God proposes: he doesn’t impose
28th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); October 11, 2026 Is 25:6-10a. Ps 23. Phil 4:12-20. Mt 22:1-14 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable we hear in today’s Gospel tells us a lot about the Kingdom of God, which is likened…
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Do I Feel Compassion or Do I Look Away?
18th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 2, 2026 Is 55:1-3. Ps 145. Rom 8:35,37-39. Mt 14:13-21 Deacon Jim McFadden This Sunday’s Gospel presents us the miracle of multiplication of the loaves and fishes. The account illustrates two opposite ways of thinking and behaving: namely, do I have compassion for others or do I…
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just one thing
17th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 26, 2026 1 Kgs 3:5,7-12. Ps 119. Rom 8:28-30. Mt 13:44-52 Deacon Jim McFadden The Christian existentialist Soren Kierkegaard once said, “The saint’s life is about one thing.” The Dane didn’t mean that a saint’s life would be a monotonous existence—a “been there, done that” type of…
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the problem of evil
Weeds Among the Wheat 16th Sunday in O.T. (A); July 19, 2026 Wis 12:13,16-19 Ps 86 Rom 8:26-27 Mt 13:24-43 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable of the weeds among the wheat continues Jesus use of parables to announce the Kingdom of God to the crowds. Among those in today’s Gospel, there is a rather…
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Jesus is the sower; we’re the soil
Jesus is the Sower; We’re the Soil 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 12, 2026 Is 55:10-11. Ps 65. Rom 8:18-23. Mt 13:1-23 Deacon Jim McFadden Today’s Gospel is about the parable of the Sower, which has been painted by a number of artists, most notably Vincent Van Gogh. As you reflect upon…
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The Father has revealed hidden things to babes
14th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); July 5, 2026 Zec 9:9-10. Ps 145. Rom 8:9-13. Mt 11:25-30 Deacon Jim McFadden In today’s Gospel Jesus is addressing his Father and, in so doing, is offering us the view of the inner life of God and he is inviting us to share in this eternal and…
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there’s no true love without the cross
There’s No True Love Without The Cross 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); June 28, 2026 2 Kgs 4:8-11, 14-16a. Ps 89. Rom 6:3-4,8-11. Mt 10:37-42 Deacon Jim McFadden John the Evangelist began his Gospel by proclaiming the Word of God became Flesh in Jesus, which means Jesus is divine. The first line in Mark’s…
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christians: stand up to be counted!
12th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); June 21, 2026 Jer 20:10-13. Ps 69. Rom 5:12-15. Mt 10:26-33 Deacon Jim McFadden Ringo Starr once sang that “Got to pay your dues if you want to sing the blues/And you know it don’t come easy” (It Don’t Come Easy by Ringo Starr and George Harrison). Applied to…
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proclamation that God is Near
Proclaim that God is Near 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); June 14, 2026 Ex 19:2-6a. Ps 100. Rom 5:6-11. Mt 9:36-10:8 Deacon Jim McFadden What strikes me in today’s Gospel is that Jesus calls the Apostles by name and then he sends them out. He’s giving them a personal invitation, which obtains for…
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The Eucharist: the sacrament of memory
Corpus Christi Sunday (A); June 7, 2026 Dt 8:2-3,14-16. Ps 147. 1 Cor 10:16-17. Jn 6:51-58 Deacon Jim McFadden On this Solemnity of Corpus Christi, the idea of memory comes up frequently. At the get-go we hear in our 1st reading from Deuteronomy, Remember how the Lord your God has lead you” (Dt 8:2). Shortly…
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the center cannot hold without god
The Most Holy Trinity (A); May 31, 2026 Ex 34:4-9. Dn 3:52-5. Cor 13:11-13. Jn 3:16-18 Deacon Jim McFadden For the last several years, our country has been going through a period of chaos, turmoil, disruption, and tearing apart. Sometimes I wonder, “Was there ever a ‘good old days’”? The German philosopher Artur Schopenhauer…
homilies
The wicked tenants: Ungrateful and greedy
27th Sunday of Ordinary Time (A); October 4, 2026 Is 5:1-7. Ps 80. Phil 4:6-9. Mt 21:33-43 Deacon Jim McFadden The parable about the mismanagement of the vineyard tells us a lot about the Kingdom of God, the choices we…
the road home
26th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); September 27, 2026 Ez 18:25-28. Ps 25. Phil 2:1-11. Mt 21:28-3 Deacon Jim McFadden In a past issue of the Catholic Herald (September/October 2020), the newsmagazine for the Diocese of Sacramento, there is a…
