By our Baptism, we are anointed as Prophets! Are you a prophet like Isaiah where in Is 49:11-2, we read; “The Lord called me from birth, from my mother’s womb He gave me my name. He made of me a sharp-edged sword and concealed me in the shadow of His arm. He made me a…
Author: paul
What is the Right Use of Freedom?
“In those days, in their thirst for water, the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “Why did you ever make us leave Egypt? Was it just to have us die here of thirst with our children and our livestock?” (Ex 17:3) The third Sunday of Lent recounts the Exodus, where just after being freed from over…
Are You Wrestling with God?
On a recent discernment retreat, our Novice Master, Fr. Giles Zakowicz OFM Conv., related a story he heard from author Nikos Kazantzakis, that goes roughly as follows. While researching monastic life, Nikos as a young man visited a monastery on Mount Athos in Greece, to interview the much older Abba of the monastery. Nikos asked…
Our Lives Matter!!
Is there any greater force in the world than a good example? We fail to fully appreciate, how much our lives, and our good works, matter! We have tremendous power to make the world a better place, and a decision to use that power or not! I am reminded of Antoine with whom I had…
St. Francis Teaches us that Every Day is Christmas!
The early Church recognized that even sinners celebrate birthdays, but only for Saints could we truly celebrate their death, because this was their “birth” to eternal life. Christmas, the birth of Christ, was therefore NOT a major feast of the early Church. However, over the years, the Church did begin to celebrate the Birth of…
Are You Prepared for The Second Coming of Christ?
The message of the first weeks of Advent is “So too, you also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the Son of Man will come!” (Mt 24:44) Scripture and science tell us, the end will come. Scripture tells us that no one knows when, but that there will be signs. …