"It remains always essential to continue speaking to the close and holy, but also to listen to what we hear from it. In these days of Christmas, let’s take time to deepen that conversation."...
"Advent and Christmas are times to look to our desires and God's dreams for us. What invitations from God cause me to be fearful or reluctant? Is that fear really an invitation to ponder and move to a new level of trust in God?"...
"this is the night the promises made by God to the Jewish people and to Mary are fulfilled with the birth of a child in the village of Bethlehem. And in the midst of this most holy night the world springs to new life with the promise of joy and peace that this birth announces."...
"The Gospel for the Third Sunday of Advent has John the Baptist say, "I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal." Advent is a time to recognize our basic human unworthiness."...
"It's time to stop feeling "sympathy" for our aboriginal brothers and sisters and help them move toward rights and justice. So long as we call them victims and feel sorry for them, we are still maintaining a kind of power over them."...
"The 19th century Jesuit poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins, has a line in Hurrahing in Harvest that resonates with me as we come to the beginning of Advent. Hopkins says: “These things, these things were here and but the beholder wanting.”"...
"This final Sunday of the liturgical year is celebrated as the Feast of Christ the King. The days from now until next Sunday, the First Sunday of Advent, are devoted to eschatological themes"...
Advent 2017 begins in a few weeks. "There are so many ways to honour Christ and celebrate His birth in this special season of anticipation. Each act of kindness offers the Lord a gift and we show Him how important He is in our lives."...
"The Church is invited to acknowledge the initial World Day of the Poor. Pope Francis said in his June 2017 letter instituting this particular World Day: “At the conclusion of the Jubilee of Mercy, I wanted to offer a World Day of the Poor, so that throughout the world Christian communities can become an ever greater sign of Christ’s charity for the least and those most in need.” "...
"We can learn from the whales and dolphins. They have a degree of intelligence that often surprises humans. Along with other mammals, humans need to enter an unconscious state when asleep in order to function properly. We normally do that each night, or at other times, for those who work shifts or those who suffer from insomnia."...
