Often as spring starts to roll around many of us look around at the parts of the house that you could use a little cleaning.  Maybe it's something we haven't used for a long time, or perhaps there are items that simply need to be recycled, repurposed, or regifted to another.  Whatever it is, the process is the same: we evaluate what we have and determine what should stay, and what needs to go.

The same process is true for our spiritual lives.  The 10 Commandments were given to the people of Israel to help them know how to live - to determine what needed to stay or go from their hearts.

In the Gospel, Jesus cleanses the Temple and teaches that his own body - a temple - will be destroyed and raised up.  This cleansing and the lesson of death/life is true for us as well.  Christ comes to cleanse our hearts, and through his death and resurrection he will not only purify our lives, but he will create a temple where he will dwell among us.

March 3, 2015 - Cathedral Rectory - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

The sacrifice of Isaac sounds truly terrible - that someone would offer their only beloved son.  It assaults our sense of goodness, human dignity, and respect...and this is an accurate assessment.

And yet this is exactly what God did for us.  The Father offers his beloved son as a sacrifice.  A working definition for "sacrifice" may be:

"to give up something because we believe in something greater"

Simply put, the depth of our sacrifices reveals the extent of our values, convictions, and love.  It is the love, revealed in the transfigured glory of Christ, which inspires us to offer our lives as a sacrifice for others.

March 1, 2015 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

This is the 3rd of 3 presentations given at a Parish Mission on February 22-24, 2015 at Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior, WI.  The third presentation discusses how we navigate change and challenge in the course of our lives.  How do we face trials and struggles?  How do we live - reacting to events, engaging them, or passively drifting along?  Four words are used to guide this presentation:

When we bring these different aspects together, we find that we live the gift of our lives with joy - not that life will be easy - but that we are attuned to bring our best effort to the Lord, who in turn will touch our lives with the grace we need.

February 24, 2015 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

This is the 2nd of 3 presentations given at a Parish Mission on February 22-24, 2015 at Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior, WI.  We look at three areas in life to determine our spiritual fitness:

Looking at these areas we ask three simple questions:

As we determine our fitness, we call upon the Lord to guide our efforts as we continue on our journey of faith.

February 23, 2015 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

This is the 1st of 3 presentations given at a Parish Mission on February 22-24, 2015 at Cathedral of Christ the King in Superior, WI.  Using the "Fruits of the Spirit" that St. Paul writes about in Galatians 5:22-23, we can look for these signs in our journey of faith:  Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Goodness, Faithfulness, Gentleness, and Self-Control.  We look for these "fruits" in four regions of our lives:

As we look for the signs of the Spirit in our lives, we can quickly and clearly observe God's hand at work in our hearts.

February 22, 2015 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

Christ's words in the Gospel of Mark are brief and to the point:

To do these two crucial points we look at three parts of our lives: thoughts, words, actions.  We evaluate these parts by three steps:

This simple sentence has the potential to quickly and decisively evaluate our Lenten journey.  

February 21, 2015 - St. William Church - Foxboro, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

The messy, dirty, grimy ashes on the outside remind us of the messy, dirty, grimy reality of sin in our hearts.  As we repent and believe in the Gospel, may we call upon the Lord to wash us clean with the grace of Jesus Christ.

February 18, 2014 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

Lent provides a powerful opportunity to grow closer to the Lord and one another.  Yet if we are unprepared we will miss much that this holy season has to offer.

This homily offers practical tips and tools to direct our path.  Use this for a simple starting point to make this the best Lent ever!

Originally given on March 2, 2013 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

Suffering not only affects us individually, but relationally as well.  The four categories described last week may touch our relationships in some of these ways:

Like the leper in the Gospel of Mark today, we can reclaim the healing we need in our lives and the relationships around us.  Here are three things to consider:

February, 15, 2015 - Cathedral of Christ the King - Superior, WI

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com

 This is the 1st of 3 talks given at a Parish Mission on the Eucharist at St. Dominic Church in Frederic, WI on March 8, 2014.

This first talk draws on the Gospel story of Emmaus (Luke 24:1-35) and the writing of St. Justin Martyr.  It then outlines the teaching and command of Jesus to receive the Body of Christ so that we become the Body of Christ. 

Fr. Andrew Ricci

studyprayserve.com

For more podcasts go to "Catholic Inspiration" in iTunes.

or www.threegreatthings.libsyn.com