Doing the Father’s Will
Thursday of the First Week of Advent Thursday, December 2, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 Mass Isaiah 26:1-6; Psalm 118:1 and 8-9, 19-21, 25-27a; Matthew 7:21, 24-27 Audio Recording Without getting into the theological weeds about what is necessary for one to enter heaven, there are essentially four things necessary for us to be CERTAIN of our salvation. This is contrary to the teaching of...
Advent: Time for a Wake-Up Call
First Sunday of Advent Sunday, November 28 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 5:00 Mass Jeremiah 33:14-16; Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14; 1 Thessalonians 3:12—4:2; Luke 21:25-28, 34-36 Audio Recording Happy New Year! Advent begins today, the time when the Church celebrates the beginning of our new liturgical year. Advent is a season of hope, anticipation, and preparation for the coming of Our Lord. It...
Giving Thanks
Thanksgiving Day Thursday, November 25, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 Mass Sirach 50:22-24; Psalm 145:2-3, 4-5, 6-7, 8-9, 10-11; 1 Corinthians 1:3-9; Luke 17:11-19 Audio Recording The poor lepers in today’s gospel were forced to live in isolation from their fellow men. They also suffered the misery of the skin disease itself. In addition to their emotional and physical suffering, nine of...
Redemptive Suffering and Service
Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time Sunday, October 17, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 & 10:00 Masses Isaiah 53:10-11; Psalm 33:4-5, 18-19, 20, 22; Hebrews 4:14-16; Mark 10:35-45 Today’s gospel reading sheds light on the great value of suffering and service. Jesus asks James and John, who want the positions of honor in his coming kingdom, if they are willing to drink the cup he drinks and be...
Persistent Prayer and The Rosary
Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary Thursday, October 7, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 Mass Malachi 3:13-20b; Psalm 1:1-2, 3, 4 and 6; Luke 11:5-13 Whenever the Jewish rabbis repeated one concept three times with three different words, it was a sign of EXTREME EMPHASIS. This is what Jesus does in today’s gospel. He uses TWO parables – the sleeping friend and the fish/egg vs. snake/scorpion – to...
Whose Wisdom Do You Choose?
25th Sunday in Ordinary Time Sunday, September 19, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 5:00 Mass Wisdom 2:12, 17-20; Psalm 54:3-4, 5,6 and 8; James 3:16-4:3; Mark 9:30-37 Audio Recording In today’s second reading, James presents two types of wisdom. The wisdom from above and the wisdom from below. Then he describes the results of each type. First James speaks about the wisdom from below, which...
To Vaccinate or Not to Vaccinate?
For some time now I've been considering whether or not I should share my thoughts on getting vaccinated against the dreaded COVID-19 virus. I understand that there are strong opinions on both sides of the issue and I fully recognize that it is one's personal choice as to whether or not you get the vaccine. We all have our reasons for why we do what we do and I totally respect the fact that many...
What or Whom Do We Worship?
September is football season in East Tennessee. Our beloved Vols take the field to the delight of their devoted fans. The enthusiasm of the fans is especially pronounced as hope springs eternal for a winning season. Yesterday Christine and I experienced the opening game, our first Vols game ever, complete with a pre-game tailgate party at Circle Park right next to Neyland Stadium. Our tickets...
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
The Assumption Sunday, August 15, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00, 10:00 & 5:00 Masses Revelation 11:19a; 12:1-6a, 10ab; Psalm 45:10, 11, 12, 16; 1 Corinthians 15:20-27; Luke 1:39-56 Audio Recording Today we celebrate the Feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Assumption is when Mary was taken to heaven at the conclusion of her earthly life. In 1950 Pope Pius XII...
Too Busy to Pray?
Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Sunday, July 18, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 5:00 Mass Jeremiah 23:1-6; Psalm 23:1-3,3-4,5,6; Ephesians 2:13-18; Mark 6:30-34 Audio Recording In today’s Gospel we’re taken back to the time when Jesus' apostles had completed their first successful missionary journey. After accompanying Jesus for a long time they were sent out on their own to be his...
Transformed in Christ
Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time Sunday, June 20, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 & 10:00 Mass Job 38:1, 8-11; Psalm 107:23-24, 25-26, 28-29, 30-31; 2 Corinthians 5:14-17; Mark 4:35-41 Audio Recording Today’s readings speak to us, among other things, of CONVERSION, of the TRANSFORMATION of our lives into true disciples of Christ. Listen again to this verse from today’s 2nd reading: “So whoever...
Prayer as a Couple
Memorial of St. Charles Lwanga and Companions Thursday June 3, 2021 Tobit 6:10-11; 7:1bcde, 9-17; 8:4-9a; Psalm 128:1-2, 3, 4-5; Mark 12:28-34 Audio Recording Today’s first reading speaks to us, among other things, about the power of prayer, especially in marriage. It also speaks of the importance of inviting God into all the areas of our lives, even those which are most private. Tobias...
One Church, One Faith, One Baptism
Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord Sunday, May 16, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 5:00 Mass Acts 1:1-11; Psalm 47:2-3, 6-7, 8-9; Ephesians 4:1-13; Mark 16:15-20 Audio Recording Today, we are celebrating the Feast of the Ascension of the Lord. This Feast commemorates the elevation of Christ into Heaven by His own power in the presence of His disciples on the fortieth day after His glorious...
Obedience to Your Bishop
Thursday of the 4th Week of Easter April 29, 2021 Acts 13:13-25; Psalm 89:2-3, 21-22, 25 and 27; John 13:16-20 Audio Recording We all know that Christ established his Church through the preaching and teaching of his Apostles. Since the Apostles were sent by Christ, they received the same respect from the early Christians as would have been given Jesus if he had come to them. The Apostles were...
Acting on God’s Inspiration
Thursday of the Third Week of Easter April 22, 2021 Acts 8:26-40; Psalm 66:8-9, 16-17, 20; John 6:44-51 Audio Recording We have all had the experience of feeling an internal prompting to do something. Maybe it’s something that will take years to complete such as studying for a profession or discerning and preparing for a vocation. Or maybe it’s something that comes as a flash of...
Sharing the Kerygma
Third Sunday of Easter Sunday, April 18, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 8:00 & 10:00 Mass Acts 3:13-15, 17-19; Psalm 4:2, 4, 7-8, 9; 1 John 2:1-5a; Luke 24:35-48 Audio Recording Good morning! Is it possible that you have a friend, or possibly an acquaintance, who knows little or nothing about the Gospel message? We might find it hard to believe that there are people in the world today who have...
Courage and Fearlessness
Friday of the Second Week of Easter April 16, 2021 Acts 5:34-42; Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14; John 6:1-15 Audio Recording In yesterday’s first reading we see that the Apostles are brought before the Sanhedrin after the Holy Spirit miraculously intervened to release them from jail the day before. They were being reprimanded for preaching the resurrection of Christ throughout all Jerusalem. Just as the...
Jesus, Present but Hidden in Disguise
Wednesday in the Octave of Easter April 7, 2021 Acts 3:1-10; Psalm 105:1-2, 3-4, 6-7, 8-9; Luke 24:13-35 Audio Recording Today’s gospel is one of my favorites. I can only imagine how Cleopas and the other disciple on the road to Emmaus must have felt in the aftermath of Christ’s death. Their hopes of Jesus being the Messiah they had believed would defeat the Roman occupiers and usher in a new...
Walk the Walk, Don’t Just Talk the Talk
Friday of the 5th Week of Lent March 26, 2021 Jeremiah 20:10-13; Psalm 18:2-3a, 3bc-4, 5-6, 7; John 10:31-42 Audio Recording Why were the religious leaders in today’s gospel so upset with Jesus that they wanted to kill him? It was because he claimed to be the Son of God and he made himself equal with God. The law of Moses laid down the death penalty for such a crime in the Book of Leviticus...
God’s Covenant of Love
Fifth Sunday of Lent Sunday, March 21, 2021 Holy Ghost Church – 5:00 Mass Jeremiah 31:31-34; Psalm 51:3-4, 12-13, 14-15; Hebrews 5:7-9; John 12:20-33 Audio Recording We’re a week away from Palm Sunday, the start of Holy Week, and in today’s Gospel you can feel the tension and anticipation in the air, both in Heaven and on earth. The Gospel starts with a simple request by some Greeks to see...
Ignorance of Scripture is Ignorance of Christ
Thursday of the 4th Week of Lent March 18, 2021 Exodus 32:7-14; Psalm 106:19-20, 21-22, 23; John 5:31-47 Audio Recording In today’s gospel Jesus answers the Jews in regards to his testimony that he is the Son of God. In doing so he highlights the importance for us to read and meditate on the Scriptures. The Jews were objecting to his testimony, essentially saying that we do not believe you,...