4th Sunday of Advent (B); December 24, 2017 2 Sam 7:1-5,8-12,14,16 Ps 89 Rom 16:25-27 Lk 1:26-38 Deacon Jim McFadden As Christmas is nearly upon us, the readings for the 4th Sunday of Advent focus our attention on the notion of a dwelling place for God. In the first reading, King David finds himself…
3rd Sunday of Advent (B); December 17, 2017 Is 61:1-2a, 10-11 (Ps) Lk 1:46-50, 53-54 1 Thes 5:16-24 Jn 1:6-8, 19-28 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison; SJB Advent is not a time of waiting for the coming of the Christ child—that already happened 2017 years ago. It’s rather a time in…
2nd Sunday of Advent (B); 12-10-17 Is 40:1-5,9-11 Ps 85 2 Pt 3:8-14 Mk 1:1-8 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison In today’s Gospel, we once again hear proclaimed the person of John the Baptist, who plays a prominent role in Mark’s Gospel. Who is this very eccentric guy with whom most of us…
1st Sunday of Advent (B); December 3, 2017 Is 63:16-17,19; Ps 80; 1 Cor 1:3-9; Mk 13:33-37 Deacon Jim McFadden Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year. We await the return of Jesus as he is born within us at a deeper level of intimacy and we prepare for that arrival by…
Christ the King (A); November 26, 2017 Ez 34:11-12 Ps 23 1 Cor 15:20-26,28 Mt 25:31-46 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison As we conclude our liturgical year, the Church invites us to fix our gaze on Jesus, the King of the Universe, who is the beginning and end of Salvation History. As…
32nd Sunday in O.T.; November 12, 2017 Wis 2:12-16 Ps 63 1 Thes 4:13-18 Mt 25:1-13 Deacon Jim McFadden; SJB C.C. We are a hyper-stimulated, impatient people. Carrie Fisher, in her auto-biography once opined that “Instant gratification isn’t fast enough!” And, the electronic, digital age we now live in has only exacerbated this. …
31st Sunday in O.T.; November 5, 2017 Mal 1:14b-2:2b,8-10 Ps 131 1Thes 2:7b-9,13 Mt 23:1-12 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison Before we look at today’s Gospel reading in which Jesus denounces the Scribes and the Pharisees—the religious establishment of his time—it’s good to pay attention to what Paul said in his First…
Riffing off of Sister Sledge, We Are Family—the community of St. Francis High School. But, as we gather in worship, we know that we are part of a greater family: the community of All Saints! ALL Saints: Troubies, do you get that? There can only be a communion of Saints in “heaven” if there…
30th Sunday in O.T.; October 29, 2017 EX 22:20-26 Ps 18 1 Thes 1:5c-10 Mt 22:34-40 Deacon Jim McFadden Today’s Gospel reading reminds us in no uncertain terms that the whole of the Divine Law can be summed up in our love for God and neighbor. Matthew offers an account in which the…
29th Sunday in O.T.; October 22, 2017 Is 45:1,4-6 Ps 96 1 Thes 1:1-5b Mt 22:15-21 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison & SJB We’ve just heard one of the famous passages of the entire Gospel: “Render to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and to God the things that are God’s”…
The Cross is the Way Home 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 30, 2026 Jer 20:7-9. Ps 63. Rom 12:1-2. Mt 16:21-27 Deacon Jim McFadden After establishing Peter as the rock of his Church, Jesus then begins to speak…
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 23, 2026 Is 22:19-23. Ps 138. Rom 11:33-36. Mt 16:13-20 Deacon Jim McFadden Midway through his public ministry, Jesus ventured with his disciples to the northern reaches of the Promised Land, to the…
20th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); August 16, 2026 Is 56:1,6-7. Ps 67. Rom 11:13-15,29-32. Mt 15:21-28 Deacon Jim McFadden Today’s Gospel (Mt 15:21-28) presents us with a unique example of faith in Jesus’s encounter with a Canaanite woman,…
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