Blog of the Archdiocese of Washington
In yesterday’s Gospel we pondered some teachings about authority from the Lord. Among His teachings was that authority is necessary and that, other things being equal, a Christian is bound to submit to lawful authority, both in the Church and, regarding temporal affairs, to lawful authority in this world. In the Church there is a …
As the great English Catholic G.K. Chesterton once wrote, “Angels can fly because they take themselves so lightly.” Chesterton was trying to be witty, of course, but his point was that humility is a hallmark of holiness- both for angels, and for us. Consider an episode from the life of Dorothy Day, founder of the …
I just viewed the First Episode of Catholicism with my Bible Study Students. The series, as many of you already know, is fabulous and I cannot recommend it enough. In the First 20 minutes Fr. Barron goes right to the heart of the faith and makes it clear that Jesus is God, He is the …
Most Catholics are unaware of how our traditional church buildings are based on designs given by God himself. Designs that stretch all the way back to Mount Sinai when God set forth the design for the sanctuary in the desert and the tent of meeting. Many of the fundamental aspects of our church layouts still …
In today’s Gospel the Lord firmly sets before us the need for the Cross, not as an end in itself, but as the way to glory. Lets consider the Gospel in three stages. I. The Pattern that is Announced – The text says, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem …
Looks like were all going to be “treated” to a new series on the Discovery Channel wherein British Physicist Stephen Hawking will ponder theological and philosophical questions. A rather strange thing for a scientist to do actually. I have no doubt that Stephen Hawking is a fine, even a brilliant scientist and theoretical physicist. But …
Earlier this week, God reminded me that he has a sense of humor. It happened as I was beginning to prepare this very homily. I was reading today’s gospel and thinking about what to preach, but nothing immediately came to mind. I began to get impatient. And that’s where the joke comes in. Because the …
At one level “human respect” seems a good thing. After all we ought to respect, honor and appreciate one another. What then is meant by the “sin of human respect?” At its core, the sin of human respect is that sin wherein we fear man more than God; where we more concerned with what people …
Continue reading “On Overcoming the Sin of Human Respect through the Fear of the Lord”