The Connecticut state legislature is debating once again a bill that would legalize physician-assisted suicide, calling it an “Aid in Dying” law. Below is part of an essay by Dr. Michael Brescia, the founder of Calvary hospice, that helps us to understand the true needs of those facing terminal illness. Not poison, but presence, love, and compassion. People ask for physician-assisted suicide because of suffering,Continue reading “True Aid in Dying”
Category Archives: Other
The Search
Everyone likes a good movie/show recommendation. In that spirit, I’ll share one with you. It’s a series called The Search, which was produced by the Augustine Institute and which is available to our parishioners for free through our online FORMED account (you can access it through our parish website). Released last spring, The Search is well worth your time. It is a 7-part video series hosted by Chris Stefanick, with eachContinue reading “The Search”
Changed by Asking
When pagans wanted something, they always turned to their gods. The pagan gods, of course, were fickle. It was very easy to fall out of favor with them, which meant disaster. So, the pagans would present their petition to the god or goddess they thought was most interested in the thing that they wanted, along with anContinue reading “Changed by Asking”
Thoughts on Ash Wednesday
Yesterday was Ash Wednesday, which is typically one of the busiest days of the year in every Catholic parish. This year was no different. We started with our normal 7:30am Mass, which reached maximum capacity (160) under the current COVID restriction, which was really nice. Just after the parish Mass, we had Mass for some of the students at the Catholic Academy of Stamford. Continue reading “Thoughts on Ash Wednesday”
Learning Our Prayers
Priests have the privilege of being with people as they near the ends of their lives. Some of the people I’ve helped prepare for death spent their whole lives active in the Church, some were less active, and a few were resistant to the idea of seeing a priest and receiving the sacraments. I remember one gentlemanContinue reading “Learning Our Prayers”
Singing Our Prayers
Music matters in liturgy. Ever since the resumption of public Masses last summer, however, we have been using a different style of music in the parish than what we were accustomed to hear prior to the COVID shutdowns. We can’t use the popular hymns that we’d otherwise hear at Mass because the current health protocols prohibit congregational singing during liturgies in order to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. Because the musicContinue reading “Singing Our Prayers”
Holy Smoke
A priest friend of mine once shared with me his take on the secret to a life well-lived: “Moderation in all things,” he said, “except incense and orthodoxy.” I have always found his advice compelling. You certainly can’t be too orthodox in matters of the faith, with orthodoxy being openness and adherence to all that is true and good as solid ground on which to stand, and solidContinue reading “Holy Smoke”
Entrusting Ourselves to Him
Yesterday I came across an article by Msgr. Charles Pope, who is a priest of the Archdiocese of Washington, DC. In it, he gives a summary of the Letter to the Hebrews, which we have been reading over the past week or so at Mass. The Letter to the Hebrews, as its name indicates, was addressed toContinue reading “Entrusting Ourselves to Him”
Healing Division
It’s a cliché, but by all measures we are a nation divided. Our culture and our politics are sick, and it’s been that way for a long time. The election last November is just the most recent in a series of presidential elections that have taken on an apocalyptic tone, exaggerating the role of electoral politics in our lives beyond what itContinue reading “Healing Division”
Baptism into Ordinary Time
This weekend we celebrate the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time. If you’ve been paying attention, you might be wondering what happened to the 1st Sunday. In her wisdom, the Church makes the transition from the Season of Christmas into Ordinary Time with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord, which we celebrated last Sunday. This is certainly fitting, because baptism isContinue reading “Baptism into Ordinary Time”
The Parish of St. Cecilia-St. Gabriel 