Pilgrim Priest

All Saints Day • St. Philip Neri was called the "Second Apostle of Rome." Most people in Rome in the 1500's were infatuated with worldly pleasures and the pursuit of power, fame, and wealth. They had decided being a Christian was boring. But there was one little problem: even though they had all grown up Catholic, most people had never met an actual Christian. Philip showed people that living for Christ was the most exciting adventure and the most fulfilling life.

Nowadays, most people have decided that Christianity is boring. They would much rather spend their energy on other things. But have they ever really met a Christian?

(1 Nov 2023)

Going Deeper: Have you experienced the joy of living for Jesus? How do you share that joy with others?

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Ordinary Time, 30th Sunday (A) We should love God and neighbor. But what do we mean by love? Too often the words, "I love you," actually mean, "You make me feel good," or "You look useful to me." Since God is love, we can only really learn true love from God himself.

For God, love is sacrifice. The crucifix is the most perfect image of true love. The Christian faith is powered by the living experience of God's love. Priesthood, fundamentally, is about helping people fall in love with a Person that they cannot see.

We as Christians are meant to incarnate the love of Jesus. When we fall in love with Jesus, and love others as Jesus loves us, then we make the invisible love of God visible to the people around us.

(29 Oct 2023)

Going Deeper: The Latin word for love was so corrupted by pagan sexual practices that Christians had to invent a new word, caritas (charity) to translate the Greek, agape. What words would you use to describe the way God loves us?

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Ordinary Time, 29th Sunday (A) The king of Persia doesn't know God but finds himself an agent of God's plan to restore the Jews. The leaders of Israel know the true God, but refuse to cooperate with His plans. If Jesus really speaks the truth, shouldn't they be listening to him? Cesar is not a god, but God allows him to exercise power, so we should obey him.

What in nature as stamped in God's own image? We are! We who bear the image of God should be giving ourselves back to God. What will you do with the gift that is you? By living stewardship, we give ourselves back to God. How am I using the Time God gives me in ways that do not glorify Him? Are my Talents being used to bless others? When it comes to Treasure, how much do I want God to bless me? Go and do the same.

(22 Oct 2023)

Going Deeper: If you are part of the Antigo Area Catholic Churches, fill out your Stewardship Renewal card and turn it in. You can also fill it out online. See the links at AntigoAreaCatholicChurches.com

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Ordinary Time, 28th Sunday (A) The Wedding Feast of the Lamb is the greatest invitation we could possibly receive. So why does it seem that no one can be bothered to respond?

Let me share with you my vision of heaven. Picture a playground where all the children get along and play nice. God can easily build a playground where no one will be hurt or die. He cannot, however, keep us from hurting each other. That's why you will only be allowed to enter the playground when your heart is completely free of sin. God allows terrible things here so we will reject sin and evil.

Christians must show the world how to be God's beloved little children. Every Sunday, God throws a wedding feast for his Son. Many ignore the invitation and go away, one to his farm, another to his business. We who come to Holy Mass must allow our hearts to be changed on the inside.

(15 Oct 2023)

Going Deeper: In what ways is your heart ready for God's kingdom? In what ways is transformation still needed?

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Ordinary Time, 27th Sunday (A) All parishioners are asked to turn in a stewardship pledge card on October 22nd. Our annual commitment to Stewardship is not about giving more, but being more intentional about what we give. Am I truly grateful for the gifts God has given me? Am I using those gifts in a way that glorifies God and blesses others? This is a question we don't just answer one time.

Today's Gospel shows us tenants who have started to think they own the vineyard. All the produce belongs to the Master, but the tenants can keep some of it. They want to keep it all. They go so far as to kill the Master's son.

I recently had a run-in with turkeys who thought they were the boss of the place. Be a good steward, not a turkey.

(8 Oct 2023)

Going Deeper: Have you been getting pushy or anxious? Review your use of Time, Talent, and Treasure.

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Ordinary Time, 26th Sunday (A) The chief priests and the elders of the people are living lives of selfishness and vainglory. Would you rather have a priest who tried to be good, even if he didn't always succeed, or a priest who was just good at looking good?

When a bunch of guys get together, we tend to compare, compete, and complain. We all want to look good, so if I'm not looking good, it must be someone else's fault. Instead, can I see the face of Jesus in other priests? Can I be the face of Jesus to my brother priests.

Just like priests, many Catholics have responded to God's call with, "Yes, sir!"--but we didn't go work in the vineyard. Fortunately, God gives second chances if we are willing to be humble. You have a new opportunity this week to go work in the Father's vineyard.

(1 Oct 2023)

Going Deeper: When have I gotten stuck on my own appearance in the eyes of others? When have I been able to simply love and serve as God serves me?

Oriens: A Pilgrimage Through Advent and Christmas 2023 on sale now!

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Ordinary Time, 25th Sunday (A) It's not fair! We are perfectly happy with our lot in life until we compare ourselves with others. I feel blessed and grateful that I get to live here and serve all of you. Until I look at other priests and think, "He's got a better deal than me."

God is generous. We need to be grateful and not envious. Bishop Barron reminds us: "One of the most fundamental statements of faith is this: your life is not about you. You’re not in control. This is not your project. Rather, you are part of God’s great design. To believe this in your bones and act accordingly is to have faith. When we operate out of this transformed vision, amazing things can happen, for we have surrendered to a power already at work in us that can do 'far more than all we ask or imagine.' Even a tiny bit of faith makes an extraordinary difference."

St. Paul and St. Ignatius of Loyola have both reached the place of complete indifference. They trust God completely to do what is best. Take good care of your corner of God's kingdom. Your reward will be out of this world!

(24 Sep 2023)

Going Deeper: Reflect on the First Principle and Foundation of St. Ignatius of Loyola:

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Ordinary Time, 24th Sunday (A) Sometimes, we must do things that are counter-intuitive. When out water-skiing, don't pull the handle closer to your body. If you feel isolated and disconnected, you need less screen time, not more. If you worry what people will think of you, then you need less control, not more.

Forgiving my brother is counter-intuitive. Yet Jesus knows that we can't give our own lives the security, value, and love that we desire. The tighter I cling to my own ego, the more I make myself responsible for my own security and value. And the worse it gets. Forgiving others helps me to slide back into the sweet spot of gratitude and generosity.

(17 Sep 2023)

Going Deeper: Spend a few minutes talking to Jesus about what is on your mind and heart. Let yourself become more rooted in Him.

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Ordinary Time, 23rd Sunday (A) The Lord be with you! It is easy for us to forget that God is with us every day. Christmas reminds us that God-is-with-us, not just for 33 years, but forever. The Eucharist reminds us that the Word becomes flesh, and not only in our churches, but also within us.

Remain in His love! If I want to truly love others, I must first allow God to love me. From that place of being loved by God, I am able to truly love others.

Judgement and mercy go hand-in-hand in the heart of Jesus. God judges the wicked and invites them to new life. We must call out bad behavior and also invite people to true life.

If my brother sins against me... I remain in God's love. The door is open, mercy is offered, but I need to love him from a distance. I'm not going to let my brother's negativity move me out of God's love.

(10 Sep 2023)

Going Deeper: Where or how have you experienced God's love? What helps you to remain in his love?

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Ordinary Time, 22nd Sunday (A) What do you think, what do you feel, when you hear the words, "God's will"? If you have a negative reaction, then you have something in common with the prophet Jeremiah. His life was so hard that he becomes a foreshadowing, a prophecy, of the Christ.

Last week, we learn that Jesus is The Christ. This week he reveals that he will be a sacrifice, not a successful and powerful earthly king. Jesus does not see God's will as an outside imposition on his freedom, but rather as a path that leads to true life.

We too are made to be a sacrifice. "Man cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of

(3 Sep 2023)

Going Deeper: Prayerfully reflect on Paragraph 24 from Lumen Gentium:

24. God, Who has fatherly concern for everyone, has willed that all men should constitute one family and treat one another in a spirit of brotherhood. For having been created in the image of God, Who "from one man has created the whole human race and made them live all over the face of the earth" (Acts 17:26), all men are called to one and the same goal, namely God Himself.

For this reason, love for God and neighbor is the first and greatest commandment. Sacred Scripture, however, teaches us that the love of God cannot be separated from love of neighbor: "If there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.... Love therefore is the fulfillment of the Law" (Rom. 13:9-10; cf. 1 John 4:20). To men growing daily more dependent on one another, and to a world becoming more unified every day, this truth proves to be of paramount importance.

Indeed, the Lord Jesus, when He prayed to the Father, "that all may be one. . . as we are one" (John 17:21-22) opened up vistas closed to human reason, for He implied a certain likeness between the union of the divine Persons, and the unity of God's sons in truth and charity. This likeness reveals that man, who is the only creature on earth which God willed for itself, cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of himself.

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