Spirituality
God’s Lavish Love is Given Not by Our Merit, But by His Mercy
Msgr. Joseph Prior explains this Sunday's Gospel and the parable of the Generous Landowner, representing God who gives His love, compassion, mercy and goodness to people not because we love Him but because of who He is.
The Confiteor: The Culturally Unfashionable Prayer
People apologize in ways that don’t admit fault, but Father Patrick Brady shows how an innovative prayer of the Mass seeks God’s mercy to repair relationships damaged by sin.
Mercy, the Medicine of Life, Is God’s Gift to Us
Jesus' mission is to share the Father's mercy, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior. Not only does this mercy help heal us, it also helps heal the wounds inflicted by the merciless.
The Messiah Who Suffers, and Calls Us to Follow
God saves us not by avoiding suffering but by bearing it, entering into it and transforming it from within, and showing us the way we should follow Jesus each day, writes Father Eric Banecker.
Work of Healing Relationships Done With Love, in Model of Jesus’ Passion
The readings for this Sunday concern reconciliation when the bonds of communion among persons are damaged or broken. Jesus directs us to work together, with His help, to heal those wounds, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior.
Path of Life, Marked by Sacrifice, Runs Through Jesus
This Sunday's Gospel presents two ways of life: the path of life and the path of death. The choice for the latter, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior, will paradoxically include death for the disciples of Jesus but also to eternal life with Him.
Who Is Jesus? Our Answer Leads Us to Serve Everyone in His Name
When we identify Jesus as Peter does in this Sunday's Gospel, confessing Him as the "Son of the Living God," we share in the work of the Church led by Peter's successor, the pope, explains Msgr. Joseph Prior.
Our Cries of ‘Lord, Help Me!’ Are Answered by Jesus, the One Who Saves
Three simple words from this Sunday's Gospel provide a great prayer for anyone in need, especially when we become tossed on the stormy seas of life, writes Msgr. Joseph Prior in his commentary for the 20th Sunday in Ordinary Time.
‘And With Your Spirit’ Isn’t a Shallow Throwaway Line
Our response to the priest’s greeting in the Mass is a deep affirmation of the Holy Spirit uniting Catholics in every country across the centuries, writes Father Patrick Brady. We should speak it thoughtfully.
Jesus Teaches Lesson on Prayer: ‘Being Together’ With the Father We Love
This week's Gospel, explains Msgr. Joseph Prior, completes the journey of Jesus to pray on the mountain, which he intended before meeting the large crowd. Jesus shows us the importance of taking quiet time to be alone with God in prayer.