon the earth.But [the Lord has] mercy on all, because [God] can do all things; and overlook people's sins that they may repent. That they may repent… Today is about CHANGE, and that change must begin with a very heartfelt I’m sorry… So, I am sorry! When I go to confession, and I pray the Act of Contrition. There are two versions that we display in our confessionals here at the Parish. One uses a more traditional style of language: O My God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss o

9-18-22 Amos: The LORD has sworn by the pride of Jacob: Never will I forget a thing they have done! The Lord equally remembers our greed and our generosity! 1. We spend a lot of time worrying about whether the Lord remembers the bad that we’ve done… HE DOES! 2. But for some reason, we forget that he’s been with us along the way as we’ve succeeded. 3. He’ll never forget, as he is and ever shall be our Lord! 4. We are equally loved, no matter our transgression or our success! Psalm: He raises up the lowly from the dust; from the dunghill he lifts up the poor to seat them with princes, with the princes of his own people. My Dad died 25 years ago, this coming Friday, about the same time as Mother Teresa and Princess Diana… And tomorrow they’ll bury the Queen! Look, we’re all equalized in death, and we’re all availed to the true kingdom of God. Princes and Paupers, Kings and servants… In the Gospel today we see a the work of a “dishonest steward,” who masterfully comes up with a way

Today’s Word offers one of the most sobering phrases that you’ll ever hear in Scripture: “All things are vanity…” The sobering part is that this sounds like it’s saying that this all just a waste of time. “For what profit comes to man from all the toil and anxiety of heart with which he has labored under the sun?” NOTHING! Now this tone of futility in today’s First Reading from Ecclesiastes, one of the Wisdom Books of Solomon, seems to be quite the “downer,” but these books are very dedicated to a reflection on the value of wisdom in the midst of the reality of life, and how it moves on in the same vain for all of us! For example, here’s another verse from one of the Wisdom Books attributed to King Solomon: This one, appropriately is from the Book of Wisdom (aptly titled – don’t you think?): “Those who despise wisdom and instruction are doomed. Vain is their hope, fruitless their labors, and worthless [are] their works.” Scholars tell us that the phrase, “Vanity of vanities” is a Hebr

Let’s begin with the promise of St. Paul: “Christ is in you!” I’m just not a very complex person. I’ve tried my whole life to simplify things down to the lowest common denominator, so today seems to call us to be ready to receive and serve the Lord in a visitor, or a neighbor in need, and be ready for the rewards! In today’s first reading God pays a visit to Abraham in the form of three visitors. Unaware that it was the Lord, Abraham eagerly welcomed three, saying, "Now that you have come this close to your servant, let me bring you a little food, that you may refresh yourselves; and afterward you may go on your way." It’s important to note that at the time, the cultural rule and norm was that one would ALWAYS care for widows, orphans and strangers. Yes… This was an understood obligation because in that patriarchal society, losing one’s husband meant losing and source of income. Losing one’s parents obviously did not bode well for any child or set of siblings attempting to li

Before we begin todays reflection, I want to speak to the common criticism that the church utilizes that good ol’ “Catholic Guilt” to convince the faithful to live the Gospel. Today’s reflection does not aim to guilt anyone into any amount of service. Actually I would contend that you are exactly the person who is already doing God’s will, and that you now have an opportunity to step things up a bit! So as I begin, I do not want to be accused of using guilt as a tool, but rather be recognized as God’s humble instrument in opening up an opportunity to serve. I’m just not a very complex person. I’ve tried my whole life to simplify things down to the lowest common denominator, so you can see why today’s readings just jumped off the page and made me proclaim, “YESSSS!” "If only you would heed the voice of the LORD, your God, and keep his commandments and statutes that are written in this book of the law, when you return to the LORD, your God, with all your heart and all your soul…” –

Let's Look Back a Few Weeks... Easter has given us new life and a reassurance of the hope that comes with our Lord who lives and reigns forever and ever! From his seat at the right hand of the Father, Jesus promised and has sent us the gifts of the Holy Spirit, so we have what it takes to be his disciples, as we are blessed by the God who loves us, and by the Son who guides us, and by the Spirit who empowers us to do the work and the will of the Lord! In our gathering here at this table, day after day and week after week, we are sustained by the very body and blood of Christ that nourishes us! And finally, with the recent Court decision reversing Roe v. Wade, it is with a humble and most gracious heart, after decades of prayer, that we come to this point in our lives! Can you see where we’ve come? Can you see how Easter, Pentecost, the Ascension, and the Feasts of the Holy Trinity and Corpus Christi, and the movement of our society back towards respecting the lives of the unborn ha

Happy Memorial Day Weekend… First and foremost, let us call to mind the brave men and women who have paid the ultimate sacrifice, on whose shoulders we stand this day. We are free and we are blessed because of them! The number forty appears many times in the Bible: Forty days and nights of rain during the flood Moses lived forty years in Egypt Moses spent forty days on Mount Sinai The Jews journeyed through the desert for forty years to the Promised Land Jonah preached forty days to Nineveh The prophet Ezekiel laid on his right side for forty days to symbolize the sins of Judah Elijah fasted for forty days on Mount Horeb Goliath taunted Israel for forty days Jesus fasted in the desert forty days And now, it has been forty days after the resurrection of Christ. Generally speaking, the number forty has been considered to be used in the Bible as a rounded number. It was used to express a complete period of time rather than expressions like “many” or “some.” It would be similar to referri

Homily 5-15-22 The good news of Easter, that we’re currently following in our readings, is that the resurrected Christ has dwelt among us! Since his appearance in saying “Peace be with you” to the Apostles and Thomas in the Upper Room, to him being on the shore asking the same apostles to throw the net and catch more fish, to his probing question to Peter and us, “Do you love me,” and his call for us to feed the lambs, and tend and feed the sheep, all while following him… The Good Shepherd, up to today’s Gospel which should have sounded familiar! First, let’s agree that, as we heard in our second reading, “God’s dwelling is with the human race. He will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will always be with them as their God.” This reading is also commonly used at funerals, especially this time of year, as we heard the reassurance that he will also “wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain, for the old order

Homily 4-10-22 (Bullet Point Style)   We shout HOSANA as Jesus triumphantly enters what would be the holiest of weeks! The Pharisees asked Jesus to tell them to stop, and our Lord said in reply, “I tell you, if they keep silent, the stones will cry out!” Or as depicted in the lyrics of Jesus Christ Superstar… Why waste your breath moaning at the crowd? Nothing can be done to stop the shouting If every tongue was still, the noise would still continue The rocks and stones themselves would start to sing LENT IS ABOUT CONVERSION AND CONVERSION IS CHANGE… · IT’S A TURNING, AN OVERTURNING, A TURNING AROUND, OR A TURNING POINT… · IN SPIRITUAL TERMS, IT IS AN ONGOING RESPONSE OF OUR WHOLE PERSON TURNING IN FAITH AND LOVE TO THE GOD WHO LOVES US! Have you changed these past six weeks? What was the turning point? If it hasn’t already happened, the Gospel invites you TODAY to turn towards the God who loves you and walk into the rest of this Holy Week with an open heart! · The

This past week I had the joy of renewing my connection with the Xaverian Brothers Sponsored Schools System, XBSS, as I returned to West Hartford, CT to speak at their annual student leadership retreat. After a two-year shutdown, I returned for my 18th year, as I offer Junior and Senior high school participants a presentation on discipleship and with an emphasis on God’s call to ministry within their school communities. Centered today in the Archdiocese of Baltimore, this congregation of St. Francis Xavier was founded in the by Fr. Theodore Ryken in 1839 and is dedicated to education, with a general mission of helping their students “Fall in Love with the Service of God.” One of their original schools, St. X in Louisville, still stands after being founded in 1864. The core Xavierian Values include Compassion, Simplicity, Trust, Humility, and Zeal. So let’s check in here on week two of our Lenten journey and ask ourselves, how are we showing one another compassion in our reaching into

I love that Marriage Prep is part of my ministry… · What a great generation of young people we have… · Some have actually journeyed through a prayerful spirit of discernment before they actually got engaged! · To discern, before agreeing to enter a period of time that helps one discern the Good News of God’s true love… Not a bad idea. Think about it! · With two weeks to go before Lent… Let’s use that approach, and begin to discern what Lent might bring to us this year… It’s a discernment before the season of Lent, where we journey and discern what we can do to understand the Passion and celebrate the resurrection; that is, the Good News of God’s true love! Today’s readings really can help us get ready for the upcoming season, for today we’re asked to reflect on God’s mercy and forgiveness, by asking us to live our lives showing mercy and forgiveness to others. “God has delivered your enemy into your grasp this day. Let me nail him to the ground with one thrust of t

The Sundays and weeks of Ordinary Time (Ordinary referring to Order [Ordo] and not the usual or mundane) are meant to take us through the life of Christ. It’s a time of conversion for us to live the life of Christ! · The First Sunday… Baptism - We Are Clean and Empowered · The Second Sunday… Wedding at Cana - Taking the Ordinary and making it Extraordinary · The Third Sunday…  The Beginning of Mission (Job Description) Bring Glad Tidings to the Poor Liberty to Captives Recovery of Sight to the Blind Let the Oppressed Go Free Proclaim a Year Acceptable to the Lord · Today… It’s About Love! Jeremiah: The word of the LORD came to me, saying: Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you. · We Are Creatures of Love… Like we hear the Prophet Jeremiah proclaim… From the very beginning we were known by God and created in love to love and be loved! At our Baptism we were anointed Priest, Proph