Fatherroy

THE Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows, celebrated on September 15, invites us to contemplate the unique place of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the mystery of Christ’s saving work. Her life was marked not only by extraordinary joys but also by profound suffering. 
 The Gospel offers two beautiful passages for this celebration. In John 19:25–27, Mary stands faithfully beneath the Cro...

THE Gospel of John (3:13–17) brings us to the very heart of our Christian faith. Jesus declares that no one has gone up to heaven except the one who came down from heaven, the Son of Man. He alone knows the Father perfectly because he comes from the Father. He alone reveals the Father's love and leads us to our true home. Everything in our lives finds its deepest meaning when se...

IN Matthew 18:21-35, Peter asks Jesus how often he must forgive an offending brother. He suggests seven times, a generous human standard. Jesus replies, not seven but seventy-seven times, revealing mercy without limits or calculation. 
 To explain, Jesus tells the parable of the unforgiving servant. A man owes his master an unpayable, enormous debt. Pleading for patience, h...

CHRIST has a way of using simple images to reveal profound truths. In Luke 6:39-42, he presents a striking scene: a man trying to remove a speck from another's eye while carrying a beam in his own. The image is almost humorous, but its lesson is deadly serious. 
 Before correcting others, we must first correct ourselves.
That sounds easy, yet it is one of the hardest...

CHRIST’S command in Luke 6:27-38 is probably the hardest in the Gospel. "Love your enemies. Do good to those who hate you." Humanly speaking, it sounds impossible. And that is precisely the point. 
 Christianity is not merely about being nice. It is about sharing in the very life and love of God. Left to ourselves, we naturally love those who love us and avoid those who mak...