The Resurrection of our Lord Easter Sunday, 2019 Acts 10:34,37-43 Ps 118 Col 3:1-4 Jn 20:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden; St. John the Baptist C.C. Today we are celebrating the heart of our Christian faith: The Resurrection of the Lord. It is the pivotal event of our Faith, because of its utter uniqueness and…
6th Week of Lent: Palm Sunday (C); 4-14-19 Is 50:4-7 Ps 22 Phil 2:6-11 Lk 22:14-23,56 Deacon Jim McFadden In our Gospel reading for the Palm Sunday procession, Jesus sends his disciples into Jerusalem to prepare for his triumphal entry. They are told to untether a donkey and if there is any protest…
The Woman Caught in Adultery 5th Sunday of Lent (C); April 7, 2019 Is 43:16-21 Ps 126 Phil 3:8-14 Jn 8:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden People of God, what an overflow of rich Lenten readings we have, which are so richly textured and challenging. Last week we had what some consider the greatest story ever…
4th Sunday of Lent (C); March 31, 2019 Jos 5:9-12 Ps 34 2 Cor 5:17-21 Lk 5:1-3,11-32 Deacon Jim McFadden Today is Laetare Sunday, a time for rejoicing because the Father reveals to us that “Everything I have is yours” (Lk 15:31b). Lent is more than half over, and redemption and forgiveness and new…
3rd Sunday of Lent (C); March 24, 2019 Ex 3:1-8,13-15; Ps 103; 1 Cor 10:1-6; Lk 13:1-9 Deacon Jim McFadden Throughout the Catholic Church, today is the First Scrutiny for catechumens. Who are catechumens? They are those who have inquired into becoming a member of the Catholic Church and, after a period of…
2nd Sunday of Lent; March 17, 2019 Gn 15:5-18 Ps 27 Phil 3:17-4:1 Lk 9:288-36 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison & SJB The readings from today awaken a sense of wonder to a world beyond our own—a mystical consciousness. So, in the first reading—memorable, magical, strange—Abraham enacts a ritual in which God establishes…
1st Week of Lent (C); March 10, 2019 Deut 26:4-10 Ps 91 Rom 10:8-13 Lk 4:1-13 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison Brothers, we come, once again, to that great season of lent, which by its nature is a desert time, which is to say, a time of simplicity, purification, and asceticism. We notice…
8th Sunday in O.T.; March 3, 2019 Sir 27:4-7 Ps 92 1 Cor 15:54-58 Lk 6:39-45 Deacon Jim McFadden There are different levels of spiritual development. Though we hope that we are all moving in the same direction as we strive to realize our destiny, we are at different stages of the journey. If…
7th Sunday in O.T. (C); February 24, 2019 1 Sam 26: 2,7…23 Ps 103 1 Cor 15:45-49 Lk 6:27-38 Deacon Jim McFadden; St. John the Baptist C.C. The Sermon of the Mount, which may be construed as Jesus’ State of the Kingdom address, is in two parts: (1) the Beatitudes, which describes what…
5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (C); 2-10-19 Is 6:1-8 Ps 138 1 Cor 15:1-11 Lk 5:1-11 Deacon Jim McFadden; (New) Folsom Prison One of my spiritual heroes is the Protestant theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer who once wrote that Christianity without discipleship is cheap grace. He walked the talk as he sacrificed his life in…
29th Sunday in Ordinary Time (A); October 18, 2026 Is 45:1,4-6. Ps 96. 1 Thes 1:1-5b. Mt 22:15-21 Deacon Jim McFadden We’ve just heard one of the famous passages of the entire Gospel: “Render to Caesar the things that are…
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…
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…
