Weekly Reflections

Tom Schmidt There is a Christmas song that says of Bethlehem: “Yet in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting Light.” Though today it has many modern homes and buildings, you can still see that it is part of “the hill country…of Judah.” (Lk 1:39) It is not too far from En Kerem, where John the […]

Tom Schmidt While Advent is a beautiful time to prepare for the coming of the Lord, we often get so caught up in all the things we do to prepare for Christmas that we forget Advent all together. The readings remind us that in spite of the stress we may feel thinking about how close […]

I am the Handmaid of the Lord By Kathryn Mulderink Adam and Eve were created without any sin. This means that they were not burdened by selfishness or fear or unmet needs. God created the whole universe and placed them in the beautiful Garden and walked with them in the cool of the evening. He […]

I was praying with our first reading from the Book of Daniel, and, “others shall be an everlasting horror and disgrace” caught my attention, while a hellish landscape filled with tormented individuals filled my imagination. I certainly do not want any part of that for any length of time, and certainly not forever. Yet it […]

In this weekend’s readings, widows show us a powerful example of living out their faith through personal generosity. Before we focus on what they did, we must focus on who they are. Being a widow is difficult at any time or in any culture. Beyond mourning the loss of their spouses, they often find themselves […]

“As Catholics and Americans, we are blessed to be able to participate in our nation’s political and public life. Our freedoms respect the dignity of individuals and their consciences and allow us to come together for the common good.” [Forming a Conscience for Faithful Citizenship, vii] November 5th is election day, and how blessed we […]

This Thursday is the 31st of October—Halloween. . . Boo! Now that I have thoroughly frightened you, I would like to share with you a Catholic perspective on Halloween. Though apparently disconnected in modern thought, Halloween and All Saints Day are connected. The origin of the word Halloween is taken from an older English term– […]

This Sunday is World Mission Sunday. Mission from the Latin missio means to send–to send the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all people, even to the ends of the earth. This effort of spreading the Good News of Jesus may be separated into four fields–the mission to the faithful of the Church, the mission to […]

This weekend we hear the final part of our five-week detour into the sixth chapter of John’s gospel.I have personally enjoyed our detour, largely because of where it places us. Last weekend we heard verses 53 through 56 say, “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do […]

Our first reading this weekend, from the 19th chapter of First Kings, speaks to me on many levels. I can feel it in my chest when I read Elijah’s, “This is enough. . . take me.” I imagine the heavy sigh he expels from the depths of his soul once these words leave his mouth. […]

This Sunday we read about the feeding of the 5,000 from John’s Gospel, where the Apostle Philip begins by questioning how one feeds 5,000 and then goes on to question the boy’s offering of five loves and two fish. With all of Philip’s doubts, what happens? The fish and the loaves offered by the boy […]

Sheep without a shepherd, I cannot think of a sadder way to describe a people. Yet, I think that is how many people feel in contemporary society—that nobody cares about them. Perhaps you have said “nobody cares about me,” but our Lord cares. He was sent for lost sheep. And if you feel lost, He […]

Are you an over or under packer? For most of my life, I have been an over-packer. The person who packs both a sweatshirt and a jacket, just in case. Enough socks for every day of the trip knowing the forecast is sandals weather. Slowly, I am working on letting go of this need for […]

From today’s Gospel reading:Jesus said to the woman, “Daughter your faith has saved you. Go in peace and be cured of your affliction”. Reflection:My dear parishioners, this is my last article I write as your pastor, inspired by this week Fr. Jude Siciliano’s “First Impressions”. Jesus stopping to address the woman’s needs shows he considered […]

From today’s gospel reading:“…Jesus said to his disciples: ‘Let us cross to the other side’… A violent squall came up and waves were breaking over the boat…He woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Quiet! Be still! ‘The wind ceased and there was great calm”. Reflection:When Jesus asked his disciples to “cross […]

From today’s gospel reading:“This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day through it all the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit… […]

From today’s Gospel reading:While they were eating, he took bread…and said, “Take it; this is my body”. Then took a cup…He said to them, “This is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed for many…” Reflection:Corpus Christi celebrates Jesus’ gift of himself to us as our spiritual food and drink. This mystery of […]

From today’s Letter to the Romans:The Spirit bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, … heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ. Reflection:Today we do not celebrate a doctrine, but the heart of our faith: in Christ we have a special relationship with God, we are children of God and […]

From today’s Responsorial Psalm (104):“Lord, send out your Spirit, and renew the face of the earth.” Reflection:Today we are invited to join with the disciples who gathered in Jerusalem, after Jesus’ return to the Father, and received the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. The world around them seemed to be the same, as it had been […]

From today’s Gospel:“These signs will accompany those who believe in my name they will drive out demons, they will speak new languages”. Reflection:In Jesus’ time there were illnesses and negative human conditions that were beyond their ability to explain or heal – they were credited to evil spirits and demons. In our times we all […]

Today’s gospel reading records some of Jesus’ last words to His closest followers before the crucifixion. His primary message is the same one we heard in the second reading: “love one another.” We have already seen that love is more than a feeling. It is self-giving and active. When Jesus calls us to love one […]

APPOINTMENTS OF PASTOR AND PAROCHIAL VICAR FOR OLPH Most Reverend Gregory Parkes, Bishop of the diocese of St. Petersburg has announced twenty-five clergy changes, effective July 1, 2024. Among those changes, Bishop Parkes has appointed the Reverend Kyle D. Smith, current pastor of St. Mary Parish in Tampa, to be the new Pastor of Our […]