Next weekend, at the 11:15 Mass at St. Cecilia’s, we will be welcoming the St. Robert Bellarmine Apostolate for Individuals with Down Syndrome to worship with us. This is an apostolate that gives prayerful support to individuals with Down syndrome, their families, and caregivers. They will host a lunch reception in the parish hall immediatelyContinue reading “A Good Doctor “
Category Archives: Saints
Bonfire
Next Saturday (6/22), immediately following our 5:30 vigil Mass, we will have our 2nd annual Parish Bonfire, in observance of the vigil of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist. Because the actual date of the vigil (6/23) falls on a Sunday evening, we are celebrating it a day earlier. This means we will beContinue reading “Bonfire “
Encouragement
There’s a passage from the first chapter of the Book of Deuteronomy in which the ancient Israelites are encamped close to the border of the land promised to them by God. Moses tells them that the Lord wants them to go in and take possession of it. But the people are unsure. So, they sendContinue reading “Encouragement “
A Clearing in the Woods
St. Boniface (feast day 6/5) was an 8th century English monk who left his homeland to evangelize the region we now call Germany. There, he reformed the weak, ignorant, and immoral clergy who were notoriously disobedient to Church authority. His efforts led to the spread of Christianity before his martyrdom in 755 A.D. He isContinue reading “A Clearing in the Woods “
Restorative Images
Interesting things are happening in France. Adult baptisms are up 30%. There is unprecedented interest in the annual pilgrimage from Paris to Chartres. The reconstruction of Notre Dame Cathedral will be finished in time for Christmas. All this surprisingly good news was reported by The Pillar in the context of an interview of 27-year-old FrenchmanContinue reading “Restorative Images “
Confident Abandonment
During this season of Lent, we take up the three disciplines of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving. As concepts, fasting and almsgiving seem less appealing than prayer, but are relatively easy to do. Prayer, on the other hand, is something most people would like to do, but find difficult. For Lent, I’ve been re-reading a bookContinue reading “Confident Abandonment “
February 14
February 14 is St. Valentine’s Day. But not this year. This year it’s Ash Wednesday, the annual kickoff of the 40-day season of Lent. So, instead of chocolates and candy hearts, romantic dinners by candlelight, or champagne and caviar, this Wednesday we will be observing a fast, which includes abstaining from meat, and wearing ashesContinue reading “February 14 “
St. Paul Mikki
In 1596, less than 50 years after St. Francis Xavier brought Christianity to Japan, the emperor Toyotomi ordered all Christian missionaries arrested. He did not like what he saw as the growing European influence in his empire, and worried that western powers would seek to rule Japan as they did the Philippines. Among those arrestedContinue reading “St. Paul Mikki “
Interesting Conversations
Someone recently shared with me a video of an interesting conversation between Bishop Robert Barron and Fr. Joseph Fessio, SJ. Many of you are probably familiar with Bishop Barron, who has become well-known as the founder of Word on Fire Ministries and for his evangelization work on YouTube and other social media platforms. Fr. FessioContinue reading “Interesting Conversations “
The Temptation of St. Anthony
The temptation of St. Anthony has been the inspiration for some truly bizarre artistic masterpieces by artists of different periods over the centuries. To be clear, the St. Anthony I’m referring to is not the 13th century Franciscan renowned for his preaching and his uncanny ability to help us find our lost car keys andContinue reading “The Temptation of St. Anthony “
The Parish of St. Cecilia-St. Gabriel 