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.
Suddenly a violent storm came up on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by waves; but he was asleep. They came and woke him, saying, "Lord, save us! We are perishing!" He said to them, "Why are you terrified, O you of little faith?" (Mt 8:23-27)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070423.cfm
Jesus doesn’t call us to live in fear—just the opposite. We live by faith in the one who calls us by name and journeys with us.
Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" (Jn 20:24-29)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070323.cfm
Despite centuries of preachers stating the opposite, the Fourth Gospel never says that Thomas touched the Risen Lord. Instead, Thomas gives us the highest confession of Jesus in all the New Testament: “My Lord and my God!” And wins a blessing for all of us to boot: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed."
We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life. If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. (Rom 6:3-4, 8-11)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070223.cfm
Baptism is the first step on our journey with Christ who calls us by name and plunges us into the mystery of his dying and rising. As the First Letter of Peter reminds us, we are a “chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation,” called to sing the praises of the One who has called us out of darkness into God’s wonderful light.
But the LORD said to Abraham: "Why did Sarah laugh and say, 'Shall I really bear a child, old as I am?' Is anything too marvelous for the LORD to do? At the appointed time, about this time next year, I will return to you, and Sarah will have a son." Because she was afraid, Sarah dissembled, saying, "I didn't laugh." But he replied, "Yes you did." (Gen 18:1-15)
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/070123.cfm
“Is anything too marvelous for the Lord to do?” Sarah’s laughter will become the child’s lasting legacy: he gets stuck with the name ‘Isaac,' which means, ‘he laughs.' Perhaps the Bible does have a sense of humor. As the Virgin Mary will sing in her hymn of praise, “The Almighty has done great things for me, Holy is his Name.”
We are so grateful for our wonderful trip to Eastern Europe: Germany, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Austria and Poland. Amidst the beautiful churches and architecture the lasting effects of human aggression and war can still be seen and sadly continue to occur in Ukraine. Our visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau (where over a million people were systematically put to death) was the most profound and disturbing part of this journey. But the wonderful people we met and our visits to the shrines of the Infant of Prague and Our Lady of Częstochowa reminded us that God is greater than the worst we humans can do and that we all have a duty of care for one another especially for the most vulnerable. Everywhere we saw signs of hope for humanity: at the Holocaust memorial in Warsaw next to the Polish banner were the banners of Ukraine and of the Rainbow.
