25 August 2026 - prayers of the faithful for the 21st week in Ordinary Time

Lord Jesus - you call us to follow God’s laws and commandments. 

Christ Jesus - you send us out as missionaries in the world. 

Lord Jesus - you are seated at the right hand of the Father. 

Priest: as we present our prayers today, let us ask that God shed his light upon us: 

1. That people of every nation, race, and religion may be united together in working for justice and integrity. 

2. For healing for the sick, the afflicted, and those who are experiencing grief or loss. 

3. That our parish community always be welcoming and hospitable. 

4. For our children, youth, and college students. May the Lord bless them this school year. 

5. For our first responders, our veterans, the men and women currently serving in the military and our medical professionals. 

6. May all Christians bring the light of Christ to the dark corners of the world. 

7. For our brothers and sisters who have died. That they may come to God’s holy mountain and enter eternal life with God.  

8. For the prayers we hold in the silence of our hearts. 

Priest:  Gracious God, may all the nations of the earth find their help in you. Teach us to trust in your love as you grant our petitions, which we make through Jesus Christ, our Lord forever and ever. Amen.

St Edith Stein (1891 - 1942) - 9 August

Yesterday, August 9, was the feast day of St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, whose original name was Edith Stein. I used this handout about Edith Stein on Sunday with the men at the CMCF state prison rehab unit. We are also celebrating the feast day of Maximilian Kolbe this upcoming Friday. Both of them died as prisoners at the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland during WWII. I pray that these two saints help these men who are going through the rehab program and trying to leave behind their addictions and trying to address their mental health issues.  St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross is a great saint for them to see as an example. 

Quotes: 

“O my God, fill my soul with holy joy, courage and strength to serve You.  Enkindle Your love in me and then walk with me along the next stretch of road before me.  I do not see very far ahead, but when I have arrived where the horizon now closes down, a new prospect will open before me and I shall met with peace.”

"We all, who are faithful children of the Church and who see the conditions in Germany with open eyes, fear the worst for the prestige of the Church, if the silence continues any longer. We are convinced that this silence will not be able in the long run to purchase peace with the present German government... But the responsibility must fall, after all, on those who brought them to this point and it also falls on those who keep silent in the face of such happenings." This provocative quote is interpreted as a moral imperative that to stay quiet in the face of evil makes one complicit in it. This quote is taken from a prophetic letter written by Edith Stein to Pope Pius XI on April 12, 1933. Just weeks after Hitler came to power, the Jewish convert and Catholic nun urged the Pope to publicly condemn Nazism and the escalating persecution of Jews. Although the Pope received the letter, it appears he did not directly respond to her. 

"Our love of neighbor is the measure of our love of God. For Christians, and not only for them, no one is a ‘stranger’. The love of Christ knows no borders.” 

Narrative: 

Edith Stein was a German-Jewish philosopher and Carmelite nun. Born in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) to an observant Jewish family, Stein became a leading academic, studying phenomenology under Edmund Husserl. (Phenomenology is the philosophical study of conscious, subjective experience. It focuses on examining how things appear to us in our lived experience, rather than analyzing the physical world objectively.) She went on to write extensively on empathy, philosophy of the human person, and theology. For a time, she had left the Jewish faith and proclaimed herself an atheist. After reading the autobiography of St. Teresa of Ávila and then studying her works and having a profound conversion experience, she was baptized into the Roman Catholic Church in 1922. 

In 1933, as the Nazi regime rose to power and enacted antisemitic laws, Stein was forced to resign from her teaching position. She entered the Carmelite order in Cologne, taking the religious name Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Teresa, Blessed of the Cross). To escape escalating persecution, she transferred to a convent in Echt, Netherlands, in 1938. In 1942, in retaliation for the Dutch Catholic bishops' public condemnation of Nazi racism, the Gestapo arrested Jewish converts to Catholicism across the Netherlands. Stein and her sister, Rosa, were transported to Auschwitz, where they died in the gas chamber. The Roman Catholic Church later recognized her as a martyr, honoring her both for her intellectual contributions and her solidarity with the Jewish people. She was canonized as saint in 1998. 

Edith Stein had the courage to seek the truth of God in her study of philosophy. This journey led her to the Catholic faith and taking vows as a Carmelite nun.  She embraced the cross of Christ in her suffering. She had faith in facing the evil of the Nazi regime. She is a great example of faith for us in the modern world. 

25 August 2026 - St Louis of France - homily for Tuesday of the 21st week in Ordinary Time - Matthew 23:23-26

One of the images that stands out to me during the months of the pandemic, of the protests and social unrest that we have had in many parts of our country, is the image of a young priest from the Archdiocese of St Louis trying to protect the statue of St Louis of France from a group of protestors outside of the St Louis Art Museum. With a microphone in his hand, the priest speaks: you are all shouting questions at me and you want answers, but you need to stop yelling at me in order to hear what I have to say. Unfortunately, the crowd who wants to judge this King of France and label him as a racist and a murderer have no understanding of the era of history he lived in 800 years ago. 

Having been to Spain eight different times as a priest to study and to go on pilgrimage, I have learned a lot about that part of the world. One fact that most Americans do not know: Muslims from North Africa invaded Spain in the year 711 and were not expelled until 1492; eight centuries of foreign Muslim rule in a European country. The Muslims tried invading France and the rest of the Europe during this time as well, but they were defeated in battle and pushed back. King Louis of France fought in the Crusades, but the Crusades have to be seen in the context of the trajectory of history and the context of its times. We cannot judge history only based upon our own experiences and the little we might know about that era in history. 

What is also said about King Louis IX: he was a man of faith who tried to rule as a Christian leader. His reign in France tried to institute justice and peace after two kings there ruled with violence and terror. He founded hospitals, churches, orphanages, and libraries. He often visited the sick and helped the lepers. He is a patron saint of the secular Franciscan order for his life of justice and outreach to the poor.  During Advent and Lent, he would bring meals to the poor and the hungry. Let us unite our prayers today with the prayers of St Louis of France. 

Today, we hear Jesus calling out the scribes and Pharisees for the way they lived out their faith. Retired football player Matthew Slater stated, consistency is big in whatever we are doing. It is easy to focus on the little details that ultimately do not matter, with the big picture getting lost. It is easy to work on little things that ultimately don’t matter. It is easy to get bored or to lose our motivation and to not stay consistent. The Pharisees and scribes were more interested in trapping Jesus than in learning from him. They were more interested in tiny details of the law and in the process ignoring the spirit of the law. May we always stay true to the Gospel. 

23 August 2026 - homily for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time - Matthew 16:13-20

Who am I?  Who do people say that I am?  Who do YOU say that I am?  What do you believe in your life of faith? What is truly at the heart of our faith? 

When we see Jesus in today’s Gospel, he is in the midst of his ministry here on earth. He and his disciples are traveling around the countryside proclaiming the kingdom of God. In our Gospel readings in recent weeks, we have seen Jesus speak to great crowds, and perform the miracle of multiplication of the loaves and the fish. People have come to him for healing and and for change and transformation in their lives.  At this point, Jesus is wondering what the people have learned, how they perceive him.  So he asks the disciples: “Who do people say the Son of Man is?”

We can put that question in the context of our own day. When we meet someone for the first time, we wonder: “Who are you?” If we ask someone to tell us about himself, what that person says and does not say can be very revealing.  We can answer a question based on profession: I’m a teacher, a farmer, a lawyer, a nurse. We can answer based upon religion: I’m Catholic or I’m Jewish or I’m Baptist.  We can focus on relationships: I’m a father or a brother, a wife or a daughter.  We can focus on our geographic identity or ethic group: I’m from Jackson or I’m Irish-American or I’m originally from Indiana. There are so many way we can identify ourselves; the list is endless. 

Jesus received a lot of answers about how the crowds identify him. Some say he’s John the Baptist, while others see him as Elijah or Jeremiah or one of the other prophets. 

After Jesus’ death and resurrection, his followers spent centuries debating Jesus’ identity and what they really believed about him. These followers struggled to understand how Jesus was both fully human and fully divine, a concept that is indeed difficult to comprehend. They struggled to understand how God manifests himself in our world as a God of three persons: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The beliefs of the early Church that developed after Jesus’ death and resurrection are reflected in the Apostles’ Creed. Later, at the Council of Nicea that was called by the Emperor Constantine in 325, the early Church started writing the Nicene Creed, which we still profess today. Professing this creed as what we believe as Catholics reflects our roots in the early Church, the faith passed down by the apostles and the early Church fathers and mothers.

When Jesus asks the disciples bluntly and directly about what they believe about him, Simon Peter takes the lead, proclaiming with great enthusiasm: You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God. We are called to profess that same belief in our lives of faith here in the modern world, that Jesus is indeed the Savior of all the world who redeems us through his death and resurrection. 

Who do we say Jesus is? That is an important question. But who do we say we are as a Church? Avery Dulles was a Jesuit priest from here in the United States.  He spent much of his career as a university and seminary professor. It is unusual for a priest who is not a bishop to become cardinal, but he was honored by Pope John Paul II by being named as cardinal in 2001. One of his celebrated works is a book called Models of the Church, originally written in 1974. I would choose this book as one of the spiritual books that has had a big impact on my life of faith. Dulles states that these models are essential aspects of the Church, that we don’t choose one and disregard the others. According to Dulles, we as the Church are a mystical communion, united by the Holy Spirit, connected to God and to our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are Sacrament, the visible sign of Christ in the world, a sign and instrument of God’s grace. We are servants, an instrument of social justice reaching out to the least in society just as Christ did.  We are also heralds of Good News, proclaiming God’s kingdom in the world as evangelizers of Christ’s message. We are also an institution of structure and order built upon the rock of Peter, on which Christ established his Church.  Finally, we are a community of disciples, a community of people learning how to follow Jesus, with Jesus as our model in the way we live out our lives. All these models of Church are important to us in the way we identify as the people of God, as followers of Christ.  

I love when the Gospel asks us questions. Questions are an important part of our journey.  The questions we ask as we learn and grow in the faith are so crucial to our life of discipleship. Let the questions Christ asks us today help us to learn and grow.   

23 August 2026 - prayers of the faithful for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time CYCLE A - prison ministry

Lord Jesus - you are the son of the living God. 

Christ Jesus - you are our savior and our redeemer. 

Lord Jesus - you bring us the love of the Father. 

Priest: As disciples of Christ, we recognize Jesus as the Son of God, as our Savior and our redeemer. As Christ’s disciples, we now present our prayer petitions in faith and hope: 

1. That the Holy Spirit may continue to inspire us as the people of God on our journey as we move toward God’s heavenly kingdom. We pray to the Lord. 

2. That our government leaders may be good stewards of our country’s resources and be cognizant of the needs of all. We pray to the Lord. 

3. For peace in the world. May we be peacemaker in our own corner of the world, in our families, and in our communities. May we work for peace here at CMCF. We pray to the Lord. 

4. For our children, youth, and college students. May the Lord continue to accompany them on their journey this school year. We pray to the Lord. 

5. For those who are ill or afflicted or injured. May God build up strength within them and grant them healing and wholeness. We pray for the men in the infirmary and in the BMU. We pray to the Lord. 

6. For those who have died, especially our loved ones and family members. For their entry into eternal life with God. We pray to the Lord. 

7. For a great love for the Eucharist, the body and blood of Christ. May we treat the Eucharist with love and respect and live out the spirit of the Eucharist in our lives each day. We pray to the Lord. 

8. For the prayers we hold in the silence of our hearts today. We pray to the Lord. 

Priest:  Lord Jesus, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God, and through the work of the Holy Spirit,  you have built up your Church on the foundation of your Apostles.  May we, your disciples, continue to proclaim your good news. We make our prayers through you, for you live and reign forever and ever. Amen. 

23 August 2026 - prayers of the faithful for the 21st Sunday in Ordinary Time CYCLE A

Introduction: We gather for Mass today as a Catholic community. Today's readings invite us to reflect on the identity of Jesus and our role in his Church. In the Gospel, Jesus asks, "Who do you say that I am?" Peter responds out of his faith, declaring Jesus as the Messiah. We our to commit ourselves to Christ and to recognize him as the Son of God, as our savior and our redeemer. May we open our hearts and minds to Christ in Mass today as he comes to us in word and in sacrament. 

Penitential Rite: 

Lord Jesus - you are the son of the living God. 

Christ Jesus - you are our savior and our redeemer. 

Lord Jesus - you bring us the love of the Father. 

Priest: As disciples of Christ, we recognize Jesus as the Son of God, as our Savior and our redeemer. As Christ’s disciples, we now present our prayer petitions in faith and hope: 

1. That the Holy Spirit may continue to inspire us as the people of God on our journey as we move toward God’s heavenly kingdom. We pray to the Lord. 

2. That our government leaders may be good stewards of our country’s resources and be cognizant of the needs of all. We pray to the Lord. 

3. For peace in the world. May we be peacemaker in our own corner of the world, in our families, and in our communities. We pray to the Lord. 

4. For our children, youth, and college students. May the Lord continue to accompany them on their journey this school year. We pray to the Lord. 

5. For those who are ill or afflicted or injured. May God build up strength within them and grant them healing and wholeness. We pray to the Lord. 

6. For those who have died, especially our loved ones and family members. For their entry into eternal life with God. We pray to the Lord. 

7. For a great love for the Eucharist, the body and blood of Christ. May we treat the Eucharist with love and respect and live out the spirit of the Eucharist in our lives each day. We pray to the Lord. 

8. For the prayers we hold in the silence of our hearts today. We pray to the Lord. 

Priest:  Lord Jesus, you are the Christ, the Son of the living God, and through the work of the Holy Spirit,  you have built up your Church on the foundation of your Apostles.  May we, your disciples, continue to proclaim your good news. We make our prayers through you, for you live and reign forever and ever. Amen. 

21 August 2026 - Pope Pius X - homily for Friday of the 20th week in Ordinary Time - Ezekiel 37:1-14

We have been hearing readings from the prophet Ezekiel in our daily masses these last couple of weeks, readings that brought us a lot of vivid images. The image of bones coming to life in today’s reading is one of the most famous passages from Ezekiel.  How unforgettable is this image of a valley of dry bones coming to life after hearing the word of God. It does not exactly tell the timeframe of when this passage took place, but biblical scholars believe it took place about a year after the Babylonian exile.  The image of the bones coming to life is a message of new life and hope that the people in exile needed to hear.  Their city, their Temple, their society had suffered ruin and destruction.  The people were separated from their homeland and all that was important to them.  But, in the midst of their present harsh reality, there was new life ahead of them.  God did not abandon them.     

From the middle of the 19th century to the middle of the 20th century, there were four pope who took the name Pius. To be honest, it is a little difficult for me to distinguish them from one another. Today, we celebrate the first of those popes named Pius in the 20th century - Pope Pius X. Installed as pope in 1904, serving right after the influential Pope Leo XIII. Pius X served as pope for 11 years. As a young priest, he helped his people serving a terrible cholera epidemic that spread through northern Italy in the 1870s. It is so interesting how the saints we honor relate to what we are going through in our own lives, thinking of the pandemic that we experienced. Pius X took as his motto as pope: To restore all things in Christ. One of his important reforms along those lines was to encourage the frequent reception of holy communion, something that had gone out of favor in the Church of that era.  With greater participation and devotion to the Eucharist in mind, he lowered the age of reception of first communion to the age of seven, seen as the age a child could reason between right and wrong and could understand the sacrament he was receiving. Pius X also started an important reform of canon law and the reform of Church music, including the revival of Gregorian chant. He also worked to combat the philosophies of modernism and relativism, with relativism being something that pervasive now in our own day.  He died in 1914. He was canonized a saint in 1954.