Luke 24: 13-35 Dear Friends, The Easter Season is a time we desperately need to let the overwhelming truth of the resurrection to penetrate our being. Today on this Third Sunday of Easter we have the wonderful story of the disciples on the road to Emmaus. Like all of the Resurrection stories, this beautiful passage invites to enter into the mystery of the Risen Christ. It is a journey from the head to the heart.Today’s story is especially heartfelt. The two disciples tell the story to Jesus. For them it is a profound tragedy. They are frustrated and flounderin...

Dear Friends in Christ, In the challenging and confusing journey of three years with Jesus, the apostles had all kinds of startling experiences. Yet, nothing prepared them for the final seventy two hours that found them locked in the room “for fear of the Jews.” (Jn 20:19)No one was on the roller-coaster of emotions more than Peter. First, we hear his protest at the Last Supper: “You will never wash my feet.” Then in an immediate reversal: “Master, then not only my feet, but my hands and face as well.” (Jn 13:8-9) Right after that: “I will lay down my life for you.” (Jn...

The Gospel of Matthew offers us a message that is far from a Hollywood ending where all is peace, goodness and love. In Matthew, the Resurrection is not a guarantee that all are problems will pass away. It is not an easy solution to the burden of life’s relentless encounter with sin...

Down through history we have had numerous distortions of the gospel message. When I was young, our celebration of Lent had clearly lost its focus. The emphasis was on personal sacrifice. Lent was an endurance contest. At noon on Holy Saturday Lent was declared over. It became a moment...

John 11:1-45 On this Fifth Sunday of Lent, we have the beautiful story of Lazarus. This is the third story of our Lenten message from John’s Gospel. The Samaritan woman, the man born blind and Lazarus are stand-ins for us. In these very special engagements with Jesus, we witness an underlying message of sinful humankind’s salvation. We are invited to see our call to new life in their encounter with Christ.Water, light and life in these three stories are the basic elements that Jesus uses to draw us into the depths of the saving mystery. These stories unveil our...