Readings for the Easter Vigil - Romans 6:3-11; Luke 24:1-12
We celebrate the culmination of the Life of Jesus of Nazareth and our own hope this day.  The stone has been rolled away!  The tomb is empty.  We are invited to look in and, like Peter before us, we are amazed!  But what, exactly, does this day mean to and for us?  How are our lives different because of it?  
Special thanks to all of those who have helped make this podcast a reality - and even more so, thank you to all of you who continue to listen, share and rate it.  I'm humbled and grateful for your presence.  Have a question or a comment?  Send them my way at [email protected]  Happy Easter!

Readings for the Feast of Palm Sunday - Isaiah 50:4-7;  Philippians 2:6-11;  Luke 19:28-40
We know the pattern.  And on this Feast of Palm Sunday, this is the one we don't like to hear nor talk about.  But it's half of the Pascal Mystery.  Christ has died.  Now if we were just talking about an historical event, that wouldn't be so hard.  Jesus did it for all of us and you and I just get to bask in the fruit of God's great act.  That's not a Catholic thought, my friends.  For we Catholics, we participate in this action.  We are another Christ, baptized into this same mission and if it's true for Jesus, it's true for us, too.  That's what makes this part so hard.  Death is a reality - in our world and in our life of faith.
Special thanks to all those who have made this podcast a reality (you know who you are!) - I cannot thank you enough.  And thank you to all of you for listening and sharing this podcast.  I'm beyond humbled.  Have a question or a comment?  Feel free to reach out at [email protected]

Readings for the 5th Sunday in Lent - Isaiah 43:16-21;  John 8:1-11
You know how some people have a face for radio?  You get to listen to a voice made for silence for a lengthy bit of time today - but, thanks be to God, the readings are worth it.  It can often be easy for us to fall into the trap of seeing God merely as someone who has acted in the past.  In doing so, we miss the beauty and the opportunity of God's action right here, right now in our midst.  God is not an event of the past, but a dynamic presence in the Present.  And he invites us to set aside those past notions and move into a new space - if only we have the courage to imagine and perceive it.  
Special thanks as always to Shamus, Bridget and Mandy, without whom this podcast would even be a thing.  And mostly, thanks to you for listening, for rating, for recommending this podcast.  I am continually humbled at the places it has gone and that is all because of you.  And yes, thank you for your patience during these past months when the drop schedule has been uneven.  I'm hoping that we are beyond that now.  Fingers crossed.  Have a question or a comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the Fourth Sunday (Laetare Sunday) of Lent - Joshua 5:9a, 10-12;  Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
Readings don't get much better than this.  They both focus upon and celebrate God's goodness and presence within our circumstances.  But they also remind us that there is work to do.  There is a journey to take.  We need to come to our senses.  During this 40 day movement of penitence and simplicity, fasting, almsgiving and prayer, we come up for a moment of relief.  A breath of fresh air.  We already live within the vision.  We just need to go that final mile.  
Special thanks to all of those who have made this podcast what it is - those who helped vision it and create it into being, and those who have walked w/ me in many and various ways along the path.  I am grateful.  I'm most grateful, however, for you who continue to listen and share this with others.  Thank you for your trust.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 3rd Sunday in Lent - Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15;  Luke 13:1-9
Lots of time spent in this podcast on the first reading which is so good.  Moses and the Burning Bush.  Yeah, kind of an important reading - but there is so much there.  Moses thought he was in a place where he couldn't be found.  A bush is burning but not consumed.  Moses makes a conscious decision to go nearer.  The ground is holy.  Every one of these points has something to say to you and I.  And I haven't even talked about the Gospel yet!  Time is short.  We can't afford to walk by those moments of encounter in our lives any more.
Special thanks to Bridget, Shamus and Mandy, without whom this podcast wouldn't even be a thing.  And thanks to all of you - for your patience as I work through this annoying problem with my host feed but also continuing to listen and share.  I'm so grateful.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the Second Sunday of Lent - Genesis 15:5-12; 17-18  Luke 9:28b-36
Most of the time, we go through life asleep.  This is not a put down, it's simply the truth.  We sleep walk through our days, our months, our years, our lives.  But there are those days when the scales fall from our eyes, when we have the wherewithal or the ability to break through the cloud and we awaken.  The veil parts and we see.  They are mountaintop experiences and we realize the imminence and greatness of our God.  And as long as we are able to remember, our lives are no longer the same.  Until we get drowsy again.  This weekend, our readings invite us to waken to the glory and humility of the Almighty One.
Special thanks to Bridget, Shamus and Mandy, without whom this podcast would be a thing.  But most of all, thanks to all of you.  Because of your listening, your rating, your sharing, people all over the world have joined in.  I'm so humbled and grateful.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 1st Sunday of Lent - Deuteronomy 26:4-10;  Luke 4:1-13
We hear the same story every 1st Sunday of Lent, with the only difference being whose version it is.  The story is the Temptation in the Desert and this year, we get Luke's perspective.  And like so many of the Gospel stories, we can read them and think of them merely as stories that happened to Jesus all those years ago, showing us His wisdom, strength and confirming Him as God's Beloved.  But we would be selling the Gospel short if that's how we hear it.  The stories may be about Jesus, but they are our stories, too.  Jesus is the pattern and shows us the way.  We walk in His footsteps. 
Special thanks, as always, to Shamus, Bridget and Mandy - for without them this podcast wouldn't be a reality, and it wouldn't sound like it does.  Mostly, thanks to you - for continuing to listen (especially during this time of not knowing when the podcasts will be dropped into your feeds!) and share them with others.  I'm grateful and humbled.  Have a question or a comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 8th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 1 Corinthians 15:54-58;  Luke 6:39-45
Listen, we all know that death is incredibly difficult and traumatic.  So what, exactly, is Paul talking about in 1 Corinthians and how can he make such a claim?  We then turn once again to the Gospel and Jesus's Sermon on the Plain, where Jesus invites us into another death of sorts.  And where we are invited is no easy journey.
Special thanks to Bridget and Shamus, without whom this podcast would not sound like it does or operate as it does.  And thanks to Mandy, without whom this podcast would even be a thing.  Mostly - thanks to all of you for listening, sharing and rating this pod.  I'm humbled at your trust and at the places this podcast has gone.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 7th Sunday in Ordinary Time - 1 Samuel 26:2, 7-9, 12-13, 22-23;  Luke 6:27-38
The Kingdom of God is not like the kingdoms we create as humans.  And if we try to fit our understanding of God and the teachings of the Kingdom into our current mode of thinking or our current structures, they just won't fit.  And if we force them in, they are no longer the teachings of Jesus.  They become made in our image, because we would rather have our agendas dictate the outcomes.  We do it all the time.  And it's tragic.
Special thanks to Bridget and Shamus - for setting me up in this space and making it better than I could have done on my own.  And thanks to Mandy for the inspiration.  Mostly - thanks to all of you for continuing to listen, share and rate this podcast.  I'm humbled and grateful.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]

Readings for the 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time - Jeremiah 17:5-8;  Luke 6:17, 20-26
Jesus invites us down to a level place and shares a hard truth with us.  And for many of us listening, it's a time to take a look in the mirror and see which side of the truth we've been living within.  But as with all things God, there is a fork in front of us today and we can choose which road we take.  
Special thanks, as always, to Shamus and Bridget - to whom I owe much in this podcast.  I also need to thank Mandy for her inspiration with the whole idea.  Of course, I'm most grateful to all of you for listening, rating and sharing this pod.  I'm incredibly humbled.  Have a question or comment?  I can be reached at [email protected]