Rich Thoughts

A reflection on spirituality -- and humor -- of one of my patron saints! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Grade-school students from all over the country and all over the world came to Knoxville for the Destination Imagination global finals. Their presence made for a very energetic Pentecost celebration! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville)

Paul and Silas go through a lot of hardship as they proclaim the gospel, yet it's probably not their WORDS that bring people to the faith! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Jesus' farewell discourse in John is a great match for Mothers' Day and UT's commencement exercises! How do we "lay down" our lives for others? (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

The Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15, c. 50 AD) is seen as a precursor to the great ecumenical councils. It's not just a long-ago event; it's also the first time that we faced questions of unity vs. uniformity! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Paul's missionary journey (Acts 14:19-28) makes a great backdrop as we offer an end-of-the-year blessing to our FOCUS missionaries. We mention Andrea in particular, who is moving on to another assignment. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Jesus says, "bear much fruit and become my disciples." That sounds backward to us. Don't we have to become his disciples before we can bear fruit? (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Mark Twain said: "I'm all for progress; it's change that I can't stand." How can we tell if what we think should be done is true progress, or if it's a turn for the worse? Pius V must have struggled with this a lot! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Catherine of Siena felt called by God at an early age. Thank goodness she was a mystic, because her initial interpretation of that call was apparently far off from God's plan for her! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

St. Peter Chanel and St. Paul both had to wait YEARS before they got to be missionaries. Perhaps your worries about not getting to pursue your dreams are a bit premature…. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Some extremely practical advice about growing in holiness in a time of transition -- be it to a weekend, a summer vacation, or a retirement. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Two easy-to-misinterpret Scripture passages (Acts 4:32-37 and John 3:7-15). The Church sees great good in Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, and especially Judaism! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

We are all called to proclaim the gospel, to be evangelizers. How do we do that? It's simpler than you may think! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Acts 4:32 sure seems to be an endorsement of communism. What does the Church have to say about forms of government? A look at the riches of Catholic Social Teaching. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

The spirituality of reconciliation is like motherhood and apple pie: everyone likes it; not everyone wants to work for it. How do we carry out God's work of forgiving people who have terribly hurt us? (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Applying Erik Erikson's existential questions of adolescence, young adulthood, and middle adulthood to today's gospel passage… and sharing a bit about my father. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

St. Joseph is the ultimate model of how to live a life of daily holiness: he had to discern the will of God each and every day of his life, just like us! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Who is Jesus Christ to you? We're each supposed to have a personal relationship with him! The Gospel of John and St. Cyril of Jerusalem give us some ideas. (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

Deuteronomy 4 and Matthew 5 both speaking of the importance of teaching, but the Law can be so hard to understand! Perhaps the best thing to do is to teach with humility instead of with boldness! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)

The tension between recognizing our unworthiness and God's mercy. When in doubt, rely on God's mercy! (St. John XXIII Parish, Knoxville, TN)