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...

John 9:1-41 Dear Friends, Once again, we have a story of conversion from St. John on our Lenten journey. Jesus is the Light of the World calling us out of the darkness of the blindness of the spirit.I like to call the story of the blind man the Catholic way of conversion. Unlike last week where the Samaritan woman fought Jesus at every step until the final cave in, today’s blind man begins with the beautiful encounter with Jesus in the restoration of his sight.In the Catholic way of conversion, we begin with what we think is the true faith, the true knowledge of...

Jn 4:4-42 Dear Friends, In the next three weeks of our Lenten journey, there are three episodes addressing the sinful condition of our humanity. They include today’s story of the Samaritan woman followed by the healing of the blind man and the raising of Lazarus. All three are invitations into the saving experience of Jesus. The basic theme of Lent is baptism and penance. It applies in a special way to the catechumens and to each of us.Today’s Gospel has many levels, one deeper than the next, drawing us into a saving dialogue with a very unrelenting God. Jesus...

This is the third of eleven reflections on Thomas Merton’s teaching on the True Self/False Self dynamic. This conflictual but enlightening relationship permeates Merton’s huge quantity of writing on the spiritual life. The basic point of the conflict is the individual’s pull toward a...

Mt 17:1-9 Dear Friends, Lent is a time to prepare to celebrate the Death and Resurrection of Jesus the Christ with new joy, stronger faith and growing love. This is the great mystery of our faith and that opens the mystery of our life.Today’s gospel passage focuses on the Transfiguration. This same celebration of the Transfiguration takes place in all three Lenten cycles. It obviously has a special message for our communal Lenten journey. Our task is to let it truly enlighten us as we prepare our basic Lenten task: to embrace the great act of love that is the...