“That the dead will rise even Moses made known in the passage about the bush, when he called out ‘Lord,’ the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and he is not God of the dead, but of the living, for to him all are alive.” (Lk 20:37-38) By tradition, the Church dedicates November to prayer for the Poor Souls in Purgatory, those faithful Christians who have died and gone before us but who still must atone for their sins. The time they spend in Purgatory cleanses them so that they may enter Heaven free from the effects of the sin they might have committed in life. Church doctrine on purgatory is based on the Old Testament reading in 2 Maccabees 12:40-46, where prayers were offered for those who had died in battle.  Praying for the dead has been a constant practice of … [Read more...]

“Today salvation has come to this house because this man too is a descendant of Abraham. For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save what was lost.” (Lk 19:9-10) I love the story of Zacchaeus.  It reminds me of two things.  When I was little, it reminded me a little of Mardi Gras.  In the parable, it sounded like a parade was rolling by, and Zacchaeus wanted to see it.  But instead of Rex, it was the King of Kings!  As a young, small boy, I remember not being able to see Mardi Gras parades because of the crowd.  Often, I resolved myself to looking for spare doubloons on the ground. The second thing that the story reminds me of was a visit I made to Rome in 1994, before I entered seminary.  I was fortunate to be able to attend a Papal Audience in the Paul VI Audience Hall.  As the … [Read more...]

“God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.” (Lk 18:11) I recently heard a quote to the effect that “there are only two types of people in the world:  saints who think they are sinners and sinners who think they are saints.”  That pretty much sums up the two characters in today’s Gospel.  The Pharisee has justified his life, and the Publican has condemned his own.  In truth, each of these men was a sinner in some way.  As the Evangelist John said:  If we say that we have not sinned, then we make God a liar, and His word has no place in our hearts (1 Jn 1:10).  So what separates the two men?  Simply one fact.  One acknowledged the reality of his life and the reality of his sin, and one didn’t.  And having recognized … [Read more...]

“But when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?” (Lk 18:8) Only eight years ago, in Ryadh, Saudi Arabia, a Catholic priest and more than a dozen Filipinos were arrested and charged with proselytizing.  An easy Internet search can help you find the story.  What were they doing?  Were they engaged in a Eucharistic Procession?  Were they handing out Bibles on street corners?  Were they running an illegal radio program trying to convince Muslims to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior?  No.  None of the above.  They were attending Mass in a small Riyadh rest house. Filipinos comprise the vast majority of the more than one million foreign workers in Saudi Arabia.  And they are almost exclusively Catholic.  There is no freedom of religion in Saudi Arabia; the practice of … [Read more...]