Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Pope Pius IX instituted this Solemnity in honor of the Blessed Mother in 1854. Mary had long since been venerated as the Theotokos, or Mother of God, and the theology of Mary developed alongside the theology of Christ. It is through Mary that Jesus took human form, but how is it that Jesus was born without sin? The logical conclusion is that in order for Jesus to be born without sin, his mother would also…
Today, we celebrate this Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in honor of Saint Padre Pio. St. Padre Pio was an Italian priest who had a deep love for Jesus, our Lady, and the people around him. He is one of only a handful of mystics who bore the wounds of Christ, the Stigmata—something that still cannot be explained. One might say that he so conformed his will to Christ’s that the Lord gave him a share in his own passion. We know that our Blessed Lord’s passion was the act of redemption for all mankind,…
This first Sunday of Advent marks the beginning of a new liturgical year. Since it is a new year in the Church, I like to make a few spiritual resolutions. We tend to make New Year’s resolutions in January, but now is a time to focus on Christ. Adventus means “coming,” or “arrival,” which focuses us on the events leading up to the Nativity of our Lord. This glorious event was so important, it caused the change of the calendar. This is now the two-thousand twenty-fourth year since the coming of…
Today is the First Sunday of Advent, which marks the beginning of a new liturgical year. And just as everything else in our lives seems to be speeding up, the Church invites us to slow down. Over the next year, our lectionary readings will be drawing from the Gospel of Mark. And Jesus tells us in today’s gospel to, “watch!” What are we watching for during the season of Advent? Well, since the word “advent” means “beginning,” this ought to be for us something like New Year’s Day, when we make our…
