Beloved, you are faithful in all you do for the brothers and sisters, especially for strangers; they have testified to your love before the Church. (3 JN 5-8)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/111624.cfm
There was a time when basic goodness was instilled in us at home, at church, and at school. Unfortunately, we don’t live in those times anymore. I’ll never forget the elderly lady I used to visit when I was a young priest. She was talking about growing up Catholic in a racist community where the Ku Klux Klan was very visible. She said to me: “Father, there was a time when we Catholics and Blacks were in the same boat. We’re not there anymore, and we’ve lost something.” The Blessed Virgin Mary reminds us that she is the Mother of us all.
These reflections are a result of more than 40 years of ministry as a Roman Catholic priest. Most of these years I spent in the Diocese of Charlotte which covers Western North Carolina. Now I am retired, and live in Medellín, Colombia where I continue to serve as a priest in the Archdiocese of Medellín.
Saturday of the Blessed Virgin Mary, November 16
