Messages From Father Steve
The Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time November 12, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 11/10/23
Lately I’ve been enjoying the deep meaning of Eastern icons. I love how they express a tapestry of meaning in a way that can surpass the written or spoken word. Today’s parable of the ten virgins from Jesus is a good example. Try googling “wise and foolish virgins icon” ... Read More »
The Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time November 5, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 11/03/23
Last Easter season a new convert to Catholicism at my parish asked me with a grave tone in her voice: “Why do we call priests ‘father’ if Jesus says, ‘Call no man on earth your father, for you have one Father, who is in heaven’?” Thinking myself clever, I ... Read More »
The Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time October 29, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 10/27/23
In our secularized culture, we all struggle with belief in God, at least to some degree. An atheist man named Robert Bridges once wrote to his friend, the Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins, asking how he could possibly learn to believe in God. Hopkins pithilyresponded: “Give alms.” Would that ... Read More »
The Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time October 22, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 10/20/23
With little more than a year until the United States’ national elections, I find myself feeling, like many Catholics, both dread and energized. Dread, because our democratic republic can be a messy endeavor and campaigns a long, nasty, and unedifying slog; energized, because hope for positive societal change can ... Read More »
The Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time October 15, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 10/14/23
I confess that I have a soft spot for the scary things Jesus says because they are usually ignored. But there’s gold in them thar hills, if we have courage to look. This week Jesus gives us a terrifying warning in his parable about the king who gives a ... Read More »
The Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time October 8, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 10/07/23
Jesus’ parables are much stranger than most people realize. This week is an attention-getting example. He tells the religious leaders a parable about a completely absurd situation. Blood-thirsty and insane tenants violently abuse and kill the servants of their landlord. Inexplicably, the owner keeps sending them more victims of ... Read More »
The Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time October 1, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 9/30/23
A life-long Catholic friend of mine recently mumbled to me, “I can’t stand all these converts to the faith. They’re always rocking the boat.” It surprised me because he is dedicated to evangelization, and yet he struggles with openness to new Catholics. It made me realize how easily I ... Read More »
The Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time September 24, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 9/23/23
Once I gave my three-year-old niece a certain toy for Christmas. When she opened it, she was happy. Shortly thereafter her five-year old sister opened another present from me: the same toy, along with some play jewelry. The three-year-old cried out: “That’s not fair!Why’d she get the jewelry, too?!”
... Read More »
The Twenty-fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time September 17, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 9/16/23
When I was in second grade, my prized possession was a metal Star Wars-themed lunch box. After school one day, another student ripped it from my hands. I helplessly watched in horror as my classmate threw it to the ground and violently stomped it into an unrecognizable heap of ... Read More »
The Twenty-third Sunday in Ordinary Time September 10, 2023
Posted by Nancy Carrizales on 9/09/23
What are you supposed to do about the bad behavior of the people around you? You know who I’m talking about. That family member, friend, coworker, or acquaintance who is quite immoral. On this front there are two lively options in our culture: bash the person to others (probably ... Read More »