-
Follow Me
This daily reading reflection was originally written for the Nativity Parish blog for Friday, May 29, 2020. You can read the corresponding mass readings here. Follow me. These words echo through my heart whenever I read this Gospel. But before Jesus’ command to follow him, we see a divine display of mercy, a threefold opportunity for Peter to heal and restore his threefold denial of Jesus. An exhortation for Peter to become the next Shepherd of the church on earth. A foretelling of the manner in which he would lay down his life in the ultimate sacrifice for the Kingdom. And finally, the call to action. Follow me. Isn’t this…
-
Have Peace in Me
This daily reading reflection was originally written for the Nativity Parish blog. You can read today’s mass readings here. Fr. Jacques Philippe, a favorite spiritual author of mine, said in his book Searching for and Maintaining Peace, that “all the reasons that cause us to lose our sense of peace are bad reasons.” He dedicates a whole section to this very topic. When I read that phrase, I found myself coming up with excuses as to why all my worries and anxieties were justified. Regardless of the severity of whatever it is on my heart and mind, I kept coming back to a few realizations. First, I can control virtually…
-
To all the Sorrowful Mothers
As Mother’s Day rolls around again, to all those sorrowful mothers out there – you are on my heart. As I delve deeper into motherhood myself, it is not lost on me that it is a double edged sword of joy and sorrow. And for some in particular, the sorrow is especially acute. And, after all, as a friend once told me, the trouble with being open to life (and thus motherhood) is that you’re also open to death. Life and death, joy and sorrow, light and dark. Life isn’t all joy all the time. We live in the vale of tears right now, longing for our heavenly home. But…