Sunday’s Readings: Wisdom 18:6-9; Psalm 33:1, 12, 18-19, 20-22; Hebrews 11:1-2, 8-19 OR 11:1-2, 8-12; Luke 12:32-48 OR 12:35-40

…from your Pastor’s Desk – The Assumption of The Blessed Virgin Mary Friday, August 15 – “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb” – Luke 1:42 The feasts of Mary may be puzzling to the casual observer. And some are surprised at the brevity of the dogma of this specific feast in its entirety: …

Sunday’s Readings: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 2:21-23; Psalm 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 and 17; Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11; Luke 12:13-21

…from your Pastor’s Desk – Where There’s a Will… – I was going through a bunch of files on my computer and came across a copy of my will from 1998. Like many, I was reticent to open it and read it. Some people even think that preparing a will , will, somehow hasten their own death. For the record, it does not. …

Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 18:20-32; Psalm 138:1-2, 2-3, 6-7, 7-8; Colossians 2:12-14; Luke 11:1-13

Ask and You Will Receive – When you want something, do you pray to God for it? A lot of people in this country, even in these troubled times, do say that they “whisper a little prayer.” Excellent. Others put aside time each day for prayer or even for Mass. A number use the present web site to understand and pray about the readings for the coming Sunday. …

Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 18:1-10a; Psalm 15:2-3, 3-4, 5; Colossians 1:24-28; Luke 10:38-42

…from your Pastor’s Desk – DON’T BE ANXIOUS – In the prayers we used for Mass until a few years back – we prayed each day that we would be “Protected from all Anxiety”. Quite a task. Truly a request only God could answer. Much more than ‘Don’t Worry – Be Happy” [I must admit I loved that song when it was popular and still find myself singing it sometimes!]. And although it seems that we do need some tension in our lives for productive growth – too often we just ‘worry’ too much, and are NOT happy. …

Sunday’s Readings: Deuteronomy 30:10-14; Psalm 69:14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 37 OR 19:8, 9, 10, 11; Colossians 1:15-20; Luke 10:25-37

…From Deacon Bob – Dear Parishioners of Holy Spirit, It’s been about a year since I have been with you as your deacon and along with my wife, daughter and granddaughter. We have shared beautiful moments with you at mass and are so thankful for our church family. This is a warm and inviting parish that has made us feel welcomed and allowed us to feel God’s love through the many smiles and sharing of life stories. …

Sunday’s Readings: Isaiah 66:10-14c; Psalm 66:1-3, 4-5, 6-7, 16, 20; Galatians 6:14-18; Luke 10:1-12, 17-20 OR 10:1-9

…from your Pastor’s Desk – Nobody Sunday? – For the last 16 Weekends every Sunday has had a title from ‘The First Sunday of Lent’ on March 9th up until last week’s feast of ‘Saints Peter and Paul, Apostles’. So, when I first looked at the readings for today – I saw it was just ‘The 14th Sunday in Ordinary Time’. I jokingly said to myself – aha – ‘No-body Sunday’. …

Sunday’s Readings: Acts 12:1-11; Psalm 34:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9; 2 Timothy 4:6-8, 17-18; Matthew 16:13-19

…from your Pastor’s Desk – Peter and the Love the Church is Founded On – Jesus chose Peter as the rock on which the church is founded, and so Peter’s life is an exemplar for us of the way our lives should be lived. At the other extreme is Judas, who is an example of the worst in human life. But here is a perplexing thing: both Peter and Judas are guilty of the same sin. Each of them betrayed Christ. …

Sunday’s Readings: Genesis 14:18-20; Psalm 110:1, 2, 3, 4; 1 Corinthians 11:23-26; Luke 9:11b-17

…from your Pastor’s Desk – The Eucharist and SCUBA – People have commented that when I raise the Host after Consecration, I hold it up longer than most priests. Well, if I do, I am not doing it for dramatic effect! When I hold up the Eucharist after Consecration, you and I spend a moment in adoration. At that moment I know that you and I are exactly on the same page. The “Disciple Makers Index Survey” showed that 82% of Catholics “Strongly agree” that the “Eucharist really is the Body and Blood of Jesus.” (As Mother Church teaches) …

Sunday’s Readings: Proverbs 8:22-31; Psalm 8:4-5, 6-7, 8-9; Romans 5:1-5; John 16:12-15

…from your Pastor’s Desk – The Most Holy Trinity – The Mystery of The Most Holy Trinity – It is Jesus Himself who teaches us the mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. The Gospel today, from Saint John, is clear that Jesus understood both Father and Spirit. The development of this doctrine takes time because Jesus was not a teacher of philosophy or of theology. Jesus lived the mystery and spoke in such a way that we are able to come to understand it. …

Sunday’s Readings: Acts 2:1-11; Psalm 104:1, 24, 29-30, 31, 34; 1 Corinthians 12:3b-7, 12-13 OR Romans 8:8-17; John 20:19-23 OR John 14:15-16, 23b-26

…from your Pastor’s Desk – HAPPY BIRTHDAY! – A few years back, we had a very cool conflation of celebrations. Mother’s Day and Pentecost were on the same day. And, as was brought to my attention just before mass that day, a mother and her daughter were both celebrating their birthdays on that same day! A mother’s birthday has a special appeal. …